Case studies

Allan Webb - Poacher turned Game keeper - selling to old employer and new markets.

Background
A supplier of technical writing, translation, illustration and logistical support to the military and government employed a new Business Development (BD) Manager to expand their presence in commercial markets. This manager had 20 years MoD experience, huge product and market knowledge, many contacts and a very useful insight of being a buyer of technical documentation. He was completely new though to Business Development, working to sales targets and winning new projects.

Objectives
The Business Development Manager needed to be selling successfully, identifying new leads, building important relationships, winning new business and meeting targets. His MD wanted him to feel confident, comfortable and be effective in his new Business Development Manager role and to know and communicate what support he needed from his managers and other colleagues to support him.

Actions
Following meetings with the BD Manager and MD to agree goals and outcomes Ann and the BD Manager had a series of 6 x 1-1 sales coaching sessions together over a 6-month period. Further coaching was then commissioned 12 months later as the successful BD role expanded. The sessions started at the beginning of the sales process, defining selling as helping someone to buy, the sales conversation skills of building rapport, questioning, listening, speaking the customer's language, handling objections and closing the sales as well as the important practicalities of cold calling, focusing and planning and keeping in touch.

Results
"I found it hard to communicate to someone that their 20 years' experience of our industry just wasn't enough. Ann came along like a breath of fresh air; her empathy and nurturing style shone through as she translated my requirements into a concrete training plan and began to turn my reluctant seller into a confident one. It was evident that her own experience in industry had taught her many times that knowing a product inside-out is not the same as selling it!"

John Hardcastle MD - Allan Webb Ltd.

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