If you want loyalty don't piss me off ...

I recently read a tweet from @NicholasHoareTO and there was something about it that bugged me.

The tweet went like this:

"Dear customer, please don't use our store and staff to put together your online shopping list. :("

First of all how do you know dear store and staff that that is the reason a list is being made? I use my iphone and write notes about books I see all the time and I never or at least rarely order them online - and so what if I did? Don't you sell books online? Well you have a website but I can't order anything from it so perhaps I will just "steal" "your" catalogue and order them from somewhere else? Is that what you want?

Secondly, yes I am your customer - I might even be following you on twitter and you might even be pissing me off with your snotty tweets therefore I may not buy those books from you after all.

I know you have a reputation to keep up Nick Hoare but if you are going to use social media and your website presumably for the good of your business - don't complain when others use you to benefit their consuming. Be gracious, be helpful and all that other stuff that good retailers do who want to gain customer loyalty and then perhaps you will get customer loyalty.

 

Posted via web from Tim's posterous