We all need to maximise every resource available to succeed in our jobs. It becomes very frustrating if we are hindered by not having the resources or support to achieve our targets. In a sales position this is even more important as you often rely on others.

We would like to find out from professionals who have construction products sales jobs what you see as your biggest frustrations that prevent success. Here are some to popular ones to get you thinking…

Lack of office support
Do you find your day wasted by calls being put through to you, which could be easily handled by the office? Can you rely on them to support you by sending out literature, samples and technical information as well as answering queries and sorting out minor problems so that you can concentrate on selling? Do you get enough quality leads from the office to assist you to grow your area?

Bogged down by paperwork
Do you spend most of your time completing time sheets, visit reports, sales updates, prospects sheets and sales figures and find yourself spending more time doing this than actually going out selling?

Lack of sales aids
Are you given enough relevant literature and technical documentation to meet the needs of your customers and prospects? Is your company’s website user-friendly and can it be used to enhance your sell and as an added value information source? Do you have samples, presentations, point-of-sale material and demonstration equipment – like iPads – provided as part of your portfolio?

Lack of product and market training
Do you find yourself struggling with product knowledge and understanding of regulations due to lack of a professional and structured training programme by your company. Does this prevent you from selling effectively on features and benefits and adopting a more technical sale and taking the conversation away from price?

Poor operational support
Are you always let down by operations resulting in damaging your integrity with your customers due to factors such as: late delivery, out of stocks, too long lead-times, unrealistic minimum order quantities, excessive delivery charges or damaged or incorrect stock being sent?

Poor product or lack of range
Do you find that you cannot compete against your competitors because your company’s range is not broad enough or that the product is not of sufficient quality to develop brand loyalty and trust?

Unable to compete on price
Do you always lose out on price and can never understand why your product is so much more expensive than your competitors?

And now you can breathe…although we are sure there are lots more!