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Greenhorn, Ian Winter is with Colony Foods out of Lawrence, Massachusetts and has been a DSR for eight months. According to Winter, PRODUCT KNOWLEDGE is 100%, the hardest part of the job so far. But, Ian’s having fun because every call is easier than the last.
Winter explains in this audio interview how he is learning more about products from his customers and prospects than by just reading about them. Ian says that he’s usually pretty good at retaining information from reading and learning about products, but there’s nothing like the hands-on experience he gets when he’s actually seeing, touching and tasting a product.
This Greenhorn says that he has grown used to hearing prospects tell him that they’re happy with their current suppliers, so he congratulates them on having such a good DSR calling on them. The good news is that those DSRs are few and far between in many areas of the country.
Ian tells prospects that he’s new and he wants to learn. He asks prospects and customers on every call how they use this or that product, and why and how they do different things, even if he has a pretty good idea on the how and why. Winter has learned that most people really like teaching new DSRs what they know, but you have to listen and take good notes. This is a great time to learn what they really need while building a relationship with them.
Points of interest in Ian’s interview:
- Price is the #1 thing many operators want to talk about when you are making a cold call on them, but Ian uses that as a way to gather more INTEL.
- After being rejected on a prospect call, continue to keep going back in because you’re driving by.
- 1 out of 10 DSRs go back into a prospect after making the first call on them. If you go back in, your chances really go up.
- If a prospect does not tell you to LEAVE AND NEVER COME BACK, then youhave an open invitation to come back, so go BACK!
- Be honest with prospects about what YOU and your company can do, and what you can’t do.
- Greenhorn DSRs might not want to tell a prospect how to do something (even if they know) because many operators think they know how much better. You might want to keep asking questions until you get all of their business!
DSRs, Be a Resource…
and Sell Something!
