💥 THE KILLER QUESTION !!!💥

I’m the Client,
Barefoot in a tile floor store
Pieds nus dans un magasin de revêtement de sols
Descalzo en tienda de revestimiento de suelo

Which Killer question asked me the sales persons, so that I put off my shoes and experiment at a sensorial & kin esthetic level the texture of this ?

The KILLER QUESTION from this sales coaching expert “would have been” : “What is the most relevant aspect for YOU when you buy a floor for your living room?”

I would have answered: “Look, I love to walk barefoot at home, from spring to summer time. And as your ceramic looks like wood; I was wondering how it would feel !”

Instead, the sales expert was insisting to present to me a lot of products (convincingly), answering my questions (on a charming way), but NOT ASKING QUESTIONS. He was not interesting himself on my lifestyle, my taste and my preferences… neither on my consumer potential with questions like “how is your project?” or ” How many rooms”… No questions, no open questions.

As I’ve got this kind of personalities, I finally suggested:

“Do you mind if I put my shoe  👟 off, to feel the texture of the floor?”🦶.

He answered “No problem!”

Nice, but I was (me, the client) the one leading the dance of selling💃 ; he was not.

This hashtag#selling experience was not bad; in fact I would give a 7, or maybe even a 8… but never a 10, because I could have received most of those answers online or on this retailer’s webpage. I visited this physical store to receive QUESTIONS that would help me think, touch, feel, get enthusiast, feel recognized.

Ah, and I was the one asking for his name and business card. So, no hashtag#clienteling. Come on… no hashtag#omnichannel.

8C’s ANALYSIS

If I analyze through our CapKelenn | Sales & Retail Coaching 8C’s of an excellent sales, I found good the

C’s 1 (Consult), 2 (Connect), 4 (convince), 5 (convert objections),

and I found shamelessly bad the

C’s 3 (Comprehend), 6 (Conclude), 7 (Complement) and

8 (Confirm; no clienteling),

like the vast majority, still, of sales persons. What we call a sales person from XX century.

Conclusiones for your sales hashtag#method. So…

– Answering machine OR professional questioner?
– Transactional style OR Emotional, sensorial and human sales interaction OR ?
– One-shot sales OR Customer Relationship management?
– In-store OR onmichanel & phygital scope ?
– Sales person from XX OR Sales Coaching from XXI century ?

For any request, or to just discuss, please contact CapKelenn Retail Coaching at: info@capkelenn.com

CapKelenn in luxury retail

CapKelenn is the primary certification in Retail Coaching worldwide, certifying managers in Retail to really become coaches for their sales teams, facilitating the transition towards a supreme clienteling savoir-faire. CapKelenn delivers the certification in 12 languages on all the 5 continents. CapKelenn accelerates change, thanks to people, with results that are fast, visible and sustainable, contributing to fertilize a client experience that is memorable and personalized.

Benoit Mahé

PCC (Profesional Certified Coach of ICF) & Capkelenn founder.

1/2 of our agenda at CapKelenn coaches is busy with Team Buildings this autumn!

WHY NOW?

We are social animals (some more than others); after covid trauma, we all, managers and coaches, need to keep improving our Zoom skills, but also to MEET IN PERSON, share coffees, informal discussions… reconnect, with the 5 senses. We need to sing, cook, play together, share vulnerabilities.

WHICH BENEFITS IN OUTDOOR?

1. CREATIVITY:in finding new solutions stimulating contributions of all, even the less-visible team members.
2. INNOVATION:specific methodology and interactive workshops definitely bring new co-developed answers to existing questions.
3. INITIATIVE:positive climate permits to even take risks of “failing” feeling empowered.
4. FLUID COMMUNICATION:dynamics and games make participants aware of rigid communication, practice direct-fluid communication. We are not just a face on Zoom but a full body.
5. AUTHENTIC:a team building in a place in nature allows to connect with the real personality, authenticity, sometime to re-discover colleagues. We’ve changed & evolved.
6. GRATITUDE:last Friday, participants expressed a real gratitude towards their company for this opportunity of participating to a Team Building.

WHICH FACTORS OF SUCCESS FOR A TEAM BUILDING?

SPECIAL PLACE IN NATURE

In our case, we particularly enjoy ChateauForm (for activities in France, Spain, Italy, Germany, Netherlands) for their warm welcome and cared installations. Teams feel like at home, and outdoor space normally allows dynamics, games and sports.

ALIGNED WITH STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES

The pre-conversations with top management permits to fully integrate business challenges and address from both brain hemispheres, the rationale left for the “WHAT?” and the emotional right, for the “HOW?”.

FOLLOW UP TO FERTILIZE

If commitments, decisions are taken, it’s necessary to follow up, to share a document afterwards, to remind commitment, to cultivate the “spirit” of those 2 days. In a recent outdoor, one of the participants suggested that even in some months, the only fact to pronounce, in the middle of a meeting, the expression “the spirit of Arena” (the name of the place) would remind the style and alliance agreed.

For any request, or to just discuss, please contact CapKelenn Retail Coaching at: info@capkelenn.com

CapKelenn in luxury retail

CapKelenn is the primary certification in Retail Coaching worldwide, certifying managers in Retail to really become coaches for their sales teams, facilitating the transition towards a supreme clienteling savoir-faire. CapKelenn delivers the certification in 12 languages on all the 5 continents. CapKelenn accelerates change, thanks to people, with results that are fast, visible and sustainable, contributing to fertilize a client experience that is memorable and personalized.

Benoit Mahé

PCC (Profesional Certified Coach of ICF) & Capkelenn founder.

NPS : Net Promoter Score

I have always put customer’s satisfaction with our product or service first. Indeed, when I started my career in the 90s, it was a very hot topic. Various measuring methods have been developed and implemented in order to evaluate and track the users and customers’ satisfaction, like the Mystery shoppers, satisfaction surveys, etc.

