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Improve team spirit & achieve goals faster

in 6 easy steps
Reading time: 5 minutes

Anyone who thinks that team spirit is negligible in brick-and-mortar retail, that every salesperson there is supposed to be a lone wolf, since he usually advises his customers individually, is wrong. Especially where the shortage of skilled workers and the demanding customer meet – in the local retail and gastronomy – the cohesion and the smooth interaction of individual team members plays a dominant role.

Pursuing and achieving a goal together – satisfied regular customers and a full cash register every evening – can’t be that difficult, can it? On the contrary. In addition to the actual customer service, too few employees on the salesfloor try to cover the many contact options and additional services, asking every customer for a review and try not to forget any of the small “Remember Ms. Becker’s order” between the door and hinge. The customer should not only feel good, but also receive a courteous and friendly advice. If a salesperson tears away from the team and causes trouble, dissatisfaction within the team can quickly arise.
Team spirit does not always appear immediately just because different individuals work together. Typically, it is the result of targeted actions taken by a retailer to enable effective group dynamics.

Here are some steps you can take to improve the team spirit in your store or restaurant:

1. Define goals and values

When looking at the current dynamics in your team, you need to keep your team goals and company values in mind. If your company does not have a mission or vision, it is a good time for you, even with a small team, to define both. In this way you give your employees a clear, shared picture of how and for what purpose they work.

If you involve your salespeople in the defining process of goals and values, you not only show them appreciation, but you may also get completely different inputs than your point of view and may rethink your draft. Your employees also get to know your point of view. The same applies here: You have worked out goals and values together as a team. This not only unites, but also all the individuals in the team stand behind them.

2. Education and training

For your team cohesion to remain strong, each individual member should feel competent enough to even contribute to the team goal. Each employee should be assigned to clear responsibilities which describe their place in the team, e.g., Tom is responsible for mobile phone contracts, but Lisa is responsible for landline contracts. Of course, not every team member should stick persistently and exclusively to these responsibilities. Rather, everyone should be given the opportunity of internal training by colleagues, cross-functional cooperation or external trainings, e.g., by suppliers or other professionals. This training is made not only to ensure that your employees can reliably perform their previous tasks, but also that they improve over time. To do so, they need opportunities to develop their skills. Regular training is mandatory for other professional groups, so why not for your sales team?

3. Promote team building

Most of us spend 40 hours a week or more with their co-workers, sometimes more than we do with our own families. So, shouldn’t human interaction be appropriate or even encouraged? A harmonious connection on an interpersonal, friendly level within your team strengthens the self-esteem of each individual and gives everyone a “we” – feeling.

This does not mean that you should cook together every evening or plan your annual vacation together, but it can start with small team building activities such as an after-work drink, a monthly bowling tournament or a trip to the climbing park, an escape room or a football tournament. If your employees interact with each other and with you beyond the work tasks, they not only get to know each other better, but from a different side as well. In this way you build empathy and respect for one another and the cohesion in your team increases.

4. Increase communication

Approximately 86% of employees make a lack of communication or collaboration responsible for workplace failures. Teams only work effectively with clear, continuous communication. Provide your employees with the necessary resources so they can reach each other and are always up to date. Your team should be able to network easily and conveniently at any time. A unified communication channel – in addition to the face-to-face team discussions – to retain your team productive and engaged not only gives you the opportunity to communicate with each other, but also to keep each individual team member up to date, to eliminate the paper chaos and do something good for the environment. By assigning individual tasks or customers to your salespeople, nothing will be forgotten and you will also receive a performance analysis. Even across branches, your teams can stay connected and stick and work together. The right communication channel for your team is the oil that keeps the gears turning and provides your customers with an enhanced, seamless shopping experience.

5. Build trust

A communication channel is only worth something if your employees feel comfortable with open communication. This goes beyond the distribution of tasks and their completion. Each of your employees should be given an open ear, anytime and anywhere, in order to be able to contribute thoughts and ideas. Be a role model and stay open and honest with your own ideas or innovations that affect your business and your team. Secrets lead to frustration and can create disagreements within the team. Show your appreciation to any team member who contributes ideas and suggestions, even if they don’t get implemented. Proper team spirit means that everyone can speak honestly about anything, regardless of how others in the team feel about it.

6. Celebrate success together

You have closed a contract with a large business customer? The fashion show at the city festival was a complete success, even if you all had to work overtime the week before? The bar in your restaurant has finally been renovated and you are planning your re-opening? Let the corks pop! Celebrating success together is essential to building a strong team. You worked energetically towards a goal together, so everyone can celebrate the result together and enjoy the success.

Thank your employees for their work and show them your appreciation. United as a team you can look at your successes and work out where the journey will take you next.

To move forward as a company, strong team spirit is necessary. Not only your customers feel this, but also potential new employees. Working together is the best way to overcome crises, making the most of everyone’s talent while increasing employee engagement and satisfaction. We in our mPocket team live these 6 steps every day and that is what makes us special.” Markus Demirci, Founder and CEO of mPocket.

You can find out how you can reach your goals even faster with your team and mPocket, increase productivity within the team and strengthen team spirit at www.mpocket.io or contact us directly at hallo@mpocket.io. We definitely look forward to hearing from you.

*For reasons of better legibility only the simultaneous use of male and female language forms is not used. All personal names apply to both genders.

Jasmin Janson

Marketing & Communication Manager mPocket

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