When You Don’t Train Your Staff Properly

Losing customers is fairly easy.

Although one can certainly attribute the lack of product or the inferior quality to loss of custom, it is usually staff.

I’ll give you an example.

There are actually four different supermarkets in a particular section of Liguanea, (an area of St. Andrew Parish of Jamaica).

One can walk from General Foods, directly across the Street to Hi-Lo. If they turn right they will reach Empire, about a block up. If they turn left, they will reach Sovereign, a block down.

They all stock the same things, some more variety than others. The prices range across the board, so that this is cheaper here, but that is cheaper there.

Most people pick one and are faithful… as long as they get good service.

There are always glitches. Some newbie is hired and doesn’t know the ‘die hard’ customers from a passerby so are not helpful to that loyal customer as s/he is accustomed to. Some newbies are trapped in rules they misinterpret so that a customer is put at difficulty.

So?

So the customer walks out.

Sometimes it is a shrug. Other times, when the customer spends more than the salary of that newbie, it is serious.

Where the manager/owner can be instantly contacted and the problem solved, fine. When the Manager is IMOBAL; In Meeting, Off Building, At Lunch; the customer is out the door.