BackMonday 5th September, 2011
What does your business add after the scales go down?
When we interview clients about their businesses, we always want to know about the little extras they offer – and their competitors don’t.
At our copywriting agency we think of it as the extra sweet our client adds after the scales have gone down.
The concept comes from Just William, the first book in Richmal Crompton’s series about the 11-year-old scapegrace William Brown.
In the matter of sweets, William frankly upheld the superiority of quantity over quality. Moreover, he knew every sweet shop within a two miles radius of his home whose proprietor added an extra sweet after the scale had descended, and he patronised these shops exclusively. With solemn face and eager eye, he always watched the process of weighing, and “stingy” shops were known and banned by him.
So if you want to keep on winning the business of your customers, ask yourself what ‘sweets’ you’re giving them as a welcome extra.
Because if you’re not offering any, you’ll get a reputation for being “stingy” and they’ll go elsewhere.
Great Just William quote- probably a first for marketing! I think it is also about seeing what you do in the widest possible terms. So selling books is not just retail but also education, leisure, and in the case of selling to rabid collectors probably also some form of therapy.
In terms of “sweets” I suppose mine are service: accomodating last minute orders to meet birthdays or dissertaion deadlines, taking a single item out to Post Office after the day’s parcels have already gone, packing every book as though it was worth hundreds even if it is not because it might be worth that to the customer etc.
It’s a thought provoking post though and and brings up things every business should think about often.
Comment left by Juxtabook on Monday 5th September, 2011 at 8:10 pm
Thanks for the comment. You’re right, of course – it’s about giving your business that first class ticket and a quality that others just don’t offer.
Know what you mean about rabid collectors too… I once got infected with a desire to hunt out Max Beerbohm first editions at a time few bookshops seemed to stock them. I must have bored every bookseller in my home town rigid many times over!
Comment left by Ben Locker on Monday 5th September, 2011 at 8:19 pm