Prepare your team with product knowledge so that they can sell with confidence in your baking business. Learn three methods to help your team gain knowledge of your product and service offerings, so they can answer customer questions and close the deal on the next sale.
Ever heard the saying that knowledge is power? Well, that saying works just as well in business. The more knowledge you and your team have when it comes to your products, services and competitors' offerings the better equipped you will be to close the deal on that next sale.
Before you put a new team member at the sales counter, make sure they know the ins and outs of your product line up. They should be armed with the appropriate amount of information to answer customer questions and not be caught off guard by something they should easily know about your menu. Customers appreciate being helped by knowledgeable staff members. It can be a boost to their confidence and helps them feel as though their money is being spent in the right place.
In this post, you’ll discover three methods that will help both you and your team get to know your product and service offerings better so that everyone is prepared to sell with confidence.
1. Create product overviews, descriptions
Brochures, literature and other written notes can help get your team on the same page when it comes to the details and benefits of your product offerings. Create written materials that provide detailed information about your menu that can be easily accessed by your team at any time. Make sure that everyone reads this information and knows where to find it when needed. Details such as flavor profile, potential allergens, processing times, serving size, and delivery fees are just a few examples of items that all of your team should know about your menu.
Keep in mind that elements of this same information can be prominently displayed in a location that is visible to customers. For example, a menu board that displays flavor descriptions can help customers during the ordering process. You can even go the extra mile by having brochures printed for easy reference access or use QR codes that customers can review online. Other more detailed information, such as delivery fees, etc, can be located in a place that is more discrete such as behind the counter.
2. Practice potential scenarios
Once you’ve created a resource guide for your team, drive home the information by running through potential scenarios. Roleplay is a great way to provide real time feedback to staff members within a low pressure environment. First, allow everyone to study the resource materials. Second, select roles such as customer and sales associate to practice various scenarios. Finally, provide constructive feedback after watching each interaction.
The person playing the customer should ask as many questions about the product as possible. This will help the sales associate to internally solidify the information and learn how to field questions when they simply don’t know the answer. Each team member should have an opportunity to play different roles as you run scenarios to give everyone an opportunity to experience each role’s point of view.
3. Become the customer
Going through the customer experience can be one of the best ways to get to know your business. Taste the product. Travel home with your products in the same way that your customer would. Your packaging may be cute in store, but what is the customer experience like when that cute box travels 20 min in traffic and sits on the counter of a hot kitchen before being served at dinner? Knowing what it’s like to be the customer can help you and your sales team better serve your customers. You’ll be able to provide tips for storage or other “nice to knows” that you may have never considered.
Customers love inside tips! If you and your staff are also customers of your own business, then you will know those inside tips that will improve the customer experience and allow them to fully enjoy your products.
Conclusion
In summary, you and your team will be able to better sell to your customers if you know the ins and outs of your products and services. This knowledge will come from studying and experiencing your products first hand. Take a few minutes during each shift to train your team on your products so that they become more familiar with your offerings. Learning can be made fun with quizzes and role playing.
Don’t forget to highlight the points that make your business different from your competitors. Do you offer specialty items? Do you cater to dietary restrictions? Do you offer unique flavors? This information should be a part of your study as well.
Cyd N. Mitchell
Business Blogger, Retail Bakers of America
Cydni N. Mitchell (aka Cyd) is a Bakery Consultant and the Sweet Business Coach behind Sweet Fest®. Based in Atlanta, GA, Sweet Fest® is an online company that supports the business needs of the Sweet Community in the areas of professional development, marketing, branding and web design.
By trade, Cyd is an accountant & financial analyst with a Masters from the Kenan-Flagler Business School at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She is the Founder of the Sugar Coin Academy, an online business academy for business owners in the baking and sweets industry, and she is also the organizer of The Ultimate Sugar Show, Georgia’s Largest Annual Baking and Sweets Expo in Atlanta. She is also the Business Blogger for the Retail Bakers of America.
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