blog.sparetomato.com

As the UK again grinds to a halt because of a relatively small amount of Crystallised water, online retailers reported a spike in sales.

It is easy to imagine many people sitting at home in front of a cosy fire because they cannot get to work, or because their children have been sent home from school, going online to shop because they have nothing better to do.

I was one of those who contributed to the spike, but not because I was bored, or couldn’t get in to work – I was able to get in to the office just fine. However, I was forced to purchase my new camera lens online, as the local specialist retailer was, to be frank, hopeless.

The local camera shop window looks like a treasure trove of photography. Second hand and new cameras, lenses and even some old ‘box brownie’ style cameras. Inside, it is one of those shops that you can hardly move because of the tripods, accessories and even more cameras and lenses.

The shopkeeper looked up from his computer and simply said: ‘Yes?’

To which I responded with a ‘Good afternoon’ and enquired whether he had the lens I was looking for in stock. His response was a flat ‘No’. Just ‘No’.

Disappointed as I was, I hopped back on the internet and was able to purchase the lens from an online retailer. Not only that, I experienced better customer service from a faceless website than I did from a specialist retailer who should be enthusiastic about his niche.

I actually visited two different websites, the first of which did not have the lens I was looking for in stock but offered me some alternatives – I could place an order and have it posted when they had some or I could see if a local branch of their retail arm had any in stock. Additionally, it offered what it thought were suitable alternatives to the product I had looked for.

The second website had the lens in stock, but also offered to show me some alternatives that I might want to consider.

Compare this to the shopkeeper’s ‘No’.

I was prepared to pay a slight premium for buying from the retailer, especially if I could have the lens today, but by being completely unhelpful he has missed out on a sale. Instead of offering to search for the lens and see if he can order it (He does sell brand-new Canon products) he chose to simply turn away my business.

The lens I have bought has quite a specific use: it specialises in producing a very shallow depth of field, and is particularly suited to portrait and still-life photography. Instead of recognising that requirement and offering alternative lenses that he did have in stock, and potentially sharing some of his experience and knowledge he simply decided to push me away, as if a customer was inconveniencing his web surfing.

The High-street appears to have already given up the battle with online, and eventually all that will remain are these specialist retailers. The reason why you would visit a specialist, particularly one involved in leisure or hobby items is to talk to an expert and share information. High street retailers have never been under more pressure to deliver a level of customer service that is simply not possible on the web, but they need to go that extra mile.