• You will be paired up with a partner who also attended the High Impact Client Interviews Theory session and they will prepare for the role of a customer.

•  You will complete a detailed client profile and brief your partner on the basic knowledge they will require in order to assist you in your role-play.

• You should prepare for a first time meeting with the customer for whom you have provided a customer profile for or in other words, you will be treating this customer as if they are a competitive account or someone who is not yet using the product or service which you are selling.

• Know what your objectives are going into the meeting and have them written down.  Using a template that you have created and or some specific questions tailored to this customer, you will engage in a fifteen minute role-playing scenario.

• Your initial goal is to build rapport and trust so that you are able to break down any resistance and open their frame of mind so that they are willing to consider you as a supplier.

• Review your notes from the High Impact Client Interview Module and remember to structure your interview and employ several of the questioning techniques learned in this session.

• Your job is to earn the right to learn about the customer's business and then gain as much insight as possible during your meeting.

• After the role-play is finished you will be provided with constructive feedback that will enhance your ability to be more effective when meeting with clients.

• Those participants who are not involved in the role-play will act as observers and will be asked to complete an observation form so that you can benefit from their valuable feedback also.

• You will also be supplied with the feedback forms from the group and instructor and a copy of your role-play on DVD.

• The prerequisite for this session is the attendance of Module 7 - High Impact Client Interviews (Theory).

• Anyone who is new to professional selling and looking for the tools, techniques and advantages that will get them off to a faster start in their sales career.

• Those who have a great deal at stake in their selling career and can't afford to make costly mistakes in their sales appointments.

• People who want to up their game and understand the importance of gaining professional feedback in a safe environment.

• Individuals working in on their own with no management support or training and a need to seek outside assistance for coaching and training purposes.

• People who don't have anyone qualified or capable of critiquing their interviewing and needs assessment skills.

• Sales people who want to learn how to work smart and turn more opportunities into closed sales.

The content covered in the combination of Module 7 (Theory) and Module 8 (Role Playing) is one of the most valuable lessons a sales person can focus on to improve performance.  I'm pleased to see that the ideas, lessons and tips learned during these training sessions have continued to be used by my sales team.  They repeatedly come back with their successes and credit to Marshall.  As a Sales Manager it can be hard to measure the value of sales training and determine the return on investment, but in just one opportunity, one of our sales reps used these strategies and came back with an order which will cover the entire cost of all the Elite Training Systems modules for my entire sales team! To actually see results come in months after the training session is a true testament to Marshall's ability to teach.  I totally recommend this training to any company wanting to grow their business.

Jackie McDonald, Sales Manager, E.M. Precise Tool

I found the role-playing to be very beneficial.  Going through the steps/process really helped me with where I should be directing the conversation.  I learned that you need to ask questions and "listen" to establish a need.  Found it very useful and I believe the more I practice it, the better I will be.  As usual, Marshall was very informative and opened my eyes to a new approach.

Wendy Cools-Lartigue, Sales Representative, Brown Packaging

Role-playing while personally nerve racking, helped me understand the process of the sales conversation.  Prior to the role-playing my personal understanding was that I was average.  Now I understand that I'm below and need a lot of work.  I need to thank Marshall for telling me the way it was (is).

John Winkfield, Sales Representative, E.M. Precise Tool Ltd.

Excellent!!!  I like the fact that there was a small group (more people would have intimidated me even more).  I need to do this more often.  I learned that preparation is important and so is practice.  Marshall has great observation skills and verbalizes them well.  It would have been okay if he was tougher on me.

Arend Van Eck, Principal, MERAK Systems

The key thing learned is to consider the position of the customer.  In addition, don't jump too quickly with responses, pause and think.  My biggest concern going into this exercise was not knowing, completely what to expect.  Having completed the exercise I now know that I must review my sales appointments and self audit.  The feedback allowed me to see from other perspectives what I am doing and what I shouldn't be doing.  This is a good process that needs to be continued and repeated.

Peter Lemmen, Sales Representative, E.M. Precise Tool Ltd.

