Member Article

New retail roleplays – the skills needed by the digitally transformed store associate

There’s little doubt that physical stores are changing in a race for survival. The general trend is for smaller premises, retailers’ store portfolios are shrinking, and more emphasis is being placed on experiences, immediacy and face-to-face interactions supported by technology.

Online retailers already have convenience and speedy delivery sown up, amongst many other things, so the change on the high street is being driven by physical retailers looking for their new USP in the age of digital. Store staff are an integral part of in-store transformation thanks largely to the fact that face-to-face interaction cannot be effectively replicated online (yet).

Here, Robin Coles, Director at Inovretail, looks at five ways the roles of customer-facing staff are transforming and the new skills they need to master to meet the needs of the connected shopper.

Joining up the customer journey Consumers are increasingly channel agnostic. They don’t care where they shop, as long as the experience is as seamless as possible with minimal friction. It is the role of the in-store associate to ensure that customers enjoy a truly omnichannel experience when they arrive in-store. To succeed, sales staff need to be equipped with the right technology to ensure their customers’ purchasing journey continues effortlessly from where they left off online. The customer may have browsed products online or at another store, liked items or placed them in their digital basket, but may be in search of additional information before they are willing to convert to a sale. It is the store associate’s role to identify and exploit these digital buying signals and provide information and reassurance face-to-face in order to nurture the customer to a purchase.

Bed retailer Dreams, for example, is combining digital and store associate expertise to make the transition from online to in-store research as smooth as possible with its Dreams 360 solution. It enables consumers to compile a wish list of products while they view beds on the company’s website. They can then find their nearest branch using a store locator, and even book an in-store appointment with a store assistant to discuss their wish list. The store assistant can also access the customer’s wish list during the in-store consultation, and can add any extra products the customer is interested in before taking banking details and completing the transaction. Alternatively, shoppers can start a wish list in-store, without visiting the website, and their wish list can be emailed to them if they need time to consider a purchase. Once they have decided, the customer simply moves the wish list items into their basket and completes the checkout process. Extend that to fashion retailing and the changing room comes into view, enabling booking, alongside the previously compiled wish list, thereby becoming a real sales tool over the online only experience.

**Adding value to digital experiences ** Despite the best workforce-scheduling systems, staffing levels don’t always match in-store footfall perfectly. Increasing numbers of retailers see this as a golden opportunity for store staff to add value to digital experiences. They are equipping colleagues with mobile devices so they can provide real-time, online chat services with digital customers, answering their queries, making recommendations while taking photos and shooting video. This is a win/win scenario for retailers who are making good use of spare capacity and adding great value to the digital customer journey. Premium retailers Heals and Harvey Nichols are among those blurring the lines between physical and digital retail in this way. Clothing brand Levi’s is another convert, with the use of wearables providing immediacy, and superior customer service.

Getting to grips with single view of stock and order Retail used to be so easy. If a product wasn’t in stock, a member of staff could order it and said product would arrive on premises within a certain timeframe. Fast forward to 2019 and the options are infinitely more customer-centric and convoluted. A product may be in a different store, at a distribution hub or even further down the supply chain in transit from the manufacturer. The fulfilment options are similarly complex; the product can be delivered to store, shipped to the customer or reserved at another store for customer pick-up. In next generation retail, it is the role of the store associate to master the systems that make a single view of stock and order possible so that consumers can shop when, where and how they like

**Mastering the art of clienteling ** Clienteling is recognised by many retailers as the pinnacle of in-store personalised customer experiences – and for good reason. Clienteling involves equipping a customer-facing sales team member with an internet enabled device, such as a tablet, which accesses data drawn from the retailers backend systems including its CRM and inventory management as well as mobile EPoS. But it takes a skilled store associate to make the most of clienteling software so that they can recognise a customer and tap into their individual needs on a personal level without this data-rich face-to-face interaction feeling unnecessarily intrusive. To witness slick clienteling in action you need only visit an Apple store. While Apple has a dominant online presence, a trip to their physical store is still something to look forward to thanks to their skilled sales staff and cutting-edge clienteling software.

Creating Instagram moments Social media is the lens that magnifies retail success and failure, broadcasting a brand’s actions to millions in the time it takes to hit send on a tweet. The modern store associate needs to be a master of creating social media moments that encapsulate the best a retailer has to offer. Sales staff need to ensure the in-store environment is the best it can be 24/7 and escalate any issues immediately. They also need to be mindful that any poorly handled interactions could be shared online instantly and possibly receive coverage in the wider media. Of course, the same is true of great in-store experiences which can be shared on social media, building advocacy for retailers.

There’s little doubt the retail industry is undergoing significant structural change thanks to the influence of ecommerce. Retailers’ physical estates are shrinking along with their employee headcount. To achieve the smaller, smarter workforce needed to remain competitive, retailers need to invest in next-generation wearable technology capable of boosting employee productivity while helping to deliver the information-rich, face-to-face experiences that consumers demand.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Chelsea Reay .