Retail Florist Salesperson - Part 2 Of 2
An important key to success for any Retail Florist operation is strong sales. In this second installment, we will discuss the training of a great Retail Florist Salesperson. I also provide a suggested telephone script as a basis for making the most of every phone sales opportunity.
Training A mentor of mine recently told me when I was complaining about how tiring it was to train a new employee… have patience, good training makes great employees.
She was right. Training is of utmost importance. No detail is too small; some just deserve more attention than others. Content of your telephone salesperson training should include such basics as tone of voice, greetings, telephone etiquette and telephone usage. You’ll also need to train new salespeople on product and service offerings. It will take quite a while before he knows all of the possibilities, so it’s important to teach him how to handle a question he doesn’t know the answer to. Do you want him to say… “I’m not sure.” Or “Hmm, that’s a good question, may I put you on hold for just one minute while I find out?”. You’ll need to make it a priority of yourself, your manager, or an experienced trusted employee to be available to answer those questions quickly so that excellent customer service can be maintained.
Make a list of your shop’s golden rules of customer service. Some suggestions include… never put a customer on hold for more than 3 minutes. Never say “I can’t”, instead say what you can do. When a customer has a complaint-First… LISTEN! One that’s close to my heart: Never hold a separate conversation with a co-worker when a customer is present. I’m sure you have your own list. These are things that you feel so strongly about that it somehow surprises you when others don’t know them. Remember, when you’re training a new employee, he doesn’t know these things until you tell him.
Once your new salesperson is on the phone and waiting on customers, you’ll want to train him to make the most of each sales opportunity. Completely ban the phrase “how much do you want to spend?” Instead, train him to ask questions to determine the customer’s preferences and budget. Train him to sell the best choice of flowers and services at the best price that fits the customer’s situation.
So, in my experience, I like to start my training with those golden rules of customer service. Move into product and service training and then finish off with sales techniques. In product and service training, you should provide written documentation of the products, services and pricing options. Trainees should be encouraged to organize their own training materials for use as reference during sales calls. Since prices and products are constantly changing, I recommend a loose-leaf notebook or a folder rather than a printed catalog or book
Not all shop owners would agree, but I do advocate a telephone sales script. It needs to be the foundation for the best sales practices. It also needs to be taught and used in such a way that elevates it from a canned script to an excellent framework for sales and customer service. We’ve all experienced on of those terrible phone scripts-from a telemarketer or from a phone company sales person (why is the phone company one of the most infuriating organizations to have a phone conversation with???). Below is a sample script that can and should be built upon for use in your store. Add those touches that make it your own and teach your employees when and how to deviate from it to best serve the customer.
Script
Karen’s Flowers, Karen Speaking.
Hi, I’d like to order flowers.
Ok, great, I can help you with that. When would you like to have them delivered?
Today if possible.
Alright, can I ask you a few questions and then we can talk about what you’d like to send?
Ok
Ok, May I have your name?
And your Phone Number?
Is there a Cell Phone # you’d like to give me?
Who would you like to send the flowers to?
My niece, Susie Caboose
And her address?
24 South Main St. Springfield, OH 55555
her phone number?
(be prepared to explain why you need this phone #) 555-555-5555
Now you know the address, if today’s delivery is going to be a problem, now is the time to discuss the situation.
Are the flowers for a special occasion? It’s her 16th birthday.
Wow, that’s fun. Were you thinking of fresh flowers, a plant or a gift
Flowers
Ok, what’s her style? Would she like something traditional and feminine for a Sweet 16, or something young and vibrant?
You should see her room… it’s hot pink and orange! She’d probably like something crazy.
We have great gerbera daisies that come in those colors… all the kids who come in the shop go straight for them. We could choose a fun container that she could use in her room or on her desk later.
That sounds good.
We could do something small for $25-30. An average size design would be $35 - $40 and something really impressive would be $50 - 75.
I think average will do.
Ok , so say we do a $35 arrangement. Would you like to add some balloons or candy?
Balloons would be good. How much will that cost?
Three balloons will add $9.50.
OK , let’s do three.
What would you like the card to say?
Happy Sweet 16, Love Aunt Nancy and Uncle Dan
With Delivery and tax, your total comes to $55.65. Would you like to use Visa, Mastercard Discover or American Express?
At this point, confirm your customer’s address or ask for it if your computer system does not provide it.
Thank you Nancy, We’ll take good care of your order get the flowers to Susie this afternoon. Is there anything else I can help you with… Do you need to order any Christmas (or Valentine, etc) flowers?
No, Thank You
Ok, my name is Karen, call me if you think of anything. Have a great day. Goodbye.
Goodbye
Now, it’s time for that great salesperson to really take good care of the order. He or she should follow through by insuring that the order gets to the proper place for processing and take on the role of the customer’s advocate.
Order by order and customer by customer, the salesperson will gain experience and poise. Keep him or her enthused and motivated with incentives, fresh ideas and new products. An investment in training your salespeople will pay off tremendously in the success of your business.
Karen Marinelli is a Floral Industry Professional with twenty one years of experience in the academic, retail, and wholesale sectors of the industry. She believes the common goal should be to sell more flowers to more people, more often.
Tags: floral, florist, flowers, hiring, management, recruiting, retail, sales.training
