- the Author.

PROFESSIONAL TRAININGS

KNOWN ENEMIES and UNKNOWN FRIENDS

Part 3

ELECTRONIC TRAINING TECHNOLOGIES

An extremely poorly developed part of  Bulgarian modern professional trainings are the electronic training technologies. First of all, very few companies have the clear realziation for continuous training process and after using for years the old model of “training lecture,” it is logical that the training technologies are not developed here. On the other hand, the training companies and organizations themselves don’t have the professional competence or the necessary resource (hardware, software, finance, IT specialists) in order to offer such service to the professional distribution in our country.

WHAT TO REMEMBER WHEN PLANNING TO USE TRAINING TECHNOLOGY?

What should a Director or Sales Manager know when it comes to e-training technologies? Which are the important things related to them, which should always be rememberd and required from the deliverer of the surface in the future, if deciding to use it?

1. There is not any training technology in the world, up to today, which is able to replace the power of the live contact. It can change. It can change it, optimize it, but not replace it. Therefore, the e-training technologies are not a substitute for the trainings, or the on-field work – they are a helping resource, a component, which gives a better result. Just as fuel additives, just like spices in food recipes, the training technologies IMPROVE the final result. In 2011, we made an unofficial measurement of the results of all our clients which have been introduced to such training technologies. The results from the trainings of absolutely all of them is increased with an average of more than 30%. Some companies even show twice as good results then before. This is the purpose of the training technology – to help. If you negotiate with a training organization, than it is good for you to be sure that it can offer you a training, on-field work and training technologies at the same time. The full training process. If it can’t – you risk ordering just a piece of the whole.
2. Electronic trainings are effective only if they are built on the specifics of the client’s business. With matter, examples, cases, photos, etc. from the client’s environment. The “general” e-trainings, giving “theoretical rules” and feeding up with information don’t give back results and are basically wasted money. Why? The answer is simple. E-trainings lack the trainer-trained relationship. The student develops BY HIMSELF in the eletrronic course and if the matter offered is general and not related to his hob, than it is no different from just the next e-book. And if students cannot just stand up and walk out of a clasroom training, than, I assure you, it is astounishingly easy to just click the upper right corner of the monitor and close the e-course, if it is not related to them. Therefore, if you negotiate with a training organization, be assured that the e-trainings they offer will be specifically designed to match your and your company’s needs. If not, you are just ordering a suit which, no matter how good it is, is not your size.
3. E-trainings are created by people with the help of software. Even kids know this. But in the software market there are both expensive professional software and free programs. Unfortunately, the latter don’t have the rich variation of capabilities, which a professional software offers. Let me give you an example: Do you think the coprehension of training material is percepted at a different level if in one case, we offer the student a “mute” presentation, aka. an e-presentation without sound and without audio comments, examples, advice and if, in the other case, we offer a training, which is voiced by the trainer, with specific comments, shared examples, questions? Of course! The answer is more than obvious! The professional software makes the e-training alive. That way the trainer-student experience is significantly restored and the result is better. Therefore, if you negotiate with a training organization, be assured that the e-trainings they offer specially designed for you, can be vocalized, can include mini-tests, support video and audio formats, can be placed into websites, platforms, etc. If not, you risk buying a “retro car” with which you can show off around, but which stays more in your garage than on the road.

THE UNQUESTIONABLE ADVANTAGES

The purpose of this part of the article is not to convince you how much you need training technologies, but to make you think about how you spend your training money and how would you better do it in the future. That’s why I will mention only the unquestionable advantages of the e-training technologies, for companies which use such as of today:

