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These are the days garden centers dream about. Warm, sunny weather… replenishing rains (only at night, mid-week please)… benches and beds full of fresh, new product… employees in crisp attire… parking lots full during the week with customers on the prowl looking for the last overflow spot on weekends… every register line filled to the max with the new point-of-sale system running as smooth as silk. Oh, the joys of running a successful garden center.

But then, POW! What’s this? A customer is complaining about unmarked products? Another says the restroom is out of supplies? One of the high school kids who is too young to have a driver’s license ran the front-end loader into the side of a customer’s new truck? All the carts are taken and we’re using the old, rusty wagons again? What just happened? What will our customers think of us now?

Oh, the trials and tribulations of trying to run a successful garden center.

There’s a business cliche that says, “What gets measured gets done.” Creating a tool that can be used to measure a garden center’s performance from a customer’s point of view was the impetus behind the Garden Center Group’s mystery shop program. After seven years with more than 1,200 shops conducted at all types of garden centers across the country, what customers think and more important, what they experience, are no longer such a mystery.

Mystery shopping as a retail tool

The program was initiated by scheduling a “marathon” mystery shop in spring 2001 that happened on the same day at 40 Group centers. A lot of garden centers claim that the defining difference between them and the competition is great customer service. We now had a 130-point measuring tool to see if the claims made were as solid as what really happens, especially during the peak selling season when every center should be on its best behavior.

The results from the marathon mystery shop in 2001 are shown here side by side with 2006’s scores. You can see how having every member of the team focus on what matters most can make a big difference in every customer’s shopping experience in five key categories:
 

	2001 scores	2006 scores
Proper telephone skills	65.8%	77.1%
General store appearance	95.6%	95.1%
Employee attitude and skills	58.3%	77.1%
Specific employee skills	84.4%	89.4%
Purchase process	87.7%	91.9%
Overall score	77.2%	85.1%

 Listen to what shoppers say

While points and percentages create the scorecard measurement, what every center looks for first on the reports are customer comments. Keep in mind that the comments made come from a person from the garden center’s community, someone who shops all types of local stores. What is written in the reports is what the shopper truly experienced. Whether flattering or scolding, there’s a lot to gain from careful review of the commentary on the reports.

Here are comments pulled from recent shops that cover just a few of the categories we measure during mystery shop visits.

Telephone skills

Here are a couple of examples our shoppers passed along regarding their experience calling garden centers they would later visit.

100-percent scores.

* “Theresa answered the phone after two rings saying, “Hi, this is Theresa at (name of store). How may I help you today?” When I asked if she carried lettuce plants she asked if I had a particular variety in mind. She then invited me to visit the garden center to see all the different varieties and other vegetable plants in the greenhouse.”

* “The phone was answered in two rings by an associate who sounded friendly and enthusiastic. She gave her name and the name of the store. Her voice was clear when giving directions and she invited me to come see the flowers in their new greenhouse.”

50-percent or less scores.

* “The female answering the phone did not give her name or the name of the company. There was no invitation to come shop. When transferred to a different person for directions, no one picked up my call.”

* “It required two different attempts before someone answered my call. It sounded like they were on a portable phone, which made conversation difficult. She did give the company name but not her own and failed to invite me to come visit. They should get a better phone system.”

Getting it right To achieve a perfect score on telephone skills is quite simple. Train all employees to use a consistent format when answering the phone. Enthusiastically answer the phone within three rings by giving the company name and their name with an invitation to visit the store. The same process should be followed when calls are transferred to different departments.

General appearance

While most garden centers score well in this category, a few problems seem to recur during spring. Here are two examples our shoppers continually report:

Stray carts. “There were several carts and wagons left in empty parking spots, making it difficult to find a place to park.”

This can be an issue, so a solution needs to be found before the problem occurs. Make sure one person is assigned each day as “Cart Captain” or “Wagon Master.” Most retail problems occur when no one person is held accountable.

Missing prices. Given all the advancements in technology, you would think this would no longer be a problem:

* “I had to ask several times about prices. While many of the plants were priced, a number of them were not and as a customer I was annoyed by this omission.”

* “All the products I was interested in purchasing were not priced. It seemed to be a problem mostly found in pottery and statues, but that’s what I came to buy.”

This is an issue that will only be solved by setting retail standards about product pricing, then using constant surveillance by people in every department. We know by shoppers’ reports that people tend to walk away without purchasing rather than go to the trouble of finding people to address unpriced items.

Getting it right. But then a report is returned that shows that some centers are pulling things together to make the shopping experience as good as it gets:

* “The store was clean and well-stocked. All merchandise was neatly organized and priced. Signage was clearly visible and informative. There were carts available in different locations. Outside displays were well-organized with pots, water fountains, plants and even patio furniture. Other plants were well-organized and grouped well together. I expected to get help but did not expect the level of customer service I received. I will definitely go back for my personal projects.”

This mystery shopper report came from a center that regularly achieves the uncommon perfect score. It’s also a company that uses the reports as a training tool for staff on a monthly basis. We suspect a correlation between preparation and results.

Purchase process

Any customer can have a quick change of heart after having a wonderful shopping experience only to be disappointed at the last minute during checkout. Here’s what one mystery shopper encountered that sent shivers up the back of the owner who asked for his store to be shopped:

* “The first cashier was helpful but didn’t smile or come across very warm. She received assistance from an unpleasant associate ringing up my order. I had several plants in my cart and after later reviewing my purchase discovered that both of them missed ringing up a fairly expensive fern. I was not told about the upcoming promotion, perennial punch card or mailing list for their club until I asked about it. I was given reward dollars with no explanation.”

Compare that example to this commentary coming from a garden center that obviously spends time preparing for busy days:

* “The cashier was assisting two ladies ahead of me with two others behind me in line. Another employee opened a second register as soon as he noticed the line. He got my attention by saying, ‘I can help you over here.’ When I reached the register he made eye contact, smiled and greeted me again. He handled the transaction quickly and efficiently. He asked if I was a reward card member, then offered an application so I could sign up once we were through. He announced the total of the sale in a clear voice and made small talk about the plant I was purchasing. At the end of the transaction he thanked me, wished me a good day and said he hoped to see me again. He was outgoing, personable, cheerful and sociable, just the traits I expected to end a great shopping experience.”

Instead of a shiver, I’m sure this owner felt a warm glow of pride in knowing that her team had fulfilled all that was expected during what can be a stressful time of a customer’s shopping experience.

You are what you do

When asked, “so how is the garden center industry doing?,” I’ve developed a pat answer that usually ends the conversation. “Depends on which garden center you’re talking about.” The feedback we receive from mystery shoppers visiting Group centers and all of their competition clearly shows that success is dependent on the actions taken by individual stores and their staff. What’s happening to the industry has little to do with what is happening at street level by centers implementing what others only talk about putting in place.

Thanks to Wendy Hendrickson, Client Service Manager for the Group, for supplying the information used in this article.

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© 2006 Branch-Smith Publishing