After you've heard the same customer question a dozen times, do you look the next customer who asks you that question straight in the eyes and say, "Good gosh. Don't you know ANYTHING"? Well, okay, maybe not, but I'll bet your staff who are asked the same question repeatedly can forget how important it is to enthusiastically welcome customer questions. After all, questions signal the customer's interest in making a purchase from you.
Whenever you answer a customer's question with enthusiasm, expect the customer to become enthusiastic. If that doesn't happen, analyze why. Maybe you misunderstood the question. Maybe you've not noticed whether the customer wants your answer to consist of product specifications or general reassurance. Customers usually want specifications pre-purchase, but after making the purchase, they're usually seeking reassurance.
Essential to enthusiasm is a smile. Unfortunately, some people otherwise qualified to do retail sales have great difficulty putting a smile on their face or in their tone. They don't belong on the sales floor, at least until their clinical depression eases. For others, the depression is temporary and will disappear if you have the employee start working in a different department, where they'll be energized by getting a whole new set of questions.
Enthusiasm works the world over. But the way that enthusiasm should be displayed does depend on culture. When Wal-Mart first opened stores in Germany, employees were expected to greet customer questions with a smiling, enthusiastic welcome. Shopper analyses showed that the customers thought this type of enthusiasm fit better with Oktoberfest than with a Wal-Mart shopping fest. The customers felt the sales help were flirting with them. It was time to keep up the enthusiasm, but tone down the smile.
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