Evolution [ev-uh-loo-shuh n]: a process of gradual, peaceful, progressive change or development; any process of formation or growth.
My parents opened their first store in the fall of 1991. I was 12; stamps were 29 cents; jeans were tight-rolled. Now, 25 years later, I’m celebrating my own store’s fifth anniversary.
A lot has changed in 25 years. We no longer hand-write every shipment in a manifest book, generate primitive labels on a dot matrix printer, use rate charts, or get tangled in a bell chain to check for oversize shipments. We no longer keep extensive fax logs, use an elaborate copy-and-file system for billing, or go to the Post Office every day with our accountable mail book to get that coveted round stamp. But we do still make the arduous and confusing task of shipping into a pain-free, easy, pleasant experience for the public. We still sell service; we still sell convenience.
Back in the 90s, the concept of a shipping store was still fairly new to most markets. The business model was driven by convenience—consumers’ demand for a one-stop comparative shop in their neighborhood to consolidate the shopping-around errands and time-consuming separate trips to a Post Office, a carrier shipping counter, a copy center, a greeting card store, a fax center, a notary office, and more.
Some stores started as print shops that added shipping and mailbox options; some started as mailbox stores that did shipping and a few other things. But shipping and mailbox rentals were the primary focus for the majority of our businesses. We provided our customers with professional packing, multiple shipping options, and expert guidance to help them choose the best service for their needs and budget.
Over time, the industry started to change; it evolved. The internet became a thing and drop-offs crept in. Soon drop-offs became the majority of our outgoing packages, and we realized they weren’t’ going away. The environment was changing. We needed to change.
During the infamous UPS strike in 1997—those long two weeks when the world stopped turning—we found ourselves in the position of providing solutions and alternatives to our customers. I think it was then that the light bulb really went off, and we realized just how important our business was to our town. Customer service became our paradigm.
Shipping stores began to evolve into full-service business centers. Technology allowed us to expand our simple coin-operated black and white copy machines to integrated high quality printing equipment. We began scanning documents to supplement the downturn in faxes and then realized new markets in shredding, finger printing, and document finishing. Some stores started to do design work and many became full-fledged print shops, turning out incredible finished products—done locally at a fair price.
We added digital mailboxes to our traditional private mailboxes and grew our mail forwarding business. We expanded our notary service and added large format printing, large freight shipping, storage options, package receiving, custom box creation, new retail products, and unique greeting card lines. We found untapped markets in order fulfillment, warehousing, concierge service, and textbook buyback. We got creative, and once in a while we struck gold.
We realized that those drop-off customers had incredible potential. After all, they were warm bodies in our stores and a captive audience. So, rather than getting annoyed with them and pouting over shipments that we wish had been run through our registers, we treated them like the golden potential customers that they were. With professionalism and respect, we taped their packages for free, checked for double labels, and showed them what we could offer in so many other areas.
Each drop-off customer left with our brochure in hand and an invitation to “come back soon.” We were able to convert many of them to our shipping services by simply offering monthly-billed house accounts, taking their packing headaches away, or sometimes matching their direct carrier account rates if we were able. We told them—and more importantly showed them—why they needed to have us on their team. We were the experts and there to happily make their lives easier.
The world is turning fast, and our customers’ needs are changing fast. Sometimes we feel behind the curve and overwhelmed trying to keep up. And that’s totally natural, especially for the creatures of habit that many of us have become. But when we recognize this change, we can then embrace it … and grow with it.
Not long ago, I happened to look closely at the back of a package of cotton swabs. Traditionally, cotton swabs were used to clean ear wax. But you’re really not supposed to use them to clean your ears anymore, as they can cause damage to the ear canal and eardrum. So manufacturers are putting a list on their packaging of suggested uses, none of which has anything to do with ears. They’re now advertised for makeup removal, cleaning keyboards, applying eye cream, removing hairdryer lint, and removing bellybutton lint. The cotton swab industry didn’t die when it became ill-advised to stick one in your ear; the industry simply got creative, found a plethora of new markets, and evolved.
There’s no standard business model any more for our stores. The variety of markets we’re in has created incredibly unique, diverse, fabulous businesses. We’ve become the go-to place to solve all of our customers’ conundrums, trusted to find a solution and provide the best service they’ll ever have the pleasure to experience.
John F. Kennedy said, “Change is the law of life and those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future.” Let’s look to the future, and meet our customers there.
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This is an abridged and edited version of the full article, Our Industrial Evolution, published in MBC Today Volume 18, Issue 3 (May/June 2016).
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For more information on Marty, please visit unclemartysoffice.com.
Source: AMBC Blog