The Butchers Story

We were doing a favour for a local butcher, he needed some posters and leaflets made up to give to the local printer and I asked him why he didn't get a web site and place the information there, his reply went something like this;

"What use is the Internet to me, my customers come from the local area, most of them will not have the blasted internet, so it's a waste of money. It's a big toy for a big boy!"

"Garbage!" I retorted, we struck a deal and we gave created a site and included a domain name and an email address as well, we would update the information on the site monthly, so it'll not take up his time.

So we dutifully displayed a web site for him - there was a bit about the shop the staff and the products.

Customers were getting Involved

Three weeks to the day we put that site up, a customer said she had seen him on the internet and suggested that he put some of his recipes on the site. 

He asked if he could and we did!

The visits to the site increased.

One week later there was an enquiry from America looking for recipes for Haggis, being the canny person he was, he sold it for $10 (the cheque came through 2 weeks later), he never cashed it... he framed it.

Within 4 weeks his customers had commented on the site and he had another sale through it, which was brilliant because he didn't sell anything through at that time!

The story doesn't end there...

After three months customers were supplying "unique recipes" for inclusion on the web site, amazingly two more enquiries for Haggis (to feed 50+ people) and he made £30 from those!

The Money Bit

The next mile stone was when he started looking for suppliers of meat using the web, not only did he manage to buy cheaper, from a quality supplier, but he also managed to supply "Free Range" meat to his customers, ordered on from his web site and supplied directly to the customer with his name on it, which meant, little effort for a good profit!

When we parted company he told me that the web site accounted for an additional £20,000 of revenue per annum.

He has customers from all around the world, his (increased) local customers have a special relationship with the business by offering and exchanging recipes, and I answered his question:

"What use is the Internet to me, my customers come from the local area, most of them will not have the blasted internet, so it's a waste of money. It's a big toy for a big boy!"

So in answer to "What use is the Internet to me" the answer was: £20,000 pa and increased customer base and increased customer loyalty!

The customers were part of the business, they suggested changes, he got feedback. How much feedback do you get from your customers?

He sold the business and retired, I got a steak so big, well, my mouth waters still! He still calls me a bugger, but thats butchers for you!