"Appreciating the Rich" and "Crying In My Beer"My boss made me cry. But here's the kicker: it was in a good way. When I feel like someone who "gets" me, really hears me, I just have to cry. Fortunately I had a beer at hand to catch those tears (he was kind enough to call and check on me when I texted him that I might not be in to work the next day). And the next day I went back to work with my spirit blown out a bit from the weekend that kicked my ass and the people on the phones that filled that weekend. Here's what I'm loving: my boss is allowing me to do some of what I already do well - coaching. And I. Love. It. I love it because it's empowering for whoever I'm coaching as well as it is for me. Of course, it does nothing in the short run for my commission, but since this is the direction I want to move anyway, it's all good in the long run. Win-win! So...dragged my ass into work yesterday, the bottom of my eyes drooping down to my neck. Finally, by about 1:30 I'm sort of starting to perk up a bit. A lot of coffee and a shit-ton of grit. And then the magic happens. The kind of magic you pray for, fantasize about, dream of. A call came through. "Store transfer..." whispered the phone into my ear, and I launched into my welcome. A young women with incredible warmth told me that she was calling from one of the Macy's stores and she didn't know if I could help her but she was looking for a certain Michael Kors purse for a customer of hers that was standing right in front of her. "Sure, I can help you! Which purse is she looking for? Do you have the UPC code or the Web ID number?" and she provided that. Up to this point in the day, which was about 3:00PM, I had earned a grand total of $250 for the store. NOT something to write home about. I had given up on the idea that I would do well today, even though I also reminded myself that it only takes one call to turn everything around. This was that one call. But I didn't know that going in. I looked up the purse, and they were going for about $149 for most of the numerous colors shown on the website, and $249 for the Bright White one. ("Buy the Bright White one!" I mentally urged the customer, knowing she wouldn't do any such thing. They never do.) The sweet young woman - let's call her Margo - was asking about the navy blue one. Damn! It's completely sold out. Well, there goes that sale! But I'll still try offering another color. Back and forth we went, identifying which colors were available. Out of about 15, only 4 were left. The customer chose the pink one, so I put that into the cart. "Wait," suddenly said Margo. "She's asking if you have the green one!" "Let me look...yep! We do have the green one." Margo turns to the customer and tells her the good news. I'm getting ready to hit the delete button on the pink one when Margo comes back to me and says, "My customer says she'll take that one too." Oh hey! No problem! So she's getting a gift for a daughter or a friend. Cool! "Do you have the grey too?" I look it up. "Yep! We do." "Great," says Margo, "my customer wants to know how many of those she can get." [...] mind. blown. "Let me check!" And I do. "As many as she likes," I inform Margo. "She wants five," says Margo. "No problem!" and I put five more Michael Kors purses into the bag. I'm starting to feel really awake now. Funny how that works... "Do you have the Navy Blue?" "No, that's one of those that is sold out." "Okay. Oh! My customer is saying she would like the Bright White. Do you have any of those?" BWAhahahahahahaha!!!!! #LoveBeingWrong "Yes we do." Now, here's the deal: the system is giving the in-store price instead of the online price for that more-expensive Bright White, so it's $149 instead of the $249 price, but at this point we're up to SEVEN MICHAEL KORS PURSES. I got nothin' to complain about! This is a sale for over $1,000! *deep breath* *sigh* What could be better? Well, I'll tell you what could be better: Margo and I hit it off so well, and she told me that this is a long-time customer of hers who comes in a lot. I told Margo what this department is, and she got very excited. I offered her my email so she could contact me directly any time she wants, and Margo was very excited about that too! She kept saying to me, "You've made my day, and my customer's day! Thank you so much!" and I kept saying, "You're welcome, and no, you've made mine." Seven Michael Kors purses. What d'you suppose she'll do with 'em all? I don't really care. I'm just looking forward to her next shopping spree. ©2019 Lori Kirstein
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AuthorWorking in Sales at a Call Center for one of the biggest stores in the country should come with hazard pay. Archives
December 2019
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