If you are a retailer reading this blog, we will be controversial and repeat the question – do you agree that customer service at retail is dead? We would argue that you shouldn’t worry about this and here is why.
Over the past two decades, the boom in technology and digitization has led retailers to leverage technology to reduce labour costs. But the dream to digitize processes at retail has come at the expense of customer experience. Yet, instead of caring, this continues.
Remember the days of clerks who bagged your food, attendants who pumped your gas and a friendly exchange at the checkout counter? Well, that has been replaced by self-checkout, self- serve, and automation. Regardless of the type of store, customers have felt the effects in their experiences. Some Canadian retailers have heeded the warning, with Canadian Tire being a great example. This company has completely removed self-checkout from six of their stores.
Still, even the EY Future Consumer Index Survey revealed that more than half of Canadian consumers are moving away from their favorite brands (retailers and manufacturers) in favour of affordability.
In fact, the survey revealed that:
49% of Canadians surveyed said brands aren’t even important to them anymore and 58% are taking action to reduce non-essential spending. Where Canada is concerned there were some other interesting statistics regarding consumer spending in this country:
So maybe customer service is dead because, when compared with price, it truly doesn’t matter to consumers anymore.
A price-based model means cheaper prices and higher volume sales. Here, manufacturers can face unique challenges at these lower cost retailers because product flies off the shelf before retail staff have a chance to restock it. Manufacturers cannot compete in this space without secondary provisions for merchandising. You simply can’t rely on the retailer, never mind diminished sales and lost brand loyalty from customers who find your product out of stock. You could even wind up being delisted from the retailer themselves.
It is clear that different retailers are taking distinctly different approaches to how they handle customer service and the customer experience. As a brand, it’s up to you to adapt and ensure you are proactively contributing to your customer having positive experiences when purchasing your product.
For more information on improving your customers’ experience at retail please visit www.marketsupport.ca.
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