Hardware Retailing The Industry's Source for Insights and Information
Learn some lessons from Lowe’s and Ace Hardware — make shopping more efficient for your customers this year, and improve their overall experience with your business, an article from Forbes recommends.
Ace Hardware and Lowe’s both have strategies that have helped “de-stupidify” store customer service, making shopping more efficient for shoppers to figure out, the article says.
For example, Ace Hardware offers store layouts that are simple for customers to figure out for themselves, with logical product groupings and signs, the article says.
And Lowe’s MyLowe’s tool makes shopping easier by storing product purchase histories online so shoppers can find warranties, paint colors and other information for items they already own while they’re at the store, the article says.
“Compare this to asking the Lowe’s clerk du jour, ‘Do you remember that power drill I bought 18 months ago? I need a new screwdriver attachment that will fit it. Sorry, I didn’t bring it with me,'” the article says.
You don’t need to be a big box store to make shopping more efficient and customer service better for consumers.
Some of the steps recommended in the article would be easy for any retailer to take, such as making sure your business has a “physical, GPS-friendly address” listed on your website instead of a P.O. box, so shoppers don’t have to call for directions.
“You need to ruthlessly and creatively hunt down these time-wasters yourself for the sake of your customers,” the article says.
To read the complete article, click here.
