It’s human nature. In every purchase, we buy people before we buy products. In a shop, as much as online, trust is at the core of each transaction, trust in the advice provided and that what you buy is what you will get.
Today our advice for small business retailers, local retailers, is embrace the personal, leverage this as a point of difference.
Trust is nurtured by a smile, openness, how we present ourselves and the value of the information we share.
Investing in people matters. Retail is personal, after all. Think about it – if you sell what I can buy online, why would I go to your shop rather than shop online if the purchase is not urgently required and if the price online and yours are similar? For local retail, often it is the people interaction.
It starts with hiring well, by hiring people you trust. If you’re not sure about a candidate, don’t hire them, no matter how desperate your need.
Train well and often, regularly checking in with your team and how able they feel they can satisfy your customers. Offer training about the products you sell as well as from a broader professional development perspective for those keen to develop their skills.
Pay well, as it’s the most understood measure of value. Big retailers pay based on a regulated award or an enterprise-wide agreement and rarely based on one-on-one negotiation with an employee. You can pay reflecting how much you value an employee.
Welcome employees purchasing what you sell and make it easy for them to do this. If they have experience with your products, they will be able to speak to that when dealing with customers.
Look at each shopper touchpoint in your business to ensure they nurture trust: on the phone, as shoppers enter the business, on the shop floor, at the sales counter. It’s in each of these interactions that you can demonstrate a point of difference for your business.
If you have a competitor nearby, the people working in your business can be the differentiator shoppers prefer.
This differentiation is not just a ‘nice to have’; it is a tangible commercial asset.
A shopper who trusts your team is less price-sensitive, more receptive to upselling or new product recommendations, and fundamentally more loyal.
They return because of the experience, not just the product. The investment you pour into hiring, training, and valuing your people pays for itself by building a loyal customer base that online algorithms and impersonal competitors simply cannot steal.
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newsXpress is a marketing group that supports small local independent retailers to thrive. Find out more at help@newsxpress.com.au.
