back to article Apple’s retail chief: ‘Touching customers’ key to retail success

Apple’s retail supremo Angela Ahrendts has handed down pearls of wisdom on how to make retail staff feel loved, in a valuable lesson for anyone running customer-facing sales teams. Getting new staff to stay the course in tech sales can often be difficult, with a consequent knock-on effect on the ability to build customer …

  1. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    A Bluetooth enabled iDildo

    Well, you can just guess what the next product will be.

    Controlled based on heart rate measured via iWatch.

    Not just touching, but touching all the right "buttons"

    1. NoneSuch Silver badge

      Executives

      If they are so valued why are they searched as they leave the premises?

  2. djstardust

    "Executive"?

    What a lot of balls.

    Every time I have asked something of an Apple Store Employee, they have been clueless. Even the geniuses, geniii or whatever they are called can't help and I get pushed from person to unmotivated person with no solution.

    After buying a 2009 Mac Pro at over £2000, support from Apple is non-existent, and if you ask about anything older than about 2 years you are met with a blank stare.

    I recently had a query regarding the changing of charging protocol (firewire removal) from the 30 pin connector around 2009, and they told me I was talking crap. Funny how anything past the ipod touch 1st gen won't charge with my car dock but they know nothing about it.

    Being 19, good looking and having a Justin Bieber haircut doesn't make you an expert or an "executive". As far as I can see training just doesn't exist past the current product line and that's not real support or "touching the customer". All she's doing is making these people feel great about being paid minimum wage.

    1. Dan Wilkie

      Re: "Executive"?

      Having taken an ill advised brief sojurn from IT into door-to-door gas sales - that's the kind of balls that is always spun around and gullible young fools (me) lap it up. You're the cornerstone of your industry, think like a winner, visualize your dream and all that bollocks.

      Just as long as you don't realize that the £120 a sale you're making is almost nothing by the time you get your cut of it as you're just making money for the people above you, who are making money for the people above them etc.

      It seems to be that the key is to keep people excited and motivated so you don't think how crap your job really is.

    2. djstardust

      Re: "Executive"?

      As an experiment, I went in to the Apple store today, and asked a simple question:

      Does the ipod touch have an FM radio.

      It took seven people, an argument and a look at the web to tell me the correct answer.

      Great retail experience that.

    3. Fungus Bob

      Re: "Executive"?

      "Every time I have asked something of an Apple Store Employee, they have been clueless."

      If that doesn't make them Executive Material, what will?

  3. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Burberry

    Didn't they move most of their manufacturing to China?

    Mulberry and Belstaff still manufacture in this country. Mulberry got one of these thrusting CEO types and the business went somewhat pear shaped. I believe it is recovering after going back to what it was good at.

    1. TeeCee Gold badge
      Meh

      Re: Burberry

      Well when your core business is dressing chav muggers, it makes sense to do it as cheaply as possible.

      The majority of their customers can't tell the difference between a quality product and cheap, Chinese tat with an eye-wateringly expensive badge on it........ a bit like Apple really........

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Burberry

        "Well when your core business is dressing chav muggers"

        The version I heard was that they thought they would make more profit in China by manufacturing locally, only to discover that rich Chinese wanted a Made in England label because they know about Chinese knockoffs. I do not know if it is true.

        But I disagree on iPhones. You are paying for a number of things, one of which is very high performance graphics. We know that Apple makes huge profits; what we don't know is whether people really, really want that graphic performance or whether they are paying for something else.

        I don't play action games on phones, I don't need an iPhone, so I don't know how significant this is.

    2. Dan Wilkie

      Re: Burberry

      My motorbike jacket and trousers are Belstaff - I got them 12 years ago, have crashed in them twice, and they're still pretty much waterproof.

      Not really relevant I guess - but it was nice to see that they're still well thought of!

  4. hplasm
    Meh

    What a big pile.

    Of Corporate Bobbins.

  5. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    unmotivated or untrained staff can seriously impact your brand.

    you pay peanuts, you get (untouched) monkeys

  6. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Optional wisdoms

    “I don’t see them as retail employees. I see them as executives in the company...”

    ... on executive pay package, eh?

    “Somebody has to deliver it to the customer in a wonderful way.”

    ... while I spout crap in order to collect my hard-earned $1M bonus

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Optional wisdoms

      while I spout crap in order to collect my hard-earned $1M bonus

      OK, now be honest. Would you really mind spouting crap if it meant adding 1M to your bank balance, even if if they were US dollars?

      I would. I can't find anyone insane enough to let me try, but I would :).

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Optional wisdoms

        hell, maybe you WOULD mind, but I - WOULD NOT :D

    2. The Boojum

      Re: Optional wisdoms

      A paltry $1m bonus? I don't think so. As a senior exec, her bonus will be a large integer multiple of her salary.

  7. s. pam Silver badge
    FAIL

    How about touching a REAL UK Keyboard?

    That'd be a first -- I'm sick and tired of Apple not getting the fact that not all of the world likes to touch a Yankee only keyboard.

    Every damn new Mac comes with a USA keyboard -- epic fail! I have to spend at least 10 mins remapping all the keys!

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: How about touching a REAL UK Keyboard?

