10 Hacks to Improve Retail Customer Service
Here is a list of 10 surprisingly simple ways to improve customer service. These tips help to improve your retail store team, from mindset to getting new results in a quick and simple way.
1. Raise your thumb in shift meetings
Shift meetings are an easy way to set the tone for the day. There is a lot you can do in one of these huddle ups - recite sales goals, share sale tips, talk about offers on sale - the list is endless. In any case, its better to throw out the rules and have fun with this. Unfortunately we can’t all be Al Pacino in Any Given Sunday but we sure can give a thumbs up to the people we work day in and day out.
2. What annoys the heck out of your team?
Obstacle course may be fun, but don’t tire yourself out. Is there something that happens multiple times in a day that makes working difficult? Perhaps it the outdated POS system? Or the store layout near impossible to move around? Do they have change in the register? You and your team might have small obstacles on the way that pile up and cause exhaustion.
3. What is the most bonkers sales tips your team has?
Your sales team talks to the customers each day, every day. They know first hand what works and what not. Is there something particular they have noticed that makes customers happy and drives sales? Share them in the shift meeting and test out during the day.
4. To goal or not to goal?
Have a chat with each member of your team about what do they want to get out of the day. Are they worried about keeping the store clean and presentable? Are they testing the new sales tips? Do they want to do reach a specific number in sales?
Its a good way to understand what is on your teams mind and if you as a manager can help to focus them to achieve better results.
5. Beat fear of rejection.
Fear can be a huge stopper in sales. Apparently you still feel bad even when you get rejected by a group you don’t want to join to the extent that it even makes you stupid. Duh.
Jian Jiang did this by going after rejections, asking people to do the most audacious things (riding a police car for example). Don’t worry, there are more down to earth ways to beat fear of rejection too.
Read more: Fear Of Rejection: 2 Ways To Beat It, Backed By Research.
6. Say “together”
This word is just shy of having magical powers to increase performance:
“The feeling of working together has indeed been shown to predict greater motivation, particularly intrinsic motivation, that magical elixir of interest, enjoyment, and engagement that brings with it the very best performance.”
Basically, the idea is to give your team a better feeling of belonging that makes the work harder for the group they belong to.
Read more: Managers can motivate employees with one word.
7. Applaud for acts of kindness
Support and acknowledge thoughtful interactions. Create an environment where talking with customers in an informal and easy manner is accepted.
Read more: This picture taken outside of a Hardees is giving the Internet tons of feels.
8. What do you really mean?
We don’t always speak the same language event when we do, you know what I mean? Dig deep into what customers need and be open to find surprising results. Have fun with it.
9. Take care of the last two seconds
Customer service doesn’t end after the cash register bell. In fact, that might be when the most important part begins. As a world renowned psychologist Daniel Kahneman explains in TED talk how our whole human experience can be haltered by the memory of what happens in the end.
See this: The riddle of experience vs. memory.
10. In the end, just love customer service
Neil Patrick Harris and Joseph Gordon-Levitt demonstrate in a 5 minute sketch how emotions can be a musical or a horror movie. And what is customer service if it is not people communicating? Every connection, whether is small or big, has its surprises with a twist of oh-dear-lord and awesome on the side. It all depends how you look at it.
