This coaching tip is not about what you should train, but how to train. There are many styles of selling and servicing, but I believe these are the best methods to use in training.
1. Explain: Explain the selling and service behaviors that you want your associates to display. Simply tell them how to do it and what you want done.
2. Roll-Play: Roll-play with your associates what the behaviors look like and what you expect. First you will show them how you want it done and what the behaviors look like, then you reverse the rolls and let them show you. Work with your associates until they are comfortable with the behaviors.
3. Demonstrate: Lead by example. Show your associates the behaviors you want with an actual customer. Let them see you doing it and how it works.
4. Try: Send your associates to try the behaviors they've learned with customers. Trail by fire is sometimes the best method. Part of Try is letting the associates find their own way of doing things. While you want the associates to display the behaviors you want, give them some room to form those behaviors around who they are as an associate. You don't want cookie cutter robots, but people who use their strengths to be successful. Selling and service is not science, but an art.
5. Teach: When your associates get stronger in the behaviors let them teach it to other associates. This will help them become the expert.