1. DECREASED TRAINING EXPENCES. Our small practical experience in this direction (we offer such services from 2009) shows certain training expence decrease with an average of 50-55%. And in companies which have developed annual training programs, the effect of decreasing goes as much as 75%. This is remarkably important resource for every company. There is not any manager alive who won’t see the advantages, if he knows that with the same amount of resource for trainings, through e-training technologies, can train 3 times more people, or make 3 times more trainings. The equation is simple, but only if you have the required information about it.
2. UNAFFECTED PRODUCTIVITY TIME. In plain sales language, productivity time means sales. Sales representatives have the main purpose of selling, which is why they are in the company. This is why the current “old-fashioned” training method requires the training to be held usually during the weekend, so that it does not interfere with the sales of the company. However, different employees in different companies accept this differently. We often see teams, which show up to the training with the words “This is supposed to be our personal time,” “We can’t see our families!” and so on. The e-training technologies are not dependent on such factors. They don’t require gathering of the team, travelling organization from different regions, hotel reservations, lunch and so on. Each student is trained either from their working place, or from home.
3. INDEPENDENT FROM THE NUMBER OF TRAINED PEOPLE OR THE NUMBER OF REPETITIONS. I recently had the following case: I offered one of my clients the creation of a personal e-platform, in which we could then configure an e-version of the trainings we already conducted with his sales department. The client did not object the price of this offer, yet rejected it with the excuse that they currently had no spare money for investments. Two months later he called me and asked me to create the e-platform. I later understood, that due to vast prospect turnover he faced the dilemma of either investing in the same training again, for the newly hired employees, or going into e-training technology, which could then be used without limitations, as many times as he wished. The investment, however, was the same inamount. Once created, the e-trainings, or tests, or product manuals, can be used by thousands of users, without limitations for repetition or period of use.
4. EASY TO INTEGRATE. If, when integrating palm devices or ERP systems for business management, there was a need for purchasing servers, palm or visor hardware, extra software and so on, then, for the introduction of e-training technologies, the company is required to support the trained people with two things only: 1) stable (not even strong) internet connection and 2) internet browser. That’s it! It sounds unreal, but that’s a fact. That’s what makes serious training companies distinctive – they invest in hardware and professional software, which are then offered in client’s service, so that he is optimally unburdened.

ELECTRONIC TRAINING COMPONENTS

• CORPORAL TRAINING PLATFORM - Actually this is just a usual hosting of server space, which is offered for usage only to and for the needs of the particular company and which is used to upload all specially developed e-training units. This is often reffered to as the e-Academy. Practice all over the world is that this “reserved” space is given to the client for corporal usage for 1 calendar year. It doesn’t need any support, account administration, training on how to use it – all of this is covered by the training company which offers the service.
• ELECTRONIC TRAINING UNIT (e-Unit) – this is the basic training unit. With unlimited access and easy navigation. It contains vocalization through trainer’s comments. It offers materials for self-preparation and allows the tracking of activity levels for every employee – usage frequency, level of self-preparations, duration, etc.
• ELECTRONIC TEST (e-Test) – Variations are the training test and the certificate test. Through it,the trained test themselves before the company examine test by themselves, distantly. E-tests have three levels – basic, advanced and expert. They can contain questions with random number of questions, as well as random types of evaluation mechanisms, scales and levels of assessment. Everything depends on the client’s needs. It allows continuous repetition in solving the test questions when with the purpose of training, and if it is an exam, the number ot tries is limited, as usually the evaluated person has the right of only one attempt. Professional e-tests allow automatic mixing of the questions and has the option of reviewing wrong answers. They can be designed with limited answer time. Another important benefit is that they offer automatic report directly to the manager of the company with the results of each employee after finishing the test, with details on time for solving, correct and incorect answers, and so on.
• ELECTRONIC MANUALS (variations: PRODUCT PRESENTATION, DEALING WITH OBJECTIONS, TRANSFORMING PRODUCT CHARACTERISTICS INTO BENEFITS, DISTRIBUTION STANDARDS, MERCHANDISING STANDARDS) – they are one of the most powerful weapons in the arsenal of the e-training technologies. They represent a form of e-training, which gives STANDARDS recommended by the company – how to present in a standardized way, how to respond to clients in this or that objection, how to conduct a trade visit, how to arrange a particular brand or rack in specific types of objects. They are the new “corporal pocket Bibles” which each employee has access to, regardless if he/she is in Sofia, Varna or Burgas. Moreover, the companies who have small sales departments and work with big distributors, but cannot control the sales agents of these distributors or don’t have the finances to train them via clasroom training, can develop such e-manuals and offer them to their distributors. That way, the standard for working is equalized for all distributors regarding the same product or action or any trade act.
• WEB TRAINING (web-session) – These are team (for operative levels) or individual (for managers) conference meetings via internet. They ooffer giving and receiving feedback for the execution of tasks, given to the employees during the training. The difficulties in applying new competences are discussed. Employees ask questions and the trainer gives specific guidance and answers. They can also serve for groupwork in solving maket cases. If the person trained is a manager, than the web-sesison is individual, with a flexible schedule and personaly-developed content. The most important and distinctive characteristic of the web-session is that it is based on particular needs, defined by the client.

