Have you seen How To SELL Anything?

This incredible sales handbook distils an expert's lifetime of sales and marketing experience and hands it to you on a platter, in a simple, easy-to-follow format. With existing customers being the most valuable source of income for any business, this book will teach you how to increase your return business and make more profit from your most loyal customers - and even how to reduce the costs of dealing with your least profitable customers.

Get it on Amazon (Kindle/Print)

Retail differentiation: 5 Tips for a prosperous Christmas

Almost half (45.2%) of the shoppers surveyed confirmed that they prefer to shop in the traditional high street rather than at shopping malls or web-based retail stores. These same consumers said they prefer traditional high streets and town centres because they tend to offer a wider range of shops and character.

"It's clear that consumers still like to take part in the physical 'shopping experience'. But, with shoppers still being tempted to spend their money online - and with them believing this is where the best offers are - retailers need to look at what they can offer customers to entice them into physical stores," explained Tim Ogle, CEO for Retail Eyes.

"There's been little let-up in this tough retail climate and there's only so much retailers can do in terms of price reductions and promotions to offer customers a bargain," Ogle warned. "Retailers should be looking at other ways in which they can differentiate themselves on the high street. One such cost-effective way is by focusing on the experience and service they offer those customers."

Parking is often a source of frustration for consumers, whether it be on the high street or at shopping centres, as 80% of consumers confirmed that parking at shopping centres was very expensive and 45.8% said they would be put off visiting a shopping centre completely if there were bad or costly parking facilities.

Following the survey, Retail Eyes has compiled its '5 Top Tips for Retailers' in preparation for the Christmas shopping season:

1. Stay calm at all times
   The busiest time of year for retailers is Christmas and having to deal with queues and frustrated customers is not an easy task. Inform staff to deal with aggressive behaviour from shoppers in a polite manner: stay calm, don't raise your voice and treat the customer with empathy and understanding. Generally, Britons are happy to queue up for something they value, and by communicating with them that their custom is valuable to you, you can make their experience a much more positive one.
2. Think about the customer
   Don't let the mad Christmas rush take over from good service. An ideal starting point is to make sure every customer receives a simple warm welcome and a friendly farewell - it will really help attract and retain shoppers. Good manners cost nothing but a little bit of time, but can make all the difference in getting customers to return again and again. Retail Eyes' research shows that 9 out 10 customers have left an establishment before making an intended purchase if they get poor service - good manners really can have a direct impact on your bottom line.
3. Put yourself in their shoes
   Christmas shopping can feel like a stampede sometimes. Make sure that all of your most popular and top selling items are easily visible and accessible in the store. By all means, play the classic Christmas music to keep staff and customers in the mood, but try to mix it up with more modern music to stop it becoming monotonous.
4. Don't forget about the temporary staff
   You will be relying on temporary staff to make Christmas run as smoothly as possible. Treat temporary staff like any other employee and make sure they get all the training they need to ensure they understand the business and the level of customer care that is expected from them. You should expect the same standards of work from temporary staff as you would demand from permanent staff. Temporary workers are equally as important at projecting the image of your business as your regular employees so make sure they feel involved and valued.
5. Use customer insight
   To maintain or improve the service you deliver, it's vital to get customer feedback. Only then can you be confident that you're meeting customer expectations and operating your business to the best standards. The experience customers have of your business is as crucial at Christmas as at any other time of year - just because they're in a rush, doesn't mean customer service will go unnoticed.

Have you seen How To SELL Anything?

This incredible sales handbook distils an expert's lifetime of sales and marketing experience and hands it to you on a platter, in a simple, easy-to-follow format.

With existing customers being the most valuable source of income for any business, this book will teach you how to increase your return business and make more profit from your most loyal customers - and even how to reduce the costs of dealing with your least profitable customers.

You'll learn to sell yourself, sell your products, and sell your brand on the internet, writing high-conversion landing pages, social media posts, and more. You'll start attracting customers you didn’t even know existed, and learn the top trade secrets for customer retention.

You'll become a lean, mean selling machine. See how the experts do it and learn to adapt what they've done for your own profit. You'll learn to write strong, powerful, effective sales copy, whether it's for a sales script, sales letter, flyer, insert, advert or just about anything else.

You'll learn how to sell whether you're selling by telephone, by mail, or even meeting prospects face-to-face. You'll find out how to size them up, present yourself, nail down their true needs, close the sale, and learn to tackle the tricky ones.

You'll discover the biggest secrets of successful direct mail sellers, sales letter writers, and how to segment and choose the right prospects for each campaign.

Get it on Amazon (Kindle/Print)