However, despite the success these concepts have reached their time, the priorities have changed. These have adapted to today’s accelerated changes. As a consequence, the new important indicator is the NPS, or Net Promoter Score.

Thus, it is worth wondering what has exactly changed since then. The boom of ICTs is one of the most important reasons, but giving more details about the origin of that change is not the goal of this post. The only thing known for sure is that today having satisfied customers is no longer enough, and it is important to go a step further in our relation with them. Consequently, it is important to keep in mind that an ‘only satisfied’ customer can be lost eventually. He can easily stop being seduced or become totally attracted by other channels or by your competitors.

How do you calculate NPS?

Let’s take an example:
“Considering your experience with our product/service/brand, how likely would you recommend it to a friend or your family?”
This is a typical question you may find in a customer satisfaction survey. The answer would be chosen among a scale of values, for example from 1 (not at all likely) and 10 (extremely likely). Resumining it, the 10 values could be grouped as follows:
– Low probability (values 1-3)
– Medium probability (values 4-7)
– High probability (8-10)

Nonetheless, the criteria to be followed with the NPS is not the same. In the case of the NPS, medium values are simply ignored; they are not taken into account. The criteria to define a ‘medium value’ change as well. To calculate the NPS, the grouping would be the following:
– Low probability (values 1 – 6)
– High probability (values 9-10)

Indeed, the categories are polarized. The customers who gave us neutral marks (7 and 8) are not important. The most important are those who give us the best marks (9 and 10, these respondents are Promoters) and those who give us the lowest marks (6 and below, they are Detractors).

Before the NPS, we would only have done a statistical average and got an average value X. With the NPS, we also calculate an average but we only take into account the values described above (from 1 to 6 and 9-10). The result (Y) is the store, establishment, company or product’s NPS score.

NPS : Example

It is going to be clearer with an example.
Let’s suppose that to the same question as in the previous example, we have obtained the following answers from 10 respondents:
{9, 7, 8, 6, 6, 9, 8, 10, 4, 9}

With these values, the average is 7.6/10. However in the case of the NPS, as we only take the values given by promoters and detractors, the calculation has to be done as following:
– Highest marks [9-10]: 4 respondents, 40% of the total.
– Lowest marks [1-6]: 3 respondents, 33% of the total.
[40% – 33% = 7] => So the store’s NPS is 7.
The results have to be interpreted differently as well. For instance, an NPS score above 0 starts to be acceptable, while a score above 50 is considered as excellent.

What does the NPS means?

What could explain that?

The main reason is related to the new commercial and technological paradigm. Having a ‘reasonably satisfied’ customer is not enough anymore, even less an unsatisfied one. We have to try to reach excellence in the way we treat our customer and we want them to be amazed. His experience in our store or while he uses our product has to be unique, rewarding and humanly pleasant.

It has to be like this because of the numerous competitors against which we have to develop our economic activities every day. The risk to lose a customer is now a lot higher than before because of the competition and the use of the new technologies. If we don’t impress our customers, another company will.

Moreover, treating the customer like that has another advantage, as the respondents who give us the highest marks 9 and 10 in survey questions like showed previously are customers who might eventually actively recommend our products to their relatives. This is why our salespersons have to seek the highest marks possible, ideally a 10 score every time. How to reach that goal?

First of all, excellent marks come with an excellent treatment: give a professional image when needed but be close to your customer when required. There is no question to be chewing gum, avoiding eye-contact or making calls while you are talking with a customer. You have to be respectful towards him and serious while doing your work. Thus, it is important to perfectly know the product you are selling and correctly and convincingly answer to the customer’s questions. It is essential to give a feeling of security and to be close to the most loyal customers. It is not acceptable not to call a customer you see every day by his name.

How to increase NPS?

For all these reasons, non-negotiable standards or protocols of attention are not enough anymore. Of course the question is not to leave them behind, but it is clear that more has to be done. The personalized treatment has to be an inescapable linchpin, thus the customer does not expect only intelligence (meaning skillfulness, rapidity and knowledge) but you also have to show emotional intelligence when you are dealing with him.

Appreciate his opinion, his preferences and, of course, his intelligence.

The goal is to be able to show emotional intelligence in every sale and in every commercial deal , independently of the salespersons’ level of motivation. The following question obviously is: how to do it?

How to show emotional intelligence in our stores when the HQ has failed to do its job properly and leaves us exposed to customers’ reactions?

How to get only 10 marks from our customers even when our store does not offer all the necessary amenities?

How to amaze our customers and make them be promoters when they are surrounded by so many companies offering the same product as ours?

What is my personal goal? Well, I want to contribute to the company’s happiness and to the retail sector’s excellence by seeking always 9 and 10 marks from our customers in order to reach the 50 score and above for the NPS.

Do you want to improve your NPS?

CapKelenn in luxury retail

CapKelenn is the primary certification in Retail Coaching worldwide, certifying managers in Retail to really become coaches for their sales teams, facilitating the transition towards a supreme clienteling savoir-faire. CapKelenn delivers the certification in 12 languages on all the 5 continents. CapKelenn accelerates change, thanks to people, with results that are fast, visible and sustainable, contributing to fertilize a client experience that is memorable and personalized.

Learn how to with our experts

CapKelenn in luxury retail

CapKelenn is the primary certification in Retail Coaching worldwide, certifying managers in Retail to really become coaches for their sales teams, facilitating the transition towards a supreme clienteling savoir-faire. CapKelenn delivers the certification in 12 languages on all the 5 continents. CapKelenn accelerates change, thanks to people, with results that are fast, visible and sustainable, contributing to fertilize a client experience that is memorable and personalized.

Area manager are a crucial piece in retail organizations as he/she transmits the management strategy to stores and restaurants. To do this, they travel often, and part of their management is done remotely, so their biorhythms need to adapt to specific management rituals. These rituals include visits to the units, weekly video calls, daily emails, area meetings, product launches, etc. The area manager needs to distinguish between the important and the urgent to increase the effectiveness of his rituals. We are going to detail some of these rituals and provide the keys so that they are properly developed to increase the positive impact on their teams and on their own management.

