The BEST Way to Increase Retail Sales by Retail Expert Bob Negen

Whether I’m out on the road talking with store owners at trade shows or sitting at my desk answering emails, it’s probably the question I’m most often asked… “How can I increase my store sales?”

Now, most people expect me to respond with a great marketing idea when they ask that question – an innovative way to get new customers, or a killer concept for a special event. And it’s true that I love marketing. I’m a hard-core marketing geek as a matter of fact! And it is true that marketing is a fantastic way to increase your sales. But in my opinion, after owning my own store for nineteen years and after working with thousands of retailers around the world for the last fifteen years, the best way for you to increase your store sales is not new or better marketing ideas.

It’s retail sales training.

MIND THE GAP

I want you to think for a minute about the very best salesperson in your store… who is it? It may even be you… What’s their average sale? What’s the number? If you don’t know off the top of your head that’s OK, for now just guess. You can go look it up in your POS in a minute. Now I want you to think about the average sale for your other employees. What’s their number? Again, if you don’t have the exact number that’s OK, you can look it up later. Just come up with an educated guess.

Now think about the difference in average sale between your best salesperson and your run-of-the-mill sales person. What’s THAT number? That number, that GAP, is how much money you’re losing every time someone other than your best salesperson helps one of your customers. Lost money… I’m going to give you just a second to really let that sink in.

Your best sales person isn’t getting different customers or better customers than your average salespeople – they’re just doing more with the customers they’ve got! It’s like your customer’s dollar bills are laying right there on the sales floor – but your average salespeople just aren’t picking them all up.

Transaction after transaction… day after day… year after year… they are leaving little piles of money on the sales floor and after a while it really adds up! It’s all money that would be in your cash register if every salesperson was as good as your best salesperson.

CLOSE THE GAP

Here’s the good news… selling is a skill. You can teach it. They can learn it. Sure, some people are more naturally adept at selling – those are probably your best salespeople right now – but everyone can learn how to be a great salesperson.

Close that skill gap with retail sales training and you’ll immediately find more money in the cash register. So, after thinking about this for a minute, you probably agree with me that sales training is a good way to increase your sales.

But I didn’t just say it was a good way to increase sales, I said that it’s the best way and there are two important reasons I think that.

Reason #1 – Global Impact: Unlike a great special event that happens only on certain days or a hot new line of merchandise that only certain customers buy, sales training for your team impacts every single transaction in your store – every single day, every single minute you are open, with every single customer. Because it affects every single transaction, sales training multiplies the effectiveness of your great promotions and new merchandise lines and everything else you do attract customers and entice them to buy.

Reason #2 – The Ripple Effect: The second reason I think sales training is the best way to increase sales is the long-term ripple effects of great selling. You see, selling done the right way gives your customers an amazing in-store experience. Great selling is so much fun for your customers, so satisfying and enjoyable that they will become raving loyal fans who shop with you over and over again.

That is such an important point – great selling skills are the foundation of great customer service culture in your store!