Sales Training for Specialty Retailers – Should You Do It Yourself?

We recently moved into a new home and my wife has had me busy working on her “Honey Do” list.  This last weekend it was painting the family room.  Now if there is one thing I truly hate it is painting.  The taping…the ladders…the scaffolding…the drop cloths…the paint in my hair.  Plus…the NFL playoffs were on this week and I didn’t want to miss a minute of the festivities. 

Distraction equals a less than effective job

Guess what happened – you got it – I blew it.  I took short cuts, rushed the job and made a mess.  Now I have an angry wife and have to do the job over again next week.

The same is true of retail sales training.  Many independent retailers try to do their own sales training.  They have good intentions, but whether it is tracking cash flow, dealing with vendors or marketing activity, it is all too easy to get distracted by other things.  The result…poorly trained retail associates who fail to meet your expectations for customer service and revenue generation.  And that poor training means lost sale and higher payroll costs when you dig in and retrain them (and hopefully break their bad habits).

This is why many independent retailers are turning to on-line retail training courses as a way to provide their team members with high quality retail sales training.  Your new team members can receive over 5 hours of training on how to engage customers, uncover hidden needs, close the sale, overcome objections, build customer referrals and more for less than $100.  With groups of five or more the cost can drop to under $50 per employee!

Avoiding the DIY sales training nightmare

With the included selling scenarios, skill practice, accompanying workbooks and more retail owners can stay focused on their core activities while being assured that their team members will attain the foundational knowledge they need to be successful.

Your sales associates need to get up to speed quickly and Internet-based retail courses ensure that they get everything they need to start off on the right foot.  And you won’t be stuck in a DIY nightmare like I will be this weekend!

Do you need assistance with designing your retail training program?  If so, contact us for a free one-hour consultation and needs assessment!

–          David Goodwin is the Principal of the Retail Advocacy Group.  As a 30 year veteran of the retail industry he has hired, trained, and performance managed thousands of retail sales representatives and retail managers.  You can learn more about instructor-led, e-learning, and other training solutions for retailers at www.retailertrainingservices.com.