In the end of this article, I would like to make a simple conclusion for all Directors and Managers of companies, for which training in any form is not only wasting money:

We went through a period of the business when we did not have goods – we sold what we coule offer. Back then, we didn’t need good teams. We also went through a period, where people purchased what was advertised – even then we did not need trade trainings. Now just think about the time, when people will buy what is dominant – and this is achieved not only with advertisement, not only with prices, but with quality as well. This can only be done by educated people! Experienced salesmen! And whether they shoot with a bow, a gun or with lasers is not that important. The important in this case is how well they can hit the target, and if they can’t how quickly they can reload. The first one depends on trainings, while the second one on technology. The choice and decision are in your hands!

With deep respect to the professionalism of all companies and with best wishes for successfull sales during 2012!

George Todorov

February 24th, 2012

- the Author.

PROFESSIONAL TRAININGS

KNOWN ENEMIES and UNKNOWN FRIENDS

UNKNOWN FRIENDS (THE BIG POTENTIAL)

Part 2

Author’s note:

Dear friends,

After publishing the first part of the article, Managers from different companies contacted me with comments and recommendations for including some additional information into the topic. Thank you all for giving your positive or negative comments regarding this important, in our team’s opinion, problem. In relation to this, I would once more wish to clarify that the main target focus of the article is ONLY the group of employees, working in the area of distribution and sales of FMCG, DIY (Do It Yourself), HORECA and OOH (Out of Home) – sales representatives, exvan sales, supervisors, merchandisers, Key Account Managers, Sales Directors. The article does not in any way interfere with other sales sectors of services, financial products, health or insurance products.

TRAINING IS NOT AN EVENT, BUT A PROCESS

This is the simple truth, which every active manager of a sales team or a process has to realize. Training – this is not a period of pre-arranged day or two, in which all employees gather together and are educated, but a carefully planned process of individual or team work in the market, on the field in the stores – the working area of all sales representatives, exvan distributors, merchandisers who form and manage the sales of a company.

Training is not lecture, but a practice. There is no point in trainings, at which are invited lectors who “tell storries” about the sales in their idealistic states. Employees expect a whole other thing how to solve their problems in the market. They want to be conviced that what they learn can actually work in reality. Here is why training requires effort and repetition, instead of just a nice emotion from the gathering in a hotel or from the evening party.

TRAINING IS NOT A ONE-TIME ACT, BUT A PROCESS OF CONTINUOUS CONSISTENT COMPONENTS IN TIME

The effect of professional trainings can be achieved ONLY if the current training model is changed from a training event to an educational process – a training schedule of consistent components, each one of which contains detailed training goals and is an addition to every previous component of the process. This way the competences of thet trained ones are DEVELOPED. The basic type of professional training model contains eight separate components, related in detailed order:

1) Trade monitoring

2) Education with a trainer (author’s note: NOT lector)

3) Electronic training resources

4) Web-training sessions

5) Certificate examination test

6) On-field mentoring

7) On-field controlling

Functional report

UNKNOWN FRIENDS

The huge potential of trainings is the continuous order of activation of training components. This way a unified training method for creating competences in the sales department prospects is developed. Each company, which conducted a training, in one form or another, for their employees, can make a comparison between the two training models in the scheme below. The upper part of the scheme is the current dominating model. This model has reached its potential several years ago. It is part of the “known enemies.” the ones we know painfully well, but still use since “everyone else does.” The lower part of the scheme is the new “unknown friend,” the model which has proved effective a long time ago in stable markets with well-developed professional competences of sales department prospects, but unfortunately less popular in Bulgaria.

