Customer Service Initiative Anatomy of a sales counter

By Mike Dandridge

55fT'S really not your fault." she lsaid. "But this counter looks like a crime scene."

One of Carol's responsibilities was to oversee the sales counters of the different branches. When we remodeled our store, she had designed and merchandised our showroom. It looked fantastic. And now. just six short months later, it looked - well, less than fantastic.

"We've been busy," I explained.

"You know what'anatomy' means?" she asked, ignoring my rationalization.

"Uh, yeah. Sure. I mean...what?"

"Webster defines it as 'dealing with the structure of organisms.' And an organism refers to 'a complex structure of interdependent elements whose relations and properties are largely determined by their function in the whole."'

"Okay?"

"A sales counter is like that. It's made up of interdependent elements-like product, display systems, and sales people - that all function together to make a successful whole. Get all of the elements right, and your counter is right."

"So where do we begin?"

"First, let's take a walk in your customer's shoes. We're going to create a virtual tour, like the home tours on the realtors' Web sites."

Following Carol's instruction, I stood at the customer entrance and with video camera in hand, slowly turned in an arc, filming the counter showroom from left to right. Then, as we hooked the camera up to a monitor, I asked, "Why am I filming what I can plainly see with my own eyes?"

"For two reasons. First, it removes you from the experience. You'll see things on the monitor that you wouldn't notice 'with your own eyes.' Second. it creates a two-dimensional image that allows to you to see the preferably before your branch is open. stand at the customer entrance and take in a 360" view of your store. Close your eyes and see what images linger in your mind's eye. This is your customer's first impression of your store. Do the displays seem logical and orderly? Or clunered and chaotic? If you have access to a video camera. create a "virtual tour." Play the video on a monitor for all of the other store personnel. Invite suggestions and critiques. This removes your personal connection and objectifies the process.

'focal points' of your sales area." Watching the video. I understood what she meant. In some areas. the merchandise was so crammed together it seemed cluttered. In other places. products were scattered leaving wideopen spaces. Coffee grounds ran down the front of a trashcan. A lamp kiosk was half empty. Yellow wire nuts from a torn bag were loosely scattered across a display. One of the baskets that held rolls of tape doubled as a trash bin filled with crumpled candy wrappers.

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Z. \I'alk - Next. turn to your right and take a few steps. That's exactly what most of your customers will do. What do you see in this area? Is it something of interest to the customer? Ideally. you want the floor layout to encourage customers to walk through your entire sales area. The strategic location for the counter itself is in the center toward the back of the showroom or to the far left of the entrance. Locate the popcorn machine in a different part of the store than the coffee bar and the vending machines.

.l a I. Blink - Early in the morning.

"You're right. It does look like a crime scene."

"It's hard to read the label when you're stuck inside the bottle." said Carol.

We spent the rest of the day studying the patterns that customers follow. She showed me techniques for leading them through the counter showroom. Whenever I feel I'm "stuck inside the bottle," I pull out the notes from that day and take a walk in my customer's shoes. Here's the six-step procedure to follow.

J. Bronse - Strategies and tactics for displaying merchandise can promote rapid product sales and growth. Take a hands-on approach during the displaying of the merchandising. If a design specialist is responsible for physically putting out the products, offer to help. Later. when it's time to refill the displays, you will better remember how because you've already done it. Pull product to the front of the hook or the edge of the shelf.

Display smaller items slightly above eye level. Display larger items toward the bottom. The exception to this rule applies to all of the popular hand tools. such as side-cuning pliers. needle-nose pliers. and diagonal cut- ters. Always position these and similar items at eye level. Take digital photographs of finished displays. Print the photos and keep them in a file folder to use as reference tools for maintaining the displays.

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{. Look up! - Efficient lighting is critical in the counter area, both as a sales tool and as a showcase for your lamp products. Lighting is a major element in creating the atmosphere of your store. Look up. Most distributors still use lay-ins for general lighting. Look for black shadows and replace all burned out lamps. Look at the wall displays from left to right, as you would read a book. Watch for poorly lit, empty or blank spaces. Use track lighting or wall washers to fill in or highlight certain product displays. This can also serve as a representative selection ofthe lighting you sell.

5. Slt - Take a seat at the counter. Consider the items you want to display there. Avoid cluttering with so many impulse items that they get in the way of the sales transaction. A comfortable margin is to leave a three-foot radius for the point of sale. When a customer asks about a prod- uct displayed on the wall behind the counter, place the product in the customer's hand while answering the question. This gives the customer a feeling of ownership and allows a closer view of the product. Of course, some distributors intentionally don't have stools for their customers, the idea being to discourage loitering. This is a big mistake unless the goal is to decrease counter business. Most electricians work on their feet all day and if they can't find a place to sit down at your counter, they'll go sit at the counter of your competitor.

O. gxit - Finally. on your way out from the sales counter, examine all of your signage. Signs can deliver a message about your product or your company. Overhead signs are useful for showing customers where products are located. Signs with pictures of people using the tools you sell add a human element to your merchandising. Remove any faded, torn, or outof-date signs. Handwritten signs look cheap and unprofessional. Replace them with custom-made signs or reprint them from your computer's printer. Rotate or replace product posters two to three times during year.