Attitude | Retail Today With Bob Phibbs, the Retail Doctor - Flash Briefing

I have a friend who went to Italy not that long ago, and when she got back I said, “How was the trip?” And she went on about how the bags all been lost at Kennedy and they were on the tarmac for four hours and she went on for what felt like five hours, it was probably just a few minutes, but I just said, “Did anything go well on your trip?” And then she said, “Oh, well, yes.” And she told me some of the sites that she saw. 

I think the challenge for all of us is we speak in the language of disappointment right now. We want to tell that story of how somebody got away with something or an online bandit stole their sale or somebody used a phone in your store and you lost a big sale. We have to change that idea that the only way we talk to people is in things that went wrong.

Your goal, especially when it comes to talking to both customers and employees, is to talk about being positive, to talk about things that went right, to talk about how somebody overcame something. That's how people get a feeling. That's what they want to go to. They want to go to your store to feel hopeful and they want to meet people that are positive and hopeful as well. And you know who that starts with? You're looking at them in the mirror. It’s you.

If you love what you heard on Retail Today, connect with Bob by visiting retaildoc.com or send a message to bob@retaildoc.com. Thanks for listening!