FIND THE 7 DIFFERENCES

Even a naked eye can see what is the form of training in our country – lecture. Yes, maybe I will offend a lot of my colleagues, trainers with rich experience in training prospects, but this is the ugly truth. Lecture, lecture and lecture again! A PowerPoint presentation, a flipchart and a media projector – the educational lecture is ready. What is this, however, that distincts the training process from the lecture?

1st difference: Theory vs. Practice

The training lecture is a 100% incubator, aka. it happens in an office or a hall (let’s call it classroom). The training process divides the trining more effectively:

20% CLASSROOM WORK + 20% SELF PREPARATION + 60% ON-FIELD WORK

2nd difference: General vs. Concrete

The training lecture starts and ends with the rules from the thick books. The training process starts with a trade object monitoring, where the problerms are defined and ends in an on-field controlling, where the trained ones are evaluated on solving their problems using the learnt material.

3rd difference: Said vs. Done

The training lecture counts on “What is said should be remembered.” The training process counts on “What is said should be: 1) understood 2) applied 3) developed in mechanics.”

4th difference: Said vs. Shown

The training lecture does not develop a contact between the lector and the listeners (which is why the lector remains lector only). The training process develops a strong contact between the trainer and the trained ones, because, besides in the classroom, they also work together (clarification: the standard for most of the developed markets for on-field work with  trainer is one working day with up to two trainers and a minimum of 10 trade visits for the day). The trainer is a trainer because he SHOWN the practical applying.

5th difference: Clumsy vs. Quick

The training lecture is a clumsy tool for training. It requires people to travel, to arrange hotel rooms, food, transprt, etc. The training process is flexible and quick, since it is brought to the working place of the employee – his trade objects.

6th difference: Knowledge vs. Skills

The training lecture gives knowledge, which, in 80-90% of the cases, are forgotten if not applied in two weeks after the training. The training process develops knowledge for the matter and skills on how to use the knowlesge in a realistic environment.

7th difference: Capsulation vs. Adaptation

The training lecture (especially if it’s not on the minimum level required) gives a negative effect on the desire of the employees to learn. The sales prospects develop as a “capsulated” type of professional workers – they do their job the same way for years, losing their skills for change. The training process develops an adaptive type of employees, who have the inclination for constant change.

THE ESSENCE OF THE TRAINING PROCESS

Here is a summary of each one of the components of the professional training process:

