A profound sign on the 101
I’m out on vacation this week, driving through Oregon down the 101 with my father.
We stopped in a small town called Reedsport to look around in a few shops along the way, and as I entered one establishment noticed a peculiar sign on the door.
The sign itself was not pequliar. The typical “Welcome, Kindly Step In” message at the top was as American as apple pie, which isn’t nearly as good as the blueberry sour cream pie I had in the same town for lunch. What made the sign peculiar was the message below giving the hours of operation.
The sign read, “Hours – 8 or 9 til about 5, 6 or 7, Mon. to Sat.; Sun 11 to 5; When we’re here we’re open. WELCOME!!!”
This sign speaks to entrepreneurs on so many levels. It demonstrates the flexibility that entrepreneurs have. It shows the owner’s personality coming alive through their business, which was made even more evident as you walked in the store and saw little handmade signs for sale on a piece of round wood about three inches in diameter with the word “tuit” on it. When I asked what that meant, the owner said “When your wife asks if you got the chores done, you can just show her this and tell her I got a round tuit (too it)”.
Obviously it’s a sense of humor that is acquired, but I must have spent enough time around this type of person, because I contemplated for a moment actually buying one and carrying it in my pocket, waiting for the opportunity to use it with my wife… but I digress.
I think the point that the welcome sign emphasized to me was that in small business, the owner must be acutely aware of whom the customer is, and the culture they are in. For example, a sign like this in New York City might cause an incident ranging from a stream of expletives to broken windows and looting. But, in a small town, where people are on leisurely drives up and down the Oregon coast, the culture, expectations and willingness to participate in the business owner’s lifestyle prevails.
This brings about the question, “How well do you know the culture of your customers?” I know we all talk about how well we know our customer, but I think we are referring to the products and services that sell the best. We know that our customers aren’t fooled by marking up the prices then putting everything on sale.
We know that our customers will always go for the “buy two, get the third one free” gimmick. But, do you know them well enough to hang a sign like this, or its equivalent, in your window? Do you know them well enough to know their sense of humor or their buying preferences for things that you don’t sell?
I think the message from the sign for me was, “if you’re not already in it, immerse yourself in your customer’s culture, and continually try to see the entire world, not just your niche, through their eyes.” The better you understand their culture, the better you understand what motivates them and what they struggle with. This will lead to a closer relationship with them, which ultimately leads to you being better equipped to satisfy their needs
Similar Posts:
- Dispelling the myths of ownership
- Vacation? What’s that?
- There’s Something for Every Entrepreneur at the GrowSmartBusiness Conference Nov. 5
- Bringing Customer Service Into Sales
- Managing Your Online Reputation – How to Respond to Customer Reviews
