Training tips that triumph
Memory science, microlearning and what actually makes workplace training stick.
Onboarding New Employees
Do you remember what you wanted to be when you grew up? Are you currently pursuing that career or doing something completely different? It is fairly normal for today’s generation to change what they want to do in life, but this is a trend that is becoming increasingly apparent for all ages across the job spectrum. According to research, half of hourly workers leave their jobs within the first 120 days of employment. On top of that, managers begin new jobs every two to four years on average. And as a whole, 25 per cent of the working population undergoes a career transition each year. As a result, it is fair to say to say there is no such thing as a ‘job for life’ anymore. But why are so many people deciding to leave their posts so hastily? Certain employment is seen as mere experience or a stepping-stone to something better. Some people get bored with their chosen profession and feel like a career change or new challenge. However, a lot of the time it is because staff are not prepared enough or equipped with the right skills to enjoy and carry out their job effectively. Therefore, employers need
Continual Training is the Key to a Great Customer Service Team
Even if you’ve got the highest quality product around, which is available to buy at an affordable price, there are certain consumers that won’t part with their money unless they’ve been treated the right way. These days, consumers require a great deal of attention, consideration and respect, as precarious market conditions and increased competition mean that losing out on just one sale could have dramatic consequences. Therefore, several businesses are prioritising customer service, as this can make all the difference. After all, 89 per cent of consumers have stopped doing business with a company after experiencing poor customer service. What’s more, consumers are two times more likely to share their bad customer service experiences than they are to talk about positive ones. Reel off these facts and figures to your staff each day and they might make more of an effort in the short-term. However, the only way to instil a permanent behavioural change, which will have your employees prioritising the wants and needs of every customer that walks in the door, is through training. However, this is sometimes easier said than done… The wrong way to train your customer service team Traditional and existing training methods are from ideal
What is ‘Skill Fade’ and How to Combat it?
Even though every business tries to teach employees to the best of its abilities, a fair amount of knowledge will be lost over time. From teaching techniques and individual ability to methods of testing and evaluation criteria, there are various reasons why ‘skill fade’ happens. However, the majority of these causes can be rectified with the right approach. Defining skill fade There have been various studies and lots of research into the subject of skill fade, however it can be defined as the decay of ability or adeptness over a period of non-use. However, a lot will depend on the type and nature of the individual’s expertise or competence. For example, if you haven’t ridden a bike for a number of years, you’ll still be able to get on and not fall off with relative ease. This kind of skill is like an automatic or natural tendency that is hard to forget and lose. Conversely, it is much easier to forget how to complete tasks or activities that are more complicated and less predictable. At school, you might have been able to explain Pythagoras’ theorem in great detail. But seeing as you haven’t needed to recite this piece of
5 Tips for Developing a Customer-Centric Culture in your Business
In order for any business to strive or even survive, a profit needs to be achieved. Therefore, numerous entrepreneurs and enterprises make this their number one priority. From cutting down overheads to rapid expansion, there are various techniques and tactics that can help improve the bottom line. However, turnover is still completely dependent on just one thing – the customer. Without a steady stream of purchasers and patrons, your business will ultimately fail. You can streamline and improve internal operations all you want, but disregarding or ignoring the importance of the customer could prove to be fatal. Consequently, more and more businesses are starting to give consumers or clients their undivided attention. One of the best ways to do this is to make customers a fundamental part of your company culture. After all, there are several immeasurable benefits to prioritising the wants and needs of your clientele, especially when you take into account the following statistics: It takes 12 positive customer experiences to make up for one negative experience 70 per cent of buying experiences are based on how the customers feels they are being treated 55 per cent of consumers would pay more for a better customer experience A
People Buy from People with Great Product Knowledge Training
Irrespective of the customer’s circumstances or buying environment, purchase decisions and the sales process can be a long drawn out affair. Before a customer even thinks about parting with their hard earned cash, they’ll need certain assurances about the product, brand or even the salesperson. In addition to price and quality, other factors like warranty information, financing, availability and shipping will also come into play. However, several purchases hinge on factors such as familiarity, confidence and trust, which often boils down to how competent and knowledgeable sales staff are. From impulse buys to major purchases, passing on some product knowledge to the customer can potentially make or break a sale. If employees do not know about the boons and benefits of particular goods or services, chances are the consumer won’t convert. Therefore, some training or tuition is usually required. If the employee has an interest in the industry or product, this becomes a lot easier. Their engagement levels and willingness to learn are bound to be high while previous knowledge could also be beneficial. But if staff have no skills or expertise about your business’ portfolio, things are much trickier. Even so, teaching existing or new employees is imperative in
