Many retailers don’t get it: Pushy salespeople a turnoff
Why don’t retailers get it?
The question, posed by one of the bedding industry’s top executives, was directed to me. I wasn’t quite sure what to say.
This executive and I were having an off-the-record conversation, which is why I’m not going to reveal his name. But the question he raised is an intriguing one, well worth some discussion in this space.
We were reviewing some important consumer research findings that we published in our Aug. 11 issue. That report, “Consumer Voices: The Bedding Shopping Experience,” was presented in a special bedding supplement sponsored by the Sleep Trust Guarantee.
The consumers were sounding off on what they would change in the mattress-buying experience:
- “Having salespeople leave you alone to try out the mattresses.”
- “Nagging salespeople.”
- “The salespeople could be more honest and when you lie on a mattress at the store, they could walk away a little bit so you wouldn’t feel uncomfortable.”
- “I like to look a lot and I don’t like feeling pressured to buy.”
See any common themes there? The executive did. “Retailers can read this and they can see what consumers are saying,” he said. That led him to the question that began this column.
And it leads me to wonder, along with that executive, why retailers can’t diagnose this problem and do something about it. So let’s start with this thought: Retailers need to spend more time analyzing the shopping experience as it unfolds on their sales floors. They won’t have any difficulty discovering that many consumers are turned off by how they are treated when they look for a new sleep set.
What to do about that? Retailers need to spend much more time teaching the fine art of engaging consumers — and then giving them their space. Hovering near a prospect is a turnoff. The skilled sales associate knows when to back off.
One technique: The sales associate says he or she needs to check on an order and retreats to the sales desk. There the associate watches from a distance, letting the consumer try out a couple of beds. After a few minutes the sales associate checks back in with the consumer and re-engages with her.
It may seem counterintuitive that walking away from a consumer actually helps to close the sale, but that’s what some skilled sales associates tell us.
There are many different ways to sell mattresses. Retailers and their sales associates who don’t learn from their mistakes are, sadly, doomed to repeat them.
Phea commented:
Ugh! I\'m another consumer who stumbled onto this website. I read through a few of the comments and noted !!!\'s comment above, about letting the respectful salesperson go. There may have been other reasons why this salesperson had low numbers besides his desire to give consumers space. At a store, and as a confumer, I follow a three strikes you\'re out rule. After a greeting, I will only allow three intrusions before I take my business elsewhere. Pushy salespeople are rewarded by my going to another store; even if it means I pay a little bit more. As more consumers start to behave this way, salespeople will need to change their tact. It\'s long overdue.
Anastasia commented:
Can u help me for things that will make a salesperson so reluctant in selling in his company,
SoCooL Bob commented:
Let me see if I can add something that will help. MOST PEOPLE DON\'T LIKE SALES PEOPLE MOST PEOPLE don\'t like \"being sold.\" Sales people, to be good, require a tremendous amount of training, experience, trial and error. They have to acquire skills that most people NEVER have to acquire .. NOR would they be willing to acquire them. You give me a call when this becomes NOT TRUE. It would make it so much more FUN to be a good salesperson.
Maryland commented:
I am a consumer who stumbled on this blog. I can tell you that my husband and I will NOT buy furniture or mattresses from stores where the salespeople are pushy. Walking into a store and getting hawked is absolutely the biggest turnoff imaginable. You come off as desperate and sleazy when you do this. Leave the customers alone, be friendly and offer information when they ask.
Down Comforter commented:
Choosing a paint color for your showroom or choosing a color for a furniture collection can be a daunting assignment. There are some people who have an innate perception about color and some who do not feel comfortable making this type of choice. For this segment of the population there are helpful tools that make the decision process easier. A color wheel, developed by Sir Isaac Newton in 1666, based on the primary colors of red, yellow and blue, is the starting place for choosing color.
!!!! commented:
I purchased a struggling mattress store 18 months ago and kept a sales person that projected himself in such a way that the article above is calling for. He let the customer look, no pressure, etc. He bragged about how many be-backs he would get. His closing ratio was about 20% including be-backs. I let him go after 4 months. My new guy closes about 45 - 50% with few be-backs and most of my customers appreciate the close attention we give them. Often times they state how much more info we provided compared to our competition. Yep some think we are pushy, but the majority are well satisfied and our bottom line is larger for it. Please everybody, stop giving your customers good attention. I\'ll appreciate having an opportunity to sell them a mattress.
undetermined commented:
The number 1 retailer on the east coast teaches their sales force a combination of used car sales and insurance sales.They do negotiate (even when they don\'t have to) they pay very well if your good they have multi layered management and a lot of it they don\'t believe in be backs therefor go for the kill every time their sales force is highly sale and product trained not only secret shoppers but send their own people in from different areas as well as sending their trainees out to shop not only themselves but the competition. They not only beat their nearest rival but bought them for pennies on the dollar. Their secret well trained controlled sales force large selection over saturation of stores not afraid to advertise If you believe this article then someday one of these vipers will move into your market and turn your customers off while eating your profit line to extinction.
