Select Key Topics

The first step is to decide what topic or topics you need or want to explore. During your tours, you could focus all your attention on customer service. Or, maybe you want to pay attention to several different topics.

Here are some starter thoughts:

• Customer Service – What is the overall service experience?
• In-Location Ambiance – What’s the feeling within the location?
• Consumer Promotions – What promotions and tools are being used to build awareness, trial and sales?
• Product Offerings – What type of products do they offer similar to you? Different from you? What is their pricing?
• In-Location Signage – What type and quantity of signage is being used? How useful are the visuals and messages?
• Front-Line Employee Experience / Sales Team – How friendly, approachable, and knowledgeable are the employees?
• Exterior / Outside-Of-Location
  • Signage – What signage is being used on the outside to communicate what’s inside?
  • Visibility – How easy is it to find the location?
• Other Offerings – If you do delivery, at-home installation, or on-site service – compare yourself to all these options.
• Online Presence – Check out their website, social media channels, the support forum, etc.
• Brand Reputation – How are they perceived in the customer’s mind? In the community?