Get in the Relationship Business
I had no experience even remotely related to the wood industry; but when friends of my mom and dad came calling about a potential receptionist job at a hardwood lumber company, I jumped at the opportunity.
Business Operations
Dealer Profile: Iowa’s Ogden & Adams
“Contractor Buys Lumberyards,” the headline in this magazine’s June issue announced. Is this as newsworthy as the proverbial “Man Bites Dog”? Nah—but almost as unlikely. So, this reporter couldn’t wait to find out how, and why.
The Flip Side to Customer Relationships
In the B2B world, the relationship between the customer and the vendor—and more specifically the vendor’s salesperson—can be of utmost importance. It doesn’t take long in the business to understand that if the customer dislikes you, he is rarely going to see you. And if he does know you and trust you, he is more likely to do business with you. Creating positive business relationships is, then, a fundamental step in the path toward success for any B2B salesperson.
Olsen on Sales: A Businessperson Who Sells
When we start out in any industry, we have to learn our product. Our employer will give us some orientation and may send us to outside seminars to give us the basic knowledge we need to do this. We also have to learn how to sell.
Treated Wood Training Gets Amplified
In an effort to make online education more dynamic, the Western Wood Preservers Institute has released a new narrated version of its preserved wood training course.
Finish the Year Strong in 5 Minutes Per Day
As we speed into the winter months, summer memories are still fresh even while the end of the year and all that it brings draws closer. And so, it is impossible to escape that there are only a few selling weeks left in 2019.
SRS Purchases Utah’s 6-Unit Roofers Supply
SRS Distribution, McKinney, Tx., has purchased six-unit Roofers Supply, Salt Lake City, Ut.
Olsen on Sales: Slow Down & Have Some Fun
No one wants to push a bag of rocks up a hill or jump off a bridge with us. Unfortunately, many sellers sound like this is what they’re doing or getting ready to do while they’re on a call with a customer.
3 Steps to Improving Fleet Safety
Safe drivers and properly maintained vehicles allow for efficient product deliveries and happy customers. Unfortunately, without proper attention to fleet safety, that same fleet can also be responsible for draining company profitability—or even injuring a team member or bystander.
Using Science in Hiring for Lumber Sales
Research shows that since the turn of the last century, the trend in cost of sales has increased substantially for more than half of the largest companies in the U.S. Previously, scale economies in sales were almost a given, in that most companies were growing revenue at an annual rate that was much higher than the associated sales and marketing expenses.