Improving the effectiveness of your retail sales staff can boost profitability for your store. Success in the retail marketing field, however, does not happen overnight. It takes work, planning, and careful evaluation of current methods to develop the most efficient and productive sales team.

Here are six ways you can have a real impact on the success of your retail sales staff.

1. Motivation

Finding the right ways to motivate your staff can boost morale and increase confidence on the sales floor. Just as each person is different, the things that inspire and engage your staff will differ for each individual.

Creative ways to motivate your employees can be as simple as a daily pep talk or sharing a coffee break. For even greater inspiration, consider a contest or a company retreat. Take a field trip to check out the competition in your area or implement a system that rewards excellent service and increased sales on a regular basis.

Score with Intel® Core™ motivates your staff to learn about the latest Intel® products and technologies by providing them with the opportunity to earn great prizes† as they successfully complete Learning activities. Additional motivation occurs when you, as a manager, nominates local K-12 schools to win up to $25,000 once the competition is complete.

Find out more about the Score with Intel® Core™ competition here.

2. Morale

Employee morale is an often-overlooked factor that impacts the productivity of your sales team. When morale is low, everything from job performance to customer experiences is affected.

Working to create a cohesive and cooperative team in the workplace can boost efficiency in every part of your retail operation. When sales reps, device techs, customer service staff, and other key employees work together effectively, a sense of camaraderie develops to create positive experiences for your staff and your customers.  

Empowerment is a great motivator. Provide staff with the training and tools needed to be successful and then allow them the opportunity to create that success. When is the last time you complimented team members? Recognizing staff for a job well done is a great morale booster.

Create a positive and supportive environment for employees. This helps increase retention of valuable staff members and also reduces on-boarding costs and other hiring expenses.

3. Training

Providing the right training opportunities allows your sales staff to assist customers more effectively. By acquiring in-depth knowledge of major product lines and new releases in the consumer marketplace, your reps can present a capable and professional image to your potential customers.

Along with key marketing techniques and skills, ensuring that your team maintains a comprehensive knowledge of the products and services you offer helps them make the best possible impression on the sales floor.

Learn how the Intel® Retail Edge Program helps reps learn about products and how to use this knowledge to create meaningful and successful customer experiences. 

Get the info here.

4. Practical Sales Plan

While a formal script is neither necessary nor advisable in the face-to-face retail environment, sketching out a sales plan and a basic approach can provide added confidence, particularly for newer staff members. This also offers added clarity for those with extensive experience.

Providing front-line sales reps with a basic outline helps them expand their efforts and boosts productivity.

5. Networking Opportunities

Another way to increase the effectiveness of your sales reps is to provide them with chances to interact with others in the same industry. This may not be practical for all members, but for key employees, these opportunities can lead to more creative approaches to sales and greater awareness of the latest devices and technologies.

By encouraging selected staff members to participate in industry events and to network with others, retailers reap the benefits of added information and new connections in the retail sales environment.

6. Personal Connections with Customers

Clear communications and empathy are essential elements in making a personal connection with customers in the retail environment. Focusing on each customer as a unique individual helps sales reps create a consumer-centric approach.

By taking time to listen to customers and their priorities and needs, sales reps make a lasting, positive impression that can aid in customer retention and boost sales now and well into the future.

The Intel® Retail Edge Program offers added motivation and information for your sales team to allow greater productivity and improved sales opportunities. By offering incentives for successful completion of Learning activities and providing in-depth information about existing product lines and new releases, this innovative program provides the added help your sales reps need to achieve the best possible results for your store.

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† Members from the Province of Quebec are not eligible to win prizes, but can still earn Chips. All other eligible Members from the U.S. and Canada are responsible for any and all Federal, state, local, provincial, or other tax liabilities with acceptance of prizes. Please read the Competition Terms and Conditions for complete rules.
*Other names and brands may be claimed as the property of others.
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