In this conversation, Paul Niven, Vice President of Sales at Alta Genetics, shares his extensive journey in the agriculture and dairy industry, particularly focusing on his experiences in China and international sales. He discusses the importance of understanding customer needs, the qualities of effective sales leaders, and the significance of structured sales training. Paul emphasizes the need for salespeople to build genuine relationships with customers while also being knowledgeable about their products. St John and Paul discuss the challenges and strategies in sales training and management, particularly in the agricultural sector. They emphasize the importance of effective training methods, the role of sales managers, and the vital integration between sales and marketing. The discussion highlights the need for follow-up after training events, the balance between managing and selling, and the evolving nature of sales strategies. Paul also shares insights on the difficulties of agricultural sales and the necessity of continuous learning and adaptation in the field. Sound Bites There are no customers in head office. A theory download is no good. Sales managers should not be selling. Sales is the lifeblood of business. Agricultural sales is very tough. Don't pretend you know everything. You need to keep learning. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction to Paul Niven and His Journey 02:11 - Career Path and Experiences in Agriculture 08:33 - Transition to China and International Sales 12:34 - Managing a Diverse Sales Team 14:28 - Qualities of a Good Sales Leader 20:28 - The Importance of Customer Relationships 26:41 - Sales Training and Development 34:15 - Defining a Successful Sales Process 38:45 - The Pitfalls of Traditional Sales Training 42:11 - The Role of Sales Managers in Coaching 44:41 - Designing Effective Sales Management Training 48:40 - Sales Managers: Should They Sell or Manage? 54:18 - The Interplay Between Sales and Marketing 01:01:46 - Advice for Younger Sales Professionals +++ Want to make more rural sales? Get your FREE copy of “How To Succeed In Rural Sales” ⁠Ebook here. Connect with or Follow me on LinkedIn. Subscribe to my weekly rural sales email (which goes out to 3500+ rural sales professionals worldwide) ⁠⁠here⁠⁠. To join our private Facebook Group where we share a ton of free rural sales and lead generation tools almost daily join here. For details on our training programmes you can check out what we do for sales teams with our Rural Sales Success™ programme here or for managers with our Rural Sales Manager Mastery™ programme here. For more on us, what we do and who we work with: www.ruralsalessuccess.com / www.agrarian.co.nz

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