The Future of the Retail Salesperson

Abstract

The authors discuss broad changes to the retail salesperson, the strengths of AI and salespeople, the seven Cs of the customer experience, and ways to optimize each category of the customer experience through a synergistic use of salespeople and AI. These categories are paired with case studies that represent companies effectively embodying the recommendations of the authors. Finally, the authors offer foundational precepts that help guide practitioners and future research directions for scholars to explore.