6 replies
As a few of you know, I retired a few years back, again. And then my brother asked for help training his crew how to sell.

Man o man, I just about forgot how much fun selling is.

His business is all automotive, from emergency roadside mechanics to handling AAA flatbed and towing. I'm a software developer and salesperson who knows zilch about any of that.

I was not introduced to anyone as the owner's brother or a sales trainer, just as an entry tech. I wanted to get a feel for how everyone communicated with each other and, I needed to learn a bunch of stuff and, I didn't need the waters muddied by people being nervous or under/over teaching.

My goal is to teach everyone who works there now with one on one teaching. All new employees will get five days of training. In the beginning, it's just going to be me, training. However the training is a proven formula that they will be expected, to use and, to pass on because I want everyone selling the same exact way. And I want people who use the method to teach the method, imo, it's the easiest way to spot the people you need to fire before they suck up too much payroll.

Some of the employees have worked with my brother for 15 or 20 years. So we cant just boot them because they can't or won't sell. Well, I could, but my brother would never. If I can get any of them to understand and apply even basic upsell techniques, then I will consider that a win. I'm betting on the new employees to become the real earners.

So far I have only taught two new employees the new way, and one of them just matched the company sales record. The record was 14 sales in a twelve-hour day. The trainee (no sales experience - 24 yr old certified mechanic) did 14 sales (out of 15 calls) in an eight-hour shift.

Looks like we're on the right track
#sales #training
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  • Profile picture of the author Kay King
    Some of the employees have worked with my brother for 15 or 20 years. So we cant just boot them because they can't or won't sell. Well, I could, but my brother would never.

    Good for your brother. Employees seldom last 15- or 20 years unless they are a benefit to the company.



    Good to hear you are working again - and sounds like fun to be learning a new industry while teaching something you know well (selling).
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  • Profile picture of the author Claude Whitacre
    For the old guys, maybe call it "Customer service training" instead of sales training.

    As you know, lots of people associate the word selling with evil. But as long as you call it customer service, it's going to be much easier to accept.
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    • Profile picture of the author savidge4
      Originally Posted by Claude Whitacre View Post

      people associate the word selling with evil.
      And how dare you actually make money doing this EVIL EVIL EVIL I tell you.
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  • Profile picture of the author VictorLoanz90
    Wow I'm stuck on how you managed to train an individual with no prior experience from a way different field , and the result was 14 sales out of 15 calls that's beyond impressive and goes to show that your doing something right !!
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    • Profile picture of the author kenmichaels
      Originally Posted by VictorLoanz90 View Post

      Wow I'm stuck on how you managed to train an individual with no prior experience from a way different field , and the result was 14 sales out of 15 calls that's beyond impressive and goes to show that your doing something right !!
      It's simple. Really, it is!

      A person with zero experience is easier and faster to train/teach than one with any. The person with experience has baggage and bad habits, even if that experience was only a few hours long.

      He is young, hungry, and excited to have a job straight out of tech school, following a proven formula...

      That makes him the perfect selling drone. After he isn't quite so hungry, in about 6 to eight months, we will see if he is truly worth investing more into.

      If he is still sticking to the script and if he can real-time course correct when he is making a mistake, THAT, will be the real litmus test.

      Also, these guys have to do manual labor and use their brains after each sale, so they cant be lazy, but they can only do so much physical work in a day, less with inclement weather.

      So the consensus is we need more mechanics, but if I teach them all to sell, then we will always need more mechanics. Interesting dilemma to have. Thoughts need to be thunk.
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      • Profile picture of the author WF- Enzo
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        Yes. That person with zero experience is a blank slate.

        Originally Posted by kenmichaels View Post

        A person with zero experience is easier and faster to train/teach than one with any. The person with experience has baggage and bad habits, even if that experience was only a few hours long.
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  • Profile picture of the author acadle seo
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