Are there any products or services that will benefit your customers that you know your business should be offering? What are your missed opportunities, and what do those mean for the customer experience?
This summer, a good friend of mine recommended that I try Teavana. Have you ever been there? Fabulous store! They have every tea (loose leaf) imaginable, and they get new flavors all the time. Not only that, but they sell all of the gadgets that you need to brew that perfect cup!
Even better, the experience at the store is amazing. The salespeople greet you as you walk in the door. They have samples that they are happy to pour for you. They are super friendly and informed. They provide instructions for how to brew your tea just right. And the teas are awesome.
Curious about the name? Go to their website to learn that:
As our name implies, Teavana’s goal is to be a heaven of tea and to offer our customers the healthy lifestyle and wonderful tastes of tea. This unique name is meant to describe the experience each customer has with our tea and our staff.
I could think of a few more ways to make the in-store experience a bit more nirvana-ish, but I’ll stick with the topic at hand. In general, I have no complaints about the atmosphere, but reading that sets some expectations that I’m not sure are met when you enter the store.
Back to tea samples! Samples are great. You can sample most any tea they offer; they usually have several already brewed and on display for you to try. (The samples are offered in small “cups,” perhaps 1-2 oz. servings.) From a customer perspective, these samples facilitate the buying process and ensure that the purchase is one that meets their needs and expectations, i.e., ensures nirvana, er, Teavana.
According to Arbitron, product samples have a huge benefit. Here’s what they discovered.
- Product sampling reaches a large audience.
- Product sampling is undeniably engaging as a marketing method.
- Sampling offers a same-day sales lift.
- Product sampling goes beyond same-day sales lift by creating a strong impact on future purchases.
- Product sampling effectively acquires consumers who are not familiar with a product.
- Product sampling persuades consumers to buy products they heard of but never bought before.
- Sampling retains customers and builds brand loyalty.
So, great people, great products, great samples, great in-store experience. What’s missing, Annette? Or have you fallen off your rocker again?
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| Is it clear to you here that you
can order a cup of iced tea? |
Did you know that Teavana will also brew a full cup of tea for you? Hot or iced? No? I didn’t either. I’ve been there a couple of times, and simply because my aforementioned friend had told me about this did I know. Ironically, the last time I was there, I was with her. We were in the mall, and I wanted some iced tea. We went to Teavana because she told me they could brew a cup for me; otherwise I would have gone across the way to a Starbucks to get my “usual” iced green tea.
Look at the picture to the left. Is it clear from this image of the checkout area that you can order/buy a full cup? They make it very clear that you can try samples because there are sampling stations around the store. But it’s not real clear that they can prepare a full cup for you.
It’s great that this aspect of their business is passed along by word of mouth, but what happens with all the new business that walks through the door that didn’t come as a result of a referral? Missed opportunity, no doubt! I realize their business is selling loose-leaf tea. But they do provide this service. And when there’s a Starbucks within steps of every location, would this be considered a missed opportunity?
Have you looked at the way you serve your customers? Your store offerings? Your products? Are there any missed opportunities?
Most importantly, if you haven’t found any missed opportunities, have you asked your customers what they think? They may answer this question differently.
