Help! In an effort to boost sales I am considering paying a commission to my sales associates. My plan is to leave their hourly rate as it is and offer them a commission for each sale. Do you think this is a good idea?
I think your idea is very creative but you must be careful. You have not shared the commission rate with me so it is difficult to directly address that issue. However, if your margins do not include this additional expense, it could cause problems for you. Another area that should cause concern deals with the maintenance of the shop. I have seen some commissioned sales personnel ignore the day-to-day responsibilities of the shop that include cleaning, merchandising, and other general maintenance in order to get the sale at all costs. In addition, in some cases the personnel became very aggressive and uncooperative with each other.
While I agree that a commissioned sales staff may be a great concept, I think it should be viewed through a wider lens so that every aspect of the concept can be analyzed and every avenue addressed to ensure complete success.


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