Top five problems brands have with promotional staff

It can be hard to engage and educate promotional staff (PS), but luckily we have tips for you to fix these common problems.

1. Receiving updates - When staff are selling in various locations it means they don't have quick access to emails, this can be tricky as that means they don't have access to updates. For instance, say you need to let staff members who are working in London know that there is a tube strike so their locations will need to be changed.

Solution

• Obviously to phone these team members would be the first thing that comes to mind, but that is extremely time-consuming and risks some employees being missed and not getting called at all.

• Oplift Engage's notification feature allows head office to instantly notify teams of important info, cutting through the inbox clutter and sending out messages immediately, to the right people, all at once.

4. Learning scripts - This is essential to ensure your products are described and sold in exactly the way that you want them to be. However, PS usually read these once or twice and then begin selling. This can lead to inconsistent messages and sometimes completely the wrong information. It can also have detrimental effects on your sales, especially if your script had significant 'magic' selling words e.g. Guaranteed to improve the taste of your breakfast, 100% money back guarantee if you don't like the taste.

Solution

• If you are really serious about them learning properly you should create quizzes which are tailored to test their knowledge.

• Research published in the Science journal found that students who took a test recalling information they had previously read retained 50% more information than students who used other methods to retain knowledge.

• Oplift Learn offers personalised quizzes which can fill knowledge gaps. Virgin Media found that for the quizzes they create for staff, 65% play in their own time!

• Provide scripts on a mobile solution so that PS can access them whenever and wherever they are. This could be on a commute or simply waiting in a queue.

• With Oplift Engage's acknowledgement features you can see who has read what and prompt them to re-read to ensure that you are constantly reinforcing knowledge.

2. Physical demands - Your PS will be required to lift, stand, climb, and move in a particular way. Not only does it look bad if these physical movements are all done differently but it is vital that they are done correctly for health and safety measures.

Solution

• Short and easily digestible how-to guides with vivid imagery. Make it incredibly easy for staff to read and take in information.

• Having these easily accessible guides means that staff can look at the correct procedure for physical movement whenever they want to.

• Oplift Engage's article feature allows you to separate all of your different guides under one easily accessible tile placed on the dashboard. These can be easily accessed on their very own smartphone or tablet.

3. Setting up stands - Most companies send a brief and staff follow the instructions to set up the stand themselves. The only problem with this is that you have no way of knowing that staff have carried out every step. If there is a problem with one of the steps there is no quick way of alerting it to staff who can help.

Solution

• Digital checklists are a great way to check off a job, ensure they are done on time, and send completion of tasks to head office, immediately creating alerts if any are not done.

• They can also decrease the time it takes to complete tasks.

• Oplift Engage's digital checklist's reduced the time it took Virgin Media to carry out their usual paper checklists, from four hours to just 45 minutes.

5. Being an expert - Because PS work in many different places it can be hard for them to be an expert on your brand. This can be embarrassing when they get questioned by customers and they don't have the answer, which in turn means they lose credibility.

Solution

• Social channels can be good as all staff can participate to ask questions and give new information, this ensures everyone is always up to date.

• Another solution is Oplift Engage's on hand searchable articles which bring all information into one easy to find place. This makes it the first port of call for any form of information or guidance.