      Just use the shortcuts on the keypad .... oh, sorry.

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: How about touching a REAL UK Keyboard?

      Every damn new Mac comes with a USA keyboard

      No, it doesn't if you buy it in the country of origin. Maybe you should first set the Apple store to your country before ordering?

      The only Apple devices that start with a US keyboard are iThings because they have a virtual keyboard. Every Mac I've had seemed to know which language keyboard it was attached to, and I work with systems with QWERTY, QWERTZ and AZERTY keyboards (we work in a lot of countries).

      As for remapping keys - yeah, OK. You're trolling.

      Clearly I need more coffee if it takes me this long to spot it :)

      1. Alien8n

        Re: How about touching a REAL UK Keyboard?

        It's actually a UK keyboard but with some US layout features (primarily they swap the @ and " keys around)

        1. Steve Davies 3 Silver badge

          Re: How about touching a REAL UK Keyboard?

          I've lost count of the number of laptops I've had over the years where the keyboard layouts are slightly different from each other.

          Perhaps I'm too long in the tooth to find this a problem. Or perhaps I've used far too many different KB layouts over the years to find switching an issue. I use a Dell tank of a KB, an HP KB on my work laptop and a US layout KB on my MacBook Pro. The latter device was bought from a Pawn Shop so you take a bit of pot luck.The only key not mapped somewhere is the Pound Key/Hash.

          As for KB shortcuts... most are designed (naturally) for the majority of users that are Right Handed.

          As a leftie I just can't be half arsed to bother with KB shortcuts but as I've said already I'm an old codger so what do I know eh?

          IMHO, no device (especially cars) are ideally laid out. There are lots of compromises in real life so get used to it.

      2. s. pam Silver badge

        Re: How about touching a REAL UK Keyboard?

        Wrong-O

        I bought a new iMac 21" in September from apple.com/uk (their UK store!) and it came with a USA keyboard, and NO option to get a UK one.

        1. Darryl

          Re: How about touching a REAL UK Keyboard?

          You could, I don't know, vote with your wallet?

          With a lot of consumer goods, if what they're looking at buying doesn't suit their needs, people will look elsewhere.

          This is one of the things about Apple products that just amazes me... It seems to be buy whatever they offer and adjust yourself to suit the product. (And maybe go complain about it on a forum or two before buying another of the same)

        2. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: How about touching a REAL UK Keyboard?

          I bought a new iMac 21" in September from apple.com/uk (their UK store!) and it came with a USA keyboard, and NO option to get a UK one.

          That is interesting. Maybe it's just me, but I then would not have bought it. A US keyboard is very useful if you're programming because almost all languages are written with the apparent assumption that you have a US layout, but otherwise it's best to get the layout that is closest to the main language you use (especially if you use LibreOffice because that has STILL not implemented the OSX way to implement accented characters - maybe to support NeoOffice?).

          1. Alien8n

            Re: How about touching a REAL UK Keyboard?

            *Looks at the keyboard that came with the Mac for work*

            Yup, that's a UK keyboard, has the £ sign above the 3. Biggest gripe for me is finding the # sign (I now know it's Alt-3, but they should really have added it the same way they did the € sign)

            US keyboard layout has # above the 3.

    3. User McUser
      Trollface

      Re: How about touching a REAL UK Keyboard?

      I have to spend at least 10 mins remapping all the keys!

      It takes you 10 minutes to open the Keyboard System Preference, click the + button at the bottom of the "Input Sources" panel, and choose the "British" keyboard layout?

  8. Alien8n

    Touching customers

    Gives a whole new meaning to "fondleslabs"...

    1. Fred Flintstone Gold badge

      Re: Touching customers

      Gives a whole new meaning to "fondleslabs"...

      .. and "going tits up". Given the US reaction to simple "wardrobe malfunctions" (as opposed to, say, reports of Yet Another Shooting in all their gory glory) I don't even want to imagine where that one would go, but I'd sit down with popcorn to watch it all play out, as it were :).

      1. Bucky 2
        Coat

        Re: Touching customers

        Show me on this doll where the Apple retail chief touched you.

        1. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: Touching customers

          Show me on this doll where the Apple retail chief touched you.

          Wow, we veered into inflatable dolls already?

          Oh, no. Sorry. Don't mind me. :)

  9. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    "Touching customers"?

    You just know that isn't going to end well.

    She's obviously not heard of Operation Yewtree...

  10. macjules
    Coat

    Touchy, feely ...

    Nice to know that the BBC was well ahead, with their touchy DJ's.

  11. netminder

    Show me on the doll where the app touched you

    That would be the wallet, Bob.

  12. Howard Hanek
    Linux

    Makes Perfect Sense

    Many Apple customers are already 'touched' so it makes perfect sense to include that in their marketing strategy.....don't you think? That's IF you think....or... not an Apple fanboy and thus incapable of rational thought.

  13. MrDamage Silver badge

    Please use this doll

    And show the members of the Jury exactly where the Apple "executives" touched you.

  14. therealmav

    Didnt Apple win that case

    Oh yes..http://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=56cbac2e-00ca-4d3e-b8a2-dde35808de30

    Doesn't anyone at el reg do research anymore. Still prob best not to let actual facts get in the way

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