No matter the type of store — chain, boutique, peep, traditional or some combination thereof — one thing remains the same: consumers depend on the employees in these retail spaces to answer their questions, give recommendations, and have a more-than-general working knowledge of products and the human body.
The majority of adult retail employees come to this industry with no previous experience or formal training; they may have had extensive experience working retail in general, but as anyone who has ever worked in adult knows — there’s a lot more to the job than standing in front of a cash register ringing sales.
Nothing helps one retain information better than if that person enjoyed learning it.
Now, I’m not saying that one has to go out and get certified through an AASECT accredited program (though if one has the inclination, time and funds — go for it!) but store employees should be able to field questions from customers, and be able to recommend the perfect product that will suit the consumer’s needs.
There are several ways that a retailer can make sure their store employees get the education they will need, but no one method will ever cover every base. Here’s a brief overview of the main educational routes available, and combining a variety of them will make for a more well-rounded store employee.
Distributor-Sponsored e-Learning
If your store buys from a distributor, you may have access to a wide variety of training courses that covers specific products from vendors, entire product lines, common subjects that consumers most often ask about, and a variety of other classes that can be taken right in-store. Williams Trading University by Williams Trading Co. and Elevate U by Eldorado are two great examples of distributor-sponsored e-learning platforms. Most of the courses offered are tailored to the store learning environment: they’re short enough that a store employee can watch the entire video between customers, and they call out the most important points an e-learning student might need to know about a product or a commonly-asked question from a consumer.
Vendor In-Store Trainings
Brand sales reps are always traveling, and chances are they can set up an in-store training for store staff if the storeowner reaches out to them. This is a great way to learn about entire product lines, see new products that will be coming out, and ask all those pesky questions like how to turn off a travel lock on a particular product, or how one toy differs from another. These reps are the ambassadors of their company’s brand, and they’re called “road warriors” for a reason! In-store trainings are great because this is how store staff will really learn the differences between products; and fall in love with one or more of them (which equals sales, but I don’t have to tell you that, do I?) Sales reps know their products better than anyone, and they love enthusiastic store employees.
Vendor e-Learning Platforms
Companies like CalExotics, Pipedream Products, Cloud 9 Novelties, Screaming O and Blush Novelties have set up their own “universities,” accessible through their websites or YouTube channels. For the most part, these methods of training focus on products from that specific vendor, but increasingly, they are branching out to address frequently-asked about topics store employees will encounter from consumers. A cross between distributor e-learning platforms and in-store trainings, the vendors behind these educational platforms have in-house, accredited sex educators bringing content straight to store employees.
Alternative Methods
Now, I know we’ve all heard that if it’s on the internet, it must be true — right?
Before your employees start browsing Google, make sure they know where the best information doesn’t come from. A random search will return thousands of results from all over the web — a lot of which is opinion and therefore open to interpretation. It’s like doing a research paper in school; Wikipedia can be used as a jumping-off point (the references at the bottom of the Wiki entry) but shouldn’t be the meat of the research.
But how to determine what is fact and what is fiction takes a little common sense, some cross-referencing, and knowing where to turn for information. Some information can be found on a vendor’s website. Some search queries will result in articles whose URL ends in .gov or .org (especially medical queries.) Some will take you to blogs…
Which brings us to our final alternative educational method: sex bloggers!
Oftentimes overlooked as an educational tool, sex blogs are a great way for store employees to learn about products and certain issues that might plague consumers. The top-rated bloggers will appear at the very top of a Google search return — Kinkly.com has an entire list with ratings and analytical data as to those ratings and a brief overview of each blog.
One might think that sex bloggers would fall under the “interpretive opinion” class of resources, but that is only partially correct. Sex bloggers do write their opinions, yes — but the most popular ones earn a good living doing so because they’ve educated themselves in everything sex. They receive product samples for honest reviews — and some are brutally honest. It’s why companies send their products to them — because they can trust that the blogger will be honest. Good sex bloggers will write why a product works or doesn’t work for them; that detailed analysis as to what worked and what didn’t is what store employees can learn from, and use when talking to their customers. What might not work for the blogger in question doesn’t mean that it won’t work for everyone — and the good bloggers always state that clearly in their reviews. There’s a term that is so apt in the adult business — Your Mileage May Vary (YMMV). Basically, it means that everyone is different, and that one specific thing might work better for one person than another (and vice versa). The other, incredibly important thing about reading blogs for educational purposes? They’re entertaining. Nothing helps one retain information better than if that person enjoyed learning it.
That is true for blogs, vendor trainings, e-learning modules, and every other educational method out there. If the employee is enjoying the learning, they’re more likely to remember what they learned — and pass it on.
The key to any successful business is knowledge and experience, and the adult retail environment is no different. Store employees can come from any walk of life, be any age, subscribe to any orientation. Education, however, is what makes a simple retail worker into a stellar salesperson, and bridges the gap between all aspects of adult retail. No matter the type of store, no matter the customer base, a well-educated employee is the key to healthy sales.
Fresh from the front lines of adult retail, Rachel McCarthy is now a sales specialist with Williams Trading Co. She is a strong supporter of sex-ed, sexual health and wellness, and open discourse on all things related to sex.