Excellent exercise!  I would have never undertaken this if not forced to through the role-playing exercise.  I learned how important preparation is.  It made me think about the customer and what to say.  The feedback pointed out things that went right over my head and made me realize that I'm not perfect after all.  Marshall provided good feedback on our performances and having a video of it will be helpful.

Dave Milne, Sales Representative, John Crane Canada

It got me thinking about the expanding, clarifying and open-ended questions that were needed.  Preparation was a must!  I was concerned about being ready to ask questions and be patient.  It was good to hear what I was not doing well.  Marshall's take on the sales process is very unique and very observant.

Dan Smith, Sales Representative, E.M. Precise Tool Ltd.

Excellent!  Today was great at pushing us through and past our fears!  Marshall is great and the material is really pushing us forward on a better path.

Jill Edwards, Senior Account Executive, Execulink Telecom

This was an excellent chance to see your good and bad habits in a learning environment.  It was more daunting being the customer actually!  This was very worthwhile and worth repeating.

Mike Cousineau, Sales Representative, E.M. Precise Tool Ltd.

Today I learned the importance of preparing ahead of time.  It speeds up the sales process.  Great handbook!  It helped the new sales person and the experienced ones too.  Marshall was able to adapt to our late schedule change and put together a great session.

Andrew McClure, Dealer Manager, Cover-All Buildings

This role-playing exercise helped me to better understand the consultative selling process, most specifically learning the customer's needs before jumping into a sale.  The evaluation process worked well in providing positive feedback and constructive criticism.

Rob Lemmen, Sales Representative, E.M. Precise Tool Ltd.

The sales course was adapted to cover our type of business.  Today was even paced, easy to follow and the role-playing helped all of us focus on the strong points as well as the week areas.  Marshall really kept things on track and did an excellent job of relating to our business.

Richard Gebhardt, Owner, Peak Builders

I was very nervous and not looking forward to this exercise.  Now I appreciate the value in practice.  I especially liked getting feed back from my peers.  I learned new ways of handling things.  Overall I found the role-playing very helpful, I wish I wouldn't have been so nervous.  I really appreciate the feedback, this was great reality and I enjoyed the opportunity.

Jackie McDonald, Sales Manager, E.M. Precise Tool Ltd.

I learned to keep an open mind and to ask open ended questions to get the answers I need and the answers I am looking for.  The role-playing was good and very informative.  Marshall is very knowledgeable and gave a lot of great ideas on asking questions.

Craig McGill, Eastern Ontario Dealer Manager, Cover-All Buildings

Let the customers sell themselves by asking a lot of questions.  A very good way to learn the needs of the customer.  Marshall was clear and honest with his comments.  He's a great speaker.

Bruce Schmidt, President, Schmidt Construction Cover-All Division Inc.

Today was interesting.  I found it tough to be in front of the camera though.  The comments from the rest of the group will definitely help me to improve my skills.

George Ippolito, Sales Representative, Sowa Tool

Good practice.  I found many things to improve upon.  I learned the most through role-playing and observation.  Learning by doing is great.  The critique was valuable, thanks!

Matt Winder, Corporate Sales, Execulink Telecom

This was fun, however it was difficult initially because of the presence of my colleagues. I think we all learned that we need to be better prepared for meetings. We have all missed some basic questions to ask. This exercise will help us to be more prepared, and comfortable/confident in front of potential clients.
Tom Kraft, Sales Representative, Burkert Fluid Control Systems

This was a great program to improve our sales skills. By having people watch your sales call. You get very positive feedback to improve our skills.
Tom Branigan, Sales Representative, Burkert Fluid Control Systems

Lots of good interaction. I learned what needs to be included with customer calls. The feedback was great. Marshall has a way of critiquing without being critical.
Maureen Poulin, Sales Representative, Marks Supply Inc.

A tough workshop for me to do but I learned a lot from the feedback of my co-workers. Definitely something we should do more often.
Mike Harber, Sales Representative, Marks Supply Inc.