Recently, during my visits to retail outlets, I encountered many salespeople from various manufacturers. I learned a lot of valuable experience from them, but while learning their strengths, I also noticed some problems.
One day, my visit route happened to coincide with a salesperson from a certain manufacturer. We met when I started visiting my first client. As usual, I greeted the store owner quickly and stated my purpose before entering, then stood aside to wait. During the wait, I learned that this gentleman talking with the store owner was a salesperson from X Beverage Company. He was indeed a sales elite, with good appearance and demeanor, and very articulate. He explained the product situation to the owner in a smooth and fluent manner. I saw the owner show interest at times, but also surprise and confusion at others. This gentleman had clearly put a lot of effort into learning about the product, which I think is necessary for every salesperson to be proficient in their own products. Perhaps he wanted to find more topics to communicate with the customer and make them understand his company better. I heard him talk about the company's strategy, and even mentioned 4P and 4C. Undeniably, this gentleman had solid marketing knowledge.
Before I knew it, I had visited half of the clients on my route. Of course, that salesperson from X manufacturer was always ahead of me, because he started earlier. We had many opportunities to meet at retail outlets. Every time I saw him, he seemed so passionate. He could talk with each client for a long time, but from my observation, each client had a similar expression of surprise and confusion.
What caused this situation? Logically, this salesperson was polite and well-mannered in speech and behavior. Actually, readers might have realized that when the salesperson mentioned marketing 4P and 4C, the store owners were confused and surprised. Think about it: how many ordinary store owners know these professional terms? Even more, once when he was giving an example of how well a new product was selling, he said, "Our company's new product is a strategic product, launched after market research. Many outlets have already reordered, and their sell-through is quite healthy." But when the customer heard terms like "outlets" and "healthy sell-through," they didn't understand. Several owners even asked what "outlets" meant, thinking it was a store name. One owner, a woman around fifty, even asked where this "outlet" store was located, saying she didn't know there was such a store on this street!
Communication is so important in the sales process! Communication is the process of transmitting and feeding back thoughts and feelings between people, and between people and groups, to achieve consensus and smooth emotions. But in sales, I have another interpretation: communication is best when you use the way the customer likes and the way the customer pays. It is conceivable that although this salesperson made no mistakes in the visit process, the main issue was too much jargon in customer communication, failing to reach consensus, thus causing customers to show surprise and confusion.
Sales jargon is certainly important and can reflect a salesperson's quality and knowledge, but in our actual terminal combat, how to use it flexibly? Product knowledge should be as professional as possible for salespeople. But sales jargon needs to be used flexibly. Talking about strategy, 4P, 4C, and other professional marketing terms with an illiterate customer will inevitably hit a wall in the sales process, and perhaps they will even say you are showing off.
Through this experience, I also reflected on myself: do we also have such scenes in our usual sales process? Do we also confuse customers with our expressions? Here I summarize some communication precautions during visits: First: Under the premise of being familiar with product knowledge, convey it to customers in a flexible and easy-to-understand way; Second: In customer communication, have a people-friendly approach, using methods that customers understand and accept; Third: Try to minimize professional jargon. If you do these three points, I believe customers will not be surprised or confused in sales. Of course, this is just my personal opinion. If you have different views, I am willing to exchange and learn with you!
Reply with the following keywords to categorize and read related professional articles: Sales Supervisor, Second-tier Management, Regional Manager, Distributor Management, New Channels, City Manager, Competition, 2015, Manufacturer-Dealer Game, Product Stagnation, Terminal Visit Management, Route Management, Deep Distribution, Internal Management, Sales Skills, Profit Improvement, Recruitment, Distribution, Daily Management, Team Motivation, Trade Promotion, Sales Misconceptions, New Product Launch, Township Market, New Product Pricing, Sales Target Achievement, Closing, Market Visit Inspection, Baijiu, Beer, Sales Increase, Agency Products, Channel Crossing, KA, Terminal Merchandising, New Market, Market Operation, Learning, Book Recommendations, Inventory Management, New Salespeople, Consumer Promotion, Execution, Old Products, Expired Product Handling, Model Market, Investment Promotion, New Media, Distributor Development, Performance Appraisal, Assessment, Annual Planning, Shopping Guide, Morning Meeting, Display, Transformation, Stock Pressure, Holidays, Distributor Cost Control, Channel Operation, Marketing Theory and Laws, Brand Truth, Order Meeting, Team Management, Training, Debriefing, Debriefing Report.