The retail world has gone through major transformations in recent years, and this process has greatly accelerated in 2020. Due to the constant changes in store opening policies related to the virus propagation, retailers have little visibility. This lack of visibility impacts staff motivation and sense of security. Beyond this uncertainty we all experience without much traction on it, here are 6 typical retailer frustrations:

1. Lost turnover

It is definitely the Nr. 1 frustration any retailer experiences these days. How will we recover lost business, how long will it take to come back to our previous turnover level? Which lever can I use to close the gap? The level of sales determines future investments and basically the majority of business decisions.

The challenge is to elevate the overall performance of the store to compensate the lost business, by increasing the average basket, the average transaction value, or the sales per sales associate. How do you do that? Well, letting the staff attend a retail sales training is an interesting option. Indeed it is the right moment to reinforce their skills.

2. Showroomers

Every retailer knows this relatively new type of visitor: the showroomer browses the Internet to find the best price and then uses the retail store as a showroom. He or she can touch and feel the targeted product, while using sales associates’ knowledge to learn further about it.

It raises two types of challenges: on one hand if the sales associate understands that the prospect is a showroomer, which is often the case, he or she needs to maintain the highest standards of service, knowing there is little chance to close. The second, harder challenge is to convert the showroomer into a customer. This is the new challenge of retailers: value the experience, build the report, justify their existence by demonstrating their know-how.

3. Lost opportunities

Here I am talking about those interested prospects who departed without leaving any information, those leads who did not receive any follow-up call, those loyal customers who did not receive any news after their latest visit. These opportunities were lost not because the sales staff did not care but because they do not have the proper clienteling habits.

In this situation, the challenge is to get them to modify their behavior with the proper strategy, the adapted andragogy (the method and practice of teaching adult learners) and the right tools.

4. Lack of sales staff empathy

How many times did I go through a sales associate’s pitch without having to answer one single question? Too many for my taste. Now, more than ever, empathy is the name of the game. Because a lot people are looking for a brief moment of joy in their repetitive life and limited social interactions. Because empathy is the very emotion you can hardly find when shopping online.

Empathy is natural for top sales people, but not for the rest of the pack. The good news is that it can be practiced and ingrained with patience and efforts. It is getting fun when one observes the amazing power of empathy.

5. Reduced margin due to discount

This one hurts a lot and is a real frustration. It hurts because not only does discount affect the short-term health of the business (profitability), it also undermines the long term credibility of the store(s). When customer presentations are about negotiating the best possible discount, there is no time to build a rich customer experience, to highlight the product value, to tell nice stories.

The challenge is to go back to much healthier practices and habits without losing sales. It is about setting higher standards for everyone in the team, from VM to customer service to after-sales service, and sales.

6. Staff members avoiding new technologies

It is not uncommon these days to see top performers lose their edge to geekier colleagues because they were not comfortable with computers. From CRM to digital learning, modern tools can bring such a leverage to the business that avoiding them can be fatal. There is always a good reason to keep your old ways of doing business, and it is not easy to change habits when those have brought results in the past.

The challenge is first to train properly the team to the digital tools. It is then to let the team or the concerned sales associates understand that leaving the advantage of the digital tool to the competition, online or offline, would be a major mistake. It could also lead to legal issues (personal data protection).

6 typical retailer frustrations: conclusion

The “retail apocalypse” has started in 2010, especially in the US (see the Wikipedia entry), combining consumption shifts and e-commerce development. The pandemic has reinforced the pressure on brick & mortar businesses. The 6 frustrations listed in this post, and several others, explain the necessity and the urgency to train sales staff properly to keep a chance of simply staying in the business and do much more. We can help you to reach your goals in this area.