Keeping Retail Running: How Speed, Preparation, and Technology Drive Facility Service Excellence

Service is key for virtually all kinds of businesses, with Salesforce research showing excellent customer service can result in 78 percent of consumers returning to do business with them again after a mistake. For retailers, every minute of unexpected facility downtime directly impacts the bottom line through lost sales, compromised inventory, and damaged customer loyalty. From customer satisfaction to providing a competitive advantage, great customer service can result in word-of-mouth marketing, risk mitigation, and a mindset for adaptability and innovation. Delivering on excellent service is critical across business types and industries, but especially in sectors where timely, accurate service is make-or-break for clients in keeping their businesses open.

In our industry and for our customers with critical facility needs it’s essential because we work with businesses that rely on service to keep their operations running seamlessly. If our retail customers can’t secure their store or their facility, they’re stuck there for the night due to the risk of damages. If they can’t quickly make necessary repairs to fix the unexpected, they won’t be able to stay open or conduct business. The risk of losses in these situations are great, and it’s our job to get the job done right quickly for these customers.

Over the past year since stepping into an executive leadership role, I’ve made it my mission to bring the highest level of quality service — with great speed — to our customers. Here’s how we did it and some key steps to achieving great service across industries.

It ultimately boils down to focusing on your people, process, and technology.

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People: Empower your teams to make quick decisions.

A culture of distributed decision-making power means your entire team can show up on time and get the job done right the first time. Trusting the expertise of the people you hire gives them the flexibility and power to quickly decide the best course of action in an emergency situation. No matter your business, giving your team the ability to work efficiently and make the best decisions for specific circumstances will improve your customer experience, enhance your responsiveness, and get the job done more quickly.

A large portion of our work — around 30 percent — happens in emergency situations when quick action is critical. Having a team empowered with the latest information, technology and decision-making authority is critical in getting our clients back on track with minimum impacts to their business.

Process: Be ready the first time.

For us, this means always being ready with the “first trip parts.” These are the simple solutions to the most common problems our customers experience and allows us to have a high first-time fix rate.

For major retail facilities, this means maintaining detailed inventories of critical components specific to their needs, allowing us to resolve most common issues in a single visit.

This requires planning in advance, investing in parts availability, and creating strong supplier partnerships for sourcing. Even these occasional “quick-fix” situations are hindering our customer’s ability to operate, and being the ones to get them out of a jam quickly means a stronger working relationship. Beyond just speed, the trust that comes with getting things fixed on the first trip is a powerful result of hiring the right people, preparing them well, and giving them the autonomy to serve customers in the best way possible. Being fully prepared and equipped to deliver the outcome you’re looking for is the best way to provide excellent service to your customers.

Technology: Embrace changing with the times.

The enablement that comes from technology is hard to beat and can be a simple way to significantly improve customer experience. At our company, this meant releasing an app that streamlines everything from quick check-ins and outs to capturing critical project information needed to complete a job. The digitization of these records and accessibility of a cloud structure means things are kept organized, clear, concise and, most of all, fast. Technology that supports your customer experience and makes their lives easier is always a win.

All these criteria boost not only the perception of value you bring your customers, but the results you're able to achieve on their behalf. Focusing your service improvements on your people, processes, and technology will help to determine where you might be falling behind and where you might be leading over competitors. Delivering on high-quality service helps you adapt to market changes, and it's what will keep retailers competitive in the long run.

Julie Tilenius is president of TrueSource, an OnPoint Group Company, a partner to more than half of the U.S. top 100 retailers nationwide and the first call for retailers and property managers in need of critical facility maintenance.