Jan
11
The Bathroom Effect
A few months ago Brianne and I took Langley to Nordstrom’s to find some new shoes for him. It was a normal shopping day, nothing out of the ordinary. For those of you with kids, you know that shopping takes on a new dimension when your little one is with you. You have to be quick, efficient, and ready for the unexpected.
In my attempt to be “ready for the unexpected,” I decided to find the nearest bathroom while I had the chance. I ended up asking a Nordstrom cashier where the nearest bathroom was. She cheerfully said there was not one on the floor we were on, but she thought there was one down the escalator and on the left. No problem (so I thought). I headed down, turned left, looked around, turned right, looked around and ultimately couldn’t find it.
So, I asked another Nordstrom employee. Amazingly, she wasn’t sure where the Nordstrom bathroom was, but after a few seconds indicated there was a public restroom just outside the store in the mall. At this point, I was frustrated. Shouldn’t employees know where their own bathrooms are? I wasn’t in “dire” need to use the bathroom, but I was trying to get back to the family asap so Brianne had some back-up with Langley.
I grudgingly said “thanks” and proceeded to find the public bathroom in the mall. This is where I realized what was really bothering me. She had given me what I needed, directions to the nearest bathroom – but I was frustrated because I wanted to use the Nordstrom bathroom (I guess I’m picky ; ). Like their stores, I assumed they would be cleaner, and more enjoyable to use than a public bathroom. Weird? I don’t think so. I think most of us make decisions like this all the time without thinking about it.
This experience caused me to reflect on the other times where we purposely stopped at a store, coffee shop, gas station because we knew the bathroom was clean. Beyond just a making a pit stop, often we purchased something in the process.
When you start to think about the “marketing assets” your business has, don’t forget the bathroom. The condition it is in will say a lot about how you care for the rest of your retail establishment. For people who regularly travel a certain route, they might just stop BECAUSE of your bathroom, and spend some money in the process. In the battle for the consumer dollar, every advantage helps, so make sure the bathroom effect is working for you.
