1 or 2 Day Course

OVERALL AIM:

To develop, hone and improve professional marketing skills in order to identify and attract the right people who want your product or service in preference to your competitor.  This is a practical, interactive, ‘hands-on’ course (with some fun thrown in!).

WHO SHOULD PARTICIPATE:

This course is aimed at owners, managers within an SME (or Micro Business), or anyone involved in marketing, whether or not they have had formal training in marketing.  Many middle managers have also greatly benefited from this course since marketing skills are relevant to all levels of the organisation.  The course is also useful for those wishing to update/refresh their skills.

COURSE CONTENT:

• Introduction/objectives
• Marketing: The myths, the theories and the reality in the 2012 trading environment
• The models that adapt to deliver customers whatever your business
• Practical exercise: Importance of the most powerful Brand builder of all – trust
• Case study – marketing that works and the times it has gone wrong
• Why the approach which worked in the 70s, 80s, 90s is toxic to 2012
• Practice session: Analysis of who is out there competing with you, right now
• How to build a practical, relevant and effective marketing plan.

OBJECTIVES:

At the end of this session delegates will be able to:

• Identify the central role of the customer and how to build their marketing around that concept
• Recognise the importance of knowing where they are now, the status of their competitors and how to differentiate to deliver margin
• Use the principle of The Marketing Mix/SWOT/PEST to deliver sales at the highest margin
• Recognise the critical importance of trust in customer relationships
• Identify key communication channels and how to manage them to deliver performance
• Recognise the importance of segmentation and differentiation
• Design and deliver a marketing plan that meets the business plan
• Adapt to the pace of change in the marketplace of 2012 and stay ahead of the competition
• Manage sales as the cutting edge of the marketing plan.

The session will help delegates adapt the course material to their specific business, their trading circumstances, their industry demands and their competitors so that it can be put to work delivering an immediate and measureable boost in performance.

1 or 2  Day Course

OVERALL AIMS:

• To ensure everyone adopts a positive attitude to customers/customer service
• To convey a professional image to customers over the telephone
• To improve performance through applying key techniques and procedures
• To increase awareness of the customer, internal and external, and their needs and expectations
• To ensure everyone adopts a professional approach to dealing with customers
• To increase awareness of potential sales opportunities

WHO SHOULD PARTICIPATE:

This workshop is aimed at anyone who has contact with customers, either face-to-face or over the telephone.

COURSE CONTENT:

DAY 1

• Introduction/Objectives
• Customer Expectations
  • What is Excellent Service
  • Opportunities for giving Good Service
  • Key Elements of Service
  • Skills and Qualities necessary to deliver Excellent Service
  • TARP report statistics on bad service
• Colleagues are Customers Too
  • The Customer-Supplier Chain
  • Cycles of Service and Moments of Truth
• Presenting Yourself
  • First Impressions and Projecting a Professional Image
  • The Mehrabian Circle
  • Verbal and Non-verbal Communication
• Telephone techniques
  • Benefits of Telephone Communication
  • Telephone Best Practice
• Building Rapport
  • Questioning Skills
  • Listening Techniques
  • Positive Language
  • Gaining Rapport
• Team exercise to practise skills learnt so far and highlight the need for everyone to consider excellent service in all situations
• Review/Action Plans.

Day 2

• Review of Day 1
• Team Exercise to highlight the importance of team working and communication
• Saying “No” Nicely!
  • Taking Control
  • Making and Refusing Requests
  • Developing Assertive Behaviour
• Complaints into Compliments
• A step by step approach to Handling Complaints
  • Turning complaints into Loyal Customers
• Dealing with Difficult Situations
  • Handling Difficult Situations to Prevent Conflict
  • Using “DEWD” – a Technique to Overcome Aggression
  • Hints and Tips for dealing with Difficult Situations
• Handling Stress
  • Positive and negative elements of stress/Avoiding Stress Build Up
  • Handling Customers’ Stress
• Practice Session
• Exercise to put it all together!
• Review/Action Plans.

OBJECTIVES:

At the end of this course, participants will be able to:

• Define the term Customer Service and identify the key qualities that keep customers’ business
• Create the right impression face to face and over the telephone
• Recognise poor service and the effects of poor service
• Identify customer needs by developing our questioning and listening skills
• Improve communications with both internal and external customers
• Practise professional telephone techniques using simulated 'phone equipment
• Respond to difficult situations and complaints in an assertive and positive manner
• Turn a complaint into a loyal customer
• Recognise and practise a technique to say 'no' nicely
• Identify sales opportunities and promote additional products and services.