The email of the area manager

This common form of communication is an abuse in many companies, hundreds of emails are stored in the inbox of a area manager. We not only have to pay attention to quantity, but to quality: sometimes they are long, repetitive and boring. Some suggestions for writing emails are the following:

• The subject of the email must be precise (encompassing the general message) and short (no more than 6 words).
• Mark the option “urgent” when it is really urgent. If almost all are marked as urgent, that “urgency” is diluted.
• Capital letters and exclamation marks (!!) can be interpreted as aggressive.
• Bold, underlining and italics can be used sporadically to highlight something specific, without overdoing it.
• The body of the text should not be longer than 10-15 lines.
• The courtesy must also be kept in writing.
• If the topic is sensitive, it may be better to discuss it in person.
• The spacing between paragraphs gives a sense of order and structure.
• Use multiple shipping with caution, especially if it is sent to store managers and higher hierarchical positions.
• Spelling and style checking is a non-negotiable standard for an area manager.
• Be careful with humor or irony. The recipient does not see the writer’s face or hear a tone of voice to interpret the meaning. Emoticons can make up for it to some extent.
• It can be useful to use editing software to make the email attractive with photos, graphics, etc., especially with informational emails.

The weekly video launch on WhatsApp

How do you have to build this video message to make an impact?

• Positive and convincing tone, looking at the camera.
• Do not record against the light and the camera at eye level.
• Share the results of the previous week without boring you with details.
• Congratulate stores or restaurants on their KPI achievements.
• Express your gratitude to a seller who has agreed to change the store to cover a time off sick.
• Request initiatives for new promotions.
• Indicate which stores you will visit during the week.
• Duration of no more than 90 seconds.

Visiting stores: presence 100%

As a link between the headquarters and the points of sale, the area manager must take care of empathy and the visit itself. Visits must be scheduled so that store managers prepare them, although on specific occasions it may appear by surprise. So one goal of the visit is to empower the store manager. Perhaps it is he/she and not the area manager who has to write the report indicating the key figures, the diagnosis and the agreed action plan. The area manager will receive it and provide its added value, correcting and validating from their perspective.

The individual weekly video call

Many area managers travel thousands of kilometers a year, with the consequent fatigue, back pain and stress. Thus video calls with applications such as Zoom, WhatsApp or FaceTime can replace 1/3 face-to-face visits. To be effective, it is necessary:

• Fixed and structured schedule, with a duration of 15 minutes and breaks between sessions every 45 minutes.
• It is an ideal format for coaching because both people are seated and concentrated.
• The store manager generates commitments and sends a summary email in the next few minutes.
• Area manager has before him the scorecard and the commitments of the previous session.
• He can request a tour of the store with the phone, showing the merchandising, the store, the vendors …

The zone meeting

The zone meeting requires specific rules to be successful:

• Previous agenda: the regional director must send it a week before to those in charge so that they can insert topics if they need.
• Preparation: if the area manager is going to request specific interventions from his managers, he must notify them in advance.
• Roles: the timekeeper notifies when each participant has 1 minute left to speak and the secretary takes notes and sends them the next day.
• The pineapple of the word: only one person speaks at a time and the pineapple, like any other object, symbolizes the turn to speak.
• Animation in coach mode: the meeting leader can invite participants to reflect in writing and share their ideas. At CapKelenn we use “tests express”, written questions that require an answer on a scale of 0 to 10. For example: “How effective has the Christmas promotion been?”
• Check-in and check-out: the question “how are you?” allows you to calibrate the energy and “what do you take?” creates an environment of sincerity.
• Punctuality: the door closes at the indicated time. Everyone’s time is important.
• Alliance: the rules of the meeting are built between everyone (speaking turns, rest time, courtesy …).
• Games: ideal for re-energizing. There are many games, but an example can be: the coach hands each person a post-it and plays music. When he stops it, a circle is generated and each one places the post-it on the back of the closest colleague and writes a quality of this person.
• Walking coaching: retail lives on foot, so the area manager looks for animations so that participants get up and continue working. The area manager delivers mission letters to each group of 2-3 people, they go outside to talk about the mission. When they return, they should share the fruit of their reflection in 1 minute. This is how creativity is generated, benchmark.

The team video call with the area manager

A group videoconference can be an alternative to innovate and, of course, a necessity in the middle of a pandemic situation. Video call is practical, cheap, saves time and transportation costs, reduces carbon footprint, the visual impact is higher than the sound of a phone call, etc. But video call also has a number of rules:

• Clear invitation with access links validated by each participant.
• The area manager must create the group in advance and contact everyone in a single call.
• The “share screen” option is very useful for sharing visual and synthetic documents.
• Ensure the quality of the connection, being preferable the network cable instead of WiFi.
• Wear headphones to listen and make yourself heard better.
• Settle in a quiet place and avoid interruptions.
• It is advisable to connect 3 minutes before to offer a more relaxed space as if it were a meeting in person.
• The initial check-in (“how are you?”) and the final check-out (“what do you take?”) are doubly important.
• Speaking a little slower and modulate the voice.
• Perhaps humor does not work as well as in person.
• The area manager gives and recovers the floor. So he keeps everyone’s attention.
• Tests express are very useful for quick evaluations.
• ATROMI animation method: Accommodation (welcome and thanks); Topic (summarize what to talk about); Rules (rules during the session); Objective (what is intended to be achieved in the meeting); Method (phases of the meeting); Information returned (feedback, doubts and suggestions).

