Shop.org napkin notes: why relationships matter

As I sift thru the napkin notes collected over the past few days, I noticed a thread I thought worth sharing, but first a qualification: I’ve been involved in retail and retail technology at all levels and in all channels since 1985. I’ve paid for my understanding of the expression: ‘retail is detail.’

The item of note occurred during a conversation with a hands on manager from a well-qualified e-commerce software platform company. The note captured his frustration over how customers focus so much of their attention on wish lists and next generation capabilities while under appreciating the fundamentals and details.

He described how he’s spent time and effort educating prospects on the boring basics  – at the risk of losing the final sale.  The fact that he was engaging in full disclosure was noteworthy for many reasons including the fact that it’s the quality you want to see in a platform company. But my main point is this: It pays to remember that you are in an industry that values relationships and those relationships can lead to future opportunities.  For the 40% of you, who were newcomers, plan on being around for a while.

In the long run, your partners will remember any gesture that fairly takes into account their role as educators and if history is any indicator, that gesture will come back to help you later when you are finally ready to take on the wish list items and make your visions real.

Finally, thanks those very same vendors and sponsors who helped me learn my limit regarding how many lobster tails I can eat. And thanks to Max, who gave me hope for this years Toronto Maple Leafs.