1 Day Course

OVERALL AIM:

This fun and interactive course is designed to highlight effective and efficient techniques in answering and using the telephone, and illustrates how to avoid common pitfalls thereby promoting a professional image to the outside world.

WHO SHOULD PARTICIPATE:

All staff who have telephone contact within the business world, in particular those who have had no formal training in professional telephone techniques.

COURSE CONTENT:

• Introduction/objectives: Course objectives are handed out. Delegates are asked for their objectives
• Benefits of professional technique:  Delegate group work: “List the benefits of utilising professional telephone techniques - to our customers, to our Company and to ourselves”
• Telephone limitations:  Tutor led discussion
• Practice session (ice breaker):  Demonstrating the limitations of the telephone
• Personal qualities/skills:  Delegate group work: “List the personal qualities and skills of one who is professional on the telephone”
• Professional customer service:  Answering incoming calls (How many rings? How do we answer?); incoming/outgoing calls (voice speed, jargon, accents, favourite words, familiarity, repeating back numbers); bad telephone technique; internal customers.  Tutor led discussions.  Pre-recorded scenarios set up on cassette played to the delegates
• Taking messages professionally:  What to record.  Delegates are given an opportunity to practise taking a message
• Handling irate customers professionally:  Routine for handling.  Delegates are given an opportunity to practise handling a difficult call
• Self-improvement plan:  Tutor invites delegates to write out actions they will now take in the workplace to improve their performance.

COURSE OBJECTIVES:

At the end of this course, participants will be able to

• Have an appreciation of the benefits of professional telephone technique
• Recognise the importance of the telephone in caring for our customers and presenting the correct Company image
• Recognise the limitations of the telephone
• Appreciate the personal qualities of one skilled in providing excellent customer service on the telephone
• Answer the telephone/transfer calls/take messages effectively
• Handle complaints/difficult customers objectively and professionally and will have practised handling them
• Develop an action plan to improve performance.

1 or 2 Day Course
SALES/PURCHASING

OVERALL AIM:  

This course will give delegates an overview of the process of negotiation, focusing on the phases of a negotiation and the influences that one might use in affecting outcomes.  Delegates will be given the opportunity to practise negotiating within small groups.  Those new to negotiating (and those with more experience) will gain increased confidence from the course.

WHO SHOULD PARTICIPATE:     

This course is for anyone who currently negotiates internally or externally within their organisation.  It is particularly useful for those in a sales/purchasing role, although the same principles may be applied to negotiations within a personal or social context.

COURSE CONTENT:

Day 1

• Introduction and objectives: The tutor outlines the course objectives and delegates are asked for their objectives
• Definition:  The group works within small groups to define the term ‘negotiation’.  The tutor’s definition is also outlined. The concept of `win - win’ negotiation is discussed
• Negotiation phases: A four-phase model is used.  Two additional models are introduced which assist in identifying our negotiation objectives
• Practice session: Delegates will practise in small groups
• Qualities/skills/behaviour of effective negotiators: Tutor introduces researched factors identifying effective as opposed to ineffective negotiators

Day 2

• Team negotiations: Advantages and disadvantages
• Where to negotiate: Your place, their place, neutral ground
• Seating arrangements
• Practice session: Delegates will practise in small groups
• Influences:  We discuss 5 influences and the appropriate use of each influence.  We also look at the tactics used by seasoned negotiators and some counters
• Review:  A brief review of main topics covered

COURSE OBJECTIVES:

At the end of this course, participants will be able to:

• Define the term `negotiation’
• Recognise the qualities, skills and behaviour of effective negotiators
• Identify and be able to follow the phases of a negotiation
• Appreciate what happens within each phase
• Recognise the 5 influences that may be used to generate movement in negotiations and tactics underpinning the influences used by seasoned negotiators
• State the advantages and disadvantages of team negotiations/venues of negotiation.

1 or 2 Day Course

OVERALL AIM:

To develop and/or refresh the Key Account Management skills required to profitably develop this unique type of client.  The course will provide skills and insights to enable delegates to become effective Key Account Managers as well as showing them the importance of developing the right strategy for each separate account.  This is a practical and interactive course with some fun thrown in!

WHO SHOULD PARTICIPATE:

This course is aimed at both new and experienced Key Account Management professionals.  New Key Account Management professionals will be shown the skills and techniques for effectively dealing with this important type of client.  The course is also useful for more experienced staff who would benefit from updating and refreshing their skills.

