How to Make Rock n' Roll Retail Employees

In sports you may notice how fans recount the highlights of individual games and praise the efforts of star players. It's reminiscent of a time when retailers praised their salespeople much the same way. Like team coaches, it seemed businesses understood and pursued an important principal: better players produce better results.

After nearly two decades in retail and having led sales teams that produced more than a quarter billion in sales, I agree that we're in tough times, but I also see the writing on the wall and it says that better salespeople still produce better results.

If you had better salespeople, would your organization have better results? While improving the caliber of your salespeople isn't an overnight fix, it ultimately starts somewhere. Here are a few ideas to help you lead your team to better results:

Stop Complicating the Process
If you look at all the published retail sales books and articles, it's amazing how many different approaches to retail sales are out in the marketplace. The level of complexity in some of these approaches is baffling. I read one book where the author taught his "17-Step Retail Sales Success Formula." It's no wonder we don't develop world-class talent anymore. Let's face it, folks have trouble remembering what days they get paid and when the next all-store meeting is scheduled. How can we expect them to remember a 17-step sales process? Retail selling isn't that complicated.

A retail sale has two, and only two, steps. First, find out what the shopper is looking for. Second, help them get it. That's it. Use the kindergarten litmus test, which means if you were going to explain to a kindergartner how to be a retail salesperson, which definition could a five-year-old comprehend? Every sales technique you can name falls into one of those two steps. Furthermore, line up your sales staff and ask each of them one at a time what their job is. At first, the vast differences in definitions will scare you. Over time, teach and show them that their job is twofold: find out what consumers want and help them get it.

Throw Away Your Business Cards
Most organizations I see provide their salespeople with business cards. Obviously business cards by themselves aren't harmful. In fact, they provide a necessary sales function — giving customers a means to reach you. Wait, did I say customers? Yes, business cards provide your customers with your contact information, not your prospects.

This concept seems foreign with most salespeople though. For most, handing a prospect their card is an easy out when the prospect is cautious about committing. Salespeople resign from the sale comforted by the thought that the prospect will call back when ready to purchase. This notion is flawed. Think about it: Whose job is it to make the call? Sales is a business of pursuit. By this definition, it's the job of the salesperson to make the call.

Make your individual salespeople hit a notable sales metric before providing them with business cards, or train them to never give out their card without requesting the consumer's information first. Instill in your staff the responsibility of making the call; otherwise you're just breeding clerks.

You Have Permission to Ask
Asking for a sale is almost always daunting for two reasons. First, most salespeople aren't taught how to properly handle rejection. Second, most salespeople overcomplicate the closing process. One book touts itself as being the only all-sales book ever to hit The New York Times Best Seller list. The book contains about 300 different closes. While some are quite good, how on earth can you expect anyone to remember 300 different closing techniques — not to mention the proper scenarios to use them.

I teach one — close. When the time is right, simply smile and say to your prospect, "Well (customer's name), I wouldn't be doing my job if I didn't ask if you'd like to take this home with you today?" I challenge you to find a more direct, nonabrasive, nonthreatening close than that. Have your staff try this technique for one full day and see if your salespeople aren't more comfortable asking for the sale and, subsequently, close more of them.

I learned the differences between a clerk and a salesperson my first week in retail. I wonder how many retail salespeople in 2011 know the difference between the two. More importantly, how many in the future will learn it? Will yours? Would your organization benefit from developing retail rock stars? Of course it would. But it all starts with you.

Jason VanderPal is a retail sales maverick with almost two decades of experience as both a rock n' roll drummer and retail sales manager. Visit Jason at www.speakerjasonvanderpal.com or reach him at jason@jasonvanderpal.com.