10 Tips to Motivate Your Retail Sales Force This Holiday Season

According to the National Retail Federation, retails sales in the US will rise by 3.6% this year. Over 137 million Americans will shop online or hit the stores this holiday season and this will continue through the New Year. Are you prepared to cope with this influx and channelize it to boost your annual sales? You can do this by motivating your sales teams.

Check out these 10 practical tips to equip your sales force for this holiday season.

1. Impart Product Knowledge

Provide details of your products to sales teams so that they know the features and benefits, inside out. Teach your sales force to look at products from the customer’s standpoint to make their sales pitch relevant, by explaining how the product can meet their needs and solve their challenges. Thorough product knowledge will help your sales reps to customize their selling approach based on individual needs.

2. Show How the Product Works

When the customer understands how a product works, there are more chances of a sale. Training your employees to give a full product demonstration will definitely increase your sales.

Demonstrations make prospects aware of all the features available in a product.

3. Concentrate on Up-Selling and Add-on Selling

Showing high quality items in product range are up-selling. Train your sales reps to show the available variations for a product so that customers have a choice. People who want quality and more features will purchase high-end products, and budget-conscious customers will choose lower-end products. Add-on selling is sales reps suggesting additional products once a customer decides to buy the core product.For example, bundling memory cards, screen guards, and mobile covers with high-end smartphones comes under add-on selling. All these accessories are needed for a smartphone and the customer will buy them from other retailers if they are not available in your showroom. So don’t neglect add-on selling along with up-selling.

4. Pay Incentives

Even though you provide the best amenities to your sales reps at work, without proper pay, incentives, and sales commissions, they may not work effectively. When your sales force’s personal and family needs are met, they will work cheerfully and that acts as a driving force to boost your sales. When sales reps achieve the set sales targets, give them special incentives. This can bring in healthy competition among sales staff and again works to increase your overall sales this holiday season.

5. Teach Them About Your Customers

Your sales teams should know about your customers’ background as much as possible. Understanding customer demographics, living conditions, education, income, hobbies, culture, and other considerations will help them sell better. Your marketing department should research the information and provide insights to sales teams about potential buyers.

6. Track Purchases

Tracking customers’ buying patterns will indicate fast and slow moving products and help your sales staff concentrate on popular products.

7. Teach Proper Sales Etiquette

Wishing customers when they step into your mall or showroom, lending sales assistance when needed, while giving them the freedom to roam around and select what they like are unwritten rules of sales etiquette. Being at hand to clarify doubts and answer queries is the minimum a customer expects from sales staff.

Brush up your sales teams’ conversation skills and objection handling skills to boost your sales this holiday season. More than anything, listening to your customer and building a selling approach is important to make a sale. If your sales rep doesn’t have an answer to a question posed by a customer, tell them to admit that and lead them to someone who can answer. These precautions help customers feel at home and provide a delightful shopping experience.

8. Help Ask the Right Questions

Support your sales force by helping them ask the right questions of their customers. This helps your teams understand customer needs and their motives behind buying any product. Train your sales reps to ask open-ended questions such as ‘How will you use this product?’, ‘What color combinations do you prefer?’, ‘What are the important features you are looking for in the product?’, etc.

9. Conduct Brief Meetings for Planning

Scheduling a short meeting with each sales rep to set sales goals and priorities for the holiday season will bring the needed seriousness. Practice role plays and give suggestions on important selling activities and products to help your reps perform better.

10. Own your Temporary Sales Staff

Treating your seasonal sales force on par with the regular staff will boost their morale. Some retail companies extend the contract of top performing seasonal reps even after the holiday season. Some take the additional step and offer permanent positions to all seasonal hires.

Consider these suggestions and put in your best efforts – your sales targets will then be met this holiday season. All the Best!