I have traveled around the world via planes, trains, and automobiles to train with some of the best bridal teams in the business. I have taken someone who interviewed on the first day of a 4-day workshop, to selling their own appointment by the 4th day, and closing 80% of their brides in that first month. I know what hands-on impactful training can do not only for a stylist, but also for a store. Those sales add up!
So, why do I find so often that training ends at on-boarding?
Bridal stores, regardless of how glamorous they may feel, are incredibly labor-intensive. It requires an immense work ethic, great tact and judgement, the ability to read any room, and some serious tricep muscles. Selling a wedding dress is not just a customer service role, and it's not just another sales role. The reality is that in 90 minutes, as a stylist, you are asking someone to decide what they will wear on one of the most important days of their life, get the people they brought with them to agree on that decision, and fork over more money than they've likely spent on another item of clothing. In 90 minutes. Not to mention, they have to stand in a tiny room with someone they just met and change clothes over and over again. Selling bridal? There is nothing else like it.
To be the very best, you have to train like the very best. Imagine an Olympic athlete getting trained on the fundamentals when they first started the sport and then choosing only to compete, but never practice. It's unfathomable. But that's what most bridal stylists do. Every appointment is like a competition. It's not the training ground, it's game day!
Training usually looks something like a walk through of a binder or a training course at on-boarding, shadowing fellow stylists, and then taking supervised appointments until the owner or manager feel comfortable enough to let that stylist take appointments on their own. Occasionally, there is training from a designer, maybe a video training every once in a while, and then when things get too far south, some kind of team meeting or kick in the ass to get sales back up.
The best athletes in the world don't start training when things go south at competition. They don't train every once in a while via Zoom. They train every day. To be the best, you have to train like the best.
So what should that look like?
On-Boarding Training
Every store should have some sort of guide of fundamentals not only to bridal, but to their store. This framework is incredibly important as it's the foundation to which your entire team operates on. I recommend something written and tangible, along with a checklist for the trainer. Did you know that by simply writing things down, you're more likely to retain it? Estimates are north of 50%. I know we live in a digital age, but if ever there is a time to put pen to paper, it's with fundamentals. I recommend a tangible training guide that your stylist can reference back to and take notes on, as well as a checklist for the person training the new hire to ensure that nothing is left to fate.
Performance Management
Now, performance management comes down to the idea that you cannot manage anything that you do not measure. If you are not establishing achievable expectations, and tracking progress against it, it's out of control. Whether you manage your team's performance by total monthly sales, close rate, reviews, or all of the above, you need to communicate standards clearly to the team as well as consistently and fairly measure against it. You also need to have in place steps to take if performance is below the standard or if the team is consistently outperforming the standard. How will you fairly and consistently keep your team at the top of their game?
Team Training
Whether you have the ability to do this weekly or monthly, there is not a team training I've been a part of, where the stylists walk away feeling energized, grateful, and supported. The best players? They want to be better. They want to train. They want to grow. If they don't, they aren't the best players. Setting aside dedicated time on a weekly or monthly basis to cover a topic like handling the current objections, managing an unruly group, or navigating the changing trends can be incredibly helpful. Whether it's a discussion format or a role-play, make sure you have action steps and get your team to take that training and actually use it.
Game-Day Training
To me, every Saturday is a Super Bowl. It is prime real-estate. It is the biggest game of the year, every Saturday. Could you imagine a team walking on the field to play without any warm-up? They'd spend the first 15 minutes of that game just shaking off the dust and getting loose. Now, why on earth would risk your first bridal appointment like that? You likely have 4 appointments that day. Are you willing to sacrifice the first one as a warm-up? (P.S. That means you're already down to a 75% close.)
Get there 30 minutes or 1 hour before the store, and role-play. Practice greeting the customer, pre-pull dresses, go over objections and role-play them. Get your team on their feet and warmed-up, before your game day.
The Daily Dose
There is rarely downtime in a busy bridal store, but given that sales are the lifeblood of any business and livelihood, making sure to carve out training and prep time isn't just important, it's necessary. Before each appointment, review your game plan with a teammate or with whoever will listen. It can sound like "My bride has a tight-timeline, a big group, and she's shopped quite a bit. I'm thinking I have to address the timeline issue in the intro, and I want to make sure we get on the same page about our goal for the appointment and her shopping plans. Can I role-play what I think I'm going to say with you?" And if you have the ability, reflecting after each appointment with what went well and what you would re-do if you could? Equally as impactful.
Training Schedule Recap
Onboarding Fundamentals: At hire
Performance Management: Ongoing, with regular reviews
Dedicated Team Training: Weekly or monthly
Game-Day Warm-Up: Before Peak Appointment Days
Daily: Before & After Appointments
As I've said, to be the best you have to train like the best. That means you have to train, every single day. For stylists who are really looking to make a life out of bridal, get to work! For store owners who want to claim they are the very best in their area, make sure your team training reflects that.
I'll leave you with this. No one at the top ever says they wish they trained less...