Jena McGregor tells a holiday shopping tale over at Fast Company Now. Wow it must be hard to deliver a consistent brand experience during the crush of holiday shopping.

You'd think retailers would understand this by now. But my moment at Kate's is the perfect example of an incomplete customer experience. A retailer might have the best designed environment, or the friendliest service, but commit the slightest off-brand glitch, and she'll turn on her heels and head for the door.

Wonder if any wise managers have time to observe and study customer behavior and reactions during this season. Experience blunders are probably repeated every year.

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Comments

[mary]

Unfortunately, store managers do not have time to monitor problems like the one Jena McGregor experienced. Even more unfortunate, the manager was probably the one making the announcement that pushed Jena - sans purchase - out the door.

Sometimes, these quirks in retailing come from a memo generated at the corporate level, where ideas for creating sales don't quite merge with reality. A manager may not have a say-so in these events.

Though I don't look for customers to go this far, I adviser Jena, and others who experience a similar lapse in service, to speak with someone or leave a note, explaining why you are leaving without making a purchase.

Believe me, people working in retail (and I am one of them) find these exchanges helpful. Any store, after all, is there for your benefit.