I get it. It’s shopping, the old-fashioned way. A good thing. Something, worth supporting.
But… a pencil -- standard issue # 2?
This is 2009, the era of client-driven marketing.
Does service really matter to customers purchasing a single pencil? More than convenience, price or fighting the impulse purchase as you push the cart down the school supply aisle at Safeway?
Perhaps it's time to update. Switch out “pencil” for something 2009.
Where on the continuum of 2009 office supply needs would "service" trump all for you?
Something between staple remover and laptop?
Posts
2 comments:
I think service can be differentiator for certain products and businesses. One thing remains true...bad service will hurt you. Just read some reviews on yelp.com and see how many people complain about service...even if the store's product selection is great.
Personally, this holds for me. But with the internet, I've become less merchant loyal, and more of a price shopper. There is no face, no voice to many smaller online retailers, but I also look at their customer rating prior to hitting the "buy" button. So service does still play a part, albeit a smaller one.
Maybe not for a single pencil, but if I know the owner of the store, if I have a real relationship with them, if they will special order a product for me and call me when it's in, or even just call me to let me know they have a new shipment of my favorite kind of pencil, I will go to that store to buy the product even if it is more expensive than a big box store.
For me, it's not always about price. If the experience is good, I'll be back for more.
Post a Comment