You may be making a huge mistake if you aren’t continually trying to find out why consumers do—and do not—buy from you.

Elly Valas is the co-author of Guerrilla Retailing and educational consultant to Nationwide Rent Direct and Nationwide PrimeTime! Contact her with your thoughts or comments at elly@ellyvalas.com or at 303/316-7569. Visit her website at www.ellyvalas.com.

Why would someone want to do business with you?



After all, customers can rent the same products you sell from dozens of other local and national rental companies. And they can even find rent-to-own stores on the Internet. So, why would they buy from you?



In his book Why? Should Someone Do Business With You…Rather Than Someone Else, Sam Geist first explored the importance of analyzing the drivers that lead customers to choose one store over others.



You may be making a huge mistake if you aren’t continually trying to find out why consumers do—and do not—buy from you. Customers ask the question hundreds of times in the course of making a major purchase.



Look at the places you frequent—your favorite stores or restaurants. My list includes Costco, Chico’s, Starbucks, Crate ‘n Barrel, Whole Foods, Target and Nordstrom. I also have some local favorites like the Wizard’s Chest, The Tattered Cover and the Fresh Fish Company. Why do you frequent the places on your list?



You might have chosen those businesses because of the location, the product selection, the quality of the merchandise or the value offered.



I’ve established a relationship with Chico’s because of their incredible loyalty program. Their associates—particularly Gayle and Kathy—call me when they get in new merchandise that they will think I might like or when they’re having a special sale.



Costco may be a warehouse club, but it’s a fun shopping experience. Going there is like a treasure hunt and I’m never quite sure what I’ll find. I love to see what people have in their shopping carts at Costco. They may have a luscious rotisserie chicken, a digital camera, a piece of Waterford crystal and a highly discounted pair of designer jeans in with their bulk purchases of flour, paper goods, cleaning products and produce.



Why do people do business with you? Because of who you are and what you do--your brand and your service.



Branding is one of the most important marketing concepts of the 21st Century. Brands define businesses, increase customer loyalty and create top of the mind awareness. A company’s brand creates its image and offers a promise of quality and satisfaction. It is a perception in the mind of the consumer. Brands add value and can be sold.



Look at the value the name Starbucks adds to its product, coffee. Coffee is a fairly inexpensive commodity. But according to its founder Howard Schulz, Starbucks is a coffee experience. Brand is personality.



Branding expert Rob Frankel of Frankel and Anderson describes the power of branding best. "Branding is not about getting your prospects to choose you over your competition; it’s about getting your prospects to see you as the only solution to their problem SM."



Why should someone do business with you? Because you offer a unique and differentiated level of service. Because your merchandise line-up matches your target customer. Because you understand that customer service is not a department but that it is the ability to manage your relationship with your customers.



We frequent restaurants where our favorite waiter remembers our names and what we like to drink. I have my car serviced by an independent mechanic who makes appointments online, keeps a complete record of all the service ever performed on my vehicle and who calls me after even routine maintenance to be sure everything is working order.

Great customer relationship management comes from leadership that is profoundly focused on their customers. Leaders in these companies look to offer services that add to their brand such as low-price guarantees and fast, easy application processing. They know that exceptional service leads to profitable growth.



Customer service leaders understand that the customer experience and the experience of their team members are linked. Take care of your associates and they’ll take care of your customers.



Service leaders rally their associates around their customers and not just around the products they sell. They spend time getting to know their clients so that they completely understand their wants, needs and aspirations. They match the products they recommend to the specific challenges of each customer. Every product recommendation is geared to the needs of every individual buyer.



Why should someone do business with you? They’ll rent from you because of who you are—a well-positioned rental company with a unique ability to understand the particular needs of each individual customer you touch.



They’ll keep coming back because your service promise is more than rhetoric. You under promise and over deliver.



Why should someone do business with you instead of with someone else? Find the answer to that question and your business will grow and prosper. Keep asking the question and you will be the competition.



Elly Valas is an Educational Consultant to Nationwide Marketing Group and to PrimeTime! University. . Her book Guerrilla Retailing can be purchased at www.ellyvalas.com and she can be reached at elly@ellyvalas.com.

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RTO Magazine is the leading rent to own industry print publication.