When it comes to working with alcohol distributors in 2023, one of the biggest mistakes I see...
I’m not sure if the word “hobby” is appropriate, but whatever you call it, I’ve been studying and collecting job descriptions for many years, and they continue to be a great source of amusement for me.
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How to manifest a wine sales pro
The first problem with most wine sales job descriptions is that they are way too long. It’s almost as if the creator felt the “perfect” candidate would simply materialize if they put enough descriptors into it.
Consider the very long list of bullet points with inane headings like:
- “The ideal candidate should possess…”
- “About YOU…”
- “Who you are…”
- “What you bring to the role…”
- “Is this you?”
Is there an applicant alive who would not say, “Oh, yes, that’s me” to every item on the bullet list? Do you think you are screening out undesirable candidates with this list?
The cold, hard truth is that the average hiring manager or business owner doesn’t have a clue how to screen for a top-notch sales pro. They go by “experience” and the resume, which is often a huge mistake.
What they think is required to be successful in a sales job and what is actually required are often miles apart.
Ready to go right out of the box. No training required!
If I had a nickel for every time I heard a hiring manager say, “I want a plug-and-play salesperson.” Of course, you do - then you don’t have to take on the responsibility of properly training them!
The reality is the perfect candidate does not exist. But that is perfectly fine because if a candidate has the traits common to all great salespeople, everything else can be taught.
Many nod their heads in mental assent to this idea, but they rarely actually practice it, most likely because they have no idea what those traits are.
Other disconnects from reality
Without a doubt, the most amusing part of most job descriptions for sales roles is how disconnected they are from reality. They include bullet points that speak to a sales playbook that is as obsolete as Mapsco.
- Manage all levels of the wholesaler.
- Hold distributors accountable for monthly sales goals.
- Execute work-withs with the distributor sales teams.
- Educate the distributor sales reps on our portfolio.
I’ve written extensively on this elsewhere, so I won’t belabor on the point now. But suffice it to say this huge disconnect is why most brands struggle to achieve your sales goals.
Another common aberration is the mandate to spend a lot of time on low-value, low-revenue-generating activities like education and tastings. I guess this might have been valid back when there were half as many brands as there are now (say, 6-7 years ago). However, given the fact that there are now at least 175,000 SKUs on the market, a salesperson’s time might be better spent on more productive pursuits.
The perfect salesperson job description
Ok, so it’s time to reveal the perfect salesperson job description as advertised, so here it is:
'Whoever gets this job must be able to consistently and profitably achieve their annual sales goal without excuses.'
That’s it. That’s what you want.
You should not care HOW they achieve the goal as long as it’s done ethically, legally, and in accordance with your company’s values.
It shouldn’t matter what percentage of their time or days in the week are spent “on the street” calling on accounts.
It shouldn’t matter whether or not the distributor plays along with your silly little “commitments.”
It doesn’t matter how much wine knowledge they have because, while compulsory in a wine sales role, it’s not the difference-maker in achieving a sales goal.
It doesn’t matter how good their presentation or closing skills are because that way of selling went out of fashion in the 1980s.
Thanks to modern technology, there’s no need for manual, written weekly reports.
Finally, there’s no need to list out all the job requirements, responsibilities, and expectations because, at the end of the day, there is really only ONE EXPECTATION, which is to crush your sales goal.
Yes, TRAINING is required.
If for no other reason than times have changed salespeople must adapt.
It really doesn’t matter how great a salesperson you hire; nowadays, there is a huge need for “Modern” sales training.
Here are the things most salespeople need training on no matter how long they’ve been in the game:
- Key Account Targeting
- The Modern Sales Approach
- Expert Use and Adoption CRM
- Distributor Management for Modern Times
- Email for Trade Sales (building relationships at scale)
- Digital Lead Generation
- Post-pandemic On-premise Sales Skills (desperately needed by most)
- Social Selling
Since there is no training program in existence where someone can send their salespeople, I went ahead and created it myself. You’re welcome. Here is a link if you want to check it out.
A warm welcome to those of you just joining us in 2024
We have too many Rip Van Winkles running around writing the same job descriptions as the ones they wrote 20 years ago.
How could so many people be so clueless about our industry's current sales environment?
It makes me sad, truly. Just today, after reading one major wine company's job posting for a sales role on winejobs.com, I flipped over to look at the last 13 weeks of Nielsen data and noticed that same company's sales are in the crapper. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised.
To those who understand, no explanation is needed. To those who do not understand, no explanation will suffice.
