1. Personnel Needs Customer Service and The Opening Day

2. Planned Personnel Determine personnel needs Create job descriptions ▫ Written statements defines requirements of a job ▫ Includes job position duties qualifications and salary Hiring plan ▫ Outlines procedures used for hiring employees  Recruitment methods, hiring procedures, application procedures, interview guidlines

3. Factors for Determining Personnel Education Level ▫ Some jobs require employees to have a certain level of education. Previous Work Experience ▫ Some managers believe that employees with work experience will be better employees ▫ Some believe if the applicant can learn job tasks then experience isn’t important. Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities ▫ When hiring employees you must determine the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary.

4. Creating a Hiring Plan Hiring Plan: outlines the process that will be used to hire employees. Recruitment Methods ▫ “Help Wanted” Advertisements: advertised in the “help wanted” section of newspapers. ▫ Signs: businesses post a sign advertising available positions.  Some businesses keep them up all the time so they can have a pool of applicants.

5. Creating a Hiring Plan Recruitment Methods ▫ Checking out the Competition: managers may try to recruit employees from their competitors. ▫ Word-of-Mouth: inexpensive, employees simply tell others about available positions. ▫ Online Job Banks: applicants submit a resume online using their e-mail.  Example: www.monster.com

6. What Hiring Criteria Application Procedures ▫ Many businesses want applicants to submit a resume, while others prefer to have an applicant fill out a job application, or both. ▫ Applications should be stored if the business needs to hire future employees. ▫ Most businesses keep applications from six months to a year.

7. What Hiring Plan? Interview Guidelines ▫ Interview guidelines make the hiring process fair for applicants and the decision making easy for the one hiring. ▫ Two reasons for interview guidelines:  Ensures applicants are asked similar questions, which makes comparing applicants easier.  Ensures that applicants aren’t asked illegal or discriminatory questions

8. The IMPORTANCE of Opening Day Preparing for opening day is crucial and ensures the day will run smoothly. Creating Order: ▫ Opening day should be planned and prepared ▫ The opening day should be spend interacting with customers. ▫ Businesses often do a trial run of opening day to ensure everything goes smoothly.

9. Opening Day Creates first impression of store First Impressions ▫ Well trained salespeople who are friendly can keep customers coming back. ▫ Businesses that are clean, neat, orderly, and well stocked create a positive image. ▫ Opening day will most likely bring in quite a few customers.

10. Opening Day Tasks Administrative Tasks:  Obtain license and permits  Set up bank account  Filing system  Ordering supplies  Security guidelines Merchandising Tasks: ▫ Employees must arrange the store to make it visually appealing ▫ Plan-o-gram: map that shows where merchandise should be located.

11. In-Store Preparations for Opening Day Promotional Tasks: ▫ Promotion informs the market about a business and its products, and is necessary. ▫ Advertising : important for opening day since it informs customers about your business. ▫ Public Relations : grand opening and other events are good opportunities to have news media visit your store. Press releases are also a great way to inform the media.

12. In-Store Preparations for Opening Day Promotional Tasks: ▫ Sales Promotions: increases traffic. ▫ Personal Selling: employees must be familiar with product features and benefits. Personnel Tasks:  Recruiting job applicants  Hiring employees  Completing new hire paperwork as required by law  training employees  Creating a work schedule  Setting up a payroll system

13. Importance of GREAT Customer Service Customer service affects the customer’s level of satisfaction with their shopping experience Will they return? Will they tell others? Will they SERVICEPURCHASEREFLECTIONDISCUSSIONRETURN?

14. Customer Service (defined) Customer Service: services that retailers offer to customers to make shopping more convenient or rewarding. Employees must deliver the services properly, this determines the quality of the customer service. Delivery of customer service affects the customer’s perception of the business.

15. The POWER of WORD-OF-MOUTH Word-Of-Mouth or talking to family, friends, other businesses, or vendors about service is the MOST POWERFUL FORM of “advertising”. Applies to Good and Bad experiences ▫ Good Experiences usually shared 2-3 times ▫ Bad Experiences usually shared 8-10 times!

16. Employees Role in Customer Service Representing the business Employee retention ▫ Companies ability to keep employees for long period of time Employee empowerment ▫ Granting employees responsibility for making decisions ▫ Make employees feel good they perform better

17. Expectations of Customer Service CUSTOMERRETAILER Expect to be treated fairly Expect to be treated honestly Expect to be treated with respect Expect to be valued Employee is efficient, friendly, and businesslike. If competitors offer a new service, others will soon offer the same service. Create value in the Sale ▫ Encourage return customers Develop a Clientele

18. Expectations of Customer Service MANAGEMENTVENDOR RELATIONS Treat customers and co-workers with respect Honesty Integrity Efficiency Develop a Clientele Respect the brand & products Represent brand with integrity Give customers correct information Develop a Clientele