COURSE CONTENT

• Introduction/Objectives
• The role of a successful Key Account Manager (KAM)
• lntroduction to key account management principles
• Why these types of clients buy
• Situational analysis
• Preparing your strategy/lmplementation of the strategy
• Understanding the key account marketing process
• Developing and managing buyer relationships
• Designing and presenting winning proposals
• The importance and benefits of effective key account meetings
• Effective key account plans
• Post course action plan for implementation
• Case studies of real accounts will be used.

At the end of this session delegates will be able to:

• Identify the unique aspects and structures of each of their Key Accounts
• Be able to analyse a Key Account and then prepare plus implement an effective business development strategy
• Recognise the importance of understanding the business environment of the Key Account
• Prepare and review practical yet concise account development plans.

1 or 2 Day Course

OVERALL AIM:

To construct and practise an approach to sales in order to improve sales performance and professionalism/effectiveness in the field. The stages of the sale will be identified and delegates will develop their own sales plan, which may be used immediately in the workplace.

WHO SHOULD PARTICIPATE:

Staff employed in a field sales role. The course will especially benefit those new to sales and those who have had some sales training but are looking to refresh their skills.

COURSE CONTENT:

DAY 1

Course Objectives:  Including the delegates’ own objectives

Customer Care:  Personal qualities required; good/bad telephone technique; continuous learning; body language; maintaining excellent relations with clients

Marketing Opportunities:  Obtaining leads; other marketing activity – following up emails, brochures (strategy)

Pre-call Planning and Preparation:  Route planning; setting call objectives; briefcase contents/use of diary or equivalent

Getting the Meeting with the Buyer:  Telephone techniques to handle filters. Practice session

Opening the Sale:  ‘Chat’ gap; different ways of opening the sale

Questioning to Establish Needs:  Theory – utter importance of this stage of the sale! Practice session

DAY 2

Matching Solutions to Needs:  Features and benefits; buying signals

Closing the Sale:  When to close/how to close/different closes.  Practice session

Handling Objections:  What is an objection? Techniques in handling.  Practice session

Review:  Brief review of main elements of the programme           

Action Plan:  Where do we go from here? i.e. How can we get better?

COURSE OBJECTIVES:

At the end of this course, participants will be able to:

• Identify the personal qualities of an effective salesperson
• Recognise a range of body language signals
• Recognise the importance of planning, preparation and organisation
• State the steps in the sales process
• Adopt an effective strategy in gaining meetings with buyers
• State 5 methods of opening the sale
• Recognise the importance of questioning to establish our customers' needs and will have practised questioning and listening skills
• Convert our products' features into benefits to the buyer
• Use 6 methods in closing the sale
• Handle a range of objections and will have practised handling them
• Draw up an action plan to improve performance.

1 or 2 Day Course

OVERALL AIM:

To construct and practise an approach to telephone sales in order to improve customer relations and sales performance, using this powerful and cost effective selling tool whilst promoting a professional company image.

WHO SHOULD PARTICIPATE

All staff involved in telesales and whose performance has a major impact on maintaining and improving the company’s position in the marketplace.

COURSE CONTENT:

• Introduction/objectives: Course objectives are handed out. Delegates are asked for their objectives
• Personal attributes/skills: Delegate group work: “List the personal attributes, qualities and skills of an excellent telephone sales person”
• Telephone limitations: Tutor led discussion and fun ‘ice breaker’
• Planning/preparation/organisation: Tutor led discussion (eg call objectives - inc. numbers of calls per day, time planning, prioritising customers, etc)
• Opening the sale: Theory.  Delegates develop own openings
• Questioning to establish need: Theory (via tutor led discussion).  Brainstorm appropriate questions to ask our customers – we devise a list
• Matching (features and benefits): Theory (via tutor led discussion).  We develop a list of features and benefits of our own products and services
• Closing the sale: Tutor led discussion (when to close, types of closes)
• Overcoming objections: Brainstorm (objections we encounter in our business and how to handle these objections)
• Review: Tutor asks questions of delegates to test understanding
• Action plan: Tutor invites delegates to write out actions they will now take in the workplace to further their knowledge/improve in sales

COURSE OBJECTIVES:

At the end of this course, participants will be able to:

• Recognise the importance of planning, preparation and organisation
• Appreciate the personal qualities of an effective telephone salesperson
• Be aware of the steps in the sales process
• Be able to use a variety of methods to open the sale and make outgoing calls
• Appreciate the importance of questioning to establish our customers' needs and will have practised questioning and listening skills
• Be able to convert our products' features into benefits to the buyer
• Be able to use a variety of methods in closing the sale.  Know when to close
• Know how to handle a range of objections
• Develop an action plan to improve performance