Thinking Out of the Box
Most retail businesses avoid risk, and it’s no mystery why. With daily announcements of divisions or entire retail companies shutting down, there is a fear of being next. Should companies invest more in their online presence? Lay off more people? Invigorate sales with some sort of contest? Some do nothing, hoping that the way they’ve always done business will continue to work. Others, however, know that thinking ‘out of the box’ to provide the best customer experience is the right choice.
One retail company with this ‘out-of-the-box’ concept is Sleep Squad. Rather than reinvent the wheel, owner Michael Cote applied the old-school models of pizza delivery and mattress sales, combined them with modern Internet salesmanship, and developed an innovative way of running his business.
Cote’s fresh approach typifies new thinking in retail. Having worked successfully in sales, he chose to focus in on mattresses and set out to uncover what people hated most about the process. He discovered:
• People disliked laying on mattresses in public
• They were turned off by walking into a store and confronting 30 or more all-white mattresses
• They wished they could buy mattresses effectively online
• They detested spending a whole day mattress shopping, then waiting for delivery
Cote realized he could address each of these concerns by bringing the store to the customers. Call them at 8 a.m., and they can deliver a mattress to your specifications by noon, along with two or three other comparable selections to choose from. With over 150 different skus and more than 45 different models, 
inventory is no problem. In fact, their selection is greater than most physical stores.
So far, it’s working. Using only the power of the Internet — no traditional marketing– Cote’s company can set specific delivery times, give the customer exactly the product they want, make the awkward experience of shopping for a mattress comfortable and personal, and grow his business. And all of this simply from careful researching and thinking about what the customer wants most. Following in the footsteps of other highly customer oriented companies (think Best Buy, Starbucks and Apple) Cote is on the success track because he offers an excellent customer experience. In today’s atmosphere of beleaguered retailers, getting the customer experience right is the key to long-term success.
Tags: Customer Experience, customer satisfaction, icc client exchange