Customer - Development Challenges - Test Shopping

Test Shopping

Using Development ChallengesÉ

 

Development challenges are designed to encourage you to think about your performance, identify opportunities and take action to make improvements that will have a positive impact on your business.

This is a practical, hands on way of learning through experience and trying something different or new. Therefore the more you put into this the more you will get out in terms of your personal development.

 

You are challenged toÉ

 

The aim of this challenge is to test shop your competitors.

This will allow you to gain experience of:

 

●     Identifying your competitors strengths and weaknesses

●     Analysing this information to make recommendations for changes within your store and implementing them

●     Monitoring and measuring the impact these changes have on the store performance.

 

You may have previously learnt and/or demonstrated some of these things and therefore you will want to design your challenge and personal objectives to focus on those areas most relevant to you.

 

 

Sources of Reference

Whilst completing this challenge you may find it useful to refer to the following Top Tips:

 

○     Competitor analysis

○     SWOT analysis

○     Merchandising

○     Customer service

○     Selling skills

●     Development Challenge – Commercial awareness

Customer - Development Challenges - Test Shopping

Test Shopping

Case Study

Consider the following questions in relation to this challenge and record your answers in the space provide. Working through each question will enable you identify the current situation and possible options you have for completing this challenge to reach a positive end result. You should then select which of the options you are going to put into action.

 

 

Goal

●     What specifically do you want to learn/develop/achieve through this challenge?

●     How will this improve you personally and your performance?

●     How will you know when you have achieved your goal?

●     What is your measurement of success?

 

 

Reality

●     What do you already know about Test Shopping?

●     What experience have you had of Test Shopping your store and Competitors stores?

●     What are your thoughts or feelings about undertaking this challenge?

●     What is your motivation for learning these things?

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Options

●     What are all the options you have to achieve this challenge?

●     Which is the best way for you to do this?

●     Who do you know who could help?

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Will

●     What are your next steps and how committed are you to them?

●     How will you feel once youÕve achieved it?

●     How will it be different when you are confident and capable to do these things?

●     What are your time-scales for completing this challenge?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Planning

In order to complete your challenge successfully it is important that you create a plan capturing each of the actions you need to take in order to achieve your goal. There are two methods of planning that you can choose from when completing this challenge, these are explained below.

 

Outcome, Performance and Process Goals

ÒDreams without goals are just fantasy; goals without dreams are a waste of timeÓ. This planning technique ensures we have both, enabling you to record your overall vision/dream, the performance measures to make the vision/dream a reality and the next steps required to ensure we achieve our performance measure. These are your outcome, performance and process goals.

 

An Outcome Goal (vision/dream) captures the overall vision that you have in terms of performance. For example you may want to grow profit year on year.

 

Performance Goals (performance measures) identify objectives / targets to achieve in specific areas of the business that will enable the overall vision to be achieved. One example is you may want to increase conversion to contribute to profit growth.

 

Process goals are all the next steps that need to be carried out in order to achieve a performance goal and in turn impact upon your outcome goal. For example you may want to observe and coach your team on approaching customers.

All of this information should be captured in the format shown below.

 

Customer - Development Challenges - Test Shopping

Test Shopping

Next Steps / Action Plan

If you are working towards a goal that relates to one specific area of your business it may be more appropriate to simply record what you need to do as next steps in the form of a table as shown below.

 

What

Who

By When

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Review

 

Having carried out the required actions you should review how this challenge has gone, measure the results of your actions and decide if any further actions are required in order to achieve the original goal. Use the section below to record this information.

 

What worked well for you during this challenge?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What didnÕt work well for you during this challenge and what would you do differently next time?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What feedback have you received from your team and line manager during this challenge? (You may want to ask for feedback now if you have not already done so)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Are any further actions required in order to complete this challenge? If so please outline them in the space below.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Further Information

If you would like to learn more about Test Shopping the following resources are recommended:

 

●     Speak to your line manager/ Mentor