The public discourse of the area manager

Some networks organize conventions or launch events in which the area manager must present a speech. Speaking in public can be scary, so we’ve summarized a few tips to help improve:

• Rehearse and practice over and over again
• Record trials and analyze them to detect areas for improvement
• Abdominal breathing
• Drink water before speaking to relax
• The introduction and the conclusion are the two most relevant parts, so they have to be impactful and energetic.
• Visual technique of the M: look at 5 people united in the shape of an imaginary M. This gives the audience the feeling of covering the entire room.
• Rehearse storytelling: know how to tell anecdotes and test them before with friends. In addition, it is ideal that it includes a touch of humor.
• Non-verbal communication: modulate the voice to alter moments of energy with more relaxed moments; feet well anchored; straight body posture, etc.
• Silence generates authority and knowing how to handle times of silence is essential.
• Be inspired by professional speakers.
• Practice theater.
• Never apologize for not knowing how to speak in public.

The SAAR model

The area manager is also related to the top management with whom it has to be aligned. He has to help his boss decide and to do this he has to build trust and legitimacy. For this, the SAAR model can be applied:

• Situation: describe the current situation clearly, briefly and objectively.
• Alternatives: although viscerally you want to promote a solution, the data can raise several alternatives.
• Analysis: evaluate each alternative objectively and with data in hand. The cost, ROI and consequences of each alternative are measured.
• Recommendation: the area manager should involve, give his opinion as if it were his business.

This communication system generates a progressive trust between the boss and the area manager and can proactively give rise to feedback that positively affects the results. This method is, in short, an aid for decision making.

These recommendations are some of those that you can find in the book of Benoit Mahé Retail Coaching: how to boost KPI’s with Emotions.

CapKelenn in luxury retail

CapKelenn is the primary certification in Retail Coaching worldwide, certifying managers in Retail to really become coaches for their sales teams, facilitating the transition towards a supreme clienteling savoir-faire. CapKelenn delivers the certification in 12 languages on all the 5 continents. CapKelenn accelerates change, thanks to people, with results that are fast, visible and sustainable, contributing to fertilize a client experience that is memorable and personalized.

Digital transformation has been, for years, one of the biggest challenges facing the company, be it large, medium or small. The fourth industrial revolution that Klaus Schwab named includes an unprecedented technological development in which digital tools take on a predominant role. In this context, the retail sector is obliged to reinvent itself and adapt to a new type of business organization and new consumption dynamics.

Resistance to digital transformation in retail

Up to 90% of retail companies have a well-defined digital strategy according to some studies such as The Digital Transformation PACT. However, at CapKelenn we find a lot of resistance to this digitization by highly qualified professionals: “that is something very complex”, “now we do not need it”, “we cannot stop to think about new technologies at the moment”. These are some pretexts that hinder a modernization whose results are amply tested.

Before continuing to read this article, ask yourself the following questions: Are your customers the centre of your business strategy? Do you record all interactions with customers and draw conclusions about their purchasing dynamics? To what extent are the supply chain data with e-commerce data? Could you further automate internal processes?

These questions are intended to sow the seed of self-awareness, just as we like to do at CapKelenn. So that you are the one who reflects on how to run your business, get the most out of digital tools and set up a team focused on excellence. All that with the aim of accompanying you in the digital transformation of your business. Below we will give you some guidelines.

Optimize digitization in the management of your business

The digital transformation in retail must begin within the organization itself, questioning traditional management models and evaluating which new systems would add value. It is about integrating the “world off” and the “world on” to provide an omnichannel experience.

Omnichannel is a very consistent global brand experience from one channel to another, so that the client takes advantage of all digital resources (such as social networks, web, blog, etc.) to buy. This multitude of channels requires a solid internal coherence to turn the purchase into a holistic experience.

Thanks to automation, you will get rid of tedious manual processes and be able to focus on aspects such as omnichannel, which do generate value for the business. This digitization includes, for example, the integration between the supply chain and e-commerce data. So you can have an adequate level of stock, streamline purchase orders and control the supply of products with higher turnover.

The analytics provided by digital tools allow us to know purchasing patterns, product trends and customer habits. In this way, we can predict the degree of acceptance that a new product will have, the level of demand according to external factors, and even customize special offers for each client.

Digitization in the customer relationship

Digital transformation in retail is also a paradigm shift in the relationship established with the customer. Users spend a lot of time with their smartphones and tablets, so these tools are a powerful ally for our sector.

Have you tried creating WhatsApp groups to offer special promotions? This is one of the most used applications and originality in the way you use it can make a difference. For example, the WhatsApp Video function is useful to show the physical store and its products to a potential customer who has no availability to approach personally.

WhatsApp facilitates the relationship with consumers during the digital transformation process. Just as it can be used as a sender, it is also important to take care of our role as a receiver. Such a widely used application is an ideal way to receive suggestions about the shopping experience, comments on products and even (why not?) complaints.

In this sense, the transparency of the post-sales service is beyond doubt. The contact system must consider the “usability” factor and we, as an organization, owe the client an agile, concrete and satisfactory response.

CRM: Retail ally

A CRM (Customer Relationship Management) is a computer system that facilitates the company / client relationship. Traditionally, physical cards have been used to collect customer data manually. The Internet was a revolution and databases began to be used in programs such as Excel or Access. Digital transformation involves a further step and many businesses opt for these systems.

A CRM enables the digitization of data regarding customers to get to know them better: interests, modes of behaviour in the store, time preferences, favourite means of contacting the company, etc. This way we get an exhaustive profile of each consumer and the strategy we build around them is more precise and personalized.

Although sometimes computer systems may seem complex, a CRM operates in two simple phases. As we have seen, in a first phase it collects customer data related to a multitude of factors. The type of business that applies this system will determine the relevance of one or the other factors, since the needs are not the same for a restaurant as for a perfumery. In a second phase, the CRM guides the specific actions that the business must take.

Consequently, the data does not remain in the air, but is translated into specific and personalized strategies to accompany each client before, during and after the purchase.

Digital transformation in your team

Digital transformation in retail must also have the training of the work team. Employees have to imbibe a methodology equipped with a wide variety of digital tools. The objective is to bring up the figure of the connected seller: connected to the tool, to his client, to the time.

