Have you ever wondered about the difference between a sales
rep and a business development rep? A
lot of sales managers and factory owners think they are the same thing but they’re
not.
The sales rep is an integral part of a factory’s success.
They work with their established builders helping them with their marketing and
sales efforts and being the builder’s voice to the factory. The sales rep
quotes prices for homes, helps with floorplans and changes, signs contracts and
everything else that both the factory and builder need to keep bringing in good
sales. The factory sales rep is the key to existing builder sales.
A business development representative (BDR),
on the other hand, cultivates relationships with potential builders and
developers for the modular factory. This job typically requires marketing
experience and familiarity with a factory’s products and services. A degree can
help, but is not absolutely necessary.
They identify the builders that might benefit from the
factory’s production and develop targets and plans that can be used to improve
the development of these contacts. A business development representative
may attend conferences and fairs to reach potential clients. In addition, sales
calls and mailings can be part of the work, to start a line of communications
with builders that might want to start working with the company.
When leads call back to indicate interest, the BDR works
with them to determine what they need and how the company could meet that need.
At this point, the sales manager may assign a sales rep to begin working along
side the BDR and the builder with the goal of the sales rep becoming the link
to the factory so the BDR can move on to procuring more new business.
Getting this new business may be done by expanding into new
demographics, capturing a larger part of the market share, and helping the modular
factory develop new products to appeal to builders. Being familiar with their competitors
is often critical, as is a thorough understanding of the entire modular industry.
Several years of experience in customer service, marketing,
and sales is usually necessary to become
a business development representative. It is important to have
excellent communication skills and the ability to adapt to a variety of
situations. Skilled representatives can identify the communication style most
preferred by a builder or a developer and shift their approach to make people
feel at ease, which can increase the chance of opening a new account and
developing a lasting relationship.
What are the requirements and skill sets needed to become a
good modular factory business development rep?
Responsibilities:
- A love
for and pride in what you do. - You’ll
need the ability to spot an opportunity, research it, create a plan and
develop it through to fruition. You’ll be constantly looking at innovative
and creative marketing methods to open doors, generating meaningful and
qualified conversations across a whole range of potential builders and
developers. - You
must be an excellent communicator with a proven background in identifying
and creating new business relationships. Knowledge of media and marketing
techniques would be fantastic, but not necessary. - Taking
a strategic, consultative selling approach, you will focus on developing
relationships and creating awareness with prospective clients. You must
have the proven ability to proactively source business and generate
meetings. - You
will be responsible for identifying leads and turning them into new
business opportunities for the factory. Excellent communication skills and
the confidence to regularly network and liaise with prospects are
essential. You must be a salesperson with entrepreneurial characteristics. - Prospect
and pitch new accounts by identifying and building relationships with key
decision makers/influencers. - Be
able to present yourself as a credible modular industry expert regarding
trends and methods. - Maintain
expertise of industry and competitors
Skills:
- Extensive
experience in new business development utilizing a consultative sales
approach. This comes with experience. - You
need analysis, interpersonal and listening skills - Excellent
communications skills. - You
must be comfortable working with builders and developers and display an ability
to develop relationships at all levels
The business development rep is the person that sets the
tone for the success of the factory and the sales rep is the one that maintains
that success.
If you are lucky enough to have a BDR on your staff, make sure
that every sales rep understands where each fit into the total scheme of things
for a successful future.
