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The importance of retail staff are often overlooked by retail employers. Most employers perceive staff as just an individual to help run matters around the store and is not seen as an important aspect of their business development. In actuality, retail employees play a huge part in the success of the business, as they are the determining factor of how effective and efficient your business would be. These are some of the reasons why investing in your employees is actually more important than you think.
1. They represent your store and brand
Retail employees are the forefront of your image. When customers visit your store, it is your employees that they will be dealing with, and employees can either make or break your customer’s perception towards your brand. Ensure that your staff are not overworked and underpaid, as they are most likely not going to appear very enthusiastic on the job, and it will only hamper your image if your customers have to deal with bad sales representative.
2. They will believe in your brand
In order to sell your products, they have to first believe in it. If they do no like what they sell, they will not be able to convince your customers as well. People tend to be more possessive if something belongs to them and will give extra care to it. The same principle applies here. Employees need to feel that they are part of your brand, that their job matters. Once they do, selling will be natural for them as they genuinely believe in your brand and want the best for it, and may even help promote your products to friends and family outside working hours.
3. They are more willing to stay
Almost all employees hope to see a future in the place they work in. If your staff are well treated and well rewarded with good prospects, they will find that your business is a place that is worth their effort and will be willing to invest their own future with you. With fewer employees leaving, this will allow you to redirect your efforts from constantly having to worry about staff employment to other important matters in your business, not to mention giving your business a better reputation that you have a good working environment.
4. They will run a smoother operation
Retailing procedures consist of a complex combination of process such as restocking, ordering, shelving placements, customer service, etc, which an experience employee will have a better grasp on compared to a new one. They know the ins and outs of the business and are familiar with procedures and operations, and are generally more confident through their experience. They will be able to make informed decisions shall a situation arise and are able to better service customers with their expertise, relieving you of having to micromanage store matters.
Trying to keep operations cost low by saving on employee investment might work for short term gain. But in the long run, the lack of experience and inefficiency of the team will eventually cost you more, harming your business and quality of your service, eventually giving your brand a bad name. And once your business gets a bad reputation, it will be harder to build it back up. Some investments are just not worth saving.
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At Visata Creative, we work together with our clients to Design Profitable Spaces.
To us, a bigger space is not always better, what matters most is the profitability of the space. What matters to us is “helping our clients to achieve the highest profitability possible within their retail businesses”.
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If you have any burning questions on retail, email us at tim@viscreative.com