His training in the different digital applications that are part of the corporate strategy is essential to build a “phygital” store. This concept is explained by Benoit Mahé, PCC coach and master in NLP, in the following video (English subtitles available):

Not too long ago, the point of contact with the customer at the point of sale was the time of payment at the cash register. Today, when we talk about the connected salesperson, we mean an advisor who is interested in the customer’s concerns. To accompany you on your purchase, to make suggestions and recommendations. All this in a physical environment that incorporates the digital world in its multiple aspects. Thus, the technological devices available to the customer help them turn their shopping experience into a game, something fun and dynamic.

To sum up

At CapKelenn, we encourage you to join the digital transformation in your business. The retail sector cannot lag new technological trends. Precisely, the fundamental characteristic of retail, direct contact with the client, requires adapting the attitudinal patterns of consumers. If it is clear that technological devices have a potential in all aspects of social life, points of sale are one more vector of that reality.

CapKelenn in luxury retail

CapKelenn is the primary certification in Retail Coaching worldwide, certifying managers in Retail to really become coaches for their sales teams, facilitating the transition towards a supreme clienteling savoir-faire. CapKelenn delivers the certification in 12 languages on all the 5 continents. CapKelenn accelerates change, thanks to people, with results that are fast, visible and sustainable, contributing to fertilize a client experience that is memorable and personalized.

Gone are the excuses that block taking a step further. Digitization provides an opportunity to align with new trends and thus connect with an increasingly demanding audience.

Psychological health has become essential in the current socioeconomic situation. Covid-19 is causing a series of human reactions that have an impact on the organization and on the profit and loss account of retail businesses. As well as on the mood of retail professionals. Stress situations are reproduced in stores that remain open and in merchants who have temporarily closed. If intersubjective relationships have characteristics of extraordinary complexity, intrasubjective relationships are no less.

Psychological health for retail shops

There are two factors of force majeure that have suddenly appeared in the retail sector: isolation and uncertainty. Both psychological illnesses manifest in physiological expressions such as difficulty sleeping, lack of appetite, anxiety, sadness, irritability, fear or panic. To help us deal with this situation of isolation and uncertainty, psychology, in its therapeutic, neurological and social aspects, stands out as a crucial resource.

Therefore, CapKelenn offers you a psychological health service applied to commerce. We want to anticipate psychosocial risks and accompany managers, franchisees and retail staff who are facing situations of tension and insecurity. Firstly, we offer management care for the couple and children for those who remain at home burdened by professional and family responsibilities. Moreover, we help dismissed employees using emotional management techniques.

Listening by a Retail Coaching professional allows the person to vent their fears and frustrations. First of all, to get out of the loop. Secondly,to be able to positively rebuild a personal and business strategy. Psychological support in retail has become a necessity to seek corporate wellness.

Current stress situations caused by the Covid-19

In his book The Art of Becoming Bitter, the psychologist Paul Watzlawick collects a multitude of harmful attitudes to ourselves. We still reproduce because they are apparently unconscious. These are behaviors that harm us, hindering our emotional development and, thereby, having a negative impact on our mental health. They do not seem to have a positive solution. Here are some reactions that retail professionals may be experiencing.

Situations of tension in open chain stores

The shops that remain open during the health alert are those related to basic goods and services (food, telecommunications, health, transport, etc.). In addition, those whose functions can be performed by employees at home. The main causes of anxiety are fear of contagion, pressure from managers and the influence of negative client emotions. Some of the stress situations generated by the Covid-19 can be:

• “Clients convey their anxiety and fears to us, so I end the day with morale on the floor”
• “The incivism of clients crushes me”
• “We are working and exposed when our bosses give us orders from their homes, teleworking”
• “We fear for our health because we are exposed daily to a huge number of clients”

Situations of tension in closed store chains

A high percentage of the business fabric corresponds to shops and restaurants forced to close while the health alert lasts. Both store and restaurant chain owners and employees are facing numerous adversities. That creates a climate of tension, insecurity and fear:

• As regional director
  • “It is difficult for me to keep my team motivated and focused, who is working at home”
  • “Our product (fashion, luxury) is not essential. And although we could sell online, the team does not consider it appropriate” (cognitive dissonance)
  • “Our peak of activity occurs precisely on these dates. It’s frustrating to give up the year for lost and not being able to do anything”
• As an employee or store manager
  • “I feel lonely, isolated and without perspective”
  • “With my children at home, I feel overwhelmed. I only have moments of 10 minutes to communicate. My bosses can communicate in a shocking way in just 10 minutes”
  • “I have been fired, I fear for my income and how to face the expenses that still follow”

Therefore, these examples are illustrative of a generalized feeling of panic. It affects the cognitive level and paralyzes our positive reactions. As we observe, this psychological crisis transversely affects the entire retail sector: shops, restaurants, hotels, banks, etc.

Logotherapy

First of all, it is necessary to identify those actions that we produce or those inputs that we receive that undermine our self-esteem.Then, it is convenient to go to the conscious root to make sure that we ourselves are responsible for our happiness and our balance. Nothing is powerful enough to sink our morale.

In his monumental book Man’s Search for Meaning, the neurologist and psychiatrist Viktor Frankl recounted the brutalities he suffered in various Nazi concentration camps. Following these painful and traumatic experiences, he studied the human being’s attitude. Even devoid of everything, he transcends his difficulties because his dignity and freedom are indestructible.

Frankl developed a psychotherapeutic method, logotherapy, based on the search for the meaning of existence. So that we take responsibility for ourselves and for others through a positive perception of the world. It is time, therefore, that the managers and employees of chain stores face this negative situation caused by an external agent and take responsibility for their actions.

Psychological health in Retail

For the neurologist and psychiatrist Boris Cyrulnik, “pain is inevitable, suffering is optional.” After trauma such as that caused by the pandemic we are experiencing, a new personal and professional development must be rebuilt based on resilience in commerce. This concept refers to the ability of Retail professionals to overcome a difficult situation.

