As I have mentioned in other parts of this blog, sales skills and customer service go hand in hand. Having good selling skills helps to make you better at providing customer service because your customers will leave happy.
A common trait in poorly-trained sales staff is their lack of ability, and often the confidence, to recommend a product. When I purchased my scuba diving shop many years ago, I ran into the same trap. I always felt that making a recommendation would be seen as a hard sell. It isn't. It's what the customer wants. They like to know what you would recommend. I always used to go to great lengths to tell my customers about the full range of diving equipment that my business sold, the ins and outs of each brand and product. However, the sales conversion rate was very low and I could almost see my customers becoming confused the more I talked to them.
One day a supplier was in the shop waiting to talk to me while I was serving a customer. He listened patiently while I did my full presentation and, as always, the customer walked out of the shop with a pile of brochures and a head full of information. He turned to me and said tactfully, 'You did everything except tell the customer what they should buy. That's why they left.' He sat me down and explained the importance of recommending a particular brand (his or some other company's).
At first I was a little skeptical because I didn't want to become a high-pressure salesperson, but I tried his technique on the next customer who came through the door. I explained about three sets of scuba equipment, and finally I introduced the fourth set and said, 'This is the equipment that I use'. The customer asked me why and without a moment's hesitation I said, 'Because it's the best'. Bang, I had a sale on the spot. Not only was it the best sale I had ever made, but my customer brought in five friends who all purchased a set of the same equipment. From that day on I have always made a point of making a recommendation to my customers and it has worked very well.
How many times have you been into a bookstore not really knowing what you feel like reading? You ask the sales assistant to recommend something and they mumble a few words about it being up to you. In a good bookstore, the staff will gladly make recommendations.
Don't be afraid to make recommendations to your customers. Your sales will increase and your customers will be much more satisfied. This doesn't mean that you have to become a pushy salesperson, but you have to become a good salesperson - that's the difference.