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It’s the week before Christmas Eve. I love this week as a retailer.
All the planners have purchased – with their lists of “must have” items that unless you had it- they were out the door.
The men are now considering going shopping…
On Christmas Eve, the malls gradually thin out and you begin to notice more and more men – the malls are practically fueled by testosterone.
Men can be the easiest to wait on this week because we just want to be a hero. Here are a few tips (no matter what sex of a salesperson you are) to help you sell to men this week.
Understand this about your male customers:
- We are not that price driven. We may “say” we are but remember, you’re basically dealing with a boy discovering your merchandise for the first time.
- We often show how much love we have for the person we are buying for by the price tag or size of the gift we choose; whether that’s a toy, jewelry or clothing.
- Its almost like we are treating ourselves when we splurge on someone else, so don’t try to limit us.
- We want to win, be admired from the gift we give.
- Above all, men hate shopping, its not a thrill – its a chore.
Help us by getting us to laugh or at least smile when we deal with you so we can acknowledge we want your help.
If it were me I’d put a sign over the most expensive bike or other toy that read, “Yes, you can buy their love.”
If I owned a liquor store I might put up a sign, “Alcohol always makes the in-laws nicer.”
If it were a lingerie store it might be, “Guys: Always guess smaller if you want to be a hero.”
Get the idea?
How to treat men:
- Don’t leave us alone – we’ll walk.
- Don’t follow us around or you’ll spook us; check-in every few minutes by pointing something out about what we’re looking at.
- If you wrap, let us know that up front – it makes a difference.
- Acknowledge your return policies right away – make it safe for us to buy.
- If we trust you and pick something out ask us, “Who else is on your list?” We only want to do this chore once.
- Figuratively take us by the hand if we’ve never been in this type of store before whether its lingerie, cameras or jewelry. Give us options; don’t expect us to know what we want.
- If we can’t decide between a couple items (and its not Christmas Eve,) suggest we purchase the best item and return it if we change our mind before giving; that way we’ll at least have something. Remind us that otherwise we’ll have to return to the chore of the mall again and worse, you might lose out because the item could be gone.
- If you’re an apparel store, don’t make a big deal if we don’t know the size of our wife, girlfriend, buddy or child. Instead ask us to point out someone in the store about their size. Remind us it can all be returned.
What to show men:
- Big, bright,or cool.
- The closer it gets to Christmas, the more likely we are to splurge.
- Instead of a gift card, suggest an outfit or item of equal value so the giftee has something to unwrap that looks like he tried to get something just for them.
What not to do:
- Ask for our budget. If you allow us to limit ourselves, you’ll dumb-down our choices and you’ll lose out.
Men when shopping have different needs than women. If you use these tips, it won’t matter what her size; he can still be a hero on Christmas.
What else would you suggest?
“We are not that price driven. We may “say” we are but remember, you’re basically dealing with a boy discovering your merchandise for the first time”.
True, but then just be prepared for returns from the “savvy” wife that found it for a nickel less on Amazon and needs to make her man to feel small.
Good nuggets in this post! Thank you.