[Jewelry making - Article 00701] - Re: [Orchid] Should prices be visible?

[richard hart]

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>     Unfortunately, many of us do NOT have this type of clientele! We
>     compete with Walmart, Zales, Jared, Costco, Target, eBay, Amazon,
>     QVC, Value City, and countless others, big and small, fancy and
>     junky, each and every day.

    I do not have this type of clientele, I make this type of clientele
    by how I relate to them. 

>     The FUN part of selling is that most of the customers DON'T WANT
>     TO TELL US WHAT THEY WANT TO SPEND, due to fear that we will try to
>     'up-sell' them, or offer them less of a discount on a particular
>     piece. We end up showing 10 or 100 pieces

    I simply explain to customers that when they are shopping for a car
    you know whether you are going to the Mercedes dealer or the Ford
    dealer. You know what kind of money you have for that. It would help
    me to understand what your budget is for what you are looking for.
    Works every time. 

>     We replace most watch batteries for $6 or $7, including
>     installation, and receive complaints about that price nearly every
>     week.

    I am really sorry that people do not appreciate you for the time it
    take to do that service. I personally do not have the time or
    inclination to do watch batteries. Supposed to be a service that 
leads
    to a sale. Too much of a bother. I would rather make jewelry, and I
    do. 

>     The majority of the customers that walk through our door are not
>     looking for a 'feel-good' transaction with a fancy song-and-dance
>     sales pitch with a lot of hand-holding, compliments on their
>     excellent taste, or misty-eyed descriptions of exotic lands"

    It is not a soap opera. My experience is that in reality people love
    stories. Not b.s., but a little entertainment, some information, but
    most of all, an ernest feeling that you are interested in them and
    interested in helping them, and that is what I am conveying. Invest
    yourself in the experience. Commit yourself. 

    First of all because I love what I do, and second because they are my
    employer and I have have always respected some aspect of who I worked
    for, or I was not able to stay at a job. 

    Those of you who live in small towns perhaps you know people where
    you shop, so going to the store is social, you chat, buy what you
    need. It is a more positive experience than being a faceless, 
nameless
    replaceable consumer.Create that atmosphere at your business. Makes 
my
    life worth living. It is not about stuff, it is about people. This is
    how I chose to live my life. There is no do over. 

    "People are not looking for" perhaps because there are so few people
    who chose to be relational. I have been support for customers who
    went thru chemo, invited to wedding and funerals of my customers. I
    chose to believe I made an impact of what kind of a person I am, the
    values I hold, and I was included because I have value above whatever
    commerce transpired. 

Richard Hart
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