Customers expect your field reps to provide current, accurate information during in-store visits. This can be a challenge when reps are carrying outdated product materials and have limited access to updated pricing and product availability.
Having mobile sales and merchandising apps that work both online and offline means your field reps can always complete their work, even when the Internet is unavailable. The right app ensures your reps are always equipped with the latest product materials, as well as accurate pricing and product availability. There is simply no reason to chase down pricing or pass on outdated information.
When your sales reps are able to be more consultative and provide accurate information, they build trust with your customers, leading to increased sales and improved product placement in the stores.
Sales reps who collaborate with their retail customers are able to build strong relationships. One of the best ways to make retail customers happy is to give them the ability to act on current in-store promotions quickly and plan future in-store savings events. The insights your customers receive from your sales reps will help them to make important decisions, such as combining multiple products for a sale, adding secondary displays, running seasonal promotions or strategically placing point-of-sale (POS) displays.
The more information your sales reps have, the more relevant and productive their conversations with store managers become, and the more confidently they can operate. That’s why it’s essential to give them access to customer order history and recent product purchases. You should also give them the ability to calculate shipping and tax amounts easily with complete accuracy, regardless of store location.
Even the most confident sales reps can lose motivation over time. It’s not uncommon for daily activities to become too ‘routine’ for sales reps, leading to lower productivity. Two of the best ways for CPG companies to overcome this challenge is to make key performance indicators (KPIs) available at all times and introduce gamification, such as point scoring, to encourage competition among sales reps. It’s also helpful to give territory managers the ability to monitor sales reps and provide feedback or encouragement to all reps in the field in real time.
Spring makes apps that provide actionable insights – insights that enable you to optimize field operations, maximize product turnover, add value during every in-store visit and increase sales. We also provide apps that address all of your digital collateral, merchandising, distribution and in-store research needs. Nobody understands the mobile needs of consumer goods companies like we do.