Competitor With Beer Bucks
Tries To Eat Share Of Salty Snacks

Threat Causes Change

This client had the lion's share (or should we say cheetah?) of the salty snack category. Then the major brewer of beer, with lots of cash, moved into the market place. This meant one of two things: 1) Do the traditional thing-spend big with the trade to maintain your advantage, or 2)have a new kind of relationship that's not so driven by slotting fees.

But, a relationship based on what?

Creating Trust Is A Must

They had just spent millions on new software and scanner data that could transform their sales people into category managers. That is, if the sales force knew what to do with it. Working closely with the sales information department, we created a two-part course.

• Step One: Build the analytical skills of Key Account Managers. This training helped them find patterns in scanner data that would help them grow, not just their own products, but, their customer's entire salty snack category.
• Step Two: Improve the trust building skills of each individual as well as the tactical methods of communicating as a consultant. For years they had been pitching products like a vendor rather than creating action through objectivity. This was an emotional, philosophical and cultural shift for the 150 managers involved. Not everyone could do it.

Major space gains in the divisions that embraced the process. The competitor is now out of business.