Retailers Have Forgotten Why They Exist
Customers should be at the heart of the business, but they are sliding out of focus
People who have worked in retail for decades deeply understand customer service. They get how to connect with strangers and make their day, no matter what. They’ll adjust their sales style to the needs of the person standing in front of them.
They’ll personally shop with them or show them to the department they’re looking for - whatever their needs are; these people understand that their jobs exist to be sincerely helpful to others. They are the helpers of our communities. They are the helpers of the world.
Retail companies are slowly squeezing the life out of this art - the art of customer service. Tasks and speed are prioritized over the customer’s satisfaction.
No wonder customers are over it. No wonder employees are over it.
Helping people makes us feel good. We’re human, after all, and we need to connect.
Whenever I could make someone’s day a little easier, I felt my work was worth it. I’d return to all the tasks in front of me and feel a little lighter. I’d feel as though it mattered that I came to work today.
However, retailers seem to be obsessed with stock buybacks, curbside pickups, and self-checkouts.
They quietly take money away from hourly workers and reward their shareholders.
Ah, capitalism.
But where is our community?
Retail centers can and should still be a hub of the community. Where else can you go to connect? What other space can you go to out in the world where people will talk to you about whatever you need?
Retail employees give opinions, share laundry tips, and make space for people to be human.
I once had a customer who used to come in regularly because her daughter was a model for our marketing campaigns. We’d give her our signs when we were done with them. This woman had terminal cancer, and she’d light up when she got to talk to us and when she came to pick up our old signs.
We’d spend fifteen minutes with her each time she came in.
Was she buying something? No
Would she ever? Probably not.
Did she still matter? YES.
Have we lost sight of this?
The frontline continues to be stripped of resources and told to do more with less. Training is almost nonexistent. Companies want software to do all the training - here, take this iPad and learn your job in fifteen minutes. Are you good? Let’s go.
But it’s not that easy.
Empathy, caring, influence, listening, and pace are all human things. We need to watch people in action to learn how to do these things.
Early on in my career, I was an observant sponge. I listened. I watched my leaders. I picked up on how they spoke to customers and how they made space for them. I didn’t know how to do this intuitively; I had to see it. Learning this on an iPad would’ve been a waste of time.
So, let’s get back to it.
You’re a retailer, right? You want to make money from customers, right? Well, make sure they’re a priority and train your sales floor teams how to do that. You may be able to use AI for chatbots online, but that’s not going to work in a store.
You need humans.
Humans who care about the people in front of them.
Humans that are the helpers of the world.
There’s still time.
I mean, sure, you could have a store set up with self-checkout and no human interaction, but we already have the internet for that, so make your store somewhere special.
Take care of people.
Otherwise, what are we all doing here?
Kit Campoy is an author and retail expert with two decades of experience leading retail teams. She thrived on building relationships with customers and motivating sales teams. Now, as a ghostwriter, she leverages this people-centric approach to craft compelling content that resonates and ignites brand loyalty.
Kit- you had me at the title alone! I was born into retail our fam biz in Boston and just last week my parents and I chatting about the state of retail (and returns) and they were just shaking their heads .. Dad says- you want to know what people want? -just ask “regular” people!!
Absolutely nailed the heart of the business and why it is tremendously important and why it is being drained away! People centered is the way to go to be different than online and retail could just advertise that and see profits. Come on!!!