Follow-up is number one with buyers

By Lisa van der Pool -- Purchasing, 11/18/1999 7:00:00 AM

Once again, basic thoroughness and follow-through are the most important qualities a salesperson should possess, according to purchasing professionals responding to our annual call for nominations of the best salesperson.

We asked buyers to nominate salespeople who stood out from others in their field, and we received numerous replies from all over the country from buyers citing salespeople who go the extra mile for the companies they serve. We also asked purchasing pros to say which traits they like the best--and the least--in salespeople.

Thoroughness wins

Thoroughness and follow-through came out on top this year at 71% as the most stellar qualities a salesperson can have. These traits have finished first for several years, and it speaks negatively of the sales function that qualities that should be given are the ones that buyers most often cite as the most valuable.

Coming in second at 65% was "market knowledge and willingness to keep you posted." Purchasing professionals spoke about numerous situations when current information led to cost reductions. Several buyers mentioned that part of the reason they so value unsolicited cost-saving information is that it so rarely occurs.

Another quality discussed frequently was the willingness of a salesperson to make rushed deliveries. When asked for an example of how their nominated salesperson helped them out, numerous purchasing pros cited late or weekend deliveries, oftentimes by the salesperson putting the product in his or her own vehicle and driving it to its destination themselves.

Other sales qualities that are valued by purchasing professionals: consistency, time and cost savings, fast handling of problems, and innovative ideas.

As was the case last year, buyers do not place high value on a salesperson having a technical education. It finished last on the list of what impresses buyers, with only 12% of polled purchasers naming it.

Purchasing pros' woes

When asked what their gripes were about salespeople calling on them, purchasing pros weren't shy about voicing their concerns around a basic lack of knowledge and preparation on the part of salespeople. According to purchasing pros, many salespeople are poorly prepared for sales calls, don't know their own product line well (let alone the business of their prospective customer), often show up late for appointments, and are far too pushy and aggressive for many buyers' tastes.

"Most are not prepared and do not offer me any real solutions to problems. I need someone who can offer real cost reductions and real solutions. Most of us are so busy we barely have time to look at new items," says Mike Horricks of Collins & Aikman Interior Systems Inc.

Although lack of follow-through came out ahead of the group as the most irritating quality a salesperson can have, other traits were close behind, including: pushiness, back-door selling, and basic dishonesty.

Purchasing pros want to find a loyal salesperson whom they can trust will tell them of price reductions that are available and routinely offer up cost-saving solutions. A common complaint was of salespeople who put their own needs ahead of the clients. "Salespeople seldom tell of cost savings that will cut into their sales. I have to discover them myself," says Ronald Welch, materials manager at General Cable Corporation.

The following winners of Purchasing Magazine's Best Sales Representatives competition were selected from nominations submitted by purchasing professionals throughout the course of this year. Forms for 2000 nominations will appear in the January 13, 2000, issue of Purchasing.

The Winners

Frank Mastrodonato

Contract manager

Kenneth Crosby, Acquisition Company--NY, INC.

Rochester, N.Y.

When asked how Mastrodonato has helped out in emergencies, Joyce H. Mayer, strategic sourcing manager at Bausch & Lomb says the occasions are "too numerous to mention! Frank has a pass for admittance to our facility. He knows our business as well as we do and always goes the extra mile to get the job done." Mastrodonato, who was also nominated by Cindy Straitiff, Sr., purchasing agent at Bausch and Lomb, and David Paul Tomaschko, purchasing agent at Bausch and Lomb, has been able to deliver tremendous cost savings. According to Straitiff, there has been a "significant reduction in the number of parts needed." It is clear that whether it's by saving costs or educating purchasers on products, Mastrodonato impresses buyers by going way beyond the call of duty. Mayer goes on to say that Mastrodonato "holds 'lunch and learn' sessions for our technical groups to learn about what's going on in our area, and bring new products and ideas to us. His substitution of existing products has saved thousands of dollars."

Frank Subach

Account Executive

Gaylord Container Corp.

Newark, Del.

Frank Subach's caring attitude and continuous cost savings motivated Robert Jasinski, buyer at Terumo Medical Corporation, to nominate him for best salesperson. "Frank's dedication to our account is the benchmark we measure all other salesman to. He truly cares about our account and us!" Subach serves as the sales contact for Terumo and the outside quality assurance contact. "Whenever we have a QA problem with Gaylord's products, we notify Frank. He picks up samples in person, reviews the problem, and makes sure the problem is fixed at his factory. This improves the quality of our product and saves us the time and energy of dealing with inside QA, " says Jasinski. Jasinski, who is most annoyed by cold calls and unavailability of a salesperson, is impressed by Subach's dedication. "Frank repeatedly has come through for us and somehow made sure we were supplied, sometimes within a fraction of the company's leadtime. Frank has even delivered cartons in his own vehicle after hours; he has delivered between midnight and 7:00 a.m."

Mary Fahland

Account Manager

Ryerson Coil Processing

New Hope, Minn.

Mary "has been a leader in developing an inventory program to deliver materials the same day they are used in production. She is creative in her approach to our company's partnership, and she's always upbeat and knowledgeable," says nominator Randy Huerkamp, senior buyer at The Toro Purchasing Company. In addition to increasing inventory turns, Fahland has made available additional floor space for new machines. Fahland, who has been selling to Toro for eight years, "has helped Toro provide on-time parts to our assembly plants with great diligence. She has turned material around in less than a day to keep our plants in full production, " says Huerkamp.

