For four years, my workplace was buzzing about major changes about to roll out in the market. The company tapped the best-in-class talent in the home improvement industry to completely transform the consumer journey when it came to shopping for flooring in our network of brick-and-mortar stores.
Dubbed “Retail 2.0”, it’s a monumental transformation in floor buying for consumers, encompassing a complete overhaul of the proprietary selling system, the introduction of a wide range of digital assets, and a massive redesign of showroom floor plans.
As trainers, you’re probably already thinking about the first thing our team did: massive new selling systems mean massive new training and education programs.
Nearly 900 retail stores across our Flooring America, Flooring Canada, and Carpet One Floor & Home membership will adopt the new showroom by Spring 2024. My team at CCA Global University faced a unique challenge in developing a succinct and practical training process for the expansive new system. Plus, we needed to deliver this training to multiple stores within a short period.
Perhaps due to the pandemic’s overarching impact, instead of viewing this as a hurdle to conquer, our team enthusiastically embraced it as an unparalleled chance to excel. We wanted to be a little bolder and a little more innovative with a comprehensive training program exclusively designed to accelerate the onboarding process of the groundbreaking Retail 2.0 initiative.
How did we hit the right note? A three-pronged outreach combining digital, virtual, and hands-on training techniques.
Some of the most successful tenets of the program included:
Spinning Video Gold
Retail 2.0 was rolling out in phases across the country and into Canada. With our stores far-flung and the showroom transformation happening concurrently, it was impossible to rely on our trainers to physically train entire teams on-site and in person.
We started with a series of “train the trainer” videos. Tim James, our Manager of Learning Projects, created video content for the program, meticulously guiding retailers through every aspect of the training process, including timelines, suggested training locations, and more.
Why was this a hit? We found that creating short videos that focused solely on one specific topic was easily digested by our business partners/designated trainers. Rather than covering multiple aspects of Retail 2.0 all in one, we created an album of videos that addressed one aspect per clip.
Dropping An Off-Beat Training Kit
Six weeks before their Retail 2.0 installation, stores receive a comprehensive training kit that equips store managers with all the necessary tools to conduct interactive training meetings with their sales teams.
The intention behind them is to inform and educate the sales team about the upcoming changes and generate enthusiasm and buy-in. By making these meetings as interactive as possible, the retailer is more likely to experience success.
What’s the secret sauce? Building on lessons we learned during the pandemic with virtual learning, we made sure the training kits included many opportunities for the group to interact. We know that the more interactive the training, the more engaging it becomes. More engagement means a better chance of team members authentically embracing the new program —and hitting the right notes when they’re in front of customers.
Getting Into the Groove with Online Training
The Retail 2.0 training program includes a robust online training course hosted on our previously established Online University platform. This component is strategically aligned with the physical floor plan for Retail 2.0 within the store.
How does this harmonize with the training program? This approach ensures that employees are refreshed on the material just before they put it into practice. In other words, once the employee has watched the video content and participated in the training kit exercises, they can pull up the online training to brush up and recall Retail 2.0 features at any time, including just before they physically hit the showroom floor.
Hitting the Right Notes with Ongoing Digital Support
The program offers a suite of ongoing training tools, which sales team members are encouraged to utilize post-installation. Most of these tools feature scannable QR codes to access the most up-to-date online training materials.
How does this keep us at the top of the charts? We really wanted to leverage and mirror the excitement of the new shopping experience with our training program for it, and these ongoing tools are designed for easy access with the QR codes and by infusing the content with fun tips and language. This content is constantly updated to reflect changes and new policies.
Now that Retail 2.0 is out in the market and the first wave of stores has completed the training, we’re constantly checking in with our members to gauge if the program is still working as it should. This helps us tune the program for new users and ensure it still feels fresh for those who have already completed it.
As our product line evolves and changes, we need our team members to always be up-to-speed on the latest features. With our digital assets, we can push out new training and content in real-time to make sure there are no lags in the information getting right to our front-of-house salespeople.
