Retail Store Greeters
I used to work with a gal in New York who was fond of saying, “Love ya, mean it” - all in the same unenthusiastic breath. While her irreverence endeared her to all, it demonstrated to me that words alone, apart from an authentic delivery, can be pretty useless in conveying a message.
To that point, we’ve all experienced greeters at retail stores such as Wal-Mart, Best Buy, Blockbuster, and others. Their role is to make shoppers feel welcome by greeting them and perhaps offering a bit of assistance as they enter the store.
At one time, there may have been a spark of enthusiasm - perhaps because it was new and unexpected - for the greeter role. Today, from my perspective anyway, it appears as though the novelty has worn off. Ironically, the greeter’s podium at one large retailer faces into the store so that the rep greeting shoppers has his or her back to them. This results, many times, in a half-hearted glance and greeting over the right shoulder. It appears to be more of a security post than a greeter’s station.
At another retailer, the greeting is so long and scripted that all of the warmth and authenticity that should accompany a sincere greeting has been squeezed out in order to reinforce the store’s marketing message.
So what’s your read on store greeters? Are they unnecessary roles or is the problem in the execution?
“I appreciate your comments, mean it.” : )
May 1st, 2008 at 12:53 pm
I like the idea of “greeters”, but think that every store should try to give that greeter a purpose, even beyond just saying “welcome to XX”, for example hold the door open for you, or say something unique to each customer. Maybe ask about the weather outside, or if they are shopping for something specific, or comment on their kids or their appearance (you know, “I love that sweater you’re wearing”), or something that makes the customer feel unique and special. At least that’s how I like to be greeted!
May 7th, 2008 at 2:53 pm
One of the banks in my area (Northern Virginia) recently instituted a policy that, in addition to their greeter (I believe the actual position title is “expediter”, although the actual function remains a bit of a mystery to me), they apparently now require every teller to provide a greeting to every customer. This greeting must include the following:
1) A greeting (Hello, Good Morning, etc)
2) The word “Welcome”
3) The name of the bank
4) A personal introduction (My name is….)
5) An offer of service (May I help you?)
It has been drilled into the bank employees like there is no tomorrow. Unfortunately, and I have provided this feedback directly to the Branch Manager at two locations, it has de-personalized the experience for me. My specific comments to management were that it felt like I was watching all of the tellers answer the phone. “Hello, welcome to Midtown Federal, my name is Bob, how may I help you?”. As a frequent bank customer, I felt I deserved a more personal interaction, and one that sounded less canned, and that was my point.
For all of the retailers out there that now include a customer service survey invitation on the receipt, almost all have a script that all check out clerks must follow to invite them to participate. Witness my everyday interactions at a major office supply store in my town: “…..and, if you call this number or log on to http://www.thiscompany.com/survey/thistown and enter this 28 digit invitation number, you could be entered into a drawing for $1000.”
More important than the execution is the intent. If our front line associates and partners understand the INTENT behind our initiatives, we are more likely to get the results that we want. If our “greeters” or “expediters” or even “cashiers” in multi-functional environments would understand the intent behind the execution, I think we would have greater success in what we ask them to do.
May 9th, 2008 at 9:10 am
Julie…great points. A friend of mine, who’s a psychologist, recently passed along a scholarly article that (ironically) challenged the assumption that training and educations was necessary (in every case) to improve one’s performance. The author’s contention was that some (most?) folks would be better served with encouragement to be themselves rather than training to be someone they’re not.
So maybe the employee’s purpose, in a greeter position, could be to genuinely welcome the customer…however he or she defines that. Of course, I’d role play in advance to make sure their definition of “genuinely welcome” was aligned with the expectation (e.g., the expectation of a greeting may vary from a Four Seasons hotel to a Blockbuster video store).
Curt…great illustration. For me, you really made the feeling of depersonalization (as a result of the rote greetings and other scripts) come alive.
Interestingly, Julie used the word “purpose” and you chose the word “intent.” It sounds like you both may be saying the same thing along the lines of communicating expectations to employees and providing job clarity (i.e., the meaning and significance of a particular job role).
I read, for instance, that Starbucks does not consider itself in the coffee business serving people, but in the people business serving coffee. That’s an important distinction that most Starbucks baristas, based on my experience anyway, seem to “get.”