• Training monitoring – a purpose-minded, on-field work, which has the goal of analyzing and examining particular objects, customers and employees. The monitoring has the purpose of measuring the level of portfolio distrubition and the distribution of the portfolio coverage for the trained company. Also, during the monitoring, the deficit of goods and the shelf vision are measured and photo material is obtained. The monitoring gives the opportunity of gathering a lot of feedback from the employees regarding their difficulties in the market and about their clients. As a variation of trade monitoring can be used customer meetings of the ordering company. They give an extremely precious material for working during the training itself. The monitoring allows measurement of the competence level before the training and the level of organization of the internal company processes and/or the trade effectiveness.
• Training with a trainer – The key element is inserting knowledge into the heads of the trained. Modern training methods all over the world deny the all-lecture training model. The reason: infomational feeding up of the modern young man is so huge, that his/her brain refuses to acquire any information, offered in the form of a one-way monologue. “I say, you listen” does not work. Modern trainings rely on other methods – training with forms, games, interactivity, simulations, etc. In the mean time, the modern training in a classroom, besides a presentation model, includes practical cases, real monitoring examples and real visual material as well. It includes summarized analyses from the measurements with particular numbers, customer comments (feedback). And if the trainer is an active practicioner (is not separated from real practice), which is mandatory for him in order to call himself a trainer, he would also include practical techniques, terminology, professional standards, concrete problems. This makes it a lot easier for the trained to acquire knowledge.
• Electronic platform for corporal trainings (“e-academy”) – Its key elements are an electronic lesson (e-unit), electronic test (e-test), electronic mentoring (e-men), electronic guide (e-manual); electronic procedure (e-procedure). The third part of the article will further focus on these elements of electronic training solutions, so I will not discuss them more here.
• Web-training – these are team or individual conference meetings via internet for separate employees or for the whole team. Through them, a feedback is given on the execution of the cases and problems the trained met during the training. It also gives feedback on the difficulties in applying new competences. At these meetings, employees usually ask questions which emerged after the training, or during on-field work. Web-trainings are the perfect solution for the “spread” departments (from different cities/ofices). They allow individual distant training as well, designed for training of managers in a flexible time and with an individually developed schedule. The main rule of web training is, that “it is based only on particular needs the trained has.” Only what you need – nothing else.
• Certificate examination test – Its key elements are: evaluation of the acquired knowledge during the training (with a trainer or through web-training). It should allow a multifunctional distant measurement of an unlimeted number of employees and should give the opportunity of fully tracing the tested’s activities – time, beginning, end, number of tries, guessing, skipping attempts and so on. Modern certificate tests work with options for limiting the number of tries and autimatically mixing the questions. With them, the tested does not have the right to overview wrong questions and has a limited solving time. Modern certificate tests give automatic report for the results to the management of the company.
• On-field mentoring – The key element of the mentoring is APPLYING (unlocking) the knowledge for the professional competence. It is held in real time conditions. It trains up to 3 competences for one training day and up to two employees for one day, as it is characterised by completely passive behavior of the trainer regarding the trade policy of the company (prices, discounts, postponed, etc.). In the mentoring, a real demonstration of the techniques is performed by the trainer. The effective mentoring requires a minimum of 10 trade visits of the trade objects from the employee and the trainer together. It is held as far as up to one month after the conducted training and during the on-field work, particular tasks are given to the trained. The trainer is obliged to give feedback to the superior of the trained after each mentoring.
• On-field controlling – the main purpose of the controlling is regular MEASUREMENT of the work of sales employees on particularly defined indicators for turnover, effectiveness and productivity. Through it are periodically measured: effective time management, obbeying corporal standards, applying of competences, level of network development, level of portfolio development, level of vision and positioning, level of payment collecting, trade productivity, trade productivity, effective promotion management. All big corporations with multinational brands and products pay serious attention to this training component.
• Functional report – a corporal ASSESSMENT of the functions of trade employees on particularly defined turnover, effectiveness and productivity indicators. The corporal assessment (evaluation) is conducted at leaste twice every year (every 6 or 12 months). It gives detailed metric results for: effective time management, obbeying corporal standards, applying acquired competences, level of network and portfolio development. It reflects the levels of positioning and vision, the levels of payment collecting, trade productivity and trade effectiveness.

After everything I’ve listed above, I hope to help for the distinction between the old and the new training models. And if companies plan on conducting trainings with their prospects, let them establish requirements for the components listed above, as well as for a training method to the company they have chosen.

Comming soon: third part of the article – “ELECTRONIC TRAINING RESOURCES”

Good Luck in Sales!

- the Author.

PROFESSIONAL TRAININGS

KNOWN ENEMIES and UNKNOWN FRIENDS

“And so, we may conclude that, in order to win, the following five conditions must be valid:

• The winner knows when to fight and when not.
• The winner knows how to lead both stronger and weaker army than the enemy’s.
• The winner’s soldiers are united by the same flame of passion.
• The winner is the better prepared one and the one who awaits the enemy to show weakness.
• The winner has the necessary skills and his ruler does not interfere with his work.”

- Sun Tzu

2011 was educational for many aspects of the Bulgatian distribution of FMCGs, as well as of other parts of retailing. The most important lessons, which many employers, importers and distributors learned were:

• Corporate distributional models have reached a point, at which they need to be changed in order to increase the effectiveness of the process itself.
• The portfolio of the companies needs serious analysis and reorganization.
• Sales teams need new competencies, new skills and new working habits, in order to keep the current market results.
• The sales management model has a desperate need for new models, tools and practices, which could allow the market positions of the companies (trade network, portfolio, turnover and rentability) to be developed.

2011 was also a very dynamic year for us, the professional trainers. For me and my team, personally, 2011 gave us the opportunity to see in detail the mistakes in the work of many traders. During the past year we conducted trainings with over 1100 people from different sales levels – from sales representatives to sales managers. Over 100 days of on-the-field work gave us the chance to define the strong and the weak characteristics of the people dealing with sales, and through them to define the “modern distribution deficits.”

