Customer is Always King

Who knew that the battle for the everyday grocery store customer would come down to the amount of time it takes to get through checkout and whether you have to bag your own groceries or not?

Having shopped at Safeway for years, I had become accustomed to their stores and liked them. However, as time progressed their checking service have become slower and slower. In addition, it used to be that having a bagger to help you out of the store was par for the course, now getting bagging help has become like winning the lottery, it never happens.

I guess grocery stores think that location is the only thing that matters, but in my opinion, they are wrong.

Much like how SouthWest Airlines began letting bags fly free in response to the backlash people had regarding paying for bag checking, King Soopers has now focused their entire ad campaign on how they offer faster checking and bagging. King Soopers understood that people don’t have time or desire to wait in line to get out of the grocery store, nor do they have any interest in bagging their own groceries. It sounds pretty simple doesn’t it?

Yes it is simple, but in my opinion very affective. My last couple of times getting out of Safeway had become a nightmare, and one that I honestly dreaded. My wait just to get through checking had averaged 15-20 minutes, which seems absolutely absurd to me. No wonder King Soopers went after Safeway’s loyal following. With Safeway asking every customer to wait and waste a ridiculous amount of time just to pay for their groceries, there was a huge opportunity for King Soopers. It was time to take it to the competition and position themselves as the leader to a customer base who was dying to be served. Way to stand out King Soopers! Way to show that service still does matter, especially to those customers who don’t have time to waste in a ridiculous line.

This is a perfect example of branding yourself so that your competition doesn’t do it for you. Don’t let your company be the next Safeway, instead champion your brand and be the King Soopers of your space.

The biggest challenge small businesses face today continues to be operating in a sluggish economy. As a small business ourselves, and despite economic conditions, Brand Iron continues to thrive. Last year was a record year for the company. We attribute our success partly to our willingness to face this challenge head on. Rather than cut back on sales and marketing efforts to save cash, we recognize that now is the best opportunity to market our business. It is a chance to separate ourselves from others, so we continue to be aggressive in its business development and marketing.

Brand Iron’s management philosophy centers around a team-oriented approach made up of individuals who understand and embrace an entrepreneurial spirit. Our firm is made up of individuals who subscribe to this approach. Inherently, this type of spirit produces strong accountability, team work, creative thinking, problem solving and a win-win attitude. This approach ultimately leads to producing outstanding results for our clients.

Exemplary customer service is another essential piece of the foundation for any successful business operation. It may sound obvious, but Brand Iron is committed to demonstrating outstanding customer service from the outset of every client relationship. You would be surprised at the number of businesses out there who don’t put much emphasis on customer service…they operate as though it is a given. Unless you focus on it, the concept gradually slips away. From our initial “Brandstorming” session with every client, we map out clearly defined goals and objectives, detailed time lines and create accountability methods (for both the agency and the client) to ensure success. The final step of our 7-Step Process — “Running the Ranch” – ensures that we monitor progress in all client relationships and demonstrate goal-oriented success. Internally, our Client Services team meets regularly to ensure client relationships stay strong and that we deliver a solid ROI.

-Jim Miller, Public Relations