Thursday, July 29, 2010

Support Your Local Sales Clerk


In retail, sales associates are the bottom of the food chain; without us the entire system falls apart but we're always the ones who get the most grief. Since most people will need to interact with a sales associate at some point in the near future, here are a few tips to help you get the most out of your sales associate experience.
Tip #1 - Everything that you pick up in a store and do not return to its original position will have to be put back by a sales associate. "But isn't that part of their job?" you justify as you leave the box two aisles away from where you found it. "Only because of customers like you," is the answer. Most companies do not have team members whose only job it is to recover (fancy word for clean up your mess). Things only get put away, cleaned and straightened when a sales associate can escape from whatever job they are actually assigned to for short periods of time, or after the store has closed. Companies often under-schedule hours at close of business leaving little time for putting things away. So if the store looks neat and tidy when you walk in, compliment the sales team. It will make their day. If it looks like a tornado ripped through it, remember that they wish a tornado would come through because it would make for an easier clean up job than the one they have looming over them. And if you change your mind and need to put an item back, find the nearest sales associate and ask them nicely where to return it to. Most likely, they will be so deliriously happy that you care that they will offer to put it back for you. Win, win!
Tip #2 - If you want others to respect your time, please respect their's. Most places have common closing times and post their hours. If you enter a store at 8:45, please be sure that you will be able to collect what you need and exit the store at 9:00, when the doors are locked. Keeping the sales team past closing for your convenience is akin to you showing up before the store opens and being angry that you can't get in or receive service.
Tip #3 - If you bring children with you, please continue to be their parent as you shop. If the baby cries and can't be quickly consoled, exit the building, If your toddler throws a tantrum, please do not ignore them or yell at them. Again, leave the building. If one of your children needs to use the bathroom and the others refuse to tag along, please do not announce to them that the lady putting the stock away next the the bathroom will be babysitting them while you are gone. She is not paid to watch your children. If you suddenly remember that the one thing you almost forgot is just an aisle away, please do not leave your infant in the shopping basket while you run to get it. It only takes seconds for something awful to happen. Running is not allowed, just like at the pool. Playing hide and seek is not an appropriate activity. And please, please, please, do not allow your child to stand in a shopping cart. About four children in every state die each year from accidents caused by improper restraint use in shopping carts. It takes very little to tip a cart. Trust me, even a ten pound baby can do it without much effort.
Tip #4 - Remember that when there is a long line, it is not the sales associates' fault. They did not make the schedule and they are as eager as you are to get you through and out the door. In the same vein, if what you want is not available, please do not blame the sales associate. They did not buy up all the product, they are not in charge of ordering it, and they can't make it suddenly appear out of thin air. Also, complaining about the price of an item or not being able to use your coupon because the item is on sale will do little good. The sales associate does not set the prices, decide on the sales, or issue the terms on your coupon. Instead, make the sales associate your best friend. If you treat them with a little kindness, they may be able to find what you need, or something similar that will do, at another nearby store or tell you how you can special order it while still getting the best sale price.
Tip #5 - It is NEVER appropriate to yell at, embarrass, or demean a sales associate. Most of us are working for minimum wage with the promise of a fifteen cent yearly raise, no health insurance or paid sick or vacation time. We are lucky if we get to take our legally required break and/or lunch. Many of us work another job or two and still can't make it from month to month. Some are also attending school, some trying to raise a family. And in this economy, don't be surprised if the sales associate behind the counter has more education than you do. Plenty of recent graduates from college and graduate degree programs are working in retail again because the jobs they went back to school to get out of retail for are now in short supply. If you feel like you have been treated poorly or not received the service you deserved, you can ask to speak to a manager. But remember that for every poor comment an employee receives, about 30 comments praising that employee never make it to a manager's ears. And the sales associate may not be at fault. Take into account how busy it is in the store, how many employees are available, if there are store policies in play that the sales associates must follow, no matter how ridiculous they seem to you and even to them. Also, when you speak poorly to an associate, everyone IS looking at you and thinking that you're crazy. When you leave the store, they will talk about how unnecessarily awful you were and try to make the associate feel better at your expense. Take a breath and remember, sales people are people too, only with less power to make anything happen than just about anyone else.
These five tips should get you started on the road to a happy and successful retail experience. Remember, your attitude affects how an employee will respond, so try to be positive and understanding. The nicer you are to your sales associates, the more likely they are to go the extra mile for you, even though they certainly aren't being paid to do so. Above all, when you receive good service, helpful information, or interact with an employee who is knowledgeable and cheerful, be sure to praise that employee and make an effort to let the manager on duty know of their hard work. Not only will it make their day, it will leave you smiling as well.