This article is devoted to one of the most destructive corporal deficits. A deficit, which, during the past year, showed to the whole trading community which company has the potential to remain in the game and which one doesn’t. A deficit, which will form the distributional results for several years ahead. This is the DEFICIT of the SALES PROSPECTS’ COMPETENCIES.

It is no secret to anybody that, as a professional trainer, I communicate with a lot of Directors and Managers of trade companies. In my everyday work with part of them in the second half of 2011, I decided to make an unofficial research (by talking to them) about the level of awareness for this deficit. The results are shocking.

Over 70% of the Directors and Managers of Bulgarian companies admit that the competence of their people is lower that the market’s demand. And only 10-15% of them have conciously taken any measured in the direction of increasing the professional competence of their employees.

That’s why everything described above provokes the creation of this article. My purpose here is neither to criticize, nor to extol the weakness of our guild. This article’s purpose is to define the status of professional trainings in Bulgaria, to define the mistakes of the companies that order trainings (the mistakes in the educational format) and most of all to give a clear view on the professional standards for the training methods of corporal prospects.

The material in the article in focuses mainly on the needs for competencies of the sales departments and does not have the purpose of analyzing the professional level of employees from other departments.

Part 1

KNOWN ENEMIES (THE HUGE DECEPTION)

“Known enemies!” In the psycho-training dictionary, this term stands for what we know painfully well, what we have accepted to be acting against us and what we feel obligated to conform with and to make compromise for. This is also the easiest way to describe the current level of professional trainings in Bulgaria. With the risk of igniting a wave of negative comments towards me and my colleagues – trainers and educators, and moreover towards Directors and Managers of companies, I firmly state and deffend my position:

PROFESSIONAL TRADE TRAININGS, IN THIS FORMAT OF CONDUCT,

WITH THESE CURRENT METHODS

ARE NOT FUNCTIONAL ANYMORE.

An ancient tool, worth museum exposition, but deffinitely not reliable for putting it to work and expecting results from it.

„THE FORGERY“

The level of awareness of companies for this management process, as I have to say with regret, is low. Very few managers know, that the “prospect creation,” their training and preparation is one of the four management processes in a company. And this, precisely, is one of the correct actions of successfull companies. Let me clarify: the prospect “FORGERY” (of prepared and trained employees) is not something extremely high-leveled, but on an AVERAGE MANAGER LEVEL – regional managers, supervisors and team leaders. They are the people who, if we have them, could train their people well. They can turn their salesmen into effective “money machines.” The lack of such trained managers from average level is the largest professional gap at the moment, valid for the sales departments for many companies in Bulgaria. If there aren’t any well developed regional sales managers, there won’t be any trained supervisors as well. It is logical for the following conclusion to follow: How can we expect to have qualified sales representatives, merchandisers and exvan-distriboters, when there is not anybody present to develop them (to create them and to train them). What does a company count on, if the old distributional models have decreased the level of competence of sales representatives to simplified functions like:

• Gathering orders (I will skip the whole synonym tree of words, created in regards to this working model)
• Informing the trade network for all present activities
• Observation of the competitors and their actions at the same spots, which our sales agent visits as well

Many managers see this and ARE NOT happy from this model. By, for better or worse, it work. Their next move was also logical – after we don’t have a man from the inside to train our people – we will find one from the ourside. And so, the “Bulgarian training” was born…

„THE POSTERS“

Everyone who took a little time to search in Google for trainings has noticed that the modules and programs available on the Bulgarian corporal market all have loud names, just like movie posters. See for yourself:

• 5 Steps of Sale
• Principles for Successfull Sales
• 7 Main Steps for Succesfull Sales
• 8 steps of the Effective Salesman
• 10 Principles for the Succesfull Sale
• 3 Laws of a Trade Visit
• Successfull Negotiating
• Successfull Work with Corporal and Key Account Customers
• Effective Management of Territories and Trade Chanels
• Development and Management of a Succesfull Team
• Management of Key Account Sales
• Sales and Marketing Strategies
• Effective Merchandising for Sale Increase
• Visual and Product Merchandising
• Merchandising Principles
• Helpfull and Advertising materials at the Point of Sale
• 10 Best Techniques for Sale Closure
• … and so on, and so on.

