Here’s what I’ve been seeing and thinking lately……
* It seems that many retailers are struggling with employees using their phones at work when they’re not supposed to. The businesses that aren’t having a problem are often the ones with a zero tolerance policy. Use your phone once and you’re terminated. Harsh? Yes, but it seems to work. I’m not advocating either way, but if you’re struggling with people having phones on the floor you’re probably going to have to add some additional consequence.
* The most successful retail floor leaders I know keep employee development simple and focused. Their employees are working on improving either his/her average sale or conversion, and focusing on one or two actions each day to do accomplish it. It really is that simple.
* Here’s a fun and simple game to drive this weekend’s sales. It’s called Ten to Win. First, identify four levels of performance, with each one getting assigned a higher point. Here’s an example:
1 point: A sale that includes two or more items.
2 points: A sale over $200
3 points: A sale that includes both a ________ and a _______
4 points: A sale over $400
The idea is to keep scoring as many points as possible with each sale. Every time someone scores 10 points he/she wins an entry into a drawing, so the more you sell the more chances you have to win. The price can be a restaurant or Starbucks gift card or anything else of decent value. You can also set it up so every employee who scores a certain amount of points automatically wins a prize.
The points are cumulative. As an example, an employee makes a $200 sale that includes three items. That is worth three points. The next sale, that person makes a $450 sale that includes five items. That sale is worth seven points. (They score all but the three point item.) Now they have ten points and an entry into the drawing, and they start back at zero to begin earning their next set of ten points. If they had scored thirteen points they would have an entry and have three points towards the next ten.)
A contest like Ten to Win is a great way to focus your team on improving ADS and UPT, not to mention breaking up the routine of retail. You can download a Ten to Win game card in PDF here, and one in Word here.
* I’ve pushed out the start of Four Weeks to Becoming an Extraordinary Coach and Developing a Winning Retail Team to September 4. A few spots remain. Contact me to discuss.
And apropos of nothing…
* If you get more than two or three customers a day who say, “Just looking,” chances are it’s your approach. Don’t engage or ask questions that can be answered with that phrase.
* One sign that you might not be maximizing your performance is using the word “should” too much. “We should be calling customers.” or “We should be doing better Facebook posts.” Turn that around by replacing “should” with, “Let’s start…”
* Have you read the article about Amazon in the most recent Fast Company? There are several interesting points, including this one: the average Amazon Prime member spends $1,224 a year, which is $700 more than a non-Prime Amazon shopper. Hmmm… makes you think about what else can you do to create even more loyal customers.
Thank you for being a loyal reader!
