Sales Pitch

JULIE GALLAGHER

If you spot a demo associate at Kroger staring at his iPhone, don't assume he's handling personal business on the company dime.

A New Concepts in Marketing demo associate engages shoppers in a fun way.

If he's there on behalf of retail shopper marketing company New Concepts in Marketing, chances are he's viewing an instructional video on an iPhone app.

Smart phone-accessible training materials, online videos and webinars are helping brand ambassadors follow instructions for sampling demos, to the letter.

Advanced training tools also allow third-party merchandisers to deliver messages about product attributes, display assembly and the appropriate ways to engage shoppers, in a more uniform way.

“We're tasked with making demos cohesive and repeatable across all the different outlets,” explained Michael Stern, president and owner of New Concepts in Marketing, whose retail partners include Kroger, Roundy's and Giant of Carlisle.

When it comes to more complicated events like dry wine demos in regions where tastings are prohibited, brand ambassadors are required to view a training video that is accessed with a store-specific ID at New Concepts' online training center. Once the video is complete, the viewer is given a code, which is used on their invoice.

Stern decided to make training videos accessible on mobile platforms so that they can be easily reviewed on the go or even in-store as the demo station is being set up. This type of training is supplemented with conference calls, webinars and in-person meetings.

All are designed to bring associates closer to sales goals, which are sometimes incentive-based.

“Without proper training you get into the mindset of ‘this is a warm body,’ which is an ROI killer,” said Ethan Charas, chief executive officer of Stratmar Retail Services, Port Chester, N.Y., and vice chairman of the National Association for Retail Marketing Services. “You have to make sure that when they're there they actually know what they're doing.”

Stratmar, a marketing services company that facilitates demos at retail chains like The Home Depot, tests its demo associates to ensure they've retained information presented in product-specific training videos. “Only after you pass the test are you certified to work,” Charas said.

Videos are based on a succinct set of product-specific selling points that the brand ambassador will articulate to shoppers.

Stratmar collects this information from the manufacturer and edits it so that it's easily digestible. Videos range from six to 10 minutes and are posted online.

“We say, ‘Here are the things we need you to share with the consumer at that intercept to make them buy right now,’” Charas said.

Although some manufacturers pass along dozens of selling points, sales success is tied to keeping things simple. After all, brand ambassadors have just a few seconds to engage shoppers and get an item into their basket.

“I don't care about the 14th benefit,” said Charas. “Give me the top three.”

The online system is beneficial not just because Stratmar can tell who has been certified to work. It also lets Charas track how many times an associate has viewed a video, thus informing future hiring decisions.

“It gives you an idea of who are the most conscientious reps, brand ambassadors or demonstrators,” he said. “Those who take it very seriously are the ones you want to use again and again.”

An associate's professionalism hasn't always been so easy to gauge.

About a quarter century ago, the quality of in-store demos across the board began to deteriorate, Charas explained.

It was around the time that in-person training was deemed too costly. So much so that it became virtually obsolete. Instead of meeting face-to-face to train personnel, printed materials became the norm. The system proved problematic since there was no way to confirm that a demo associate had actually reviewed training materials.

But back then, the last point of customer contact wasn't as important to brand manufacturers as it is today.

With the advent of the Internet, all of that changed.

“In today's world with 500 channels and satellite stations, no one is listening to commercials,” said Stern. “The only way for a major CPG company to launch a product right now is to get it into someone's hands.”

But not just so they can taste the product — modern-day demo associates need to convince them to buy.

“We're not there to sample,” Stern said. “We're there to sell.”

If a brand ambassador can educate the shopper about relevant attributes, they stand a much better chance of making a sale, noted Kenny Herbst, assistant professor of marketing, Schools of Business, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, N.C.

“Learning about a product from educated and knowledgeable associates brings a product into the shopper's consideration set and helps it leap off the shelf and into the customer's cupboard,” he said.

To ensure the right messages are being conveyed to shoppers, Stratmar associates are required to complete an online survey at the end of each day to share what they've observed. Comments are made available to brand manufacturers in real time.

Learnings are so influential that training videos are sometimes altered to emphasize different selling points.

“Training is something that has evolved dramatically in the past several years,” Charas said.

A necessity since demos have become much more sophisticated, incorporating more detailed dialogue, he added.

That may be part of the reason why Sam's Club wiped its in-house demo associate slate clean when it appointed Shopper Events to facilitate product sampling.

In January, the chain announced it would eliminate 10,000 demo associate positions as it handed over the reins to Shopper Events. The company operates under a shared service agreement made between competing sales agencies Advantage Sales and Marketing and Crossmark. It also operates the “Bright Ideas” demo program at Wal-Mart.

Although affected Sam's Club employees had the opportunity to apply for one of 10,000 positions at Shopper Events, the company set its bar high.

“We wanted to ensure that we had the right expertise to execute events,” Brian Pear, vice president and general manager of Shopper Events, told SN.

The company hires demo associates for a particular Wal-Mart store or Sam's Club location so that personnel can build relationships with the same set of shoppers, week after week.

Prior to executing an event, though, employees must undergo 15 hours of advanced training, and then more specialized education when preparing for a specific demo.

Because employees are based throughout the country, Internet-based webinars, videos and printed materials are paramount.

“It's a must with the size and breadth of the organization,” said Pear.

The tools also help to convey a uniform message, so demos have a more cohesive feel.

“The challenge historically has been a lack of consistency in look, feel and execution,” Pear said.