What do all those modules have in common? The answer is simple! They all have “shiny” labels. They all share the same lovely attractive appearance, behind which stands something unknown, but which implies respect for the “trade secrets” and “the knowledge of the enlighted ones” That’s what Directors and Managers needed ten years ago. Seeking a solution for their problem, after they don’t have a trainer inside the company, they decided to acquire one from the outside. And so, the dance began… Almost one decade of all kinds of companies competing in offering shiny and loud titles for their training modules, which were the “holy grail” for the uneducated companies, hungry for knowledge and know-how.

“REALITY a la BG”

And so, slowly and steadily, companies ordered and consumed this model of training, planned budgets, made schedules, trained themselves and… and finally made this training model come into use. Training became part of the corporal life. It was accepted by both small and large companies. And since there are not any trade schools in Bulgaria, nor there is any governmental institution which “manufactures” sales prospects in the meaning of “sales,” the result was obvious – the product acquired the shape of its consumer. Clients started shaping the product’s appearance. Their wishes and desires modified what was intended to modify them instead.

The main mistakes, present in ¾ of the conducted trainings are:

• “Split” trainings
  • held in half day only
  • starting in 10 AM since “the colleagues are ariving from all over the country”
  • ending in 2 PM since “the colleagues from distant offices have to travel back”
• “Overwhelming”
  • trainings which include modules from 3 or 4 trainings
• “Selectiveness”
  • only part of the sales team is present, others are allowed not to attend it

• “False priority”
  • the training takes place in a city that allows sight-seeing, SPA procedures, etc.
• “Addition”
  • a bonus meeting, continuing the annual banquette, the company party, etc… (a trademark of the Bulgarian business)
• “Lack of training focus”
  • part of the company meeting, the focus of which is the month result and the bonus payment
• “Lack of discipline”
  • a lecture, where people sleep after the party they had the night before, in front of their superiors
• “Low compatibility”
  • the training elements don’t answer the actual needs of people’s competences
• “Low appliability”
  • the training elements are not based on practical experience, but on rough theory
• “Low communication”
  • the training elements are explained in a complicated and hard to understand language
• “Low effectiveness”
  • the training elements can not be applied in the real working environment
• “Propaganda”
  • a training, in which the trainer is told to say what the managers want him to say
• “Interruption”
  • a training, in which managers interupt in order to clarify

Long story short, “everything found its place” … Trainers and companies lived together in a strange harmony, known for each other as “known enemies.” Both sides had to comprimise and to live with the other. The trainings became a tool for:

• prestige – if they are the boss’s idea
• active/bonus points in front of the boss – if they are the managers’ idea
• excuse for spending the training budget, so that it is not wasted
• motivation – around Christmas, New Year, beach season, etc.
• team development – in order to mix the “old with the new” employees
• a reward for the team – “let them see that we appreciate their efforts”
• and what not, and what not… except the most important – a tool for EDUCATION and development of CAPABILITY

And so it went, until… until the companies themselves realied that something is wrong.

“THE AWAKENING”

And what did the companies realize?

A few simple things, though very important. Here are some of them:

• It is impossible for a young man/woman, aged 23-24 years old, and without any sale experience (not having sold anything worth a penny) to stand up in front of sales representatives with a 10 year practical experience, to call themselves consultants and to teach HOW to sell.
• It is incorrect to read out loud theoretical postulations, downloaded from the interent of from various books, written by worldwide famous marketing gurus in front of the training participants and to call this a training. It is a shame for the trainer to speak about sales, when he does not even know the products their client offers.
• It is incorrect to see the people working in their old way exactly three days after the training. Why did we waste our money then?
• It is unthinkable for the trainer to be dominated in market issues knowledge from the employees.
• The traner must not have any whims regarding the appartment in the hotel, the wine for the dinner, etc…

And the result is still the same. The sales representatives are still unable to present propery, they still can’t transform characteristics into benefits, they can’t handle objections. And let’s not even go into numbers. Some of them can’t even substract the VAT from the total price of a product, not to mention calculating critical point of sale or promotional turnover. THE COMPETENCE OF THE SALES DEPARTMENTS IS STILL LOW. And now, when the market experienced significant changes in the last couple of years, the distributional layers have moved, the competitors grew fierce and things became crystal clear. The “princesses” woke up and looked clearly.

