Every retailer trains their staff differently because each has its own products to sell, brand image to maintain, and business standards to uphold. Choose strategies that fit your store but be willing to adapt your management tactics when needed. With that in mind, here are some universal tips that can help you build healthy relationships with your staff, make the most of their skill sets, and prepare them for solving problems and raising customer expectations.
Let’s start with customer engagement. You want your employees to be helpful but also courteous and personable when interacting with customers. For new employees, you can have them shadow an experienced staff member; that way they can learn, practice, and receive feedback on how they’re doing. They will also get to know and become friendly with other staff members, which always makes any work environment more enjoyable. One valuable source for human resources and management, Training Magazine, suggests that business owners gamify their training in order to keep their staff engaged with the work and with each other, and to prolong their professional development. For example, you can set up a points system which allows staff to earn points for completing tasks, receiving positive customer reviews, and other achievements, and reward them with gift cards, sponsored luncheons, etc. Encourage your employees to challenge themselves, instead of just robotically handing out tasks.
Cross-training is always a good option for small businesses. Although employees may have been hired for one task, it’s always good to learn skills from the different positions in the business. Eventually, they will be able to take over almost all responsibilities if needed. Take note of which tasks lack people with the skills to complete them, then decide which skills are most transferable to others. Ask your employees to apply their skills so they can practice and absorb as much information as they can. Then, you can test their knowledge of your products through online polls and quizzes, role-playing scenarios, and real interactions with customers. Practice “open-book management,” which allows for more transparency and trust in your leadership. Share important information—performance data, website traffic, progress towards sales goals—with your staff to get them involved with the business and train them as potential leaders.
Strive to build a community when training your staff. Try to find time in your schedule to check in with them regularly, and ask them how they’re doing, what they might need help with, and suggest how they can do better. Feedback goes a long way, and your employees will appreciate your devotion and work harder for you. Draft multiple training plans for your staff, depending on their positions, and see how they might overlap. Then, once you’ve developed your ideas clearly, apply them, monitor the results, and, as always, adjust when necessary.
