There's a lot of positivity surrounding J.C. Penney these days. The company has been turning in positive sales numbers when many of its department store peers have not. The retailer has launched a new ad campaign — "Get your Penney's worth — with the goal of attracting new shoppers while continuing to speak with the chain's core customers. Penney is also testing the sale of major appliances with an eye to growing its business while at the same time hurting a rival (Sears). Yes, everything looks good — except for the chain's customer service scores.
According to a Dallas Morning News report, Penney's Net Promoter Score was down by 10 points last year, trailing Macy's, Kohl's and Old Navy. The Net Promoter Score is seen as an indicator of future growth (or not) because it provides an answer to whether or not a customer would recommend a given retailer to a friend or colleague.
At an annual staff meeting held this week by the company (more than 1,000 managers attended), Penney executives emphasized the need for those running its stores to limit the duties that kept them away from customers.
Among the examples given in The Dallas Morning News report was the number of emails that store managers get from district offices and headquarters. Joe McFarland, executive vice president over J.C. Penney's stores, called the level "unmanageable and overwhelming."
Mr. McFarland also said store managers would have fewer reports to complete. The goal is to free managers up to spend more time making sure employees are trained properly. The initiative is also intended to give managers time to use their local market knowledge and creativity to find ways to distinguish their businesses from competitors.
- J.C. Penney to store managers: Focus on the customer, not your inbox - The Dallas Morning News
- The Net Promoter Score - Net Promoter Network
- Will Penney's new campaign make cents to consumers? - RetailWire
- Will Penney's appliance test put a fork in Sears? - RetailWire