Be Just a Little More Upbeat Than Your Customer

Customers buy more when they’re in a good mood. But customers in a bad mood still buy, and if your customer is feeling grumpy, you’d rather not have the salesperson showing off a much better mood than the customer’s mood. With one important exception I’ll tell you about in a minute, a customer who is in a bad mood is especially unlikely to buy from a salesperson who clearly appears to be in a much better mood than they are.
     Many customer service gurus preach that salespeople should exude the nonstop cheerfulness you’d see in Mickey and Minnie Mouse when they’re on stage together at a Disney theme park. But if I’m feeling downright irritated and irritable because I’d much rather be home in bed resting instead of hunting down a cold remedy, my irritation fairly explodes with some salesclerk who fails to even acknowledge my horrible state.
     Customers want to spend their money with retailers who will confidently help them solve problems. A way to show that confidence is for the salespeople to project a positive approach. But with the one exception, the salesperson’s mood should be just a little more upbeat than the customer’s. The exception? When the shopper is feeling truly desperate, they have no objection at all to dealing with a highly cheerful salesperson. This is an instance where misery doesn’t want company, but instead prefers a can-do attitude.
     Some customers want their salesperson to be a hero, who takes responsibility for rescuing them, going above and beyond what most salespeople are able or willing to do. But other customers want a wise salesperson who brings enough experience and a sharp enough mind to see the customer’s mood and raise it a little.