At CapKelenn, we want to accompany you and your team to manage a process that goes from initial panic to a vision for the future. We want you to take back the reins of your business. The phases that follow in this psychological development vary in intensity and duration according to people. But the ultimate goal is the same: to prevent professional exhaustion caused by emotions of stress and vulnerability to guarantee corporate well-being.

Through online or face-to-face workshops, we promote the sincere expression of emotions. This is the first step to unblock the atavistic fear that becomes resistant in our psyche. We drive the coach’s stance at key moments, including recognition, empowerment, and personal consideration.

The anticipation of psychosocial risk is intended for managers and employees alike. So that the retail coaching training acquired by the manager will help them apply it with their staff. In times of crisis, solutions have to be collective and psychological health in retail is essential to save the team and, with it, the store.

“If it is not in your hands to change a situation that causes you pain, you can always choose the attitude with which you face that suffering”.

CapKelenn in luxury retail

CapKelenn is the primary certification in Retail Coaching worldwide, certifying managers in Retail to really become coaches for their sales teams, facilitating the transition towards a supreme clienteling savoir-faire. CapKelenn delivers the certification in 12 languages on all the 5 continents. CapKelenn accelerates change, thanks to people, with results that are fast, visible and sustainable, contributing to fertilize a client experience that is memorable and personalized.

Viktor Frankl

Online training has opened new ways of relating to each other. The uniqueness of the online itself has strong implications and we do not always take into account all that it entails. Let’s look at the following example:

– “Can you stand behind your screens for this role play, Peter and Susan, please?”

Behind his screen, I feel a moment of shame on Peter’s part. He answers, stuttering.

– “Ehhh, no!”

Muted laughs from his colleagues, vendors of this prestigious brand of luxury stores, which is preparing for the reopening and training of their managers and vendors in welcome rituals, with a mask. We all understand that Peter didn’t necessarily think about putting on his pants before attending training! So I designate another employee to accompany Susan on the sketch.

Since March 20, some pioneer companies in the professional training sector have accelerated videoconferencing mastering Teams and Zoom.

Online training, this does not work, SINCE …

• Trainers encourage their audiences in face-to-face training, while the context has radically changed.
• The participants’ ability to concentrate is much more random, and the loss of attention can sometimes be as high as 100%.
• Students often feel less concerned.
• The sessions seem boring.

There are sufficient reasons in any case to think about various decision makers (HRD, Commercial Directors, Training Directors …).

• The development of managerial and commercial skills requires a support that is not allowed by distance learning.
• It is a form of discounted training.
• If the returns of the formations with our best suppliers are 9/10, at online they will surely not be more than 7/10.

Online training, this does not work, UNLESS…

There are many reasons why online training has to be treated as a specific modality at the level of communication, oratory and technical complexity. At CapKelenn we consider that online learning has been an important source in recent years to acquire professional knowledge and skills. The emergence of the Covid-19 has accelerated this process and today companies face the challenge of adapting their trainers and their work teams to this training modality. Online training does not work in the traditional face-to-face style and cannot be left to free improvisation. Online training does not work that way, UNLESS …

Journey

Unless online training is part of a journey that also includes prior preparation, subsequent commitments and implementation support, ideally individual. This may include previous readings, checklists, note cards, available on campus and live in chat.

Time distribution

Unless the time distribution is adapted. It is very difficult to maintain a concentration of 7 hours in Video Training. We prefer 2 half days of 3:30 each with a 10-15 minute break.

Minute 1

Unless the trainer knows how to capture the participants’ attention from the beginning. After 1 minute, the trainer must have heard each participant’s voice and have them write at least 1 word in the chat. It is a way of presenting the relationship, especially if it involves words related to the course. It’s the check-in. Animation is even more important than face-to-face. Convey interest from the first second to the last breath, manage the tempo.

Involvement

Unless the student really becomes the protagonist and has the opportunity, even bodily, to get involved. For example, in webinars for 90 people, we all sing and dance (in karaoke) to the delight of the participants in the subsequent surveys.

Game rules

Unless game rules and even an alliance are established: and request the written agreement of all to chat based on these rules.

Bidirectionality

Unless participation is bidirectional for everyone. The animator encourages everyone’s participation by encouraging short responses and, in any case, avoiding, for example, that a participant does not monopolize the speech for too long. Because, here again, the others can leave.

Technique

Unless the trainer masters the technique: screen sharing, rooms for subgroups, screens developed jointly. The listener can reply after just 4-5 seconds when he sees the animator hesitate. Of course, if this happens, the animator will know how to escape with a touch of humour, but it is better to train against the current.

Chat

Unless the chat allows a medium of exchanges: both collective and individual (private messages).

Live evaluations

Unless live evaluations and quizzes are used: CapKelenn students are familiar with our famous Test Express. Zoom enables these express online surveys that enable individual awareness and sharing in the eyes of the group.

Educational engineering

Unless educational engineering combines deductive, inductive and master methods. Online learning can make people think perfectly, transmit content, involve action.

Live recording

Unless live recording is possible to analyse together: the recorded video is a new resource, superior to face-to-face training (with the agreement of the participants, of course, it is part of the rules of the game). It allows, for example, to record a 5-minute live role play and see it again with the protagonists, gut it, in a coach mode, of course (how did you feel? What were you excellent at? What could you have done better? Super powerful! And this video can be sent to the participants. A sales manager last week used this video for all these regional relaunch meetings.

Materials

Unless the support material is even more design, professional and fun than on-site. For example, supporting videos work well as long as the sound of the trainer’s computer is connected correctly (not the ambient sound).

Impact

Unless the impact is punchy, especially for short formats. In webinars, we have to get to the point. This is the speaker’s profession adapted to online learning. The speaker must be even more professional, in impact, time management, supports, millimetre transitions. I attended a 1 hour webinar last week as a listener. There were 72 of us and the speaker felt compelled to ask everyone’s expectations for this session; 7 people intervened and lasted 25 minutes; time management was miserable and there was a loss of enthusiasm after just 4 minutes, for attendees who invested 1 hour of their (precious) time.

