Tip Sheet: Rev up your RSAs

YOU’VE HIRED THE RIGHT PEOPLE AND TRAINED THEM WELL, but in a showroom filled with mattresses where traffic may ebb more than it flows, how do you prevent that urge to “lie down on the job”? Is it possible to keep retail sales associates energized and performing at their peak, ready for the next customer to walk through the door—and not curled up napping on a plush pillow-top or snoozing with feet propped on the desk?

Store owners and managers must consider themselves “motivators in chief,” according to the retailing news blog Retail Customer Experience. Be a cheerleader for your sales team, providing plenty of encouragement and feedback, while laying out your expectations. Outline how they should spend down time—on enrichment and training, not snoozing. But first, you need to keep their eyes open and minds focused.

With these tips, help keep RSAs invigorated—not secretly asleep—even on a slow Monday morning.

1) Feed them. 

Stock your store refrigerator with energy-boosting snacks like nuts, yogurt and protein bars. Invest in good coffee and stock up on assorted teas, too, not just to keep your staff fortified, but for customers, too.

2) Provide stimulating reading material. 

Whether it’s the latest issue of Sleep Savvy or other business and retail publications, keep minds occupied and learning when store traffic slows. Sleep Savvy sister publication BedTimes also is an educational source for you and your staff, with in-depth articles and the latest news about mattress components, manufacturers and general bedding industry news. Both publications are available in their entirety online.

3) Approve massage breaks. 

Make sure your best adjustable base with massage feature is at the front of the store in full view of passersby. Then, insist employees take a stimulating massage break. The only requirement—smile, please.

4) Post exercise point-of-purchase materials. 

The best way to keep employees motivated is to keep them in motion. If you don’t want to hang exercise posters in your store, add this infographic PDF file, “A Workout at Work,” from The Washington Post to office desktops and tablets. Also, ask your team to rack up mileage on their pedometers with frequent circuits of the showroom floor as they tidy displays, do stretches and even drop to the floor for pushups.