Heyaa
What do you do when you go to self-service grocery stores?
Let me guess, you pick up a basket (or roll one) and go down the aisles for the things on your list. If youāre a regular shopper, itās a straightforward business. If not, you be calling mom every two minutes asking what is what.
Now, compare it to the small shop a stone's throw away from home.
Whenever you enter, the shopkeeper greets you and asks what you need. Then, they fill the bag with everything you asked for. They know your taste and decide whatās best for you.
This personalised service is one of the reasons that Iāve started loving indie bookstores in the last two years. Not that I visit any physically, but Iāve experienced a few services online.
Sometimes I buy from Amazon, of course. But currently, around 50% of my book purchases are from other bookshops (with an online presence).
And one of my recent experiences with a bookshop made me write this newsletter.
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OK, back to my storyā¦
Earlier this year, I wanted to gift a few books to a friend, some not-so-hyped ones. And you know, looking for ideal non-bestsellers can be quite an exercise.
So, I checked the Instagram profile of a bookstore that regularly shares the kind of books I was looking for. Colourful, cute and cozy ones.
I browsed through the posts but still had no idea what to gift. Sometimes, itās hard to guess what someone would like. Especially when you are clueless about the art of gifting.
So, I decided to take a big step.
I DMed the bookstore to help me select the books. I wasnāt their customer, by the way, and I had no idea how they would react.
But the lady came forward and said she would help me.
So, I mentioned a few books I saw on their feed, the type I was looking forā¦ and voila! She suggested what I could pick. Looking at the books, I knew these were the ones. I checked the details online and ordered a bunch of those.
It might have been a one-off experienceā¦ until last month. One of my friends in my Whatsapp group asked about graphic novels for pre-teens.
I took my chances with the bookstore again. And they didn't disappoint (again). The lady asked if it was for a boy or girl and then pushed back-to-back photos of comics I had no idea existed.
They received another order and a devoted customer.
And what did I notice from all this? If you, too, want a regular influx of clients and customers, you need to focus on your service. Not only the service you offer for money but the customer experience.
Itās a sea of competitors out thereā¦ and pleasant experiences and encounters can really help you stand out. Your actual product/service, of course, needs to be extraordinary. But that comes next.
First, your prospects deserve your most precious thing - your time. When you give that, you'll be able to understand their concerns well. It canāt always be done with a template questionnaire.
Of course, you shouldnāt give your time to every prospect. You'll be ripped off.
And that was all for today.
Bidding adieu.
Live long and prosper.
See you next week, with another story.
(On a side noteā¦ I published an article for extroverts: 5 Tips to Stay Quiet Around Introverts)