The changing face of customer service

Customers are the core of any retail business. The concept of customer service has always been central to retailers. Before the era of mega complexes and shopping towns, business owners would grow their businesses by providing personalised service to their local communities, writes Brandon Conway.

Today, franchises and department stores have led to the demise of many of these traders. The retail evolution has changed the face of customer service immeasurably.

How much importance is placed on individual customer service in the mix of shopping experience? Have we lost touch with 'knowing our customer'? Has the notion of marketing to the individual been replaced by mass marketing? It is very hard for small retailers to compete for customers under these circumstances (as frustrating as it is). The smart way to stay competitive remains with sound customer service. After all, making sure that your customer feels valued is something the big retailers generally don't do well.

One only has to navigate the aisles of our major department stores to realise it is difficult to find an assistant to actually take your money. This almost certainly diminishes the shopping experience for the consumer. Considering that customer retention is so crucial to retail business success, I have faith that most small retailers attempt to offer the best personal service to their customers. However, how does one assess whether the service in a store is satisfactory?

Word of mouth and repeat sales are important indicators of customer service success. So how can small stores maximise their contribution to their customers' shopping experience?

Most shop assistants are young adults with minimal training in customer service. The only criterion seems to be that they are well groomed and attractive. Staff turnover rates remain high. One can assume that employment in retail sales is merely a transition stage for most of them.

Despite the fact that retail provides the largest pool of employment in Australia, there is a gaping hole in employee training - we expect young people to be natural salespeople based on their appearance and their ability to communicate. However, are they capable of creating a satisfying shopping experience? Some can, most don't and a lot don't have a clue.

Customers aged 40-plus will find a fair number of shop assistants are the same age as their kids. What respect do these customers have for the advice given by sales staff? On the other hand, what approach do shop assistants adopt if the customers are the same age as their parents or their grandparents? The difference between these age groups is considerable. Does your son talk to you in the same way that he communicates with his friends? Most parents will tell you this is not so.

Many businesses acknowledge that training sales staff to communicate with members of each generation provides a major competitive advantage. Cross generational communication has become a buzzword in corporations around Australia and those companies that embrace these training programs are noticing the difference at the cash register.

Denise Archie, Director of The Gen Team in Sydney, says that there are simple tools for learning how to interact effectively and make customers of all generations "comfortable and purchase ready".

She created The Gen Team, a training program designed to provide understanding and tools for effective interaction with customers of all generations. Launched nationally last year, Denise attributes the demand for her courses to the fact that the face of most retailers is a Gen Y one. She claims that this generation's selling style discourages older customers who are valuable and often affluent.

We need to address the communication skills of our sales people to enable them to promote the advantages of the products they sell in a manner that is acceptable to different age groups.

I am of the opinion that some form of Gen Y training is necessary at the shop front and that companies addressing these issues will gain the advantage over time.