Manage Like A $1 Store

How do dollar stores separate themselves? Can't be price. Can't be value. Can't even be location if there are a couple in close proximity. So what makes one dollar store more appealing than the next dollar store?

The difference is measured right away by how it feels when you walk into the store. Here are a few differentiators:

• Some stores feel organized and professional while in other stores it feels like they've just willy-nilly put stuff anywhere there is an opening.
• Some stores have sourced better suppliers to bring customers a better selection and perhaps even better quality while other stores stock their shelves with bottom-quality, low-end crap.
• Some stores have better staff members who know how to be available in the aisles and to ask questions when customers look perplexed while other stores' staff seem like it's a bother to be at work and do just enough to not get fired - on a good day.
• Some stores hold out for the right employee while other stores hire the first warm body available (there's a reason they were available).
• Some stores welcome customers right up until closing time and don't lock the doors until after hours while other stores remind you that they will be closing in a half hour before you've even fully set foot inside the store.
• Some stores offer generous refund policies and swap out returns without question while others make sure to stamp "All Sales Final" on the back of each receipt - warning you to not even bother to try to return something defective.
• Some stores are open when their customers are available while other stores close at the same time that their customers are getting home from work.
• Finally, (and it's the best one) some stores believe that they are the standard to which other dollar-retailers will be measured while other stores run their business like it's a garage sale.

Given that all things are potentially equal in the dollar-store game, what separates the good ones from the bad ones are Attitude factors: ease of service, friendly staff, accommodating hours, easy return policies, welcoming environment and people who seem genuinely happy to be there.

How you manage your department, your team or your organization is reflected in the "feeling" one gets when they step into your domain, your department or your business. How your people handle customers is a perfect reflection of how they are managed. How engaged your employees are is in direct proportion to how they are managed. But always remember, it's the attitude factors that are most important. Manage well.
--
Kevin Burns - Management Attitude/Culture Strategist
http://www.kevburns.com

Creator of Filter-Free Fridays™
Creator of the 90-Day System To A Greatness Culture™

Coming Soon Kevin's 8th Book - "Your Attitude Sucks - Finding Your Excellence In A Wasteland of Mediocrity