Claudia Coleman...Personal Shopper for Neiman Marcus...Featured in the Wall Street Journal

• BUSINESS
• February 15, 2012

Shopping Secrets of the Pros

Finding the Best Service Requires Revealing a Lot; Don't Say 'Just Browsing'

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By RAY A. SMITH

Ben Sklar for The Wall Street Journal

Claudia Coleman, of Neiman Marcus, with a client of 16 years.

How many times have you walked into a store, ready to buy—only to find no one there to help, or even take your money? Or could you see the sales associates but they couldn't seem to see you? Maybe they sized you up as a browser, not a buyer. Or did you find yourself working with a clueless associate, who wanted to be helpful but wasn't, or worse, a pushy associate who would have sold you everything in the store.

No wonder many shoppers actually try to avoid salespeople. A majority of shoppers in a small 2009 study said they won't go to stores to avoid bad customer service, according to researcher Sherry Lotz, associate professor of retailing and consumer sciences at the University of Arizona's John & Doris Norton School. A common concern was that salespeople "push" merchandise to earn commissions or achieve sales targets. The customers in the study "did not trust that the store personnel were acting in their best interest," Dr. Lotz says.

Everyone has faced the frustration of the too-pushy salesperson or the salesperson who disappears. In a sea of bad service, there are a few salespeople who know how to give top-level service. Emily Nelson has details on Lunch Break.

When it's good, though, customer service is a magical elixir that makes customers feel good about making a purchase long after they leave the store. To create this positive feeling, a sales associate must have limitless stores of positive reinforcement, creative suggestion and empathy.

Sharp salesmen used to pride themselves on their ability to "read" a customer. Modern sales techniques stress it's best to ask questions, rather than make assumptions. That guy in sweats and a baseball cap is likely to be shopping for designer shoes. "You have to listen to the customer," says Claudia Coleman, 56 years old and a top-ranked personal shopper and sales associate at Neiman Marcus's San Antonio store. "Ask them their favorite color, what they like, what they do—all these questions to be able to understand their needs."

There are things customers can bring to get the most out of sales help in stores—not least of which is an open mind. Once they have worked with an effective sales associate, many shoppers latch on and refuse to deal with others, often making appointments in advance.