I’ve got a woman on staff who simply adores jewelry, and she never fails to engage a customer in a lively discussion, but for the life of me, I can’t teach her how to close the sale! Help!
Failure to close is most often a combination of lack of basic skill and fear of being too forward or pushy, says Kate Peterson of retail consultancy Performance Concepts. Be aware, she says, that you can’t effectively teach “closing” as a separate and disassociated thing. If your associate is good at engaging the customer in conversation, focus on teaching her how to make emotional connections between what the customer wants and what the merchandise provides, and to listen for signals that indicate it’s time to close. When it comes to more expensive fashion wear, remind her that most customers are often looking for permission to buy. “Providing good service means giving it to them by asking for the sale,” says Peterson. There are also situations when your salespeople will be grateful to be “let off the hook” with a particularly chatty customer via a personal intervention from the boss, meaning you. Finally, consider your commission structures. A motivated staff will use their time in the store as efficiently as they can … because it’s in their interest to make as many sales as possible.
I’ll admit I’m a helicopter manager, but if I didn’t keep a close eye on everything and constantly intervene, nothing would get done properly. How can I get my staff to show more initiative and responsibility?
It sounds as if you’ve micromanaged your staff into drones. Basically, you’ve got two options: go big picture, where you give them ownership of their responsibilities on a day-to-day basis, or go small, where every procedure and system is mapped out in detail. The first requires employees with the right personality and experience who will know what to do when you say, “OK, our goal is to wow every person who comes into the store. Go to it!” The second requires a lot of work from you in putting systems in place and providing the necessary training. In such cases, David Geller recommends imagining that you’re planning to open another business 3,000 miles away and putting in writing everything you’d want the remote employees to know about managing the store, from how to run the point-of-sale system to how to make deposits to who to call if there’s a building problem. With such a reference, you’d be able to step aside, and in theory, be confident your staff would be equipped to tackle most situations. Keep in mind, though, that these situations often reflect as much about the manager as the staff. Taking action is how micromanagers deal with anxiety — just as surrendering control is how under-functioning staff deal with challenges. Breaking the pattern is tough, because the manager needs to step back and do less, which means potentially letting bad things happen and tolerating the resulting anxiety. Can you handle that?
Juggling employee schedules to avoid paying overtime is increasingly becoming an issue in our growing store. Should we just move several employees to salaried positions? No more messy rosters. No more overtime. Right?
Likely very wrong. This is a strategy that “has been used so often to avoid paying rightful overtime, that it is written into the law through the Fair Labor Standards Act,” says Scott Clark, a lawyer and founder of the HTC Group. Yes, there are salaried positions for which there are exemptions from overtime rules, but they tend to be “true” management roles and jobs that require a college degree or technical training. They must also pay more than a minimum of $455 per week, and the salary must be the same every week (so if your employee wants time off to see the doctor, you still have to pay his full weekly salary — no more docking wages for hours not worked). If it seems that the government is uncharacteristically protective of lower-income workers in this instance, never fear, it really isn’t. On the contrary, the government IS very particular about all the taxes and Social Security that get paid on overtime. We’d say a better approach is to view your employees as an asset who make you money, not as an expense. Invest in your employees to make them more efficient, and they’ll make you even more money. Or hire the staff you actually need.
What happens if I let a customer into my workshop? Am I liable if they get hurt?
Yes, you are, say the legal minds at the Jewelers Vigilance Committee. However, no more so than if a customer was injured on your sales floor — or your sidewalk (although the potential risk to a customer may be greater in your workshop, depending on the level of manufacturing that goes on). It’s always a good idea to regularly review your insurance coverage to check the limitations on how you are covered and under what circumstances.
What are some tips for displaying men’s jewelry?
According to Larry Johnson’s book The Complete Guide to Effective Jewelry Display, men’s jewelry should be displayed in cases that are less than 6 feet in length with no less than 3 feet of space allocated for displaying merchandise.
Given the infrequent nature of jewelry self-purchases by men, men’s jewelry should be out of the store’s normal traffic area.
Men tend to not like shopping near ladies’ goods. “Position your store’s men’s jewelry case next to the watch counter or the cash register area where they’ll be better attended,” suggests Johnson. For the display itself, use larger elements (ring fingers, bracelet ramps and risers) in more “masculine” fabrics such as gray herringbone or other “suit” fabrics. Regarding the display of the jewelry itself, showcase items that facilitate a man’s infrequent self-purchases. So dispense with price-point displays and group men’s jewelry with like items, such as tie tacks with cufflinks.
Men’s jewelry is pretty much “no fuss no muss,” so use signage that enhances the appeal of the jewelry such as “14K gold” or “hand inlay.” For case trimmings, avoid the sports and sports car clichés. Opt for more timeless elements like antique fly-fishing reels, old toy cars or old sports items.