The Sleep Council Sales Academy, the National Bed Federation’s online training programme for retail sales people, is gaining ground. With the number of users passing the 1000 mark since the programme was launched at last year’s Bed Show, the course is now available to download on both Apple and Android mobile devices.
“The aim of the programme is to provide specific sleep knowledge rather than product knowledge,” says the creator of the course, the NBF’s Simon Williams, “and to show salespeople how to best use that knowledge to build trust with their customers and give them the best advice with their purchase. This in turn will mean greater customer satisfaction and improved sales for the retailer.”
Delivered online through 30-minute modules, the course is designed to develop the retail skills of shopfloor salespeople working in the bed sector, and continually assesses students’ ability to put their new skills into practice, culminating in a final assessment.
“Up until now, the course was only available on desktop PCs and laptops, which meant that many people taking the programme had limited opportunity to access it, often sharing computers with their work colleagues or family members,” says Simon.
“With so many of us now accessing the internet via our mobiles or tablets and the ever-increasing use of apps, this will now give time-poor salespeople the ability to study for this accreditation programme when they like, where they like.”
All retail bed salespeople completing the four-week course receive a graduation pack and are added to the Roll of Honour on the Sleep Council Sales Academy website. Consumers will soon be able to search for their nearest bed retailer with accredited staff via the Sleep Council’s website.
“Dealing with someone with Sleep Council accreditation will give the consumer so much more confidence that the bed they are buying is the right one for them”
Businesses both large and small are seeing the benefits of enrolling their staff on the course. In an age when competition for consumers’ money is so fierce and the choice of where to buy from is so wide, promoting Sleep Council Accreditation can give a retailer a distinct advantage over its competitors.
“We know that buying a new bed or mattress is considered by many to be a risky purchase, and consumers are looking for expert, impartial advice to guide them through the minefield,” says Simon.
“Dealing with someone with Sleep Council accreditation will give the consumer so much more confidence that the bed they are buying is the right one for them. This in turn will lead to increased satisfaction, fewer complaints and more referrals for your business.”
Interested parties can find out more and enrol by visiting the Sleep Council Sales Academy website – once registered, users can choose to study on a PC, laptop or via the Sleep Hub App, which can be downloaded from the App Store for iOS, or for android devices at Google Play.
