Service First

BCSC president Bob De Barr aims to steer the industry toward higher customer service standards.

It’s easy to be portrayed as a lip server when you head up an association as large as BCSC. That hasn’t stopped Bob De Barr from setting an ambitious course for the organization, with the end goal of raising customer service standards across[...] Tactics Subscribers Read More...

Playing for Keeps

Customer Service, Services

Alan Jones of Bluewater brings a fresh approach to shopping centre marketing.

From the moment Bluewater opened its doors in Northwest Kent in 1999, it was clear that this wouldn’t be an ordinary mall. And after sitting down with marketing manager Alan Jones this past February, we gained a better understanding of why. [...] Tactics Subscribers Read More...

Seventy-six Million Boomers Ready To Shop!

Amenities, Customer Service, Services

Baby boomers are the largest generation in history, so it’s no surprise that retailers are keen to accommodate them.

Baby boomers make up the largest generation in history—more than 76 million citizens in America alone. Born between 1946 and 1964, one baby boomer marks a half century milestone every eight seconds. It’s the long expected and often hyped agi[...] Tactics Subscribers Read More...

Lost Cause

Community Room, Customer Service, Services

Grand Teton Mall implemented a computer logging system to track items lost by shoppers.

Keeping track of items lost or misplaced by shoppers is a formidable task for anyone responsible for a mall’s Lost & Found booth. At Grand Teton Mall in Idaho Falls, Idaho, mall merchants are encouraged to bring lost items to the customer serv[...] Tactics Subscribers Read More...

Help Wanted

Customer Service, Services

Fox Hills Mall sought to raise the caliber of its retailers’ applicants after some merchants noted a lack of qualified individuals, and secret shopper surveys revealed a low customer service rating.

Mall-sponsored retail seminars usually concentrate on training managers, but a new program at Fox Hills Mall in Culver City, California, is designed to develop a higher caliber of applicants, for managers to interview. According to Marketing Dir[...] Tactics Subscribers Read More...

Good Deeds

Customer Service, Services

Boy Scouts and their parents staffed the “Customer Care Crew” at Bannister Mall, helping holiday shoppers by opening doors, carrying packages, and guiding them across the street. The Scouts earned a monetary contribution, which helped them purchase new gear, and shoppers enjoyed the service.

Boy Scouts are known for performing good deeds, and at Bannister Mall in Kansas City, Missouri, that reputation included helping center customers with their holiday shopping. From November 25 to December 24, "Customer Care Crew" members—easily[...] Tactics Subscribers Read More...

Free Ride

Customer Service, Services

8 shopping centers teamed up to provide free trolley rides between each other. Collection boxes on the trolleys resulted in $3,600 for charity, and over 16,000 holiday shoppers responded positively to the service.

Last December, the holiday spirit chugged up and down Richmond, British Columbia’s main thoroughfare in the form of a Christmas trolley shuttle—providing shoppers with free door-to-door transportation to help reduce traffic congestion, attra[...] Tactics Subscribers Read More...

The Challenge

Customer Service, Services

Sales associates from stores in Oglethorpe Mall competed in “The Challenge” to test their retail sales skills and knowledge. Separated into groups above and below the age of 25, each were evaluated on “Mystery Shopper” visits, interviews, and product presentation. The top two winners were awarded $300 in cash and a trip to the National Retail Federation Conference. Back at the mall, a customer service ad campaign was created to encourage shoppers to submit their opinions for a chance to win a weekly $250 gift certificate. The mall received 5,250 comment cards from the promotion.

Last June, 49 sales associates from various stores in Oglethorpe Mall in Savannah, Georgia, competed in "The Challenge" to test their retail sales skills and knowledge. According to Marketing Director Becky Orsi-Faircloth, once the participants [...] Tactics Subscribers Read More...

Have your Cheesecake and Eat it too

Community Room, Customer Service, Services

White Flint used silent, vibrating pagers to notify its shoppers when their tables were ready in The Cheesecake Factory — or when three hours of supervised play had passed, and it was time to retrieve their children.

Shoppers who wander around White Flint in North Bethesda, Maryland, thinking that their stomach is grumbling should probably check their beeper. Since last July, patrons of The Cheesecake Factory have been issued a "Time Saver Pager"—a silent [...] Tactics Subscribers Read More...

Sign-up Time

Customer Service, Services

For shoppers’ convenience, Bramalea City Centre set up a one-stop “Sign-Up Time Activity Fair”, where they could register for sports and other activities without any hassle.

Shoppers at Bramalea City Centre in Brampton, Ontario, will be able to save themselves the time and stress associated with registering for fall courses and programs by attending a one-stop "Sign-Up Time Activity Fair" next month. Instead of r[...] Tactics Subscribers Read More...