In an increasingly turned-on world, one of the biggest turn-offs for retailers is trying to wait on a shopper who is actively engaged in a cell phone call.
They generally aren’t doing it to upset you – it just feels that way at times.
The short answer to how to handle a customer on their cellphone is: wait.
That’s not the most helpful so here are a few tips based on answering this fundamental question:
Randy, a friend of mine shared a story with me that might resonate with you about mixing up your sales process.
He was in a high-end retail shop and spotted a white shirt to try it on. He came out of the dressing room and the salesperson said, “Wow, that shirt looks great on you.” Randy took notice, felt good at being complimented on his choice, picked up another and returned to the dressing room.
He came out, stood in front of the mirror and the salesman again said, “Wow, you look great in that shirt.” At first he thought, wow, two in a row.
Then he saw a woman come out of the dressing room next to his and the salesman said… wait for it… “Wow you look great in that.”
Randy returned to the dressing room, removed the shirt and left with nothing.
My Take
You can see from one aspect that the salesman was doing a great job of complimenting the customer. He aced his training and if there were no one else in the store, he might – might – have gotten away with it.
But the fact is, he didn’t. Why?
One of three reasons:
That’s a shame because the concept was right, just the implementation.
As you know, I train the Five Parts to a Successful Sale in my speeches, on my DVDs and in my book.
One of the parts I like to be the same is “Good morning, good afternoon or good evening.” I think it sets the stage that it is different than the rest of stores who are silent or can only say, “Can I help you?” It could be changed up I suppose but then I might just get, “How’s it hangin’ dude?” or “How are you today?”
Both of which are unacceptable.
The reason so many people struggle with retail sales training is that much of it is created like we were writing computer code, “If this… then do this.” The reality is you can’t script every interaction perfectly. That’s why you also need to hire people who can be trained to a higher level of education.
As you train someone, you have to educate them on the why you want it done a certain way.
Not because “I told you so,” but that it makes a better experience for the customer. Once they understand your goal is to honestly help customers choose from your merchandise, you’ll never hear the same thing when the customer comes out of the dressing room because every customer is different.
Training is only the first step, high sales come from educating.
Do you remember being at a bowling alley or supermarket and seeing the old claw game? The one where you navigate the joystick in hopes of manipulating the claw to grab an item you want?
There are a lot of retailers that do the same thing on their sales floor. Continue reading Are Independent Hardware Stores Ready For A Reboot? »
Is there a quicker way to turn people off from shopping in bricks and mortar stores?
Target stores launched their limited-edition Jason Wu for Target line this past weekend. Monday’s news wasn’t how affordable this up-and-coming designer’s clothes were or how fashionable they were.
No, the news was that Target sold out in hours. According to investorplace.com, “Just 24 hours after the midnight unveiling, 12,000 items were on eBay, some already having sold for three to eight times their retail prices at Target.” Continue reading How Long Can Target Get Away With It? »
Training your retail crew is a bit like hosting a barbeque.
Remember the last time you barbequed?
You prepared the food items carefully, lit the fire then added the food. You had to continue to check-in several times or you lost your dinner.
Likewise your retail sales crew has to be trained before they ever talk to a customer but you must continually check on them or you lose customers.
That’s why I created the HUDDLE program. It stands for Help, Understand, Develop, Direct and Lead Everyone.
So many times we know we should be helping our crew sell more but don’t know what to do. This program takes all the guess work out. Each self-contained lesson begins with learning fundamentals and what is required for the 5-10 minute lesson.
Here’s a listing of each of the 12 HUDDLES:
For the cost of about $11 a lesson, you get actionable and proven retail sales techniques that break down the mystery of selling your merch.
If you need more information about the program, you can go here or if you are ready to change direction and grow your sales immediately, click the add to cart button below to get your first lesson.
