ng we looked for:

• Communication skills (our initial interviewing was conducted by phone - and voice, manner, personality and a positive attitude, were pre-requisites for a face-to-face interview).

• Perceived sales skills (e.g. listening, questioning, clarity of presentation, influencing and responding to tough questions).

• Basic keyboard skills and the ability to spell (however, our best telemarketer was also our worst speller - so bad, in fact, that it took some dramatic arguing and persuading on my part to get her on board. (It was worth the effort.)

Training Program:

Prior to their sales training, they had to undergo four weeks of technical/customer service classroom training and two weeks of on-the-job training. This was conducted in a systematic, methodical manner

When I commenced my training career in 1980 (with a major manufacturing, distribution and retail tire company, based in Australia) something I read in those early days had a major influence on me and the development of a long term career in this great profession. The three simple, yet profound sentences (wish I had thought them up!) were:

Training accelerates experience

Training is not a spectator sport

Training must be ongoing

Obviously, since 1980 training has made great progress. However, a well planned training and ongoing staff development program resolves around those three simple sentences, mentioned above.

CASE STUDY: The 'Age' Newspaper, based in Melbourne, Australia. One of the World's TOP newspapers.

My chosen case study relates to a training program designed, developed and delivered within The Age newspaper some years ago. The reason I go back in time is this - the program has been utilized as a model, over the years, in over 100 newspapers and magazines of various sizes and, where it has received the full support of management, has gained outstanding, measurable outcomes and RESULTS.

The NEW Telemarketing Team

Situation:

The brief was to create an outbound telephone sales team of 60 telemarketers by selecting voluntary candidates from within an inbound group of approximately 250 full and part time telephone ad takers.

After extensive internal advertising and many interviews, we gained the princely total of 12 volunteers (two actually quit the program prior to training which indicated to us that we had to go 'off campus' for another 50 starters!).

The support from middle (and some senior) management was negligible and a fair amount of hostility was displayed by established staff.

Objectives:

A long term business development goal was established to add $X,000,000,000 to the organization's bottom line results within a three year time frame.

Short term goals included:

• Selling new Features, Directories and Guides to business prospects/current non-advertisers on a planned, regular and systematic basis. Our aim was also to cross sell from one Feature/Directory/Guide into others, ensuring we gained a permanent slice of their ad budget and they gained results (in advertising, one 'sure fire' way to gain results is by frequency or repetition - the other is the power and clarity of your advertising message).

• Protect our consumer or private party advertising base from predator publications. To conduct call campaigns on these advertisers and, if they had not sold their goods, persuade them to repeat their ad with an enhanced format.

• We were also commissioned to conduct specified campaigns (e.g. subscriptions/circulation drives) on behalf of the marketing department.

Recruitment Program:

Since our internal campaign had failed dismally, we had to look outside. This was a blessing as we attracted some very high quality candidates. It also encouraged a few more established internal people to 'give it a go'. These were basically very good people who, perhaps initially, had been put off by intimidation tactics from some of their colleagues.

We recruited in blocks of six (or supplemented internal volunteers to a maximum of six) for each initial training program. When recruiting we looked for:

• Communication skills (our initial interviewing was conducted by phone - and voice, manner, personality and a positive attitude, were pre-requisites for a face-to-face interview).

• Perceived sales skills (e.g. listening, questioning, clarity of presentation, influencing and responding to tough questions).

• Basic keyboard skills and the ability to spell (however, our best telemarketer was also our worst speller - so bad, in fact, that it took some dramatic arguing and persuading on my part to get her on board. (It was worth the effort.)

Training Program:

Prior to their sales training, they had to undergo four weeks of technical/customer service classroom training and two weeks of on-the-job training. This was conducted in a systematic, methodical manner

Age newspaper some years ago. The reason I go back in time is this - the program has been utilized as a model, over the years, in over 100 newspapers and magazines of various sizes and, where it has received the full support of management, has gained outstanding, measurable outcomes and RESULTS.

The NEW Telemarketing Team

Situation:

The brief was to create an outbound telephone sales team of 60 telemarketers by selecting voluntary candidates from within an inbound group of approximately 250 full and part time telephone ad takers.

