Investing in proper sales training can save your winery.

Thursday, 9 May, 2013
Francois le Roux
In this tough economic times wineries and companies are trying every method known to man to increase sales of their brands. Unfortunately the statistics don’t lie. Only 21% of all companies in South Africa invest in proper Sale training for their staff. This is shocking.
In the past 14 years I have done sales training for close to 100 different corporate, telephone sales as well as wine companies in South Africa. Most of these companies big and small have all got the same problem when it comes to the marketing and selling of their products and brands. Usually during tough economic times in these companies most companies increase their social media exposure, product knowledge of their representatives or take the drastic approach of lowering their prices.

This approach to the growth of their sales process kind of work like buying a Ferrari, but never putting the petrol in the tank to take it out for a drive. Words like closing objections, interactive one on one sales and strategic market closing has become a faint memory in most companies dictionaries.

Strategically most companies invest a lot of money and time in their representatives teaching them the fundamentals of product knowledge, but in doing so they are creating a habit of only showing the customer the features of their product or brand, but never committing the client to invest in their product . The statistics does not lie. In South Africa only 21% or all companies invest in proper sales training in their staff. This usually should be an outside person with no affiliation to the company product or brand, that will look at your staff from an outside objective perspective and assessing where the links of your sales strategy and training are most vulnerable.

Most sales processes only consist of 6 steps and every single sale that you did not make when calling upon a client can be directly traced to one of these 6 steps.

1.Planning & Preparation        planning/research/approach
2.Introduction                        opening/approach
3.Questioning                        identify needs/ask how and what, etc.
4.Close a sale                                 closing/commitment/confirmation
5.Overcoming objections        negotiating/strategic sales moves
6.Role-Play scenarios              one on one confrontational sales training
7.Follow-up                                    after-sales/fulfill/deliver/admin

FtW Consultants (Pty) Ltd has developed a sales and marketing training course specially written for the wine industry. With more than 50 wineries trained, this course has been tried and tested by the South African wine industry. This course was not written only for the sales representatives, but has been expanded to cater to tasting room staff, winemakers, sales managers or any other person at your company selling a product or a service. Our one day course consists of all these elements in a very practical manner.

Most sales course that has been hosted in the wine industry is 90% theory and 10% practical. Our course consist of  10% theory and 90% practical training. If you your company is struggling to increase the sales of your brands and products and feel that you need assistance from an outside perspective, we would like to assist you.

Please visit our website at www.ftwconsultants.co.za to make your free consultation booking.

WineLand