In the trenches commented:
A big part of the problem is the retailer who has not clue about what\'s going on in the economy and expects profit increases over last year. What happens if you don\'t meet those goals? You are out looking for a job. We, in the specialty sleep shops, are expected to maintain high margins while the department stores are cutting then to the bone. We are trained to repeatedly ask for the sale and then continue to ask when the consumer expresses a desire to take time to consider their purchase. It\'s gotten to the point where customer service is being overridden by profit. Management needs to revamp pay structures to ensure that the hard working sales people are properly compensated for their efforts.
passed over in California commented:
A poignant article for me. Worked for several years at a nationally known big-box furniture chain. Was top mattress writer annually at store level and presented documents to a prospective bedding store in lieu of employment. During interview, was asked again and again about my ability to be \"aggressive\". I was not hired. Am now selling furniture again elsewhere. My documents revealing previous success in selling mattresses didn\'t matter to this bedding company. They just were looking for aggressive people and were closed to a successful, albeit meek looking salesman.
ex-mattress guy commented:
Better trained and experienced salespeople understand how to approach and sell in an effective and non-threatening manner. The problem is in today\'s retail world employers don\'t want to pay a livable wage to their staff and therefore attract less quality salespeople. If retailers want a better experience for their customers they cant just hire bodies and give them cheesy training and expect world class salespeople.Just like anything in life you get what you pay for. The retail industry as a whole is currently raising a generation of order-takers not salespeople because beter quality folks will go get a better paying job without all the crazy retail hours. Bottom line is pay your employees better and you will eventually get a better experience for your customers.
me commented:
check check check
Dana commented:
There are plenty of ways to drop the price without losing the customers respect it does not have to be a used car sales tactic of yesteryear you just have to build value in the product prior to a price drop and be creative about it \"Next month we\'ll have a $75 coupon in our flyer/ad/etc... If I could do that for you now would that work for you?\" Don\'t present it as a negotiation or we (retailers) will lose the credibility. Make it about doing something \"Special\" for each and every customer, show them that you are willing to work hard for them and go the extra mile. How is it that stepping away from someone trying out a mattress isnt just plain common sense?
Sleepys Guy commented:
\"Top-Bedding Industry Executives\" always think that they know better than the retailers on how to run retail operations. Just ask them. They think every sale is easy and every customer should be shown and sold THEIR $2000 mattress with no pressure. When they actually try retail for themselves however, it\'s a disaster.
Dave Perry commented:
Thanks to all posters, especially the person who talks about the power of leaving the customer alone. That person gets it! The poster who puts the blame on management raises an interesting point. I have to think that poor management is part of the problem.
L. Stansbury commented:
My BEST salesman leaves the customer alone. He finds out their needs, shows them the beds they need to try, and walks away. He tells them if they have any questions that he\'ll be at the front counter and he\'ll be back to check on them in a few minutes. It is HARD to get a salesperson to do that. Heck, I don\'t even want to do that. I think we try to be too helpful sometimes. Keep up the good work Dave!
Warren Littrell commented:
There is a major difference in shopping for a mattress in a sleep shop and going to a furniture store or one of the big department stores. First, at the department store, THE PRICE IS THE PRICE. There is no Monty Hall, Let\'s make a Deal mentailty. For this one reason, the process is easier to close the sale. At the department store we have other things we would like to sell them on their visit or at some future visit. Ws don\'t follow them out to their car and risk having our fingers cushed by a closing window. Ask the right questions, give them the proper space, don\'t treat them like they are ignorant and you will close more sales. This is not rocket science, treat the client with respect and you will close the sale and have a client leave your store with a positive feeling.
old salt commented:
the pressure is coming from managment that cant pay a decent wage to the help and is focused on opening more stores with more sub par jobs for mediocore sales help. The pressure starts when the consumer opens the front door of the store and by managment edict some poor slob has to scream across a 6800 sq foot room \"welcome to Blah Blah store\" the mattress miracle center! within 8 seconds or risk being fired by some mystry shopper...watch us make your money disapear. Dont like the price?? we can drop that so there is no validity to anything priced in the store. Bedding is almost a medical device for god sake. What morron thought that a used car pitch was going to work better? Buy the double by-pass get the 3rd valve for half price. there are some big dopes in this business Sales help is desperate and really has nothing to lose except a crappy job in a dead end company.
