Yeah, mentioning Outlook would do it. I suspect there is really no formal training given to an AT&T store salesperson. They could be working at the Gap one day and selling phones the next. They probably know best what their commission is on each product. When you actually make the purchase they hand you off to the tech person in the back to set up your sim card and turn the phone on. At least that is what I noticed when I was shopping there.
They’ve changed their service model to some extent. My last outing was very different. We sat at a table and did everything there. Disabled the old phone, sim card stuff, initializing with my old number, etc. I paid in cash, and the guy used a tablet as a register...and hoped up and opened a hidden cash drawer in a cabinet a few feet away. Then I ordered a wireless charger...and he had to take plastic for tbat. He whipped out a machine and swiped it right there. We never had to go to the counter, which was the center of the universe my last trip there.