As a medicinal patient, I have seen the good, the bad, and the ugly as a customer dealing with budtenders. Dispensaries in large markets have competition and one bad experience a patient may not return to your location again. The whole saying, an unhappy customer will tell 10 other people versus a happy customer who may not tell anyone. In today’s world with social media apps such as WeedMaps, people can post reviews on dispensaries right after their experience versus calling your business to vent on the service received.
As a dispensary, like other brick and mortar businesses, you depend on those customers to keep coming back. Good reviews on Weedmaps can either make or break your company.
Cannabis Dispensary Customer Service – So you hired a new budtender? What do you do?
First, budtenders, should know your product. A patient or customer that is asking questions is there for your suggestions. Which leads me to, bring out the product if we are asking about balms, lotions, and candies.
Oh cash machines. If a patient and/or customer needs to go take cash out and you are going to get a product for that customer, double check the order.
Again, double and triple check the order, confirm with that customer the items they are requesting before you hit that cash out button. Today, I left the dispensary upset because this is exactly what happened to me. I looked in my bag, to discover it wasn’t the right amount for edible candy I had requested. The employee hadn’t confirmed and was cashing me out before I had the chance to correct the mistake.
Lastly, don’t talk down to your customers saying that is what they requested. This should have been confirmed before finishing hitting that payment key. Then don’t ask them if they want to be rung up for the correct amount with another charge! Logics.
I decided to write a post about suggestions since training budtenders is key to front end sales of cannabis. I did call the dispensary and spoke to the manager who said they were in the process of training new budtenders. This should actually be done on day 1, not later. Day 1, the employee should know their product and confirming the customers order before they hit the sales floor or they won’t come back.
As a company trainer for many years in customer service, a former manager at a retail store, I see excellent service as a training issue. We have many options for assisting you on helping your workers be the rock-stars they are. To learn more and take one of our courses click HERE.
