Yahoo Finance Why Christmas sales are a nightmare for staff
Panic buyers and rude customers are the biggest causes of stress over the festive period for retail staff in the United Kingdom, according to a new survey.
Bargain-hunters’ manner towards staff can negatively affect the mood in the high street during a particularly busy period for shops.
A poll measuring the emotional responses of employees by Adoreboard, an analytics company based at Queen’s University Belfast, asked 1,460 people who work in customer service jobs.
Only one in four respondents said that the sales from Boxing Day and beyond put them in a good mood.
READ MORE: Fears for high streets in 2019 as Boxing Day sales slump
A majority of those who replied (52%) said that their own mood would affect the customers they interacted with.
More than two-thirds (70%) of respondents said that rude customers would also negatively affect their mood at work. Further problems reported that could hamper morale included panic buyers and long queues in shops.
News of disappointing Boxing Day sales might have reduced the frequency of long queues, but could also have exacerbated a pessimistic atmosphere in some high street shops.
Chief executive of Adoreboard Chris Johnston said: “The study shows that emotions not only play a role in the decisions that customers make but also how people treat customers.
“Understanding the emotions of both employees and customers is key to unlocking how businesses can help people improve how they treat customers to achieve better results.”
READ MORE: 5 ways to save British high streets before it’s too late
Dr Alex Genov, head of customer research at online retailer Zappos, said it was necessary to understand the importance of staff morale in order to better serve customers.
Genov explained: “Fundamentally, it’s hard to have unhappy employees and happy customers.”
The survey comes hot on the heels of a report that suggested that money worries can also negatively affect staff, particularly over Christmas when large debts can be racked up.
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