During COVID-19, when shoppers may be fewer, retail consultant Bob Phibbs has been sharing suggestions on how to develop a culture of selling in brick-and-mortar stores. With fewer shoppers, each interaction with a customer counts more than ever.
In a recent blog, The Retail Doctor shared suggestions on developing a productive sales culture.
Some of his suggestions include:
- Training employees to be interruptible so they can shift their attention to customers when necessary
- Training managers to be the best salespeople on the floor. It’s the best way to mentor less experienced salespeople on avoiding mistakes when interacting with customers.
- Emphasizing the human connection as the root of successful sales. Making a sale is as much about understanding the customer’s needs and wants as selling them on a product’s features.
- For sales staff, listening to customers is as important as talking. Most customers don’t like to be confronted with a battery of questions. One open-ended question is far better than a battery of 20 questions.
- Love the merchandise you hate. A salesperson might not buy an item that a customer wants. To make the sale, the staff has to be optimistic about all of a store’s merchandise.
