A customer’s happiness depends on more than just the quality of the products and the price they pay. They might be the most influential factors, but they’re far from the only ones! Their overall experience counts for a lot, too. In basic terms, customers should have a positive all-around experience when visiting your business, including feeling comfortable and relaxed while also finding it easy to get the products and information they need.
Working to impress your customers does more than elevate their experience. It helps your business. After all, customers are much more likely to visit again in the future and tell their friends and family about your business if they’ve had a good time.
In this post, we’re going to take a closer look at just some of the ways that brick-and-mortar businesses can ensure their customers love visiting them.
Why It’s Important
Making adjustments to your business so that it impresses your visitors can take time, money, and effort, but it’s a worthy investment. Studies have repeatedly shown that customers are willing to pay more money — as much as 16% more — if the business provides an excellent customer experience. Throw in the fact that happy customers are more likely to become repeat customers, and it becomes clear that working to upgrade your business can have a positive, long-lasting impact on your overall success.
OK, with that out of the way, let’s focus on how businesses can impress their customers. Take all of the tips that we’ve outlined below, and we’re confident that your customers will be more than happy to spend time in your business, spend more money, and then recommend your store to their friends and family.
Update the Decor
The interior decor of your business is important in the same way that your home’s decor is important. It’s not just an added detail; in many ways, the decor is your business. A customer will be less likely to stick around if the business’s decor looks like it hasn’t been updated in a decade or more. Refreshing the decor can have a powerful, instant impact on the overall feel of the business, helping to bring it in line with modern standards.
Need some help coming up with design ideas for your retail space? This page offers practical, actionable tips.
Improve The Exterior
The exterior part of your business sets the tone for what your customers will find once they step inside. If it’s less-than-impressive, then you can’t be all too surprised if a potential customer decides to carry on walking. With so much competition out there, consumers have the luxury of being picky — if the outside part of a business doesn’t meet their expectations, then there’s simply no reason for them to step inside.
Improving the exterior of your business is all about mixing aesthetics with functionality. Installing commercial railings, updating your store signs, and adding outdoor lighting can all help to attract the attention of passersby while also offering practical benefits. More than anything, these additions ensure that your potential customers have a positive first impression of your business, which in turn increases the chances that they’ll step through your doors and see what you have to offer.
Scented Space
Eyes are the dominant sense, and, as such, we tend to focus most of our attention on the visual component of the customer’s experience. But focusing on other senses, such as smell, also offers a handy way to ensure that your customers feel happy and content while at your business.
Scent marketing has become increasingly popular in recent years. This approach utilizes aromas to influence the customer’s perception of the store — and can even help to directly improve sales. For instance, bookstores scented with lavender were found to sell more books, while bakeries with a vanilla scent also saw an increase in sales.
The type of scent you use will depend on the type of business you run, but in any case, it’s worth exploring. It’s one of those subtle yet powerful additions that most customers only register on a subconscious level, yet which they appreciate.
Thoughtful Layout
Your store’s layout doesn’t just impact the aesthetic quality of your business. It also has a big influence on the customer’s experience, and can even impact their buying decisions. Unfortunately, there’s no single ‘best’ layout that all businesses can utilize. You’ll need to explore the different options, which include grid store, herringbone store, and free-flow store layouts, and find the one that’s right for you.
One word of advice when putting together your layout: try to find the balance between your needs (the customer spending more) and the customer’s needs (having a positive experience). The best layouts carefully balance these two goals, ensuring that the customer’s walkthrough of the store feels natural while also encouraging browsing.
Well-Trained Staff
A business could look, feel, and smell great, but if the employees aren’t well-trained, then it’s unlikely that your customers will be impressed. In fact, a single poor interaction with a member of staff can be enough for a customer to have a bad experience at a business, significantly reducing the chances that they’ll come back in the future.
Ensuring your staff can offer a great experience to your customers is about more than just making sure that they’re well-trained. They should also be empowered to make decisions without having to seek approval. While there will be limits on what they’re able to provide, by and large, your team should be trusted to do what it takes to ensure the customer has a positive experience.
Fast Checkout Processes
The customer’s journey is long. Even on the day they visit your store, they will likely have to get dressed, take a drive, find parking, and then come to your business. Once they get that far, it’s good for everyone — them, your business — if there are no obstacles that prevent them from completing their purchase.
Your checkout process should be as smooth, straightforward, and accessible as possible. That means ensuring that customers find it easy to pay, can pay in multiple ways, and generally experience zero friction. It’s not so much that these things will necessarily impress your customers, but rather, they’ll likely be unimpressed if they’re not part of your business. They might stick around to complete the purchase this time around, but they’ll be less likely to return in the future.
Pay-and-Collect Service
More than anything, consumers like choice. Some like to browse in-store before selecting their products. Others like to browse online. Real-world businesses can tap into the growing popularity of online shopping by offering a local ‘pay-and-collect’ service. This is a merging of both retail and e-commerce shopping, allowing customers to select and pay for their products online before picking up their products from your physical location. As well as offering customers more flexibility, offering this service can help to attract customers who don’t have enough time to browse stores yet who are still interested in your products.
Offering Freebies
Providing your customers with freebies is a tried and tested way to put a smile on their faces. These freebies don’t necessarily have to be related to the products you sell; they can be anything! Stores that offer free tea and bite-sized snacks, for example, will always be a hit with customers. If possible, have a member of staff work at the ‘freebies’ station; customers are more likely to embrace freebies if they’re offered them directly, rather than having to serve themselves. If it’s not possible to have an employee handing out freebies, then make sure there’s a sign that clearly states that the goodies are free and available to anyone who wants them.
Provide Convenience
You might like it if your visitors are fully focused on browsing your products and making a purchase. But that’s not realistic — people have their own things going on, after all. Offering a few convenient touches, such as providing charging stations and places to sit, can encourage your customers to spend more time in your business. And the longer they spend there, the more likely it is that they’ll make a purchase. This approach also works because it allows people who are interested in your product to browse your store while ensuring that any companions who aren’t interested can simply relax and wait.
Support the Community
Using your business to support and elevate the community is more than simply a morally just thing to do; it can also impress your customers. Consumers are increasingly favoring giving money to businesses that have a positive impact, and there’s no impact more positive than lifting up the local community.
Continue Developing
Finally, remember that impressing your customers isn’t a one-time thing. The best businesses are the ones that continually review and update their offerings, ensuring that they’re always on the cutting edge. Taking this approach is about more than ensuring that your business always has the touches that modern customers expect. It also demonstrates that you’re committed to delivering your best — and that’s an approach that can be highly effective for developing trust with your customers.