Paul’s comments on punctuality include the concept of responsiveness, and we did some interesting research on the subject at Kinko’s Northwest, the partnership owned by our beloved late friend, Brad Krause. We tracked how long it took us to respond to bids and charted that against our success in winning the bids. The curve was dramatic – the faster we responded to bids, the more we won.  When we responded within an hour our win rate was over 90%.  Sometimes we had finished the job before other prospective vendors had submitted their bids.

Obviously, responsiveness alone does not win the day. But speed gives one a great advantage over the competition, demonstrating both high competency and high customer service standards.

Even so, sometimes people have to wait in a retail environment, and the experience can make or break the relationship between you and your customer. I highly recommend an article called The Psychology of Waiting Lines from Harvard Business Review. This article had a dramatic impact on how we did things at Kinko’s Northwest, and I think any retailer could benefit from its wisdom.

For example, the article reminds us that occupied time moves faster than unoccupied time, so it’s a good idea to have reading material or video available for customers waiting in line. The article also notes that informed waiting is less stressful than uninformed waiting. That’s why Disneyland used to have those signs telling how long the wait would be from any point in line. (I haven’t been to Disneyland in a while and don’t know if they still have those signs).

And of course, fair waiting is much less stressful than unfair waiting. Anyone who regularly chooses the wrong check-out lane at the grocery store understands this.

Kinko’s Northwest Regional Manager and Golden State Kinko’s Partner Tom Parrish adopted the phrase “Speed Kills – The Competition.” I think it’s true, whether referring to how efficient your queues appear to customers, how quickly you respond to bids, or how early you arrive for every meeting. Responsiveness distinguishes you from the competition.

Dean Zatkowsky was a marketing executive at various Kinko’s companies from 1986-1999. He is managing partner of Dizzy One Ventures LLC.