Consumer trends and industry dynamics have changed the rules of the game.  Business development personnel must pair traditional sales skills with new expectations from retail customers for salespeople to act as strategists, merchandisers, branding experts, creative thinkers and collaborators to achieve shared business goals.  Key account sales people must be in touch with retail customers’ priorities through sharpened analytical and category management skills and deeper consumer insights.  They must think beyond their own company objectives toward collaborative relationships and tailored solutions that create customer value and increase retail sales volumes and profitability.

AWMA, through the sponsorship of The Hershey Company, is pleased to announce STEPS III for key account and business development personnel.  This three-day, highly inter-active Strategic Solution Selling Workshop targets the skills needed to meet customer expectations in a struggling economy where every salesperson must contribute more to ensure business success.  

Participating key account distributors will learn to:

    Understand the Customer:  Develop a foundation document for every step in the strategic solution selling process in the customer profile.   

    Identify Opportunity:  Fact-based business assessment coupled with an in-depth knowledge of the customer’s strategic and tactical objectives will yield multiple opportunities for sales growth as well as for account penetration and relationship building.

    Prioritize:  Evaluate opportunities including diverse criteria so as to develop customer objectives on a priority basis.

    Strategize a Solution:  Identify multiple alternatives before deciding on a course of action.

    Sell Solutions:  Sell tailored solutions backed by strategic facts using questioning, listening, and presentation skills.

    Execute and Evaluate:  Ensure a successful execution at store level and deal with issues of timing, on-going communication and follow through.

The instructor of STEPS III is Doug MacKay of The Glen Douglas Group in Buena Vista, CO.  MacKay has worked with 75 Fortune 500 companies over his 30 year career.  

STEPS III, held in Hershey, PA on April 11-14, 2010, is for AWMA distributor members only.  There is a registration fee of $500.  This is the only charge to participants other than transportation.  All expenses for food, lodging, and class materials are covered through the generosity of The Hershey Company.   To register, go to www.awmanet.org  <Education/Research>.  Or contact Kathy at (703) 208-1648.  This class is limited to 15 distributors, and it is filling up!