  Our next Monday evening meeting had proved quite interesting. We had sold one bread mixer, but, thank heaven, no one had inflicted a loaf of bread upon us! I was hoping that that foolish stunt of mine would die a natural death—and that's a better one than it deserved. The matter for discussion at the meeting was introduced by Jones, who had in his hand a copy of that little "Service" booklet which we had issued. "I was thinking over this little booklet the other day," said he, "but, do you know, Mr. Black, I don't think we are living up to it, somehow." "In what way do you mean?" I asked him. "Well, we talk about service and how we want people to feel they are at home, and all that, and— Oh, I don't know how to express it," he floundered. I certainly didn't know what he was driving at. I looked at Larsen, and his face was a blank; then I looked at Charlie, and, as I did so, he said: "I'd like to ask Jones a question," and he turned to Jones, saying, "What you mean is that, while we talk of giving service, we have not any definite plan of going about it. Isn't that it?" "Yep," said Jones, "we have no rules or regulations or anything of that kind." "I see what you mean," I said. "You mean we "That's exactly it," went on Jones, "we ought to be able to give people the feeling that they are being treated differently when they come into the store." "Store atmosphere, that is," said Charlie, "and the way to get it is by having definite rules of conduct—rules which every one should live up to." "Do you think it is worth while having a set of written rules of conduct in a little store like this?" I asked. "Being a Yankee," laughed Martin, "I'll answer you by asking you another question. Do you think it is as important for a small store to have proper accounting methods as a big store?" For an hour or more we had an animated discussion on what rules of conduct we ought to adopt for our store, and finally we worked up a list of twenty-one, which I give as follows: 1. No customer must leave our store dissatisfied. 2. The customer on whom you wait requires all your attention. 3. Approach the customer who enters the store; do not wait for the customer to approach you. 4. Remember that the object you have in view is to sell goods at a profit to the store, and to the satisfaction of the customer. 5. The more customers you have, and the more each one spends, the nearer you are to the attainment of your sales quota. 6. Customers come into the store for their convenience. Let your speech and manner show that you appreciate the opportunity of serving them. 8. A smile costs nothing. Give one to every customer. 9. Show your appreciation of their patronage by always saying "Thank you" when giving the package or the change. 10. Customers come into the store to buy merchandise, not to talk to, or admire you. Do not wear anything, or say anything, that will distract attention away from the goods to yourself. 11. Repeat the name and address of a customer whenever goods have to be charged or delivered. An error in writing the name of a customer is almost a crime. 12. Write distinctly so that others will know what you mean. 13. Try to know the names of customers and, when addressing them, use their names. 14. Never correct customers' pronunciation of goods. For preference, adopt their pronunciation. 15. The store is a place for business. Do not allow it to be used as a meeting place for loafers or for gossips. Nothing drives away real customers more quickly than this. 16. "Punctuality is the soul of business." Be at the store punctually and wait on customers promptly. 17. Study your goods and show seasonal articles to all customers whom you can interest in them, especially if the goods are being advertised. 18. Don't wait till you sell the last one of an article 19. Exercise care in displaying goods. Goods well displayed are half sold. 20. Adopt as your personal slogan: "If every worker were just like me, 21. Work with your fellow workers. We felt quite pleased with that list of rules, and the more I looked at them the better they seemed to me. We had a discussion as to which of the twenty-one rules of conduct was the best. Larsen said that number one was the best. I favored twenty-one. Charlie said four was the best, and we finally agreed with him. "Four," said Charlie, "appears to me to be the best, because the whole object of running this business is to make a profit. All the other rules are followed merely in order to secure that object." I really believed that we would find it easier to work according to definite rules, than to continue with no rules for our guidance. Furthermore, we ought to be happier, working harmoniously together along definite lines. We all agreed that following these twenty-one rules would help us to give the store an atmosphere of good service, the square deal, truthfulness and cooperation. Larsen had resumed his Thursday afternoon hunts for business. The first Thursday, when the old chap got back to the store, he was almost crying with delight. "Say, Boss," he said, "those people seemed real glad to see me. They ask me where I been so long. I tell "Fine!" I said. "How much business did you get?" "Sixteen dollars' worth," he said. "I think by keeping at it we'll get lots of new business. Remember old Seldom?—well," (Seldom was a real estate man and quite well-to-do) "he saw me coming in and came out of his office to me. He made me go to Traglio's and gave me a cigar. Then he said, 'There's nothing I'm wanting, Larsen, but step over to the house; I'll tell the missus you are coming over.' Well, Boss, I go to the house and see her. She had a mail-order catalog and was making out an order. She's good-natured and fat. She make me cup of tea. She showed me order to go to Chicago." "What was it for?" I asked Larsen. "A bread mixer, for one thing," said Larsen, grinning. I remembered my bread-mixer episode, so I said: "Well, why didn't she come here for it? Goodness knows we advertised them enough." "That's what she said. She said it advertised too much. She thought if she bought one she get her name in paper or something." "Why, that's nonsense," I remonstrated. "That's what she said of the ad," said Larsen. "Oh, well, forget it," I cried peevishly. "Did you get an order from her?" "The only one I did get. Here it is—sixteen dollars! I try to sell her pencil sharpener, but she say, 'That's a man's buy.' I'll sell Seldom one for her." "No," said Larsen, "they not expect me. I didn't like to push this trip. I think we oughta make a list of season stuff and call on regular customers. We could sell them stuff they buy from mail-order folks." Larsen was determined to find some way of coping with the mail-order houses. We certainly had had some little success, but the mail-order houses seemed always to be everlastingly on the job. |
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