After extensive internal advertising and many interviews, we gained the princely total of 12 volunteers (two actually quit the program prior to training which indicated to us that we had to go 'off campus' for another 50 starters!).

The support from middle (and some senior) management was negligible and a fair amount of hostility was displayed by established staff.

Objectives:

A long term business development goal was established to add $X,000,000,000 to the organization's bottom line results within a three year time frame.

Short term goals included:

• Selling new Features, Directories and Guides to business prospects/current non-advertisers on a planned, regular and systematic basis. Our aim was also to cross sell from one Feature/Directory/Guide into others, ensuring we gained a permanent slice of their ad budget and they gained results (in advertising, one 'sure fire' way to gain results is by frequency or repetition - the other is the power and clarity of your advertising message).

• Protect our consumer or private party advertising base from predator publications. To conduct call campaigns on these advertisers and, if they had not sold their goods, persuade them to repeat their ad with an enhanced format.

• We were also commissioned to conduct specified campaigns (e.g. subscriptions/circulation drives) on behalf of the marketing department.

Recruitment Program:

Since our internal campaign had failed dismally, we had to look outside. This was a blessing as we attracted some very high quality candidates. It also encouraged a few more established internal people to 'give it a go'. These were basically very good people who, perhaps initially, had been put off by intimidation tactics from some of their colleagues.

We recruited in blocks of six (or supplemented internal volunteers to a maximum of six) for each initial training program. When recruiting we looked for:

• Communication skills (our initial interviewing was conducted by phone - and voice, manner, personality and a positive attitude, were pre-requisites for a face-to-face interview).

• Perceived sales skills (e.g. listening, questioning, clarity of presentation, influencing and responding to tough questions).

• Basic keyboard skills and the ability to spell (however, our best telemarketer was also our worst speller - so bad, in fact, that it took some dramatic arguing and persuading on my part to get her on board. (It was worth the effort.)

Training Program:

Prior to their sales training, they had to undergo four weeks of technical/customer service classroom training and two weeks of on-the-job training. This was conducted in a systematic, methodical manner

or) management was negligible and a fair amount of hostility was displayed by established staff.

Objectives:

A long term business development goal was established to add $X,000,000,000 to the organization's bottom line results within a three year time frame.

Short term goals included:

• Selling new Features, Directories and Guides to business prospects/current non-advertisers on a planned, regular and systematic basis. Our aim was also to cross sell from one Feature/Directory/Guide into others, ensuring we gained a permanent slice of their ad budget and they gained results (in advertising, one 'sure fire' way to gain results is by frequency or repetition - the other is the power and clarity of your advertising message).

• Protect our consumer or private party advertising base from predator publications. To conduct call campaigns on these advertisers and, if they had not sold their goods, persuade them to repeat their ad with an enhanced format.

• We were also commissioned to conduct specified campaigns (e.g. subscriptions/circulation drives) on behalf of the marketing department.

Recruitment Program:

Since our internal campaign had failed dismally, we had to look outside. This was a blessing as we attracted some very high quality candidates. It also encouraged a few more established internal people to 'give it a go'. These were basically very good people who, perhaps initially, had been put off by intimidation tactics from some of their colleagues.

We recruited in blocks of six (or supplemented internal volunteers to a maximum of six) for each initial training program. When recruiting we looked for:

• Communication skills (our initial interviewing was conducted by phone - and voice, manner, personality and a positive attitude, were pre-requisites for a face-to-face interview).

• Perceived sales skills (e.g. listening, questioning, clarity of presentation, influencing and responding to tough questions).

• Basic keyboard skills and the ability to spell (however, our best telemarketer was also our worst speller - so bad, in fact, that it took some dramatic arguing and persuading on my part to get her on board. (It was worth the effort.)

Training Program:

Prior to their sales training, they had to undergo four weeks of technical/customer service classroom training and two weeks of on-the-job training. This was conducted in a systematic, methodical manner

ions. To conduct call campaigns on these advertisers and, if they had not sold their goods, persuade them to repeat their ad with an enhanced format.

