Company Blog

I need to know, I need to know…

by Adam Zack — September 16, 2020

Customers true thoughts and suggestions make many retailers very uncomfortable and defensive.

Last week my wife finally splurged on herself and bought a nice pair of sunglasses. Maui Jim brand (thanks to our friend Mark who gave her a 50% off gift card) that have incredible lenses, clarity and craftsmanship. Really a work of art that your eyes will thank you for forever. So she shows me a choice of two different pairs she was considering, and wanted to know which one I liked best. I told her, she agreed, and that was the pair she ordered. They came a few days later. She tried them on and asked me what I thought. I looked, and told her they looked fine. She prodded further, asking me what I really thought, and since I was the one who had to look at her mug when she’s wearing them, she asked for my honest opinion. I said as delicately as I could (which for me is not very delicate) that the frames were a little thick. As I looked at her, it dawned on me whose glasses they looked like. I told her, they look like Al Franken’s glasses. And they did! Not that she looks like Al Franken, just the glasses did. (I know, what a dick I am!) She did ask my opinion, and she did ask me to be honest. Still, I think maybe I should have just said “They look great!” and shut my big yap. But I would have always thought of Al Franken every time she wore them.

So when you ask your customers – through website feedback, suggestion boxes or just plain conversation, do you want them to tell you the truth? What they really feel, good or bad? There are surprisingly significant numbers of grocers who just want to hear the good words. Customers true thoughts and suggestions make many retailers very uncomfortable and defensive. We work hard, do our very best everyday, and then we get random negative comments, suggestions and feedback that just seem so personal. It’s like calling our baby ugly. It’s hard to take, but take it and learn from it we must.