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Working in retail is not always for the faint of heart. Some days it’s really tough and customers often don’t understand sales associates are really doing all they can do. During the crazy holiday season, retail can be even harder. Customers want to find their gifts, beat the crowds, and be out as fast as possible. Not to mention find the best deals around.

During the holiday season, stores are competitive with their pricing, but this often leads to items being sold out quicker than anticipated. When this happens, the customer can be disappointed and lash out at employees. The following tips will show you how you can have a touch skin in retail, but still, give amazing customer service.

Prepare yourself
Sometimes the best thing to do before your shift is just to prepare yourself. Remind yourself that you are there to help and that without the customer, you would have a job. Remember to look at both sides of the story and always have an open mind. Remind yourself that if a customer is upset, it’s not a reflection of you. By reminding yourself of these little things, you’ll have a calmer demeanour when working and therefore able to give fantastic customer service.

Breathe
It happens – a customer will snap, and you’re going to want to snap back. It’s not easy having that one customer of the day yelling at you, but sometimes you need to bite your tongue. So remember to just breathe. Taking four deep breaths will help center you and help you focus on why you are there – ultimately help the customer leave happy.

Don’t let the little things get to you
In retail, you will have bad days but you also will have good days. Don’t let the little things ruin the job for you. You are in retail for a reason. If you find a situation weighing on you remember the things you love about your job. The way you feel when you’ve helped a customer leave with a smile.

Find someone to help
There are situations where you just have to walk away. If this is the case, don’t just leave the customer high and dry. Excuse yourself politely, find another associate or manager and explain the situation, and have them help the customer to the best of their ability. There is no need to make a bad situation worse if you don’t have to.

Smile
At the end of the day, the holiday chaos will pass. Have fun with the winter rush and smile. If a customer comes in your retail location in a bad mood and sees an associate in a bad mood as well, they aren’t going to have a great shopping experience. If they come in to find someone smiling and happy, you might be the reason why they have a good day and a good shopping experience.

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Image courtesy of Yellow Trace

By: Megan Renaud, Vancouver, @meganbrigette