Keith Pile

Outside sales

McJunkin Corp.

Louisville, Ky.

Pile has saved senior buyer J.M. Stephenson's company over $40,000 to date. Stephenson, a buyer at Elf Atochem North America, dislikes salespeople who waste time at the company's expense and who lack knowledge about their products. Consequently, he was impressed by Pile's "new ideas, product presentation, cost reduction, and overall knowledge of our plant needs." Pile has been selling to Elf Atochem for three years. "Pile is involved in vendor inventory systems on all pipes and fittings used at our location. His involvement has reduced our current inventory level by 40%," says Stephenson. Pile has made his services available and accessible all the time. "We have arrangements for same-day delivery. Our location is approximately 60 miles from theirs. He has delivered after hours in his car. They also have a 24 hours/7 days a week answering service," says Stephenson.

Chris Teer

Sales Representative

Smurfit-Stone Container Corp.

Fox River Grove, Ill.

Teer "has taken the lead (with his manager) to share the best practices learned with his counterparts in other parts of Latin America, Mexico, North America, and Canada," according to T.A. Hodus, director of global sourcing at Corn Products International. Teer is "dedicated to our working alliance in North America, Canada, Mexico, and Latin America--he keeps the process moving forward, says Hodus. Although the figure is difficult to pinpoint, according to Hodus, Teer, who has been selling to Corn Products International for four years, has saved his company $300-$500K annually. Hodus emphasizes the close attention Teer gives to projects. "Teer is currently working with their rep in Mexico on a problem in Guadalajara, Mexico City. He is also coordinating service installation in Columbia and Brazil. We have successfully established a local service into a global support," says Hodus.

Bill Besser

District Manager

Chicago Rawhide

New Castle, Ind.

Besser is "very proactive; he really stays on top of our orders and keeps me informed," according to nominator Bob Holland, buyer at Power Train. Besser, who has been selling to Power Train for five years, has "driven from his home to the national distribution center (over 100 miles from his home) to pick up parts and deliver them to us to be sure we had them the next morning," says Holland. Although the dollar amount that Besser has saved Power Train was not available, the material and labor savings were significant according to Holland. Besser "has been successful in changing the contents of some bearing kits. This eliminated us having to buy extra bearing and return excess bearings," says Holland.

Ron Case

Uniform Colour Company

Holland, Mich.

Case, "is directly responsible for millions of dollars in direct savings as a result of reduced launch costs," according to nominator Mike Horricks at Collins & Aikman Interior Systems Inc. He has been selling to Horrick's company for 12 years. Case, who is the prime manufacturer's salesperson, for Collins & Aikman Interior Systems, Inc., "has the technical ability to work directly on line with our process people combined with the professionalism to deal with vice presidents," according to Horricks. Case's combination of business savvy, skill, and attentiveness are what prompted Horricks to nominate him for best salesperson. Says Horricks, "Colour is very subjective and as a result Ron has worked directly with manufacturing to work through colour issues that affect our downtime and the downtime at a tier-one supplier or assembly facility."

Timothy L. Shanahan, Manager

Weldstar Company

University Park, Ill.

Shanahan makes himself available just about all the time to nominator Bob Neff, purchasing agent for Lockport Steel Fab. "We have both his cell phone and home numbers--he has arranged for night/weekend deliveries and gone to get emergency supplies and made deliveries himself or just been available on a Saturday or Sunday to give advice or answer a technical question," says Neff. Neff, whose biggest gripe is when salespeople hedge their way through a problem they don't really know the answer to, appreciates Shanahan's knowledge about the industry. "We had a problem with a separation of a particular gas mix we use. Shanahan got his company to install special mixer tubes in the cylinders and had them put on a rolling mixer machine prior to delivery of the product," says Neff. As for money that Shanahan, who has been selling to Lockport Steel Fab for 15 years, has saved for the company, "It's hard to put a dollar value on it, but the lost time due to mixing ourselves plus the frustration associated with less-than-perfect welds was largely eliminated by this measure," says Neff.

Lawrence Hobbs

Account Manager

J & L

Anaheim, Calif.

Hobbs has received perhaps the largest compliment a supplier could, from nominator Ronald Welch, materials manager at General Cable Corporation. When asked how the supplier reacted to emergencies, here's what Welch said: "We don't have emergencies with this supplier! Larry set up a vendor-maintained inventory system. We talk with the plant daily to asses needs vs. the stock on hand. The difference between them and the previous supplier is: a quiet night when I leave work." Hobbs' perseverance and skill also impress Welch, "We were experiencing a high level of shipping damage and freight claims with customers. We worked together for 5 months developing cost-effective yet strong packaging. Shortly after our final changes, corporate adopted our specifications."

James Prieston

Salesperson

Allegiance Healthcare

Edison, N.J.

"Hundreds of thousands of dollars," is the amount of money that nominator Ellis Polin says Prieston has saved his company, Montefiore Medical Center. Polin, who is a buyer, is not only impressed by his money-saving skills, but also by his product knowledge and follow-through. "He provides us with products of equal or better quality which are less expensive and many times part of a national contract with our G.P.U. Here products are stocked locally for immediate delivery," says Polin. Prieston, "is available by phone, beeper, or home fax. As our major supplier in medical, surgical, and laboratory products, he will arrange overnight delivery or same-day delivery and he has carried products in himself in emergencies," says Polin.