Corporate Sales Training – A Fresh Approach
Let’s be honest for a minute. If you let your staff know they’ve got a corporate sales training course coming up, chances are they won’t be overly excited about it. Even though further coaching and tuition is an important part of personal and career development, it isn’t always greeted with delight or glee. On top of that, there are no fixed guarantees that your sales staff will retain and be able to apply every piece of information they’ve been told. Even with the best will in the world, the variety of techniques used to teach sales isn’t overly effective or fruitful. Therefore, a great of money is potentially wasted on training programmes that aren’t benefitting employees or the company. For these reasons, a different approach, such as spaced repetition, will feel like a breathe of fresh air. With this learning technique, engagement and retention levels increase significantly. Along with proving to be a wise investment by the company, sales staff will enjoy and appreciate training a lot more too. The problem with current corporate sales training Most of the time, corporate sales training is one-off event which takes place within the space of a day. On some occasions, it
Stop Talking and Listen – Unlocking the Secret to Increased Sales
What is a sure fire way to improve your sales performance? Reduce the price? Include an incentive to sweeten the deal? Encourage staff to up-sell? Set up a rewards program? Give away free products? All of these tactics and techniques will probably work, but they might not guarantee prolonged success. For that to happen, you
Creating Loyal Customers
Even though ‘the customer is always right’ has been challenged a fair bit in recent years, loyal purchasers and patrons still need a huge amount of attention, care and consideration. Loyalty is incredibly important in today’s highly competitive world and can mean the difference between success and failure. If you happen to have a group
Retail Sales Training via Mobile
The world of retail, whether it be on the high street or online, and mobile technology go hand in hand. Now more than ever before, consumers turn to their smartphone or tablet to locate nearby stores, find out information about the latest trends or to make a purchase. There can be little to no doubt
Closing The Skills Gap
Depending on which online resources you read, the skills gap is either real or it isn’t. At Wranx, we’re of the belief that the skills gap, a term used to describe the disparity between those who are unemployed looking for a job and organisations with jobs that can’t find skilled candidates to fill them, is very real, and that it’s something organisations need to overcome in order to solve the biggest organisational challenge of the 21st-century; filling open positions with suitably qualified and skilled employees. According to last year’s Talent Shortage Survey conducted by the Manpower Group, 35% of 38,000 employees reported some difficulty filling jobs due to a lack of knowledge, skills, and talent. So, closing the skills gap is something organisations should work on immediately. But how should they go about it? A quick search online will reveal plenty of stories about the skills gap with US-based figures and examples to back them up, but there’s few UK-focused articles that discuss the skills gap and what organisations can do to close it. So, here’s our thoughts. If you’re looking for ways to close the skills gap, the answer to all of your problems might be more obvious
Product Knowledge Training Hacks
Knowing your product inside out is key to successful selling. Equipping your sales team with in-depth knowledge and a genuine belief in what they’re offering is fundamental. Sending unprepared salespeople into the field is a recipe for failure. While many companies resort to classroom sessions for a knowledge dump, this approach falls short in truly educating the team effectively. Understanding how to educate sales teams and recognizing the limitations of traditional methods is pivotal in enhancing their performance. Exploring alternative learning approaches can significantly elevate your team’s sales abilities and make the learning process more engaging. Ultimately, this not only benefits your team but also impacts your company’s success. Comprehensive product knowledge is crucial, especially in challenging sales scenarios. Lack of information can dent a salesperson’s confidence and jeopardize a potential sale. Each salesperson should act as your product expert, understanding its functionalities, benefits, and unique selling points. This entails mastering even the minutest details. Conventional training methods often involve classroom lectures, which may not be the most effective for all learners. Moving beyond this paradigm is essential. Instead of cramming information, a continuous training approach proves more fruitful. Learning in small, digestible portions over time enhances retention and understanding,
The Evolution of Mobile Learning
Mobile learning in the workplace is the future. In the next ten years, mobile learning will not be considered a choice, but a necessary mode of learning to stay competitive. It isn’t a fad, it isn’t a trend, and it doesn’t belong in the ‘ten minutes of fame’ category predicted by Andy Warhol; it is going to become the predominant method of learning for our ever growing mobile workforces. But how did we get to this stage of development, and what’s next for mobile learning? Mobile learning environments such as Wranx have come to be thanks to the increasing sales of mobile devices, the increasing share of mobile web traffic, and the increasing adoption of mobile devices in the workplace. All of these things have led to our current ‘mobile world’, a world where people expect content to be immediately accessible and technology to support a wide variety of different functions. To give you can idea of how intertwined mobile internet devices (smartphones, tablets, laptops) are in our lives, in 2013 The Guardian reported that mobile internet devices were set to outnumber human beings. In the same coverage discussing a Cisco report, it was revealed that by 2017 the
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