Why Retail Name Badges are So Important

I'll discuss what gives me the unmitigates to advise anyone as remarkable as you about retail in an upcoming post. For now trust me on this one.
As a manager, if you can't know where everyone on your team is at all times - it is imperative - that you and all of your crew - wear highly visible name badges.

Yes, even the dourest associate seems just a tic more friendly when they have a bright badge that says "Hi! I'm Oscar!" But
The badge isn't only for the customer, it's also for the employee.
If engaging with your customers and building rapport is important to your customer service process, then a welcoming badge is nearly as important as a smile.
When your customers know your associates name you can field their input and feed-back.
Example:
Customer: I came in here two days ago to buy a flange and your salesperson was rude and clueless!
You: Oh My! I am so sorry that happened to you. can you tell me who it was?
Customer: Ha ha that's a good one! The only one around here wearing a badge is Dave the janitor and he was the only one who greeted me and bye-the-way what's your name?

Badges serve a number of purposes helpful to you and your associates.
When anyone is wearing a name badge they are more careful with their behavior and language.
Managing people is part of your job and it can be hard to detect associates who are less than dedicated. There is a telling red flag effect when you must often remind a particular associate to please wear his or her badge.

Badges become more important as your staff grows.
I was running a department of about fifty sales counselers at any given time and I knew them all very well. However. We doubled our staff each year only for the quarter of October to December. Badges helped me keep track of the seasonals which was important because I might retain a couple of rough diamonds and I would know them by name.

If you are a manager and you are not wearing a badge and you don't enforce badge compliance - you know you are hiding something. And if you don't know that - you do now because I just told you.
I like to talk about people management from a from a leaders point of view - but I am also an avid customer. Not every customer is like me but we are everywhere and there are three kinds of us.
The first kind just hates coming to your store but we have to because of proximity and need and price and you have some stuff we can't get elsewhere and you are substandard and everyone knows you don't care. We talk to management with no results, It might work for you now, but change is going to come.
The second segment is vigilantes. We try to tell everyone we know you ripped us off, we blog, we one-star yelp. What you could practice in the 1990s you can not in the 2020's it is not sustainable in the digital world, your buisiness will predecease you.
The third disappointed customer segment is the worst of all for retailers. After being treated horribly we just never go back. Ever. No complaints no yelping, no discussions with management, we are just a customer you will never see again. You just might be the world's greatest manager who ever lived but you'll never know about it and you can never correct it. What you don't know can hurt you.

As a retail manager start tomorrow. You and everyone on your team - badges up. Yes it will be a pain for a couple of weeks. "Eric, badge please'. Joanie, do you have your badge? She pulls it out of her pocket to show it to you then repockets it. Keep at it! Strive for more.

Love The Customer

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