Shop owners -- What value am I to you?

[PvtStash]

your value is as a walking billboard for his business as a long time (satisfied) customer... word of mouth is the Best kind of advertising and you cant buy it (tho' some try).

sure the gear sales to newbie divers is fairly obvious but with You (and many like you) those big newbie payouts dry up ; so yeah your worth is still huge if not directly in a gear-buying way.

 

[UncleJoes]

It really is a combination of many of the posts here. Not to mention that the one person you shoo away because they are "done Buying" is going to tell Everyone that you are an A$$ and that you wouldn't give him the time of day.

I just try to treat everyone the same, whether it be the doctor with a pocket full o' money or the old guy off the street just looking to chat about the good ol' days. I have many customers who come in regularly just to BS. I have a table in my showroom for just that purpose.

If I had to pick my #1 reason why YOU are important, the "word of mouth" thing probably provides the most revenue. But other than that, personally, I treat every customer as a friend (well some more than others, you all probably know at least one of who I refer) and it doesn't do me any good to lose friends.

-Jeff

 

[ronbeau]

I actually asked this question of the owner of my LDS yesterday.

We often talk here about diver retention in the sport, as though it were something desirable. But, from the point of view of a shop owner, how much good is a continuing diver? Once you've gotten past the point of the OW class and maybe AOW and a couple of specialties, bought all your gear, and settled down to active diving, you don't buy much. It's a little here and a little there, and some fills. I doubt it adds much to the bottom line of the average shop; in fact, they may spend MORE tending to their continuing divers than they regain from purchases.

So I wondered, since there are a fair number of shop owners that post here, what your view of your active diving customers is? What good are we?

The owner my LDS mentioned that the divers who dive regularly tend to get new divers interested in the sport that take classes and buy new gear.

In my case I started diving in 2004. My daughter was then certified in 2006 and my wife in 2007.

Both my wife and daughter have full sets of gear. That adds up to a decent amount of money from my perspective.

 

[--tom--]

"Word of mouth" is sometimes misconstrued a little. Often it is used in terms of gaining new customers. In my case (& I believe it is the case with many board members that have a great LDS to go to), I some how fell into the "cool kid's club". I dive, & I usually dive with an expanding group of people who are known to have a fun time. So my value isn't a larger customber base, it is diver retention. If someone wants to come diving (within perameters), they can come along, and they are welcome. So it stabilizes the customer base. I happen to notice that now I am seeing the same faces on trips too.

 

[Gombessa]

This sounds like a question of limited bandwidth. It doesn't really matter who is worth more or less unless there aren't enough employees there to take care of all the customers at any given time.

As one poster mentioned, if you're standing behind the counter pointing to a product, you could be walking the customer to the product, engaging in sales or small-talk, up-selling, etc. That's a benefit to the shop, unless it's taking your time away from a "big fish" purchaser. That's understandable, and is only rational retailer behavior, but the fact remains if you're standing behind the counter pointing, that necessarily means your time isn't being taken up by said big fish. So why not maximize the value of a small purchase whereas otherwise you'd just be standing there doing nothing?

As to the question of what value "regulars" are, beyond the obvious value of referrals, I can think of two things worth considering:

1) "Mid-level" regulars, perhaps myself included, have pretty much all they need to go out and enjoy a reef dive. We only spend a few dollars each time we come in. However, I've seen hardcore regulars walk in and leave with a few hundred worth of supplies (new valves for their stage bottles, replacement computers, dropping 3-4 regs off for annual service, etc.). It's not a new fish walking in and dropping $1,500 for a scuba package, but what kind of retailer would marginalize the value of hundred-dollar purchases? So I think part of me challenges the notion that "established" divers don't spend a lot.

2) Depending on how big the store is and how many regulars they have, even small-purchase-only regulars can contribute significantly to the "long tail" - somewhat counter-intuitively, a lot of people making a lot of small purchases can often result in higher revenue than relying on big-ticket purchases. I bet most LDS's are too small to benefit from this, but I bet large retailers like ST or LP take advantage of long tail economies, and would be very remiss to lose their "regular" customers over new buyers.

 

[ScubaSteve2000]

I'm in my LDS, Saguaro diving and Sports, at least once a week. Mostly to rent tanks but sometimes I pick up something I need. The thing is, no matter if it's a $5.00 tank rental, picking up a t-shirt or a major gear purchase, I always get great service. Sometimes I will go just to hang out and swap lies about diving and end up leaving with some doodad that I've decided I can't live without.
It really depends on what you are looking for. I'm a newbie diver and enjoy the atmosphere at Saguaro. There are 5 dive shops within 5 miles of me (at least 8 in the entire valley). Some are friendlier than others. Some will negotiate the price, others won't. At the end of the day, it's the customer service that keeps me coming back.
From a business standpoint, I think the regulars do more good to the shop that we think. I have a friend in retail (not diving) and I've never seen more that 2 or 3 people in his store at one time. His prices are competitive and he pushes his people to provide the best customer service they can provide. At the end of the day, his stores are very successful. He tells me it's the guy that stops in once a week and drops a few bucks that keeps the lights on and pays the bills. The big purchases will come but if you don't service the regulars, you won't get the big ticket buys.

 

[Anti-Hero]

I can't step foot in my LDS without dropping a wad of money. I go in there for a flashlight, come out with light, new crotch strap setup, new rock boots, and that new titanium knife thats supposed to not rust, just like the stainless steel one said it wouldn't.

 

[Dive Junky]

I am not the owner of the shop I work at but I am the Senior instructor and thus work side by side with the owner on customer retention. Our older customers have a value we just can't put a dollar sign on. New divers see them around the shop and interact with them constantly. This encourages them to hang out, buy gear, and make new friends. It truely makes for a family environment.

The older customers will always need new gear or want to upgrade. They fill our boats and our shop dive trips. They in turn help with classes as they progress. Without them the LDS loses its value, becomes less competetive and thus doesnt stay in business. This of course results in no shops and none of us dive then. No boats, no buddies, no air fills.

 

[TSandM]

Another thing my LDS owner said was that, when people come into the shop and see us all with tanks everywhere and chatting and obviously having a good time there, it gives a clear message that this is a good shop and that diving is fun.

Don't get me wrong at all -- my LDS is GREAT, and I get super service from them. It was just my curiosity that made me ask them the question.

 

[Dive Junky]

Don't get me wrong at all -- my LDS is GREAT, and I get super service from them. It was just my curiosity that made me ask them the question.

I think it was a very legitimate question especially with the whole internet vs. LDS chat that goes on. Ultimately though I think any shop owner would have to agree that the more divers that come to their shop the better. You may not be a HUGE $ anymore, but your value changes and you are needed and appreciated in other ways.