Out of the Box

In the past few weeks, a number of new retail establishments opened in Brooklyn, but at least two opened without any publicity or fanfare in what has become known in the industry as a “soft opening.” I know that many banks also prefer a soft opening to a real opening, which would include a full court press announcing the launch of a new bank or branch of a bank.

The reason for a “soft opening,” you will no doubt hear, is to essentially do a dry run or as some people put it more starkly “to get the kinks out.” I remember a bank opening in Brooklyn many years ago that followed that model for so long that the actual opening became irrelevant. The branch president had decided not to set a timetable for the soft opening and whenever you would ask him when the branch would formally open, he would tell you that it wasn’t ready yet. Indeed, that was the case, as there were numerous problems with the ATM’s and with some of the new tellers that were hired. The branch had become a fixture on the block and the grand opening 3 months later was greeted with a yawn and very little excitement.

The concept of a soft opening in itself is not a bad idea if it is a prelude to a real opening shortly thereafter. In due time, a new retail establishment will be noticed by some and be a very well kept secret by others. Marketers will tell you that a soft opening has to be treated like a real opening or else it may leave a lasting bad taste in the customer’s mind.

A good example of how a soft opening (and oft times even a real opening) can backfire is a restaurant that opened several years ago in Brooklyn. One day the restaurant simply opened its doors without any previous announcements, ads or publicity. The owner wanted to be super-cautious. He had hired a new chef and rounded up a wait staff and did not want to go public before he was sure that he had the right team in place. On the first night, a few stragglers came in to see what the new restaurant was all about, especially since it really looked good from the outside. Everything that could go wrong went wrong. Almost half the items on the menu were still not available, the waiters seemed to have to go back to the kitchen to get answers to every question, and the food was ultimately below par. Things were a little better the second night as more people came in, but many of the problems still persisted.

The buzz that was generated the first week was far from positive. The word on the street was that the restaurant had poor service and so-so food and that meant many empty tables night after night. After about two weeks, the owner believed that he had in fact dealt with all the problems and felt it was time to launch a full blast marketing campaign. More people did ultimately visit the restaurant, especially with the special promotions that he advertised, but in the end it never quite took off. Although the quality of his food and the service were much improved, the initial group of diners had managed to give the restaurant a failing grade and even with all the marketing, the restaurant was never able to recover, closing its doors nine months after the soft opening.

What this seems to indicate is that even a soft opening should not be treated in a casual or cavalier way. If there is a decision to delay the formal opening, the informal or soft opening must be treated as if it was the only opening. The restaurateur should have made sure that everything was perfect prior to opening. He should have made sure that the staff was trained and ready, that every item on his published menu was available, and that he was satisfied with the quality of the food. He should have brought in consultants and made sure that the quality of his food was impeccable.

In the case of the bank, the preparations should have been completed well before the opening. Most banks nowadays begin promoting a new branch weeks before it opens. Once the doors open, there is no longer any room for error, which is why I am quite apprehensive about putting too much weight on soft openings.

It probably makes sense to perfect the model before opening the doors which could be informal for a few days or so but under no circumstances should a soft opening take longer than a week or two. Most franchise manuals counsel to conduct “dry runs” without opening the doors. In other words, they suggest role playing and getting the staff fully familiar with inventory and customer relations issues.

A large drug chain, which has been opening stores at the rate of 10 a month, mandates that new workers spend at least 3 days at a fully functioning store before moving on to the new store. On the last day, the group is joined by the store manager as they discuss the similarities with the new store. On the next day, the group and the manager spend a day at the new store going over everything they saw at an existing store with the formal opening taking place a day later. They believe that an opening is an opening. Period! 

Out of the Box is a collection of strategic marketing articles that Lubicom has published on various topics, trends and ideas in the marketing world. The articles have been published in the Hamodia weekly newspaper circulated on three continents to a readership of well over 100,000.

The name, "Out of the Box" is a term used frequently in business nowadays to describe creative thinking that is not the norm. It is meant to help a business pull away from the pack or separate oneself from the competition. It is to some extent fraught with risk, simply because it is not the run of the mill thinking, but it is at the same time the key to reaching the next opportunity.

Do you want to get the newest Out of the Box articles in your mailbox?
Simply enter your email address below to join our mailing list!