We were also commissioned to conduct specified campaigns (e.g. subscriptions/circulation drives) on behalf of the marketing department.

Recruitment Program:

Since our internal campaign had failed dismally, we had to look outside. This was a blessing as we attracted some very high quality candidates. It also encouraged a few more established internal people to 'give it a go'. These were basically very good people who, perhaps initially, had been put off by intimidation tactics from some of their colleagues.

We recruited in blocks of six (or supplemented internal volunteers to a maximum of six) for each initial training program. When recruiting we looked for:

• Communication skills (our initial interviewing was conducted by phone - and voice, manner, personality and a positive attitude, were pre-requisites for a face-to-face interview).

• Perceived sales skills (e.g. listening, questioning, clarity of presentation, influencing and responding to tough questions).

• Basic keyboard skills and the ability to spell (however, our best telemarketer was also our worst speller - so bad, in fact, that it took some dramatic arguing and persuading on my part to get her on board. (It was worth the effort.)

Training Program:

Prior to their sales training, they had to undergo four weeks of technical/customer service classroom training and two weeks of on-the-job training. This was conducted in a systematic, methodical manner

ng we looked for:

• Communication skills (our initial interviewing was conducted by phone - and voice, manner, personality and a positive attitude, were pre-requisites for a face-to-face interview).

• Perceived sales skills (e.g. listening, questioning, clarity of presentation, influencing and responding to tough questions).

• Basic keyboard skills and the ability to spell (however, our best telemarketer was also our worst speller - so bad, in fact, that it took some dramatic arguing and persuading on my part to get her on board. (It was worth the effort.)

Training Program:

Prior to their sales training, they had to undergo four weeks of technical/customer service classroom training and two weeks of on-the-job training. This was conducted in a systematic, methodical manner and, upon completion, they progressed to a sales training program comprising one full week of theory and practical applications.

The sales training program was based on a single outcome: at the end of the week, each person would possess the competency to achieve their sales targets. This would be continually measured.

The program consisted of:

• Personal organization/time management

• Introduction to decision maker (and getting past the ubiquitous gatekeeper!)

• Needs analysis phase: questioning and listening skills

• Presenting advertising benefits

• Gaining commitment/overcoming objections and closing

• Copywriting

The training incorporated some lectures, games and simulations, skills practice exercises, case studies and problem solving exercises as well as video presentations/discussion of key points.

At the completion of the training program they were integrated into their team (we built up to five teams, approximately 12 to a team - including a Team Leader and a Deputy).

This was also the commencement of their on-the-job coaching phase.

Long Term Development Program:

Our ongoing program was broken into the following key result areas:

• Coaching - from their team leader and from our appointed coach. This person's role was to reinforce the positive behavior of people and gently bring about change of undesirable behavior.

• Further training sessions - after one month (one full day) and then on a quarterly basis (half to one full day). Methodologies included guest presenters (internal, e.g. the Marketing Manager and external, e.g. representatives from our ad agency), case studies and problem solving exercises, brainstorming exercises, hypotheticals, skills practice exercises, team building exercises, games and some video presentation/key point discussion. This training was on an individual team basis.

• Monthly meeting sessions for the entire team involving feedback, short term planning issues, results, forecasts and rewards (from group encouragement, team awards to individual awards covering various categories).

• We also conducted an annual (full) team day as well as a monthly social event - usually following the monthly meetings. The annual team day was 100% motivational in content as were the monthly social events.

• Team Leaders received additional training, both internally and externally, including team building, motivation, discipline, feedback and communication skills.

They were also committed to the planning process and, along with the coach, put in a number of hours working on short and long term team/department goals.

Monitoring and Measurement:

All measure of results was based on advertising revenue gained for every hour spent in outbound call activity.

Business:Business revenue was far higher on an hourly basis than Business:Consumer. However, this was acceptable as business:consumer calls were also protecting a valuable advertising base.

We established a continuous improvement plan - both within the team and our targeted markets.

Outcomes:

Did the training programs fulfill its intended outcome? Beyond all expectations.

We reached our long term goals in under two years (in