A COMMON SENSE APPROACH
People can make this sound very complicated, but it’s really as simple as 1-2-3:
The best quality plants 365 days a year
Top notch customer service from every member of the team
Great value for money
Easy, right? Read on and allow me to explain…
THE PLANTS
30 years ago, Garden Centres and Nurseries were all about plants. If the plants weren’t up to scratch, your reputation suffered.
It’s different now. Restaurants, furniture and pet departments, gifts and Christmas, not to mention concessions, plants are not on top of the list.
Managers and Supervisors often migrate from similar ‘lifestyle’ businesses, but those who specialise in horticulture, are becoming harder to find.
But it won’t suprise you to know that the companies with the best reputations, still all have something in common.
Great plants.
I’ve been doing this for over 30 years now, and every one of those years has been spent with plants. Buying them, checking them, merchandising them, selling them.
In a changing industry, with demanding customers, success starts with buying the right plants:
The right types for the right time of year
Enough to get you through the big weeks…..so you don’t sell out on a Friday and have empty benches for 4 or 5 days before the next delivery arrives.
Seven varieties of Berberis on a bench to offer an amazing range, or just the best looking one that will give the best display, not to mention sell the quickest?
The best quality for the money you’re spending
The right stage of growth to give your customer a great plant while giving your investment a good shelf life
The confidence to say NO to suppliers if the stock isn’t in tip top condition when it arrives
But you know as well as I do, it isn’t alwas as easy as that; things can go wrong…
The weather turns and 100 new Hydrangeas get frosted.
A crop of Asters get mildew just as they’re about to burst into flower.
Your Heucheras go down with Vine Weevil.
You’ve bought too many Lavender in, and they’re not selling anywhere as fast as you’d hoped.
It’s 34 degrees outside and those Acers are now crispy.
That bench of Clematis, perfect last week, are now so knotted together that your customer drags up 12 plants when she just wants one….
Your supplier sends you something poor, but it gets put out. Did anybody complain? A few days in and you think ‘we’ve just blown £500 when we should’ve sent them back’
Never enough benches when business is booming?. What if 20% of those tables are filled with stock which people don’t even stop to look at……?
Buying is only the beginning……selling is the hard part!
2. GREAT SERVICE
Have you been handled badly when making a complaint?
Listened to a couple of teenagers on the tills on a Sunday morning, far more interested in each others’ Saturday night?
Asking a simple question and either getting poor advice, or perhaps just being made to feel like you’re putting them to trouble by even asking them something?
You might get a very willing assistant, but they simply don’t know enough to help you, nice as they are….they just don’t have the ‘right tools’.
Or maybe they’re just plain rude.
I now notice great service more than ever before, only because it’s harder to find. Do you?
Another story….
There’s a great restaurant in the Lake District. I won’t mention the name of it; I haven’t asked their permission. They are always fully booked with a waiting list. We go it every time we visit, as long as they can get us in.
They remind me how amazing service can be. The restaurant is small. It isn’t ‘fine dining’, it isn’t posh. But they have somebody running front of house who makes you feel welcome, unrushed, and boy o boy is she good at recommending food. Her passion shines through. It’s infectious. She makes you feel great. (I’ll recommend the place if we talk)
As anonymous diners there, we’re nothing special. She’s the same with everybody. It’s a masterclass in great service.
I believe our industry shares something in common with ‘foodies’. And that’s easy….passion. Plants are a passion that many of us choose to work with. If we love the great outdoors, gardens, and plants, it should rub off on our customers.
Brilliant Customer Service isn’t easy. But when it’s done well, it seems the most natural thing in the world.
Do you really want someone on the shop floor who doesn’t want to help your customers?
As a business owner, we assess candidates first on their smile and their personality. Just knowing about plants isn’t enough.
We’d rather have a smiley, friendly face, with limited knowledge….but who wants to help….our more knowledgeable staff will help them out the second they ask.
Do you have brilliant plant people who might benefit from brushing up on people skills?
Or perhaps a couple of the happiest, friendliest people who need some product training?
Maybe we can help.
“People will forget what you said. They will forget what you did. But they will never forget how you made them feel”
“Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.”
3. VALUE FOR MONEY
No doubt about it, customers expect value for their hard earned money….don’t you?
The perception of poor value for money is a dangerous path to tread. In a world of ‘showrooming’ and buying online, it’s more important than ever.
So, what little secrets have you got up your sleeve to get your local customers through your door, to buy your plants and not your competitors’?
I’m talking about your plants, of course. And having the best plants is just the start to a positive perception of value. So many other aspects of how you run your business, will equate to great value for money in your customers’ minds.
A few ideas, some of which you may agree with, some you may not, which all add up to creating an image of ‘Value for Money’…..
Great plants at all times, healthy, vibrant, each and every plant. ‘If you wouldn’t buy it yourself, why is it out for sale?’
A retail price which will encourage a relatively quick sale, rather than having stock on site for too long and tying up your money (would you rather return 40% GP in 2 weeks, or 50% in 2 years?)
An efficient system to answer emails and calls quickly. Great communication at all times. People expect instant answers these days.
A quick way to turn second grade plants back into cash, at the same time as giving your customers an avenue to buy cheaper plants.
Amazing Customer Service and knowledge in-house, something your online competitors just can’t do. Ever.
‘Storytelling’….a way of sharing your passions with your customers, to build up a rapport and a reputation that you really love your plants, and you care.
Evening talks, daytime workshops, Question Times. Anything to show your customers you know your stuff.
“Some people want it to happen; some wish it would happen; others make it happen.”
“Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.”