By
Bob Phibbs
I sat next to a young woman on a plane to Chicago who was on the second leg of a trip home from Boston to Seattle. Her flight had been delayed and then finally canceled eight hours earlier.
“But,” she said, “I pleaded and cried and told them my mom was in the hospital, and they put me on this flight. I put on a good show - with tears - and I got my way.”
When it comes to getting our way, especially with a boss or someone in a position of power, most of us have little idea how to get what we want, so we accept what we get.
Most of us know training employees is the way to higher retail sales. We don’t know how to convince our boss to pay for it.
The last big recession resulted in slashed training budgets across all businesses.
And while you might think those budgets are gone forever, consider this…
U.S. spending on corporate training grew by 15% (the highest growth rate in seven years) to over $70 Billion.
That means employee capabilities for many businesses are now a priority; corporate executives have connected the dots between learning and performance.
If it’s right for corporate, isn’t it time for retail?
Now is the time for you to approach the people who control the purse strings and ask for their support (in dollars) for retail sales training.
I’m not saying it will be easy, but now is the time.
Because you see that …
Footfall is down. Not just in big malls but in strip centers and on Main Streets. Customers just don’t have much need for more stuff.
Conversions are down. Those shoppers who do come in to shop are responding only to promotions. That means there is a higher percentage of browsers than buyers.
Store staffing budgets are down. When the sales numbers aren’t there, two-person coverage becomes the norm and little more than clerking results.
You are asking your boss to pay for training because you still have hope that things could be different in your store or stores. Better. For everyone.
You know you are not where you need to be in what you and your crew should be doing. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have researched options and wouldn’t be reading this right now.
Or is fear holding you hostage to doing things the way you’ve always done them; you still hire to fit the schedule, assume employees come trained, and just let them loose on your customers.
But now you know you want to change.
I’ll bet your boss does too.
As a CMO, I was anxious for someone to come to me with a sales plan they thought would work.
I didn’t want someone just asking me for more money for a vague idea. To that end...
Here Are 5 Pointers For Asking Your Boss To Pay For Training
1. Have the right attitude. If you start, They’ll never approve this; you’re sunk right out of the gate. If you already have your boss’s trust, this will be easier than you think. That’s because your boss wants the store to do better too. They probably are paid a bonus based on sales performance. They’ve racked their brains for how to do more with less, but now they find themselves with less all around.
2. Be specific. Answer the following questions before the boss asks: What do you want? How much will it cost? What do you expect it to do for you? How long will it take? How will it help lift key performance indicators (KPIs.) For example, if you have data on your conversion rate, and with training you project it would increase from 12 - 18%, show what that would mean in real dollars.
3. Present the benefits of the system, person, or plan you propose. Easy and proven are words to use.
4. Offer to be the one who implements the training. One of the biggest fears of owners and C-Level executives is Will they use it. Show how you will personally track every employee. Tell them how you will roll out the training, and give them the markers you’d want to see the progress.
5. Be ready for one of two answers. You might hear, Tell me more, so have links or printouts ready with common FAQs about the training you are proposing. Get a small yes first by asking if you can arrange a sample lesson. You might also hear, No, so see if, just like a customer, they can tell you their objections. If they can, restate them back in a sentence, for example, “So I hear you say there isn’t any money for this now due to the new store opening. Is this something we could explore in six or seven months?” You won’t be able to script everything when asking your boss for money. Just remain open, flexible and focused on changing things for the better.
And if you are the Training Director, don’t worry that asking for a sales training system will make you obsolete. Far from it!
Using a training program such as my online retail sales training SalesRX.com, you can virtually train every employee with the same proven sales secrets because they access the training at each location without you.
You won’t have to jump in a car and drive for hours.
You won’t expect to train three people but only have one show up.
You won’t be bored repeating yourself day after day.
But you still get to manage the training.
So you can reward employees who are progressing.
So you can connect the dots between well-trained people and their KPIs.
So you can methodically follow up and certify that every employee is indeed trained.
This is the perfect time for managers and salespeople to revitalize retail and add value by teaching everyone how to sell so that every customer experiences a well-trained crew that can deliver the goods.
And the sales.
And the profits.
Because of you and your belief in retail sales training.
