I just got an automated phone call from my grocery store.  Wegman’s has long been in our family- it was the best grocery in Rochester, NY where I grew up.  There’s one in Downingtown, PA now, and while it’s about a 30-40 minute drive to get there, I go and stock up on favorite items about once a month.

Wegman’s like many grocery stores, has a shopper’s club.  They give you discounts, coupons, etc. like all programs.  But I just got a phone call from Wegman’s informing me that their records showed I had purchased two products that are being recalled because of the pistachio nut/salmonella scare.  They gave me the product name, identification dates- everything I need to see if the item is still in the pantry, and the ability to return it for a full refund.

So for all that demographic information Wegman’s is collecting about my shopping habits, they are also using this data to help long after the sale has occurred- in this case, in the event of a recall.

(I’d actually like to see my trends at shopping there compared to other stores myself, since I don’t log this information anywhere- might be interesting- but that’s another story all together.)

Talk about great PR, great use of information, and great building of a relationship and trust with customers.  Not only do we care about you in getting your business, we’ll contact you if there’s anything that might cause a problem after the sale is made as well.

I already love Wegman’s, but this has made me even more of a raving fan.  Does any other business care so much about you before and after the sale?  Is anyone else doing this kind of work?

Thank you, Danny Wegman and the whole team, for caring about family, for taking this step to keep us all healthy, and for making sure you will always be my store of choice.