Big, masculine electronic stores can be scary. Wood paneling can help.
At
least, that appears to be the theory behind the design and marketing of Colorado's newest Best Buy store, which opened earlier this
month in Aurora and was designed to attract more female customers. According to this article, here are some of the features of the new store:
"It features skylights, carpeted floors in neutral colors and wood
paneling where metal shelving would traditionally be. What men know as
the "home theater" section is now called the "family room," where
flat-screen televisions and other items are placed in an environment
made to look more like home . . . The new store also has family
friendly features such as lower sinks for children in the bathroom,
lotion near the paper towels and a private room for new mothers. The
company even spent time training employees to better connect with women
using such techniques as more eye contact."
Finally, a Best Buy that caters to women! I am so tired of all the
masculine Best Buys in my area, with their cold, impersonal displays
and male-centered design. I mean, it's ridiculous! Recently, it has
gotten to the point where if I want to go pick up the latest Celine
Dion album, Hello Kitty camera, or pink iPod, I have to navigate
through rows of scary, confusing metal shelves and treacherous gray
carpets to do so. I am thrilled that Best Buy has finally addressed this problem.
What I don't understand is, why did the Aurora Best Buy stop at
just these small changes? I think they missed a big opportunity to be
even more female-friendly. Take this "private room for new mothers."
I've never had a kid myself, but my guess is that new moms are pretty
busy and might not have time to go shopping for electronics--that is,
unless they can give birth INSIDE Best Buy! A Best Buy Birthing
Suite--think of the possibilities! "Walk in with a placenta, leave
with a plasma," promotion, anyone?
Best Buy also needs to step up the training they are giving their
employees. "More eye contact" is just a tiny start; in addition, I
think Best Buy they should learn to do all sorts of female-friendly
things, like hand out tissues to ladies who might get teary-eyed when
they catch a glimpse of the DVD box for Stepmom, or offer us Tic-Tacs if we do smart things like understand what the computer salesman is telling us.
In short, Best Buy, I think you're off to a good start, but you
could do much more to make women like your store. Feel free to steal a
couple of my ideas.
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