Page 141 - The Apple Experience

salesperson to help them. The other group was not greeted and waited
exactly the same amount of time. Both groups of customers were asked,

“How promptly were you served?” The first group—the ones who had been

greeted—said they spent less time waiting than those customers in the

second group. Their perception of time had been altered. They had been

given permission to slow down from their harried lives, take a deep breath,

and enjoy the experience.

Altering the perception of time was just one benefit of greeting a
customer. In the previous study, the customers were also asked, “On a scale

from 1 to 10, how likely are you to recommend [retailer]?” By now you can

probably guess which group gave the higher score.

One of the keys to resetting your customer’s internal clock is to be

specific. Don’t be vague. It’s not enough to say, “I’ll be right with you.”

Instead say, “I’m finishing up with this customer, and I’ll be with you in five

minutes. If there’s someone who can help you even sooner, I’ll send them
right over.” If the customer had already been waiting five minutes, her

internal clock has now been reset and is starting again.

Why You’ll Never Wait More Than Three Minutes in an

Apple Store

Apple also knows that approaching customers with a warm, friendly greeting

is one of the easiest and most effective ways of slowing down a customer’s

internal clock. If done correctly, customers who have waited fifteen minutes

for assistance will think they waited no more than a few minutes. Here is

how a typical scenario might play out at an especially busy Apple Store where