Dropped by my comic shop today to collect a couple of Christmas presents I’d ordered through them (games, in this case). Reminded me about the way they organize their customer files. If you have subscriptions for comics etc. with them you have your own folder in the filing cabinet behind the counter. The folders are organized by first name, and then surname. So, within a short time they remember your first name when you come into the shop, adding an extra dimension of hospitality to their service.
It’s only a small thing, but it makes you feel that you personally, and your custom, are welcome.
It’s like the church we joined when we moved towns once. I visited one church (among several), filled out the ‘visitors card’, and had a very brief chat with someone who approached me. Then, later on that week the church found someone in the congregation who worked in a related field to phone up to see how we were settling in and to see if we needed help with anything. The fact that they a) bothered to get back in touch, b) had remembered who I was from the brief conversation, and c) found someone to contact me with whom I had a vocational connection, made me feel like they had something good to share.
