Hello,
In order to get to their curent successful position they may:
1. Have excellent customer service, by being extremely courteous,
greeting customers by first name as they enter the shop, pay for goods
and showing respect even to the most awkward of customers ‘the
customer is always right’
2. Have excellent product knowledge, the customer knowing their
recommendation or advice is trustworthy.
3. Be impartial, not necessarily recommending their own products but
of competitors thereby imparting even more trust so the customer knows
they will not be subject to hard selling or sales pressure.
4. Engage in genuine friendly casual conversation with the customer
(meaning more than the rather manufactured 'have a nice day' message
from bigger chains)
5. Have high standards for stock control ensuring needed goods are
always on the shelf
6. Have an efficient and satisfactory complaints procedure should
anything go wrong and have a quibble free product exchange.
7. Have a range of specialised / local products and produce not
available anywhere else.
8. Have a more engaging purchasing experience over the less personal
retail design spaces of larger chains e.g. tidier isles, carefully
positioned boxes, more intimate lighting, a more exclusive, luxurious
or ‘by gone era’ feel atmosphere over the replicated larger 'pile them
high sell them cheap' stores.
9. May cater for the specific needs of the local residents, e.g. Mrs Y
would like product C so the store places a special order.
10. The geographical location may be such that it is more convenient
to shop there than the more distant national chain or on route to
work or play. Less journey time, less traffic, faster parking, quicker
to locate a product and pay for it. Or simply a scenic area.
11. Be located amongst some other symbiotic stores which supports
effective ‘cross selling’ and are grouped as such that the customer
may typically shop from 2 or more of the stores on each visit. e.g.
there may be a Blockbuster store next to them, so on most DVD rentals
the grocery store gets custom for popcorn, snacks and drinks.
11. Price their goods and services honestly
12. Ensure their goods are of exceptional quality and presentation.
13. Offer a product or service that a national chain cannot offer
economically
14. Have a long history in the region and their brand is well
established over many years or perhaps generations.
15. Adhere strongly to their core values, e.g. customer satisfaction,
value for money
16. Have high visibility in local advertising channels
17. Have high recommendations by local or even national press, or word
of mouth
18. Have a ‘killer product’ or speciality food which might be their
blend of fresh instore baked bread or home made ice cream or cookies
as an example.
19. Have implemented an engaging loyalty scheme to increase repeat
purchases.
20. Offer local delivery with monthly settlement of grocery bills
21. Be intertwined with the local community, taking part in or
supporting local activities and forging real relationships with the
local residents.
22. Have developed their brand to be ‘trendy’, catering for the more
affluent than selling cheap.
23. Employ highly motivated staff and ensure they are kept motivated.
24. Use and deploy good management practises.
25. Highlight their ethical and enviromental practises
To draw more custom than them, you need to be either better than them
at the same game, offer better quality at lower prices and / or better
located. Either way you need to identify your competitors strengths
and competitiveness so you can begin to form a picture of what
attracts customers to their store, perhaps using the list above as a
starting point. Visit the store, absorb the atmosphere, and draw your
conclusions. Can you as a minimum requirement meet their existing
standards and service? This could be achieved as a ‘me too’ service
essentially copying their formula or by a fresh new approach which
might incorporate distinguishing elements to make you stand out from
the crowd.
However the process may be a long slow one, because they probably
didn’t get to their position now by an overnight marketing plan, but
by ‘evolutionary’ process formed by listening to the customer. Their
client base may be quite loyal so initially you may need to incentify
them to change, either by discounts or offering more but at the same
quality and service.
If you set up to compete with them in the same area, and the size of
the customer base is fixed, realistically any new business concern
will share the custom rather than monopolise it. If your intention is
to draw all their customer base so they are forced out of business,
that is more difficult, particularly as they have many years in this
area as a head start, and presumably this is a new market to you,
though it is not impossible over a longer time frame.
A basic SWOT analysis of your business and theirs, (Strengths,
Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) will help you gauge the
effectiveness of your business plan.
e.g. shown at akstrategic.com ( http://www.akstrategic.com/swot.html )
If they have particular weaknesses perhaps you can address them in a
better way if that offers you an opportunity to differentiate or offer
a better service then them.
The question that you have to continuously ask yourself is why would a
customer buy at your store than at theirs. If you have provided for
the answer, answered it honestly and realistically then you are on the
right tracks!
Good luck!
Search Strategy
SWOT analysis
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=ISO-8859-1&q=SWOT+analysis
I hope that helps
kind regards lot-ga |
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