Retail Salespersons

Recommend, select, and help locate or obtain merchandise based on customer needs and desires.

AI: Fully automatable - By 2025 AI recommender systems integrated with store inventory and e‑commerce systems can reliably recommend, select, and guide customers to obtain merchandise across channels.

Maintain records related to sales.

AI: Fully automatable - Sales recordkeeping is already routinely automated by POS/ERP systems and can be fully managed and analyzed by AI.

Answer questions regarding the store and its merchandise.

AI: Fully automatable - AI chatbots and knowledge‑base systems can answer most store and merchandise questions accurately when connected to up‑to‑date store data.

Maintain knowledge of current sales and promotions, policies regarding payment and exchanges, and security practices.

AI: Fully automatable - AI systems can maintain and surface current sales, promotion, payment/exchange policies, and documented security practices in real time when integrated with store systems.

Prepare sales slips or sales contracts.

AI: Fully automatable - Generating sales slips and contracts, populating fields, and completing digital signatures are fully automatable with existing document-generation and workflow tools.

Describe merchandise and explain use, operation, and care of merchandise to customers.

AI: Fully automatable - AI can accurately describe merchandise and explain use, operation, and care instructions using product data, manuals, and multimedia content.

Inventory stock and requisition new stock.

AI: Fully automatable - With RFID/barcode scanning, computer vision, and inventory management integrations, AI can track stock levels and autonomously generate requisitions and orders.

Sell or arrange for delivery, insurance, financing, or service contracts for merchandise.

AI: Fully automatable - AI and integrated service APIs can fully handle selling and arranging delivery, insurance, financing, and service contracts including pricing and documentation workflows.

Estimate quantity and cost of merchandise required, such as paint or floor covering.

AI: Fully automatable - Given measurements or photos, AI can calculate required quantities, factor in waste and current prices, and produce accurate cost estimates automatically.

Place special orders or call other stores to find desired items.

AI: Fully automatable - AI can check inventory, place special orders via backend systems or use telephony/automation to contact other stores and arrange transfers end-to-end.

Greet customers and ascertain what each customer wants or needs.

AI: Partial - AI can greet and qualify customers through chatbots, kiosks, or virtual assistants effectively, but it cannot fully replicate in-person human rapport and nuanced needs assessment in all contexts.

Compute sales prices, total purchases, and receive and process cash or credit payment.

AI: Partial - AI can compute prices and process digital/credit payments via POS APIs but cannot physically handle cash, so end‑to‑end automation is partial.

Prepare merchandise for purchase or rental.

AI: Partial - AI can generate instructions, labels, and workflows for preparing merchandise but cannot generally perform the physical tasks (wrapping, assembly, tagging) without robotics.

Open and close cash registers, performing tasks such as counting money, separating charge slips, coupons, and vouchers, balancing cash drawers, and making deposits.

AI: Partial - Register reconciliation, digital till management, and cash-counting machines automate many steps, but physical cash handling and deposits still require human action or supervised processes.

Demonstrate use or operation of merchandise.

AI: Partial - AI can provide high‑quality virtual/visual demonstrations and guided walkthroughs but cannot perform physical live demonstrations for customers without robotic hardware.

Ticket, arrange, and display merchandise to promote sales.

AI: Partial - AI can design ticketing, planograms, and display plans and automate label printing, but physical arrangement and styling still require human or robotic execution.

Exchange merchandise for customers and accept returns.

AI: Partial - AI can process return transactions, eligibility checks, and refunds digitally, but physical inspection, acceptance, and condition assessment of returned items remain partially manual.

Estimate and quote trade-in allowances.

AI: Partial - AI can produce data-driven trade-in estimates from condition inputs and market data, but accurate final allowances often need in-person inspection and negotiation.

Help customers try on or fit merchandise.

AI: Partial - Virtual try-on and sizing guidance can be automated, but hands-on fitting assistance and nuanced sizing adjustments still require human staff.

Bag or package purchases and wrap gifts.

AI: Partial - Packaging and gift-wrapping are physical, dexterous tasks that some robotics can partially perform but are not broadly fully automated in retail by 2025.

Watch for and recognize security risks and thefts and know how to prevent or handle these situations.

AI: Partial - AI can detect suspicious behavior from cameras and alert staff but cannot physically prevent or fully handle theft situations on its own.

Clean shelves, counters, and tables.

AI: Partial - Some cleaning robots automate parts of the task (especially floors) but comprehensive shelf/counter cleaning and restocking still require human dexterity and judgment.

Rent merchandise to customers.

AI: Partial - AI can automate the rental workflow (quotes, contracts, payments, scheduling) but physical handoff, ID verification and on-site logistics typically still require human or robotic fulfillment.

Estimate cost of repair or alteration of merchandise.

AI: Partial - AI can generate repair/alteration cost estimates from descriptions or images using pricing databases, but complex diagnostics often need human inspection or technician judgment.