A formidable opportunity

As you can see, online training seems to me a formidable opportunity for companies, students and training organizations because it corresponds to the environment of teleworking.

Companies (for example, in commerce, which is our specialty in CapKelenn) must accelerate training to impregnate the new expected behaviours: health, new relationships with clients and collaborators, greater autonomy of collaborators in teleworking, etc.

Whenever:

• Keep getting 9/10 on student satisfaction.
• Have specialist trainers-coaches, even better than face-to-face.

If your company invites you to an online CapKelenn training, be sure to wear pants! Because we can question you at any time, as if we were speaking in person 😉

Also, during the final dance (because we can even dance together at Zoom), Peter had conveniently put on his pants!

CapKelenn in luxury retail

CapKelenn is the primary certification in Retail Coaching worldwide, certifying managers in Retail to really become coaches for their sales teams, facilitating the transition towards a supreme clienteling savoir-faire. CapKelenn delivers the certification in 12 languages on all the 5 continents. CapKelenn accelerates change, thanks to people, with results that are fast, visible and sustainable, contributing to fertilize a client experience that is memorable and personalized.

Benoit Mahé

PCC (Professional Certified Coach of ICF) and a professional trainer for CapKelenn Retail Coaching

The health alert decreed considering the spread of Covid-19 directly affects the Retail sector in several ways. The vast majority of local businesses have been forced to close, SME owners are forced to make layoffs because sales have fallen, potential buyers no longer go past our stores and retreat to their homes, demonstrating great civic conscience. But that does not mean the end of our activity, but rather it allows us to explore new digital tools allowing us to maintain our social media presence, even with the closure of our business.

Importance of social media presence considering the closure of your trade

Covid-19 has serious repercussions on the Retail sector. Shops close and life in the neighbourhood stops. Are you sure? More than ever, it is important to know how to work your social media presence and manage it correctly to stay present in your customers’ lives. From CapKelenn we encourage you to use certain digital tools to restore “the smile of a bakery”.

At CapKelenn, we understand the difficulty of this situation and we encourage you to reverse it in a positive way thanks to your online business presence. A new scenario has opened up for you, your customers, your employees and yourself to interact in an alternative and original way. If the Retail professionals are characterized by something, it is by adapting to circumstances, often unfavourable, so that the spirit of your business does not drop. Retail is detail, and as such, all the small actions contain great solidarity which will make your store a meeting place even in difficult times.

If face-to-face interaction is not possible, online interaction becomes essential and social media presence is mandatory in Retail. Enterprise social networks and the Web provide you with a multitude of digital tools that can make the difference at a time when the Covid-19 forces your customers to be at home.

Here are some ideas to demonstrate why having a social media presence is essential right now.

Some ideas for working on your company’s social media presence

The digital tools are numerous; but contrary to what many people think, the important thing is not the quantity, but the quality and the good management of our presence, to guarantee a good relationship with our customers:

Presence on Instagram

Instagram has become one of the most widely used apps on a personal level, but it can also be understood as an enterprise social network. The special feature of Instagram is the use of photographs. Why don’t you ask your followers to post a photo in which they use a product they bought in your store and say what they think? If they use a hashtag proposed by you, your store will have great visibility and you will encourage the community to interact. At the end of the week, you can post a collage of photos of the most successful customers.

Moreover, in “your story” section, you can suggest a vote for users to decide which of the 3 or 4 products you offer deserves a discount. The most voted product will have a discount that you envisage for several weeks. In this way, you appreciate the preferences of your customers and you will have a more approximate idea of ​​how to channel the line of your products.

Presence on Facebook and Skype

Coordination between different digital tools can be a great source of ideas and resources. Skype helps you connect more closely with your customers and Facebook lets you create events. In this regard, we suggest that you create several events on Facebook that your employees will later animate via Skype. Each event will deal with a theme related to your activity sector.

We have some suggestions for working your online presence based on the type of business you run:

Social media presence for clothing stores

If you have a clothing store, one of the events will focus on luxury clothing, another on new trends and another on baby clothing.

Social media presence for cafes

If you have a cafeteria, one of the events will deal with different techniques for preparing coffee with different utensils, another on the rituals of tea in Japan, another on homemade products such as jam, beer or pastries.

Social media presence for restaurants

If your business is a restaurant, one of the events will teach your customers cooking techniques, another on wine pairings and another on vegetarian recipes. Some restaurants have started showing their customers through social media how to prepare some of their favorite dishes. Click here to see a very illustrative example.

Social media presence for cosmetic stores

If you have a cosmetics store, one of the events will be devoted to natural cosmetics and creams, another to make-up tips and another to aromatherapy.

In this way, you will encourage your customers to register for one of these Facebook events, which will then be organized by your employees on the day and at the time agreed via Skype. They are understood as webinars in which employees conduct sessions, but interaction between participants is allowed. The goal is not just to entertain and encourage your customers. You can also take advantage of these experiences to know them better and discover their fields of interest. One of the sales techniques that we promote in Retail Coaching is to establish a relationship with the customer to co-create a new reality in which he and you “dance in unison”.

Presence on Twitter

Launch an initiative on Twitter so that your followers can ask you questions about the company. For example, what materials do you use in your products, what is the history of your store, what was the product you liked the most in the previous campaign, etc.

The limitation of characters on Twitter requires you to send short messages, but not without impact. Contrary to the previous point, we encourage you to ask questions that arouse your followers’ interest and invite them to consult hyperlinks related to your business. If a famous person bought something in your store, you could post a tweet like, “Did you know that this singer bought our X hat model? ‘Hyperlink to an external news’ “. Another example could be: “For the summer campaign, we have 2 possible candidates for a new product. Which do you like the most? ‘Hyperlink to both models’ “. Depending on your business, the options vary, but in any case, the possibilities are endless.

