Retail Selling Tip
Retail Training Tip #413 - Retail Selling is a Skill
(6/30/10)
Dear Tip of the Weeker,
The 2010 Retail Success Summit is complete and we all had a blast!
You can see more pictures as we add them to the Retail Success Summit photo gallery on our website. If you were at the Summit and have some pictures to share, send them along! We'll post them on the site.
Today's tip was the #1 take-away for many of the Summit participants...
Most retail store owners have good intentions when it comes to sales training for their new employees. However, the day-to-day distractions of running a store almost always get in the way!
This leaves hapless new employees to either fend for themselves or receive ad hoc training from other employees, who may (or may not) teach them what you want them to learn.
It’s critical to remember that retail selling is a SKILL – a skill that must be taught, nurtured and developed.
Some people are “born to sell,” so their sales skills develop quickly. But most people (which may include you) confuse friendliness and good customer service with selling ability.
Never assume that a friendly, pleasant staff is all you need to keep customers happy and loyal. This will give you a FALSE sense of security.
More importantly, it may cost you tens of thousands of dollars in lost sales.
If you’re going to give your customers the service they deserve and generate the sales you deserve, you must create a sales-driven culture in your store.
This does not mean making any sale at any cost. On the contrary, it means that you and everyone on staff must constantly work to understand the 5-step selling process and improve your selling skills.
Effective selling is great customer service!
Spending time to train your staff on the sales process is one of the most valuable investments you can make.
A trained, focused, and motivated retail sales staff is truly a thing of beauty...
