As consumers, we encounter different kinds of traders almost on a daily basis as we engage in buying or selling, meeting our daily basic needs. While some traders possess the right characters to approach their customers and retain them, others do not, leading to bad encounters in many ways.I have had both experiences, a nice encounter with a trader and a bad one as well, with lessons learned anyway.
Relocating to our new environment a few years ago wasn't too easy for me to adapt to many things at the beginning. Of course it is expected, but sometimes we meet strangers who, through their empathy, make things look easier for us. That was my case with the encounter I had with a very good trader. Then, I had a new baby, and I needed to process baby food for my child. I finished packing the baby food and off to the market without any idea of where exactly they blend the baby food. I only got the name of the market and headed there, keeping on strolling up and down and asking questions without getting any clearer answers. Most sellers were busy attending to those who were patronizing them, and since I was only asking them questions, they didn't give me any attention as such.
But then, this woman sighted me from afar; it looks like she was observing me and guessed I was searching for something. She waved to me that I should come closer, which I did. She inquired what I wanted from the market, and I explained to her. This woman left her shop, where she sells all manner of food ingredients, and took me to a place I could get my baby food blended. It didn't stop there; she took me around many other places where they sell things in the market, showing me around so I don't have to struggle with the market should I need to buy anything.The nice gesture I got from her automatically pushed me to shop for all the food ingredients I needed in her shop. You needed to see how calm this woman is, attending to me as if I am her sister.
I remember picking one item, and she said I should drop it and get it from a neighboring shop as the item isn't healthy enough. It was wrapped in a local leaf 🌿, so I wouldn't know until I got home to unwrap it, but she was sincere about this product. This is really exceptional of her, and I marked it.
I continued to patronize her over and over because of my first nice encounter with her. It didn't stop there; she requested that since I am always in a haste at the market because of my baby, I could choose to send her a list of items I wanted while she get them ready for me before I reach the market so it could be faster for me. Even products she doesn't sell, she still steps out and buys them for me during those periods when my baby was still tender.
I know that it's not necessary that everyone behaves like her to be a good trader, but her actions show empathy, consideration, and concern and are good enough to maintain healthy customer relationships.
On the flip side, I had one bad encounter with this trader, a church member who is very close to me. I should have known better, but then, I trusted her so much to be sincere, but then, it was the other way round. Imagine patronizing this woman for almost two years before I realized that a particular product I had been buying from her was twice as much as what other stores sell. Really, I went to the market and got straight to her shop as usual; unfortunately for her, she didn't come to the market that day. I was left with the only option of buying the same product from another store. Surprisingly, the price was much lower. I couldn't believe it; I moved around to check 3 other shops, and still, I got it much cheaper, like half of the cost I had been buying from our church member.This realization was so devastating. I mean, how could she cheat me for that long and still claim to be my friend? Of course I confronted her, and she lacked words to explain herself, imagine doubling the price for me. It was the last time I visited her shop to date.
These two scenarios taught me that in business, which involves serving the public, people are the shortcut to your success, and so maintaining good customer relationships can help your business thrive. On the other hand, being sincere is one of the traits to retain customers, especially for future benefits and recommendations.
This post is in response to the #hivelearners community contest on the topic titled, Just Another Trader
Images were taken from canva
