“What can Brown do for you?”
That was the popular slogan for UPS from 2002 to 2010. Simple in structure yet far-reaching in scope, the slogan engaged UPS’ multi-platform customer universe to think about its relationship with the company and how it might be expanded. The shipping, receiving and supply chain management giant wanted the world to know it did more than move packages from Point A to Point B.
And it worked.
Now, it’s time for the Coin Laundry Association to borrow this slogan and apply it to our industry.
Customers form the foundation of our various businesses. We work hard to attract, serve and maintain customers, regardless of which segment of the industry we serve – store owner, distributor, manufacturer, finance company, payment systems provider, consultant, WDF pickup-and-delivery solutions or others. At some point in this customer relationship process, we ask some form of, “What can Brown do for you?”
It may be “How are we doing?” or “How can we help you?” or “What do you need?” In fact, successful companies ask these questions often. After all, how do we know what our customers want if we don’t ask them?
A trade association also is a business. Its members are its customers. The same methods of relationship-building apply. The challenge for a trade group is to realize that – once members pay their dues – they become customers in need of service. Without a physical storefront to visit or sales representatives to call on association members, how does that customer relationship grow? How do the two businesses communicate? How does the association know what its customers want and need as time moves on, as the economy shifts and as its customers evolve? How does a trade association remain a valued trading partner?
Compounding this challenge for the CLA is the breadth of its customer base. The CLA serves three main groups: laundromat owners, distributors and manufacturers.
However, the vast majority of its members are store owners. Given that, it’s required that laundry owners comprise at least half of the CLA’s Board of Directors.
Successful store owners are the cornerstone of the industry. They purchase supplies, parts, service and equipment from distributors, who in turn purchase products from the industry’s manufacturers. As a result, it’s not surprising that the CLA is spends a lot of its time, money and resources educating and advising laundromat owners and potential investors. Which brings us to ask the question: “What can the CLA do for you?”
The store owner segment of the laundromat industry is varied. Some laundromats are fully attended, while others are unattended. Some stores are the primary sources of income for their owners, while others provide second or third incomes. Many operators have one store, yet others own multiple locations. Some owners have been in the industry less than three years, and others are running second- and third-generation businesses.
Clearly, asking store owners, “What can the CLA do for you?” would generate a wide range of answers. Now, couple that dynamic while asking the same question to the industry’s distributors and manufacturers and one soon sees the complexity of the task. Nonetheless, the question must be asked.
This year, the CLA will embark on an ambitious program to examine its product offerings to the industry, with an eye to enhancing the value proposition of membership. This program depends on maintaining and growing relationships with its members through ongoing communication consisting of electronic and in-person interactions. It consists of educating all members on the association’s current products and services, while discovering – and then delivering – new products and services that this industry needs.
In closing, on behalf of the CLA, I ask, “What can the CLA do for you?”
[Editor’s Note: In light of this month’s column, please let us know what the Coin Laundry Association can do to help you better run your business? Send your thoughts and suggestions to: [email protected]]
