Usman Ghani (December 8, 2015)
For retail stores, a decisive factor for success or failure is the way their staff interacts with customers. Frontline retail CSRs play a significant role in customer engagement, therefore, it is imperative for retail stores to hire people who have the right kind of attitude and skills for the job. A retail employee who doesn’t maintain eye contact with a customer inquiring about a product or is busy texting on the phone is likely to annoy a customer and consequently would damage the repute of a brand. On the other hand, a retail CSR ardently greeting customers, making them feel comfortable and welcomed by his/her gestures and putting in extra effort to facilitate them is likely to create a memorable customer experience. Have a look at the essential qualities and skills of frontline retail CSRs that are vital for offering great customer service!
For retail employees confidence and proper training regarding products is of prime importance. If a customer walks into a shoe store inquiring about particular kind of shoes, a CSR whose voice is shaky and has no training is not likely to offer a satisfactory customer experience. Therefore, retail stores should hire people who are confident, can make proper eye contact, are good at initiating conversations with customers and are quick learners so that they can be given product training without putting in extra effort. A confident and well-trained CSR is likely to create a positive first impression about a retail brand and can serve customers in the best possible manner.
Another quality that every retail CSR should possess is good manners. A CSR who does not know how to smile or speak softly to customers can ruin a business. Therefore, frontline retail CSRs should be well-mannered and proactive in helping customers. If a customer walks into a jewelry store, a smiling CSR greeting the customer and showing her/him the desired products and offering suggestions would be appreciated and remembered by that customer. CSRs with good manners and the willingness to help can significantly benefit a retail brand to gain customer loyalty.
Retail staff should be patient and empathetic in order to cope with different and difficult customer service situations. For instance, if an angry customer walks in demanding a refund/exchange for a damaged product and starts yelling, a calm, patient and empathetic CSR is likely to handle the situation wisely. Therefore, while hiring frontline employees for retail stores, it is important to consider the qualities of patience and empathy, a person who has no patience and cannot relate to customers’ emotions and feelings can never be a good retail CSR.
Retail CSRs should know how to connect with customers and solve unpleasant and difficult situations smartly. For serving the customers well, retail CSRs need to have good communication skills. For instance, a CSR with brilliant communication skills can help a confused customer in making a decision by properly addressing the customer’s concerns and offering him/her easy to pick options. Likewise, improvisation is another skill required by retail CSRs. In a situation where a customer asks about a product which is not available in the store at the moment, a competent CSR can improvise to facilitate the customer. Having retail staff onboard who can think out of the box can get you more happy and satisfied customers!
While hiring employees for your retail store, you should look out for people who can work on multiple things at the same time. During sales and special occasions, when there is a huge number of customers in retail stores, a CSR with the ability to multitask can handle many responsibilities at one time. So retail CSRs should know how to perform more than one job efficiently.
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