Acknowledgment. How important is it when you’re a customer and you walk in somewhere and somebody acknowledges that you’re there? What happens is that person’s saying in the store, You’re important to us. I’m here to help you. So, serving a customer and acknowledging them is key.
Let’s go through the different variables of what may happen. 1. You might be walking the store on the way to something else, and the customer comes in again, stopping what you’re doing and looking over because you’re excited to see them getting a big smile and a warm welcome. If you know their name, of course, you always give their name, and you acknowledge that you’ve seen them. Hello. How are you doing today?
Good morning. What’s brought you into the store today? How may I help you? All those types of questions to get the person. We’re not onto questions yet, but you’re saying I’ve acknowledged that you’re here, and that may flow naturally into a question.
The key here is that they see that you have seen them and that you have confirmed that they’re there, and you’ll be ready to help. That’s the most important thing. Now what about if you’re stuck on a shelf? Stacking a shelf is never as important as the customer. The customer always comes first.
So, you’ll always stop that, have your eyeballs up, have your awareness around you, leave what you’re doing, and go straight to that customer. Of course, give them some distance, but just go. Good morning. How are you? Wonderful. And again, you’re acknowledging that you have seen them and that you are there, ready to help.
Now some of us here might be what I call completers. Meaning, that we get a task and we do a really good job with that task, and we’re very focused on it, and we make it so focused that we’re not aware of what’s going on around us because of the task we want to complete. I call it a completer. It may mean that in your head, two people are getting scripts. They were sitting there.
They’re okay. And John said he doesn’t need you. But things have changed since a minute and a half ago. All the variables have changed. The two that were scripted are now walking around.
They need other things. They both remembered that, and John now needs you over another depart in another section. So, again, eyeballs up, have an awareness. When you’re stacking shelves at all times, whatever you’re doing is like, where is the customer, and how can I let them know that I’ve seen them and I’m ready to help them? Another variable might be that you are talking to somebody.
When you talk to somebody, you are engrossed in a bubble because they’re, of course, your priority, the person you’re engaging with, and somebody comes in. Now, if this conversation is medical and something that’s, you know, been going on, you must have been diagnosed in this situation. This is your most important person. If and these are the other variables. You’re the only person on the floor at the time.
You know there are no other team members, and this has been going on for a while. If you recognize people are coming in and no one’s been acknowledged, then you’re going to weigh up the balance of acknowledging other people. And what you might do at the right time is say to the person, Give me just a moment. Good morning. How are you? Okay.
And then come back to this person. Now, that’s all going to depend on many factors. For example, if it’s someone telling you something personal, that wouldn’t happen. You would, of course, keep it here. If it’s a local that comes in all the time, it’s a regular, and they’re now not talking about anything related to products and services that you have to offer; they’re chatting about something else because they’re part of your community. That might be easier to say, oh, excuse me, gentlemen.
Will you excuse me just for a moment? Oh, good morning. How are you? You’re acknowledging them again, and then you’re back. And again, this person now has your full attention.
There are always those different variables, and you would know your gut feeling will tell you how you can maybe break away for a second to do that with permission. If it doesn’t feel right, it isn’t right. If it feels right, it’s right. But the main thing is that this customer in front of you is your number one priority. So, with acknowledgments, it’s the first step to building rapport.
