Sarah Sold a Space Station!

Thrilled customer poses with Yes She Can Trainee Sarah F. and the space station.

We were all excited when we received a donation of the American Girl Space Station.  This was the featured item from the collection of Luciana Vega, 2018 Girl of the Year.  Luciana is a 12-year-old girl who aspires to be the first person to explore Mars.   The space station, which comes with dozens of accessories, cost $350 when introduced in 2018.

Knowing this was a very desirable item, trainee Sarah checked the Girl AGain Wish List.  Not surprisingly, she found that there was a customer who wanted the space station.

The Wish List is an online form that customers fill out when there is an item they are looking for that is no longer available at the American Girl store or e-shop.  (American Girl retires most of their items after a few years.)

First, Sarah needed to know the condition of the item and the price before she called the customer.  She then followed the multi-step process that requires a range of skills.

Sarah made the call to the customer and  – SUCCESS – Sarah sold a space station!

Here are just some of the skills that are involved in this process:

• Accessing the spreadsheet in our Google Drive and searching by product to find the customer contact information
• Assessing the condition of an item
• Calling a stranger
• Being able to follow the script
• Being flexible to go “off script” in response to the customer, responding to the unexpected question.
• Knowing how to ask for help if needed
• Closing the sale
• Being able to conclude the conversation
• Updating the spreadsheet, entering relevant data

Many of these skills do not come naturally to individuals on the autism spectrum. Our coaches and managers helped Sarah learn each of these skills, which are all transferable to any workplace.  Congratulations to Sarah for accomplishing this complex task. Now a customer is very happy and Sarah has gained confidence in her skills.  Yes She Can!

Luciana Vega’s Space Station

Detail of the Space Station at Girl AGain

The Wish List Process:

Call the person next on the wish list for the item
When the customer picks up say, “Hi, this is (your name). I am a trainee calling from Girl AGain, I am calling to speak with (customer’s name-person on the wish list).”
“I am calling about the (name of the item/doll)”
“I am calling because you are next on the wishlist for this item.”
Ask: “Are you still interested in the item?”

If yes: Give the price and tell them there is also tax (unless out of state – you will know this because their address is on the wish list). Also shipping if they need the item shipped.

Tell them: “This is the condition of the item  [For example: excellent, or has marks, or hair is trimmed]
Tell them:  “You can pay over the phone with a credit card.  We can ship or we can put the item aside until you come in.’

If they say No they are no longer interested you can thank them and say, “I hope you will visit Girl Again soon”.

After the call
Mark on the Wishlist spreadsheet in Google Drive next to the person’s name that they were called with the date and put the date of purchase in the correct column.
If no – mark the wishlist sheet as called and put “did not purchase” in notes and the reason why the customer did not purchase the item if they gave a reason.