Gift Rep Sandy

Posts Tagged ‘traveling’

In the beginning of every year, I review my customer list and start making my sales schedules for the coming sales year.  This is a good time for reviewing what did or did not work, going over sales goals from the previous year, and generally checking the direction your business is growing.  For me, sales are very slow in January which gives me time to plan ahead for the coming sales seasons.

If you have been working your business for at least a year, you will become familiar with what to expect from each region of your territory and how much time you will need to adequately travel through that area again.  You will know which customers you want to service again (anyone who ordered the first year!) and which ones may be better left for someone else to service.  During this review and evaluation time, I choose to drop customers which are problems accounts.  Following is a list that includes the type of stores you may wish to drop from your customer base:

•    Stores that were habitually late or non-payers
•    Buyers who were difficult to get along with or found multiple problems with their orders (when there were not problems!)
•    Stores that did not move enough product to justify continuing service
•    Stores or buyers that treated me or my vendors poorly

The beginning of the year or season is also a good time to review your current lines for the same reasons listed above.  Changes happen year to year making it necessary to drop some lines and take on new lines.

Once you reviewed the plan you worked the previous year, it is time to make your schedule for the coming year.  In my case, it takes about seven solid weeks (Monday through Friday) to travel my entire territory and see each of my customers.  But within that time frame, there may be some customers who need to see me twice and some who do not need to see me at all.  Since there are two basic seasons in my territory, many buyers see me only twice a year to order for each season.  On the other hand, some of the larger stores in the larger areas sell through products quicker than 6-8 weeks and want me to visit there stores more often.  Every region is different as every customer’s needs will be different.

If you use the 80/20 principal, (80% of your sales will result from 20% of your accounts), you should know which customers you need to give the most and best of your time.  Schedule these priority regions or stores into your schedule first, and fill in the rest of your regions and stores for the times between.  If you start mapping out your new travel schedule by filling in the travel weeks you plan to be in the field, you have an easy framework to fill in with the rest of your travel routes.  Of course, you need to be sensitive to the location of these stores and regions.  You should also plan stops at stores for towns where you traveling through on the way to the priority accounts.

The saying “Time is money” is especially true for sales reps!  Anywhere you can save time in one aspect of your business leaves more time to make sales.  Listed here are a few of tips to help you save time and money in your business:

1.    Stay with family and friends whenever and wherever possible.  Motel costs can add up in a hurry.  Staying with family or friends saves you money, and also gives you a local contact person to help with directions, store referrals and familiarity with your territory.

2.    When possible, pack quick snacks to eat on the road.  Packing snack foods such as trail mix, granola bars, nuts or jerky are a good source of energy food when you don’t have time to stop for lunch.  (Ever gotten that last minute phone call rescheduling an appointment right during your lunch time?)  Packing a cooler with a good supply of water or your favorite canned beverage is also a good money and time saving trick.

3.    Prepack your suitcase with a complete set of products you use daily. Include a pre-packed set of make-up and toiletries, refillable shampoo or lotion bottles, vitamins, pain killer and any products you use on a daily or weekly basis.

4.    Keep maps of your territory in your vehicle.  Packing a general state or region map along with detail maps of the larger metropolitan area are can save a time when trying to locate potential buyers.  I found using maps is MUCH MORE effective then asking a local resident for directions who can ultimately give you bad directions and tell you, “You can’t miss it!”

5.    Keep a detailed customer and vendor contact list handy.  If you use Microsoft Access for your database, you can easily sort and print out lists by sales route.  Using printed lists with complete contact information saves time and aids your memory when contacting or visiting your customers.  No more embarrassing moments trying to remember the buyer’s name!

You will learn plenty more time saving tricks along the way as your continue to work your business.