How Mall Kiosk Workers Do Money

Photo credit: Mike Mozart, CC BY 2.0.

Today in “how salespeople get you to buy stuff,” we go to Racked:

Watching Chris* work is pretty incredible.

In his 10-year span as a kiosk manager and employee, he’s sold everything from body jewelry to cellphone cases. His current item of choice is sunglasses. Chris exudes a confidence that borders on calm cockiness. He reels you in gently with a soft-spoken voice, and before you know it, you’re leaving with a purchase you barely even knew you just made.

Ngozi Ekeledo interviews multiple mall kiosk workers to learn how they turn that initial interaction into a sale. We also learn how much some kiosk workers earn:

During an average week, Chris says he makes between $1,000 and $1,500 — almost four times the amount he collected in two-week pay periods at his former Foot Locker job. Because of that, the switch from major storefronts to kiosks became a no-brainer for him.

Chris is a bit of an outlier, so you’ll have to read the whole thing to see how the other kiosk workers are doing.

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