In summary, we have shown you why having a social media presence is important in the current situation. As you can see, digital tools are at our disposal to deal with the Covid-19 crisis and ensure our online business presence. These are some of the many ideas that you can apply depending on your store. In any case, the goal is to keep your customers active. Not so much in the form of sales, but that they feel that your company is accompanying them in these difficult times. You will transmit values ​​of proximity and solidarity and you will build a network of people loyal to your vision of the company.

CapKelenn in luxury retail

CapKelenn is the primary certification in Retail Coaching worldwide, certifying managers in Retail to really become coaches for their sales teams, facilitating the transition towards a supreme clienteling savoir-faire. CapKelenn delivers the certification in 12 languages on all the 5 continents. CapKelenn accelerates change, thanks to people, with results that are fast, visible and sustainable, contributing to fertilize a client experience that is memorable and personalized.

Based on our 15,000 individual coaching sessions at CapKelenn, we’ve observed that 35% of salespeople and 10% of their sales managers admit to feel unsecure or even totally lost with mathematics. 

Of course, no one is going to ask in a weekly sales meeting, “Boss, can you explain how the conversion rate or the churn rate is calculated?”. But, in the intimacy of a professional, confidential individual coaching session (and we have delivered more than 10,000 over 13 years at CapKelenn, source of this statistic), these difficulties and frustrations emerge.

VERBATIM (listened in individual coaching sessions)

• Benoit, in fact I don’t understand actually, I don’t understand numbers; what I do and love is sell!
• I studied literature!
• You must have done Harvard or Oxford to understand The excel file we use to prepare the commercial proposal for customers, with all its links, its sheets and its formulas. As soon as I enter a price in a cell, I’m afraid to mess everything up.
• “Yesterday in training, when you spoke of a 3% growth what is “percent” exactly?
• When we say that the Sales Index (Units per Ticket) is 1.7, I know it means between 1 and 2, but what is 7 exactly?

So indeed, the concept of percentage or decimals, taught in elementary school, is far from clear to everyone.

HUMAN AND MANAGERIAL COST

Leaders are sometimes taken aback after this feedback on their teams:

• “I would never have imagined that my teams understand so little about numbers. Should I replace them? “.
• No, I don’t think so, but it is urgent to improve this dialogue of the deafs.

The feeling of vulnerability and insecurity surrounding the mastery of figures leads competent professionals to lose all their confidence, in front of the client, in front of their manager or in front of their colleagues in meeting, and sometimes to enter into an avoidance strategy.

In the era of omnichannel, CRM, ERP, how to ensure that these professionals who feel complexed with figures, KPIs, can feel safer?

8 SOLUTIONS

1 –  Simple wording: Einstein said, “If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well enough.” Instead of hammering out business goals, managers could vary the wording. For example, instead of saying “this month, we absolutely have to improve conversion from 18% to 20%!”, the manager can say: “last month, out of 100 sales visits, we signed the order in 18 % of cases. It seems possible then to you to convert 2 more visits into deals and reach 20%!” This very visual language (2 converted visits out of 100) makes the challenge very tangible in the eyes of “non-mathematicians”!

2 – Cross-training: during a cycle 1 of a Retail Coaching Certification, in a well-known department stores, the trainer-coach, after asking the section managers to perform 3 “simple” calculations, asked the question: “From 0 to 10, how comfortable did you feel?” Out of 10 people, 4 answer “6 or less”. One of the participants answers 10 and spontaneously offers to make herself available in a room to teach her colleagues 2 days later, 1 hour before the opening. In cycle 2, we learnt that this internal session between colleagues was a massive success. The room literally filled up. Training between colleagues, without judgement (no risk to feel ashamed), can unlock misunderstandings, frustrations or complexes.

3 – The leader-coach style: based on questioning and silences, will allow the employee to verbalize, therefore to feel in control, empowered and thus the manager to ensure that the key figures are understood. Effective questions for example: What do you think of your results? Which KPI are you most proud of? How can you increase this KPI? …

4 –  Slow down the verbal flow: if we pronounce on average 200 words per minute, an ambitious manager haranguing his teams may pronounce up to 300 words per minute. When we talk about numbers and KPIs, on the contrary, it is a question of slowing down, to avoid “losing” part of the audience.

5 – Digestible Excel projections: during meetings (presencial or via Zoom / Teams), it is better to limit the Excel projections to 3 columns and 4 rows (that already 12 data); whereas we often see files of 20 lines and 20 columns (400 data).

6 – Focus on key figure : so during a sales meeting, it is important for the leader to extract the priority key figure and put the focus on it, as Steve Jobs used to do.

7 – Revise the Dashboard: know how to summarize the main management indicators on one single A4 sheet. Here again, it is about the manager’s capacity to synthesize and to practice the leverage effect. (focus on factor that hace impact on final result)

8 – Use graphics and colors on the dashboard: This is the challenge of management control; to make information attractive. So if in the table the sell index appears in yellow, then in the chart, this indicator also appears in yellow. (“Ah, if we had such a clear dashboard!”). I have known too many talents held back in their careers by their Maths complex. And yet, it’s true, performance is expressed in numbers, in ratios. It is a language to learn; Numbers are the language of the bosses. We could analyze the causes and the background (school, limiting beliefs…), but the purpose of this article is different: To help managers who read this article, to open up a space for the development of their teams which allow even awareness and action on mathematical skills.

Nicolas Boileau said:

“Whatever is well conceived is clearly said,  and the words to say it flow with ease.” Words, yes, and numbers, too.

CapKelenn in luxury retail

CapKelenn is the primary certification in Retail Coaching worldwide, certifying managers in Retail to really become coaches for their sales teams, facilitating the transition towards a supreme clienteling savoir-faire. CapKelenn delivers the certification in 12 languages on all the 5 continents. CapKelenn accelerates change, thanks to people, with results that are fast, visible and sustainable, contributing to fertilize a client experience that is memorable and personalized.

Benoit Mahé.