This morning, I was out running errands. I decided to stop by a new store I’d been meaning to check out. I had a very specific purchase in mind and I was ready to hand over about $150 if they could meet my needs. I could see that the lights were on, so I pulled over and paid for parking. When I got to the store, the door was locked. There was no sign to tell me if the store would be open later that day or at any point in the future. There wasn’t a phone number either. And there was no website listed — no mention of whether I might be able to complete my purchase online.

Sure, perhaps I have high hopes in expecting a store to be open in a busy downtown retail area at 11 am on a Sunday. However, the store’s owners are missing a huge opportunity to help me come back to make a purchase. By neglecting to tell a potential customer how to make a purchase — that is, what hours the store is open — they missed a fantastic opportunity to entice me back. Unfortunately for them, I don’t feel like forking over a directory service fee to find out their phone number and then follow up during (you guessed it) store hours to find out when they’re open.

Are you remembering the little details in your marketing?

(c) 2006 by Andrea Coutu. Vancouver Marketing Consultant. All rights reserved.