Online Training
Employee Training
NHPA offers more than 40 online training courses for retailers to educate their employees on product knowledge, project sales, customer service and more. These courses are available to NHPA Premier Members.
Training Benefits
It’s no secret that trained employees are more confident and satisfied with their jobs. NHPA Premier Members have access to more than 40 online training courses, giving staff all the tools they need to succeed.
Sales
Increase Transaction Size
Employees who understand a customer’s project can suggest add-on sales, which can boost your average transaction size.
Retention
Decrease Employee Turnover
When employees have the skills they need to do their jobs, they will feel more confident and connected to the business.
Service
Boost Customer Service
The more employees know about the products they’re selling, the better they’ll be able to answer customers’ questions.
Basic Training Courses
Our Three Pennies of Profit
This video gives employees a basic understanding of the fundamental elements of retail profit and loss. It is ideal for all employees because it helps them understand how their actions on the sales floor directly affect the store’s profit—and their own success in the business. It includes a test.
Basic Training in Selling Skills
This course teaches employees the basic selling skills for delivering top-notch customer service. It covers topics such as how to make a good first impression, deal with customer complaints, overcome objections, close the sale and more.
Basic Retail Merchandising
Proper merchandising helps a store improve sales, so it is essential that every employee be familiar with best merchandising practices. This course will help employees understand merchandising fundamentals and what they can do to maximize the impact of every display.
Loss Prevention: Store Safety
Every business should have a store safety program. This course will explain how each person has a role in creating a culture of safety, how to prevent accidents and what to do if one occurs.
Joining a Retail Team
This course is designed to help you understand the important role you play as a member of a retail team. You will learn about teamwork, customer service and why independent retailers are an important part of the community.
Retail Terms
Employees learn 60 terms common to retail in an interactive game format.
Basic Training in Hardware Retailing
This series of courses covers the basics of items and categories sold in a typical home improvement store. In addition to outlining the products and features of basic products, this course offers selling skills and frequently asked questions. It will equip employees with the basic product knowledge they need to start selling.
Basic Training in Building Materials
This series of courses covers different types of products sold in a typical lumberyard or home center. In addition to outlining the products and features of basic products, this course offers selling skills and frequently asked questions.
Basic Paint Sales
Basic Paint Sales covers the fundamental retail skills employees need to know to start selling paint. With an emphasis on best practices and selling skills essential to the category, the course is applicable to any retailer who wants to develop and maintain a strong paint business, whether they are a home improvement store or a paint and decorating retailer. Topics include how to help a customer choose a color, selling skills, product sales, merchandising and store safety.
Advanced Paint Sales
This series of courses covers coatings, applicators and sundries, color and customer service. After taking Advanced Paint Sales, sales associates will have an in-depth understanding of the different types of coatings sold in paint and decorating stores and be able to help customers choose the best one for their project. Sales associates will learn through interactive content, printable study guides and review tests.
Paint Problem Solver
This reference guide helps sales associates understand the probable causes and recommended solutions for different interior and exterior paint performance problems. Full-color photos and detailed explanations instruct sales associates on how to help customers and find the correct product for remediation. Paint Problem Solver is available as an online reference tool and PDF guide.
Project Selling/ Project Pro
Raise your average transaction size by teaching employees how to sell some of the most common home improvement projects. The courses focus on how to provide the best customer service when selling a project and how to suggest add-on sales.
Loss Prevention: Internal Theft
Internal theft accounts for a large percentage of retail shrinkage, and it’s a difficult problem for retailers to address. In this course, you’ll learn about some of the reasons employees steal from their employers, the different types of internal theft, how to detect it in your business and tactics for preventing it.
Loss Prevention: External Theft
External theft includes different types of theft and fraud resulting from individuals who are not employed by the store. It may include longtime customers, individuals posing as customers or vendors your store does business with. This course will focus on the most common type of external shrinkage—shoplifting. Course content will cover different types of shoplifting, how to deter it and how to confront a shoplifter.
Advanced Training Courses
Inventory Management
The course in Inventory Management is a primer on the basic concepts and best practices of managing inventory in a home improvement retail operation. In seven modules, the course outlines the components of the inventory cycle, including ordering, receiving and stocking. It also covers ways retailers should maintain the accuracy of their inventory records and manage slow-moving and discontinued inventory.
Basic Retail Pricing
This course introduces the basic principles of pricing in a typical home improvement operation. The course will review key concepts such as pricing terms and calculations, common pricing techniques, price audits and price shopping. The course will also review how retailers manage their price image and how they can strengthen their overall pricing strategy to improve profitability.
Basic Retail Accounting
This course introduces the often-complicated topic of accounting by explaining the terms used in the two most common financial statements: the income statement and the balance sheet. The course also defines basic financial ratios retailers use to compare their operation against others in the industry.
NHPA Premier Member?
While all independent home improvement retailers are automatically members of the association with access to free resources, training and events, only retailers with an NHPA Premier Membership can access these in-depth online training courses.
To gain access to NHPA’s online training courses, simply log in below or head to our membership page to see how you can become an NHPA Premier Member.
Compliance Training
NHPA offers a convenient and affordable way to provide your employees with workplace safety and HR compliance training. View the course list and visit the NHPA Training Store to purchase courses for your team.
