By
Bob Phibbs
Your success as a retailer depends on increasing your metrics like units per transaction (UPT) and conversion rates. The only way to do that is by creating customer relationships. A customer enjoying their experience in your brick-and-mortar retail store is easier to up-sell and more likely to purchase add-ons.
That's what raises your UPT - customer relationships that turn browsers into buyers, and buyers into repeat shoppers.
You know that, right?
Yet as important as they are, many brands entrust their customer relations to a sales staff without any training.
I hope that’s not you…
Your sales force is the first point of contact a customer will have with your business.
It used to be you could hire people with selling skills.
It used to be being a salesperson wasn’t a bad thing.
Retailers used to have extensive training departments that drilled sales performance and key performance indicators (KPI) like UPT.
That’s not now.
No matter the size of your retail business, you must give your employees the tools they need to build real relationships that can increase product out the door.
Putting the person back in the salesperson
Retail sales training can teach salespeople every step of the sales process, beginning with approaching and engaging the customer in a genuine, human manner.
Once the sales associate connects with the shopper, they can use the rapport they've built to start selling your merchandise. And a customer who is having an exceptional experience is less likely to try and haggle over cost.
But it's more than that. It's about being able to up-sell and add on to every sale to increase average transaction size.
How do you increase UPT? How do you increase the conversion rate? Here are some major points to consider:
- Have a weekly staff meeting that showcases one aspect of selling.
- Have a sales process that is clear and detailed.
- Monitor sales for the number of units per transaction and reward employees who excel.
- Define performance indicators and share accountability for customer retention.
- Use mystery shops to see if, after providing training, your associates are up-selling and cross-selling as trained.
Sales isn’t an art. It’s a science. A sales associate learns the basics, tries their new skills in a positive environment, and continually works to tweak and develop their own authentic style within the company culture.
That involves psychology and a host of other skills that can’t be learned from a book or three-ring binder full of faded and messy training materials.
Learning to Do it Right
Online sales training can give your entire sales crew the skills to turn boring shopping trips into great ones. My interactive online sales training, SalesRX.com, offers a convenient way for you to provide the necessary training for your retail employees without disrupting your day-to-day operations.
Training doesn’t happen in a vacuum and can’t be accomplished overnight. It takes time and effort to absorb, implement and properly execute the information.
It also takes holding them accountable to actually use the training you provide.
In Sum
Let’s be honest. Regardless of their experience or on-the-job training; few salespeople will provide your customers with a bad experience.
Sure, they might not be the most engaging, but most can ring someone up and not be offensive.
The problem is that few of them will provide customers with an exceptional experience without the proper training.
And in a world of mediocrity, only exceptional will pay the bills.
And in a post-pandemic world, paying the bills is primary.
Once customers have had a positive experience, they’re more likely to return to your store for future purchases. Again, these positive sales experiences and increased customer retention rates all hinge on your salespeople building solid customer relationships built on authenticity.
Your goal is for them to be trusted advisors in the selling process if you want to raise your units per transaction.
That doesn’t come naturally.
