Shopping habits…I buy car parts from an Oregon-based business (Knect’s) vs. chain stores like Napa, O’Reilly, etc. based almost entirely on the fact that they’re not a national chain. I only go to other stores if these guys don’t have my part, which is amazingly rare. Their service is really no better or worse than the national chains, and their prices are competitive (usually lower than NAPA), I just choose to support local when I can.
Dave From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Don Ely Sent: Tuesday, April 22, 2014 7:48 AM To: ntsysadm Subject: Re: [NTSysADM] OT: Corporate Support of Open-Source projects " However, that store likely doesn't scale nationally now, does it? If it did, there would be more of them, right?" But then he might not frequent them any more because they're just a big chain and their services would be diminished. On Apr 22, 2014 7:29 AM, "Jonathan Link" <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>> wrote: You haven't even described the service that they provide, merely that they have different products than the corporate chain stores. So, the only thing that we can evaluate that store on, is that you say they have good customer service and they have a good selection of products that the large corporate chain store has. So, since we have no description of what their customer service entails, it's a stretch to say that customer service wins. It may very will be that their different product selection is enough to win. It may boil down to a lot of things that make that store win. However, that store likely doesn't scale nationally now, does it? If it did, there would be more of them, right? On Tue, Apr 22, 2014 at 10:11 AM, Kurt Buff <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>> wrote: True, but as I stated, they also have customer service, and I wouldn't shop there without it. They are genuinely nice folks who routinely make me happy to have shopped there. Kurt On Tue, Apr 22, 2014 at 6:06 AM, Jonathan Link <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>> wrote: Product selection is not customer service, per se. Understanding one's market, making a niche market is not a function of customer service, it's good business. Customer service would be like loading your car, assisting you down the aisles, picking your order on your behalf, and/or delivery to your home. It may be that they survey their customers extensively to see what they want to buy, but that's not customer service. On Mon, Apr 21, 2014 at 11:48 PM, Kurt Buff <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>> wrote: No, not all category leaders are good at customer service. As MBS has pointed out, those who have monopoly grants from the government often prosper without customer service. Those who offer retail Internet connectivity (often WISPs), have customer service as a differentiator - sometimes it's their only differentiator, because they're shut out by law from string cable/fiber, and can only occupy a small niche, usually well outside of a metropolitan market. As well, I'm fairly sure not all companies with good customer service are category leaders, though I think that's more often true in smaller markets - but if I were to run across such a company, I'd probably prefer to buy their stock, and would definitely give them my custom. However, in most free(ish) markets, category leaders are often, though not always, very good at customer service. It probably depends a lot on the market in question. Take groceries, for example. My wife and I don't shop at the large corporate chain stores that are local to me (Albertsons, QFC, Safeway, etc.). We shop at a smaller locally owned store, where they have very good service, and a really good selection - not just the basics, but nice stuff that it's hard to find at the large chains that focus on the lowest price at the cost of service and selection. Their prices where I shop are usually within a percent of the large stores. For me (and obviously a fair number of other people, as the store is doing well), customer service wins. Kurt On Mon, Apr 21, 2014 at 3:20 PM, Andrew S. Baker <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>> wrote: So, only the category leaders (and those vying to be category leaders) offer customer service? Are there any category leaders that *don't* offer customer service (or anything approaching real customer service), while others in their category do? ASB http://XeeMe.com/AndrewBaker<http://xeeme.com/AndrewBaker> Providing Virtual CIO Services (IT Operations & Information Security) for the SMB market… On Mon, Apr 21, 2014 at 10:07 AM, Kurt Buff <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>> wrote: On Mon, Apr 21, 2014 at 5:56 AM, Steven M. Caesare <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>> wrote: >> Re: Companies' incentives: That's not universally true. I refer you to >> companies that have as at least some of their core operating principles the >> ideas of customer service - > > That's an ends to a means. That customer service exists to promote goodwill > with regard to the customer buying products the sell, > > The litmus test for these: > > Cold the company conceivably exist by eliminating the "extra mile" customer > service? Yes. Could they existin by eliminating product sales? No. Hrm. I don't think that's the right yardstick. I believe the question should be: Would these companies be category leaders if they didn't have such good customer service? And I believe the answer is no. Kurt
