What Are the Duties of a Retail Salesperson?
What are the duties of a retail salesperson? In general, the duties of the job involve assisting customers in making a decision about which product to buy, and encouraging them to buy it. This means being knowledgeable about the products, and having good sales skills and a good intuition about people so you can successfully complete the sale.
The duties of a retail salesperson involves considering many different things that must be done to help a retail store run. A retail salesperson may do any of these things, and have any number of duties, depending on where he or she works.
For example, a retail salesperson may have a very different job in a high end boutique versus a retail salesperson in a mass market discount store. Still, there are some common answers to what a retail sales person does, no matter where he works. These duties include:
- Sales
- Customer Service
Sales Duties of a Salesperson
In some industries, the retail salesperson works on commission, meaning that they get paid based on how many things they sell. In commission situations, the salesperson’s salary is drawn from a percentage of their total sales, so selling more expensive items results in a larger paycheck.
Responsibilities of Commissioned Retail Clerks
Commission salespeople frequently sell in lots of high-end clothing retail stores, as well as car dealerships. Real estate agents, while not the same type of salespeople, also work on commission.
When looking at the duties of a retail salesperson, it is important to understand that the job responsibility involves a fine balance between closing the sale, and still doing what is best for the customer.
While it might seem like instinct to push a customer into the most expensive item, a salesperson who is too pushy, or, worse, lies about the assets of the product in order to get a customer to buy it, is going to quickly gain a reputation that means they may not last long in the sales industry.
Most salespeople believe that a certain amount of sales pressure is necessary, but overdoing it is also considered taboo, since customers want to be able to trust you.
Non-Commissioned Salesperson and the Duty to Sell Products
In other situations, the salesperson may be paid hourly or salaried wages, but it’s still in their best interests to sell lots of product so they’re assets to the company and may be considered for promotion.
If a retail salesperson doesn’t work on commission, they may still be asked to use their sales skills. The difference is that it won’t have a direct affect on their paycheck. However, salespeople who consistently sell high-end items or create satisfied, informed customers tend to do well in their jobs and typically get raises and promotions sooner than those who just punch the clock and ring the register.
Customer Service and Other Duties
Speaking of registers, aside from the sales themselves, the retail salesperson can and typically does have a few other duties that are a bit more mundane but just as important.
The salesperson is usually responsible for:
- Ringing up customer purchases
- Doing inventory and ordering more products
- Cleaning up the store space
- Counting cash
- Organizing breaks or vacations with coworkers to ensure all shifts are covered
The job and duties of a retail salesperson can differ greatly depending on exactly what type of things he or she is selling.