I spend quite a lot of times in shops. In our line of business it’s a good thing to do.

Some people ask me what makes a good store. While there is no silver bullet I do think a good store makes the target customer want to buy (and makes a profit). To some that might sound like a bit of a cop out but the reality is that should be exactly what every retailer is trying to achieve. How they achieve that will be very different from target customer to target customer but it often comes down to the merchandising.

What I can say is that any shop that doesn’t make the customer want to buy or – even worse – makes the customer want to leave, is doomed. I have been in to a number of shops like that and I feel very sorry for the business owners.

In the worst examples the shops are dirty, poorly laid out and the stock is old and badly displayed. Why is it that these retailers let their shops get in to such a mess? I don’t know but I am sure there would be a range of excuses such as I am too busy, I don’t have the staff, I don’t know how to do it, blah, blah, blah…

When I have tried to get to the reason why the shops are like this most golf pros say they don’t have time to sort it out. So I sit there and watch to see what are they doing with their time. For many it comes down to one simple thing – the staff need to put their phones away. For many pros and assistants it appears that it is more important to be checking emails and browsing Facebook than making sure the shop is in good shape.

Earlier this year I watched an assistant spend an entire hour on Facebook while sitting on a chair surrounded by stock. When I comically asked him why the stock was lying there he genuinely said “it’s been busy and I haven’t had time to label it up yet!” Brilliant.

So a challenge to all those guys out there that say – I don’t have enough time. If you really want to improve your lot then give this a go:

Next week get all your staff to divert their mobile phones to your shop number and then put all the phones in the desk drawer for the entire day. Every time you get the urge to check your mail or your Facebook account think – “I will go and tidy the shop”.

Lets see how much better the shop looks at the end. If that works and you don’t all die then try it for a week. See what the customers say and see how the sales have been versus the previous year. You might be surprised. If nothing else I can guarantee that you will have more time.