Furniture World Articles by
David Benbow
Published: 7/1/2023
Whether or not you agree that we’ve entered a new retail paradigm, it’s time to double down on proven sales practices.
Published: 9/29/2022
If you want to have more trouble-free sales, educate
your customers with facts and take care that your RSAs do not spread misinformation or disinformation.
Published: 1/10/2022
Personnel turnover is high and training costs time and money.
Published: 9/25/2021
There are many reasons to get together with your team. From scheduled to impromptu, why, when and how you manage them is very important.
Published: 1/23/2021
Selling mattresses and furniture can be a great career. So, what can be done to elevate the status of RSAs, starting now in 2021?
Published: 9/24/2020
We don’t know how this mess is going to turn out, but If you are prospering, keep focused. Do what you do well and prepare for everything!
Published: 8/5/2020
Ways to keep your sales staff motivated and focused even during those slow and boring times, especially in retail bedding departments.
Published: 4/5/2020
It's been said that retail sales-people are the weakest link in the buying chain for furniture and mattresses.
Published: 1/4/2020
Get your customers to spend more money than they intended on a mattress, and leave your store happy for spending it!
Published: 12/8/2019
A look back to what was, where our industry is today, and the actions it is well advised to take in 2020
Published: 10/12/2019
What are the best ways, for both store and customer, to handle product exchanges?
Published: 7/15/2019
What RSAs know, or may not know, but should know about the business of selling bedding. Take this quiz and find out!
Published: 5/30/2019
Most mature, adults would say that they know right from
wrong. If it is that easy, then why don’t all retail players act ethically all
the time?
Published: 3/23/2019
If you've decided to negotiate, here's what you need to know.
Published: 1/8/2019
Selling is everything in retail. That’s why the sales manager's job is so important.
Published: 11/27/2018
While plans have an annoying tendency to go haywire, having
no plan at all is begging for failure.
Published: 9/22/2018
How to get the be-back customer back by David Benbow, author of How to Win the Battle For Mattress Sales.
Published: 7/4/2018
Whether your top bed is $4,000 or $40,000, here are sales strategies to help you present and sell your best.
Published: 5/23/2018
If you are a retail owner/manager you probably don't have a lot of down time. But what about your RSAs?
Published: 3/23/2018
Here's how to build sales by using a follow-up system that creates top-of-mind awareness.
Published: 1/14/2018
Here's how to make a great closing argument and avoid the many pitfalls that can result in lost sales.
Published: 11/29/2017
Here's how to improve your stone-age phone practices to increase store traffic.
Published: 9/23/2017
Lessons from Hurricane Harvey. No furnishings retailer is completely safe from disaster, natural or man-made.
Published: 7/7/2017
Part 1: How can a quiet, modest, non-pushy RSA ever be a good closer? Here's how!
Published: 6/1/2017
Best ways to avoid situations that may lead to customer injuries; physical, emotional and financial.
Published: 3/29/2017
Best ways to help the uninformed and misinformed to make the right purchase decisions.
Published: 12/28/2016
Where does sleep deprivation fit into a sales narrative that emphasizes comfort and good, restful sleep?.
Published: 11/29/2016
Here we will present a number of specific objections furniture and bedding customers can and will bring up.
Published: 9/30/2016
Responding correctly to customer objections is a powerful and productive sales skill. Here’s how to do it right.
Published: 7/7/2016
The Presentation Step is the start of closing. Here’s how to do it right.
Published: 6/2/2016
What’s the solution to under-performing sales associates?
Published: 3/25/2016
If not executed properly, the selection step can wind up badly for both RSA and the customer. Here’s how to do it right.
Published: 1/4/2016
More qualifying questions RSA’s can use to keep the sale moving along.
Published: 11/27/2015
What are the most common mistakes you can stop your salespeople from making in 2016?
Published: 9/28/2015
Part 6 of our Steps-Of-The-Sale series. Qualifying questions RSAs need to know to complete more mattress sales.
Published: 7/17/2015
Part 5 of our Steps-Of-The-Sale series. Do your RSAs fail to ask even the most fundamental qualifying questions?
Published: 6/9/2015
Part 3 of our Steps-Of-The-Sale series. The ‘Meet and Greet,’ is where the R.S.A. makes a first impression.
Published: 3/24/2015
This installment provides a checklist of everything your R.S.A.’s need to know, inside and out, about the background knowledge that supports and sustains the sales process.
Published: 12/30/2014
A structured, two-week training program for new bedding (and furniture) RSAs.
Published: 11/21/2014
Tips on how to find, hire, evaluate and compensate what could be your most important assets.
Published: 9/29/2014
What policies should you set to respond intelligently to a customer’s (buyer’s) after-the-sale enquiries or complaints?
Published: 7/9/2014
Ideas for merchandising your mattress showroom so you can show enough beds, the right beds, and the ones your customers want to buy.
Published: 5/22/2014
A retailer’s perspective on using an outside company to do a GOB, inventory reduction, cash raising sale or other high impact promotion.
Published: 3/17/2014
The final outcome of the mattress sales process depends almost entirely on whether the RSA keeps control or gives up control to the customer. Here’s how to stay in control.
Published: 1/3/2014
How to get information on your mattress competition, profile them, and use this information to close more sales.
Published: 12/10/2013
Here is a collection of ideas on how to arrange and run a mattress warehouse for optimum efficiency. This article can be useful as a check list when opening a new warehouse or as a training guide for new warehouse personnel.
Published: 11/11/2013
If you haven’t set up a mattress warehouse before, are looking for new/additional space, or want a quick review of important considerations, read on.
Published: 9/30/2013
Training new-hires, as every small and large store owner knows, is a problem that never ends. This article provides step-by-step instructions on how to structure a program for new hires that will set them up for success and longevity on your sales floor.