Last evening dated 06 February, 2014, attended the 17th Session of PHCF (Mughal Chapter) with the topic “Retailscape In Pakistan”. It was a great experience; The keynote speakers Mr. Shahid Hussain (CEO Services Sales Corporation Pvt. Ltd.) & Mr. Nadeem Rehmani (VP & Operations Director Metro Cash & Carry) briefing towards retail sector of Pakistan was awesome. Both of the speakers share the retail models of their organizations and then highlighted the fact that how retail industry of Pakistan will flourish. What challenges they are facing and how they are dealing with those challenges. They describe how important is the supply chain area, replenishment and merchandising for retail network. Especially I personally like Mr. Shahid Hussian quote that the most important three things in the organization are People, People & People.
One thing that I personally felt that both of the gurus gave the low rating to Customer Services, their focus are more on other functional and operational processes of retail. Yes retailers are part of an integrated system called the supply chain, along with this all other functions and operations are also equally important; But Retail is all about Customer, and all the Ps of marketing mix are aimed for their ultimate target that is the Buyer / Customer. Buying decisions are often driven by the 3 P's; Price, Product and People. While prices are negotiable and product is interchangeable, a weak link in a 'People' department is a sure fire way to slowdown the progress of any retail model / business.
As we see that in Pakistan and also globally the brand loyalties die a little every day and especially in the retail field. It's not uncommon for a shopper to take a leap, after years of loyalty simply due to poor Customer Service. The market is competitive enough for them to do so. Shoppers with high buying power and shoppers who only have the buying power of their needs, both are now a lot more choosey with where they spend their earned money and they want to ensure that they are getting the most stretch out of their spending. This stretch includes how well they are treated by the staff. That is why a-part of having renowned brand, a-part of well-designed product, a-part of right time deliveries still we need “SALE” promotions; some organizations provided the name “seasonal sales” and some named it “weekend deals”.
These gammix are required for getting competitive edge but believe me people are so accustomed to mediocre service that any additional effort to improve the quality of the service can seem extraordinary in the eyes of the Customer. Even the basics like eye contact, using please and thank you and addressing your customer by name can set you light-years apart from your competitors. In both of the described retails models who work with low and medium margins have to play with quantities; higher the selling quantity will raise the profitability. But where to liquidate these huge quantities; who will help them to achieve their targets; who will push them to make better plan and budgets for next season; who will make them to think the balance between supply and demand. Yes it is the important element of business called Customer / Consumer. I always use this quote while in my trainings of sales associates that instead of selling a product try to win the customer because with your win you will get the emotional bank account and you can sell anything you name it. In the last I end my note with the statement that if the competitive price of the product is in line, customer service adds perceived value, making your company a better choice for the consumer.
~Khawaja Imran
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