Chasing the customers

I am not particularly fond of shopping and specially so when I have to accompany my wife. Why? Firstly, because she stops at every other shop that catches her fancy, specifically those with big "Sale" signs posted on the front window, and secondly all those shops are not of my interest at all.

However, sometimes she comes out of the shop far more quickly than the normal viewing time that she usually indulges in. I had never dared to ask the reason out of relief, until one day she confided that she hates those shops where the floor attendants chase her. Really?! I never thought that such a thing could actually annoy customers.

The next time I entered a shop with her, I noticed this myself. The moment we entered the glittering shoes and handbags shop, an enthusiastic attendant greeted us and started following us from shelf to shelf. Then she started asking questions such as the item we were looking for, whether we were interested in this or that, without even trying to find out what kind of taste we possessed for these lifestyle products. I tried to deflect her questions politely a couple of times telling her that we were just browsing, but clearly that did not have the intended effect. She was consistently intent on bringing things from other shelves to show us. Finally we decided to leave since we did not want to be rude to her. After coming out of the shop, my wife remarked how irritating it was to be pursued like that.

That got me thinking about the reason behind such selling behavior? Was it because of the training the salesperson had received from her company that instructed her to have a proactive approach towards customers? Or was she heavily incentivised on sales? Whatever the reason, as a customer it became clear that surely this was not the way to approach customers in any retail environment, specially small and medium sized outlets.

A better approach  would be to greet customers and let them know that you are available in case any help is required and then stay at a decent distance while appearing busy in your own chores. If you really want to show them something new, wait till they are finished with their scan, and guide them to the particular section you are sure of having an impression on them, and leave after giving a quick introduction of the merchandise. This way a salesperson's specific objectives would be met while giving customers enough room and privacy to deliberate upon their intended purchase.

Connecting with the customers is a very special skill which if executed in the right way can bring positive results. Profiling the personality by guessing their interests from their browsing trail and making an assessment of who is accompanying the customer are some of the ways to predict whether they are going to make a purchase or not. Even if they don't make a purchase, maintain your smile and hand them a flyer or brochure that gives details of special promotions currently running in the store. This way your store will stay on the minds of the prospective customers and if they decide to make a purchase after doing their research in other shops, they would be equipped with sufficient information to make a comparison without feeling the need to make another trip to the store.