Running a multi-store company without standardized operating procedures is a recipe for disaster. A lack of solid processes leads to inconsistent experiences and unhappy customers — which ultimately hurts your bottom line.
At one store, customers may meet an outgoing sales associate who’s happy to help them have a great shopping experience. At a different store, they may see an indifferent associate who’s unwilling to get off their phone. If a customer wants to return an item, they might breeze through the transaction at one store while encountering resistance from a store employee at another retail branch.
Any (or all) of these varied product and/or customer experiences can negatively affect your brand. Inconsistent procedures can all wreak havoc behind the scenes. With different deposit procedures, one store might send funds to the bank daily while another unit performs that function once per week.
Store opening and closing procedures, shoplifter protocols, and responses to safety and security incidents can also vary between stores. To avoid these inconsistencies, adopt standard operating procedures for every area of your operation. Create a Google Doc or other shared resource that every store can access from the cloud.
Taking it to the next level, a project management system will enable you to track stores’ compliance and recommend changes where necessary.