What's wrong with our shopkeepers?

Ruapehu Bulletin, Volume 15, Issue 693, 1 July 1997, Page 8

What's wrong with our shopkeepers?

By

David

Squires

Some say the boss in some Waimarino shops is often the worst at dealing with customers. it seems the more someone needs training in customer relations, the less likely they are to do so. Kiwi Host tutor David Squires gives his view on why Waimarino shop people need to look at themselves:

I often get asked questions about Kiwi Host, but more frequently, people tell me about local shopkeepers who should go on the course. Here in Raetihi and Ohakune few, if any, of the shopkeepers have done Kiwi Host. Some say they already know it all, others say they won't send staff on courses because they only leave and it's a waste of money. Well, whatever they think, it's no excuse for the number of stories I am told about the bad service people have received around town. Of course it's not all doom and gloom, but if only those who run businesses realised that it's just as easy to give good service as it is to give bad service, visitors andlocals would be able to enjoy their shopping here, instead of driving out of town. What sort of things do people complain about? Mostly it's what I call customer indifference. In some shops the shopkeepers and staff just don't seem to care about the customer's needs. They are more concerned with just taking the money, no smiles, no greetings, no offer of help. Sometimes they act like they just can't be bothered to serve you. Groceries are left on shelves with their use-by dates clearly long past, sometimes without dates at all. I even had one report of a shop-owner putting such an item back on the shelf again after a customer had pointed this out to them! Similar things have happened with defective goods. In some shops, locals are taken for granted, and familiarity becomes the excuse for poor service. Fortunately a few of the shop assistants have taken the trouble to attend a Kiwi Host course, and go out of their way to make people feel good. That's what brings the customers back. Kiwi Host is all about customer service and communication. There is a small part of the course which deals with the things visitors can see and do here, but if you

think about it, this is also a part of customer service anyway. One thing is for sure, if people stop coming here because of bad service, they will go somewhere else, and that means shops and businesses have a hard time making any profit at all. Worse still, there is less and less employment opportunity for our children and ourselves. It's time we gave a bit more thought to our local customers and visitors. Customer service starts with attitude and ends with attitude. Like many other aspects of management, attitude comes from the top, in this case the shop owner. Staff see how their employer behaves towards customers. Some are appalled, others may think that if it's okay for the boss to do it, then it's okay for me to be the same. Hardly a good example for the young person starting their first job and, worse still, these attitudes harden with age. And it's no good blaming customers either. What goes around comes around. Give good service and you get 'good' customers. Respect is a two-way street. Kiwi Host training is designed to lead even those with the worst attitudes through a programme of communication with the customer, beginning with simple greetings and remembering customer's names. It deals with the importance of first impressions and how these influence each subsequent point of contact with the customer. This leads on to look at how we communicate effectively, including active listening skills, and dealing with complaints. Over 95,000 people throughout New Zealand have attended Kiwi Host courses as well as Kiwi Host for managers, super service, and more recently, cultural Kiwi Host. The latter course which was launched this year helps people develop a better understanding of visitors from other countries as well as our own cultural and ethnic groups living in New Zealand. Anyone interested in taking part in a Kiwi Host course can phone David Squires on 06 3854399 at Raetihi. If it's common sense, why isn't it common practice to serve people properly?