“DECEPTIONS”

Despite “sobering up” and seing the truth, there are still some deceptions. What’s seen is the wrong result of the action, instead of the wrong action leading to the result. In my daily meetings with corporal management, I can most responsibly say that the earliest stage and the most objective evaluation of reality belonged to the HR specialists and Sales Managers. They first realized the need of new training methods, of new modules and forms for measurement sales execution. The Directors and CEOs of companies, maybe because they are above the problems, were left behind in this process and some of them, unfortunately, are still in the realm of the deep deception for professional trainings. Here are the most common deceptions (we recommend this to be said, sent, presented and/or explained to your DM, or Decision Maker, aka. your Boss ) as rules to remember regarding corporal trainings:

• Mixing the training with a party / banquet.

This is absolutely unthinkable. Either one or the other. Any comment is unnecessary.

• Stuffing up (crowding up) of modules.

The minimum time for properly presenting a training module is 8 hours, which, no matter how we put it, is one training day. How would you explain the desire of some managers to present 4 or  modules for one day? Who is the “genius” that can comprehend the matter like this? When we add the vodka from the evening of the company banquet, it becames even worse!

• Mixing modules.

This is also inappropriate. The effect of the over-heating of the brain is visibly seen at around 12 at noon, so at the end of the day people “shut off” – they can not percept information anymore. How can this be consicered coprehension, when there is a natural reason which declines it?!

• Presenting the “usually” or “on theory” rules.

New clients often tell me “Leave the details to me. You just tell them how things are usually supposed to be on theory, so that they know the A-B-C of the matter. The personalization is our job.” This thinking is lethal both for the training and for the people. They will simplu refuse to listen and to learn if the matter discussed is not part of their life, their job, their own problems.

• One training per year is enough.

That’s not the right thinking. Trainings are neither held, nor planned in number. They are made when a deficit of any competence is present, which is in most of the cases once every three months. Therefore, the training is the consequence, not the cause.

• “Some of my colleagues are at a more advanced level, while others are left behind; still, let it be the same for all of them!”

Do you remember the effects of Compulsory Military Service in Bulgaria 15-20 years ago? “We go in uniquely smart and go out equally stupid.” If people from the same department are on a different level, it is merely logical to divide the training groups in different levels as well, instead of training everyone (strong and weak) as one and the same. Otherwise, the capable grow loose since they are bored, while the weak are demotivated because their lack of competence becomes public.

“THE GREAT DECEPTION”

It’s a Fact! Training deceptions are numerous! But the biggest of them is NOT UNDERSTANDING THE ESSENTIAL FOUNDATIONS OF A TRAINING, which are:

TRAINING IS NOT AN EVENT, BUT A PROCESS

TRAINING IS NOT A DAY OF EDUCATION FOR EVERYONE, BUT A CONTINUOUS PROCESS OF INDIVIDUAL/ TEAM WORK INSIDE THE MARKET

TRAINING IS NOT A LECTURE, BUT A PRACTICE

TRAINING REQUIRES HARD EFFORTS AND REPETITION, NOT A PLEASANT EMOTION

TRAINING IS NOT A ONE-TIME ACT, BUT CONTINUOUS ACTIONS IN TIME

Every self-respecting company, which seeks the effect of professional trainings, should stop thinking for them as simple events, but as a developed schedule of consistent excersises for everyone in the team.

And this is why the difference between training event and training process, as well as the essence of the components required for developing a professional training process will be the focus of the second part of the article.

Good Luck in Sales!

MES-KO Training

As the New Year began, the sales team of MES-KO Petrich participated in yet another training, adressing  ”Trade Calculations.”

The topic is designed to make even better salesmen out of the team and the sales department, since there is not a stronger argument than the one supported with facts, and facts in the form of numbers are 3/4 from the key for succesfull sales.

We wish the team of MES-KO many successfull sales throughout the year and good luck in the upcomming test