What types of sales materials to provide commissioned sales people?
Asked by Rob7
I would appreciate if someone experienced with outside commissioned sales staff could tell me what types of sales materials should be provided to them? Such as flyers, portfolios, multimedia presentations, etc. Also what about business cards? Should I give them business cards with their name and title of "Sales Representative" on the cards? Thank you in advance

Best Answer:
You need to provide them with everything you've got. It's up to them to use the materials wisely. Give them everything, and try to be responsive to their requests for new things. They're out there and should know what materials are best to help them sell. Business cards with their name and position are a must--so provide them. Get feedback from the about the materials you provide. If a brochure doesn't seem to be working, don't waste any more time and money having them re-printed. Find out what works for them, and provide the entire sales force with those "tips and tricks." If you don't have any materials developed yet, start off with a combination of everything you mentioned, and don't have too many made. That way you can test out what works best.

clarnbart gave a good answer. i would add the following-track sales efforts and find out what works where and with whom. by tailoring your efforts you can reduce costs and increase sales by employing the right tactics instead of "hit and miss", one size fits all strategies. If you can't afford sales tracking (CRM (customer relationship mgmt) or SFA (sales force automation) software now, keep track in Excel to start. identify and listen to your best reps-they will tell you what they need and what doesn't work. Find out the factors of successful sales and maybe more importantly the factors of rejection. business cards are a must, and cheap. as far as the other stuff, have some basic product material but not too much until you get a better idea of what you need. Keep the material simple but eye-catching and concise. what problem does your product/service solve and why should they buy it? if applicable, seriously consider route planning software especially in light of gas prices-it will maximize call efficiency. one more thing-make sure commission structure does not encourage "sell and run" if this is applicable-if you want to build long term customers don't front load the commission plan such that it doesn't pay to build exisiting accounts. compensate for keeping business and building it, even if growth is slow. remember, it's a lot easier and cheaper to sell to existing customers than to get new ones. hope this helps.
Answered by wisdominknowledge