I’m going through my feedreader (give Rojo a try) and catching up with some of my readings. One of the blogs I occassionally read is Susan Abbott’s Customer Experience Crossroads. I probably should read more than occassionally because she often has very insightful perspectives on how to help customers and members create their experience.

Last month, she wrote a post called Being Friendly to New Segments without Alienating the Old Segments and it got me thinking about a slightly different viewpoint. She had a recent experience in a mall music store where she didn’t feel welcome and proposed that the store become find ways to be more inclusive to more customer groups.
I seriously doubt that some mall retail stores like HMV or K-B Toys have a consistent vision for their customer experience. I’m basing this on my own experience of typically walking into a store to find merchandise that’s hard to locate – mostly because stuff is scattered around in what seem like the wrong places. But let’s say for a minute that Sam Goody does have such a vision and it includes loud music, cds scattered around, and not-exactly-low merchandise prices…and this works for their core customer. When does it make sense to change this in order to attract a different customer base?

Okay, I sort of set that up (by the way, I prefer to buy most of my music and dvds online), but let’s take a different example…one where there is a more coherent, successful vision for the customer experience. Perhaps the Apple Store where I bought my iPod; or Potbelly Sandwich Works where I just can’t get enough of their Italian sandwich; or The New Bohemian, a small funky shop where I bought a nifty t-shirt for my wife. Each of these places have a unique vibe that works for a certain type of person, but may not be for everyone. For sure, they could do something to attract their non-traditional customer bases, but at what price?

This is a long-winded way to get to this point: It might seem tempting to move into new customer bases, but we should do it with extreme caution. I agree with Susan that bringing in a new customer group without alienating the core customer is possible. Yet, without the proper planning and careful attention to the nuances of what makes for your own customer loyalty, the strategy can kick you in the teeth. It’s far better to know what you are and stay true to that.