Customer Service and Sales TrainingTuesday, Wednesday & Thursday

February 7 – May 24 12:45- 2:45 p.m.

(90 Hours)Cathy Quam - Instructor

Prepare participants for the sales and service industry

Concentration in retail sales

Complete a professional workforce portfolio

Goals Of This Course

Handle entry level retail or sales position

Communicate effectively, using strategies for listening, speaking and observing critically

Use interpersonal skills to guide others and work cooperatively

Objectives Of This Course

Apply customer service skills at home and in the community, as well as at work

Reflect, evaluate and assess your abilities and adjust strategies as necessary to become more effective at what you do

Objectives Of This Course - Cont.

Retail Sales Certificate - To help get a job or transfer from one job to another The Portfolio - Documentation that shows evidence of skills and knowledge to be used in an interview National Certification in Sales and Service

- To prepare students to successfully pass the test that is recognized from state to state

Benefits of Completing This Course

Instructor must complete the NRF Foundation Sales and Service Learning – Train the Trainer

Instructor follows a prescribed curriculum laid out by the NRF Foundation

Originally developed as a welfare to work program it was decided to combine the Equipped for the Future (EFF) standards with the National Retail Standards which lead to the development of the EFF/Retail sales course

How to Get Started

Specific retail skills are taught based on the belief that participants need to be taught how to learn and reflect on their learning and then transfer what they have learned from one situation to the next.

The EFF skills are based on the belief that participants need to learn how to learn from past experience – whether positive or negative.

Philosophy of the Course

To help participants progress from learning about themselves to learning how to relate to their classmates as their internal customers

To then transfer these skills to relate to actual customers

The Intent of the Course

The Equipped For The Future Skills WheelThe 16 EFF Content Standards

Do not need a high school diploma

Must be 16 years of age

Need a minimum of a 6th grade reading level

(I would recommend an 8th or 9th grade level)

Who is Eligible to Take this Course

Students are assessed by using the Test of Adult Basic Education (TABE) - Reading Test

Learning styles inventory – Visual, Auditory, Kinesthetic

http://www.howtolearn.com/learning%20styles-quiz

http://www.edutopia.org/multiple-intelligences- learning-styles-quiz

Assessing Student’s Needs

http://www.aultmancollege.edu/Files/Understanding-Learning-Styles.pdf

Personality Inventory – Introvert or Extrovert http://www.personalitytype.com/career_quiz/

Sixteen Personality Types http://www.personalitypage.com/high-level.h

tml

Assessing Student's Needs – Cont.

Key Elements

EFF Framework

Speak so Others Can Understand

Listen Actively Observe Critically Guide Others Cooperate with others Reflect and Evaluate

Sales and Service Standards

Customer Service Sales Inventory

Interactive Curriculum Thought for the Day Students set Ground Rules Setting SMART Goals Action Plan to Manage

Barriers Examine Roles as Worker, Parent/Family,

Community Member Mystery Shopper

Store Scenario - mental math exercises - counting back change - figuring percents off running cash register

Good/Bad Customer Service

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZkdcYlOn5M

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FRJW6qZZ3uQ

Portfolio Workforce1. Initial Goal Plan –

Worker-Community-Family

2. Resume3. Reference List4. Workbook

Assessments5. Store Scenario Forms6. Follow-up Goal Plan7. Certificate of

Completion

Items for Use on the Job1. Formal and Informal

Greetings2. List of open-ended questions3. Reflections on Thought for

the Day4. Hints for dealing with

difficult situations5. Hints for handling two

customers at a time6. Tips to handle angry

customers

Assessment consisting of 75 questions – 90 minutes

(accommodations are available - must be applied for 30 days prior to test date)

Covers Four different work functions Given on computer at an approved testing site (Rochester) Testing fee is $75.00 Sample test questions website: https://www.castleworldwide.com/castleweb/

candidates/sample-tests/nrf-customer-service.aspx

National Professional Certification in Customer Service

Two American men Five women representing the following

countries: Ethiopia Haiti Mexico Somalia The Philippines (Age range from the 20’s – 50’s)

Demographics of the Class

Positive experience Learned many things they could use not only

in the workplace, but also in their everyday lives

Liked the time and length of the course Two American men passed the NRF

Certification Test ESL women passed two of the four sections

of the test (they had double the time to take the test)

Lina’s story

Student Feedback

Literacy level of 6th Grade is high enough to handle the course work

Literacy level needs to be higher then 6th grade to pass the test

There is now an ESL version of this course

Teacher Observations