Create Lasting Customers and Earn Bigger Tips: Vetrina x Flowhub Webinar

In case you missed it, Vetrina’s CEO Krista Raymer teamed up with Flowhub’s Anne Fleshman and Ryan Budny for a powerful training session called  “How to Earn Loyal Customers and Bigger Tips.”

What did we learn? Lots. The takeaway is clear: building meaningful customer relationships and focusing on visit frequency - rather than just customer spending - is essential to long-term success for any cannabis retailer. Budtenders who nurture their customers through their shopping experience create meaningful moments and emotional connections, ultimately building trust and loyalty.  

But how do you do this? Let’s dive in.

Leave the Bias Behind

At the heart of effective customer interactions is the ability to set aside personal biases. A budtender bias refers to the preconceived notions that can cloud how we interact with customers and make recommendations. When we let these biases guide us, they can make us more susceptible to providing misinformation, missing hidden cues, and losing out on moments of feedback. Fear not! There are three ways to overcome this: active listening, unbiased product education, and customer feedback. Sales don’t only have to be about product knowledge; they are about creating lasting relationships, lasting beyond that single interaction.

During the Webinar, Krista walked us through Vetrina’s Cannabis Steps of Service, a step-by-step guide to maximizing each customer interaction. It begins with a warm welcome and into the Needs Detective phase. Here is when we figure out why the customer has come into the store so that we can be confident when approaching the remaining steps:

• Presenting Products
• Decision Power
• Product Coordination
• Impulse
• Customer for Life
• Loyalty Love
• Payment Made Easy

Efficiency is key! Know when to accelerate the process and when to take it slow, always keeping the customer involved in their journey.

How to Implement the Steps of Service

The Steps of Service is your roadmap to ensure you hit all the important stops and build rapport, identify customer needs, recommend perfect products, and send them off happy.

How do they help? 

• Avoid skipping crucial steps
• Guarantees a personalized experience 
• Maximize every opportunity
• Smooth experience = trust 

The steps of service are incredibly helpful, but how can you ensure your team is implementing them? Leverage these techniques to ensure their success:

Use Open-Ended vs Closed-Based Questions

The way you phrase your questions can set the tone for the entire interaction. Starting with “What?” instead of “Why?” opens the door to factual insights while keeping it light and informative. Ask questions like, “What brought you in today?” or “What type of pre-roll are you looking for?” These questions help gather vital information without diving too deep into personal territory, allowing you to tailor your recommendations effectively.

Pro Tip: Hold off on product recommendations until later in the conversation, after you’ve learned more about their preferences and understand past purchases.

Set and Setting

Tailor your recommendations by considering the customer’s mindset and the environment in which they plan to enjoy their products. The “set” refers to their desired mental state—energized, relaxed, etc.—while the “setting” involves their consumption environment, whether a park or a friend’s house. Understanding these details enables you to recommend the ideal product for their unique experience.

2 Features + 1 Benefit 

Don’t forget the Vetrina Holy Grail: Budtenders using the 2 Features + 1 Benefit formula, which streamlines your product suggestions. For instance, if a customer is looking for something to enjoy both at the park and at home, you might suggest an edible with CBG and a lemon flavor (features) that enhances their mood without overwhelming them (benefit). With just a few details, you empower customers to make informed decisions without overwhelming them with too much information.

Nerdy Insight: The human brain can handle only about three pieces of information simultaneously. Presenting too many details at once can overwhelm customers, especially when they can’t physically see the product. By focusing on two features and one benefit, we help customers make their own informed choices. Want to read more? Check out our blog on Why Treating Price as a Feature is a Mistake.

Let’s Talk About Body Language

Be a wallet whisperer, or at least someone on point with visual cues from customer body language. When customers reach for their wallets, it’s a clear sign they’re ready to leave. A smooth checkout process will leave a positive impression and influence their likelihood of return.

Pro Tip: If the occasion feels right, you can offer one last product suggestion related to their intended purchase. Consider impulse, cross-category or accessory purchases. 

Empower your Budtenders with Flowhub

At Vetrina, we know that budtenders are more than mere salespeople. They’re the essential connection between customers and a memorable in-store experience. Often the defining factor between you and a competitive dispensary.  Flowhub’s customer experience app empowers budtenders with features like Loyalty Rewards and Customer Notes to keep track of performance and customer interactions, enhancing relationships with each visit.

The app also streamlines transactions through Order Ahead and Integrated Payment solutions, while the Budtender Metrics dashboard provides key sales data, essential for building lasting customer connections. If you want to learn more, reach out to [email protected] or book a demo here: flowhub.com/demo.

Key Takeaways

Alright, that was a lot! Let’s break down some of this information into key takeaways!

1. Customer Relationship Building
   • Focus on nurturing customer relationships to promote repeat visits rather than targeting fleeting sales. Prioritizing memorable interactions to cultivate enduring loyalty
2. Bias Awareness
   • Budtenders need to set aside any existing personal biases or preferences so that we can provide objective recommendations that best serve the customer’s wants and needs. Techniques like active listening and providing unbiased product information are crucial for overcoming biases.
3. Selling Approaches
   • Use open-ended questions to gather useful information without getting too personal. Also, consider the context the customer has given and apply the “2 Features + 1 Benefit” approach to make product recommendations straightforward.
4. Technology is your Friend
   • Leverage technology to proactively surface customer insights, recommend deals, and track performance.

Ultimately, the goal is to ensure that every customer interaction is not just about the sale but about building a relationship that resonates long after they leave the store. Authentic connections create long-term loyalty. Give your team the tools, like the 10 steps of service, and educate them on how to be a needs detective,, you can transform casual shoppers into loyal customer who return again and again.

Want to check out the entire webinar? Check it out on YouTube here.

Got questions? We’d love to hear from you. Drop us a line and let’s connect!