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  • The Storyteller

Alan, The Impressive Salesman

I am seldom impressed by salespeople in general. Perhaps because most of them focus just on the transaction, on the selling, but without much care for the engagement. However, this was one happy exception.

We were browsing around the kitchen section at Takashimaya store, looking for some vacuum seal for our sous-vide machine and had the great fortune to be assisted by Alan, the brand's salesperson. Alan demonstrated the following positive traits/skills:

  1. Strong product knowledge

  2. Interest and care

  3. Anticipatory skills

  4. Attentive listening

Strong product knowledge: He demonstrated this well - not just of his own brand's products (e.g. he could readily share the sizes of the various packs, country of manufacture, spare parts required, etc.) as well as that of the competitors'. 💖


Interest and care: He asked about the types of cuisine we enjoy and recommended some dishes that would truly benefit from using the sous-vide machine. He suggested for us try it out so that he could help guide us through if we had any questions. In addition, he recommended how to reduce wastage when using the vacuum seal packs. 💖💖💖


Anticipatory skills: As we said we would be travelling with the item, he asked if we required the box (so that it took up less space in our luggage). He assured that he would wrap it well with bubble-wrap should we decide not to take the box. He also suggested to take photos of the printed instructions on the box with our handphones.


Furthermore, he asked about the country of use and confidently assured us that the voltage was compatible. (We had not even thought of this) 💖💖💖


Attentive listening: The fact that he listened well we were travelling to and using the item in India, and hence anticipated our needs. 💖


Service Bank: 8 x 💖


Reflective thoughts: Which of the above points come as a "surprise"? How did that make you feel? How can you further impress your guests/customers with unexpected service?



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