Thoughts from a Consumer

Here’s a random thought of the day.

Last night Tracy and I were making chili and as the pot was simmering I had the sudden urge to go to grab a baguette to have with dinner (one of the conveniences of the city is you can simply walk out the door and have multiple places to buy said baguettes!)

So I walked across the street to the Hot ‘n Crusty for a $2 baguette and was disappointed when I found that they had no loaves remaining.  So I went one block down Lexington to a full scale grocer (D’Agostino’s) to check out their selection.  I’m not the hugest fan of D’Agostino’s as it seems to me to be overpriced relative to the content of the product.  Yet we will often go there in situations such as this when convenience is paramount to price.

Inside D’Agostino’s I found my options were again limited, with the only real option a smaller baguette than I would have found at Hot ‘n Crusty, priced at $3.99. 

I walked out of the store breadless.

As I made my way back up to the apartment I attempted to dissect my decision, as I realized I had made it in haste - and breaking down the reason behind the decision would likely prove helpful as a data point for how others may make decisions.  It occurred to me that my decision was less about the actual price of the good - for what’s the difference between $2 and $4 in the long run - and more about the preconceived notion I had of D’Agostino’s before walking in and the comparison to what I “could have had” if Hot ‘n Crusty had a loaf to spare.

Surely if I had never seen the price of $2 around the corner I’d likely have been more prone to shell out $4 at D’Ag’s.  But even more than that, perhaps if D’Agostino’s had previously created a connection with me as a shopper - either through sales, special offerings, or even just the overall customer experience - I imagine I would have been much more likely to buy the bread (which I ultimately wanted).  For instance, if D’Ags had been Trader Joe’s, I likely would have bought the bread.   Instead, D’Agostino’s has chosen to position itself as a purely convenience play.  It’s the only full scale grocer in its 5 block radius - and it can survive this way becuase of the neighborhood it’s in and the fact that most people will pay for convenience on a regular basis.  But I wonder how much better D’Agostino’s could be if it went beyond convenience to build customer loyalty.

Food for thought as you go through your day - what does your company, organization or school do to provide exceeding value to its constituents that drives loyalty which supercedes convenience? I believe answering that question will help drive sales, volunteer buy in, or whatever other metric is appropriate for your situation.