Carolyn Quinn on sales vs marketing, customer training, and growing up in the family business

Carolyn Quinn never wanted to be known as a child employed by the owner of a business -- she wanted to be the chief executive officer.  Now president at Pike Systems, Inc, a cleaning supply and equipment company based in Illinois, Carolyn leads an effective sales team that is intensely focused on providing value for their clients. From support tools to on-site training, Pike Systems is committed to find the proper program for the proper client to ensure their ongoing success. "I've read all of the materials on inside sales teams and how that should function and our janitorial supply industry is just not there yet…  people still don't know how to use our products and until they know how to use them, we have to be out in the field." Listen in to hear how Pike divides their sales process into three distinct roles, the importance of building strategic bonds both within and outside of the industry, and how Carolyn believes in contributing to the success of her customers through education every single day. "We have to know more than the manufacturer does and not only know that, but know how to integrate one manufacturer's products with another… the amount of satisfaction in knowing that program that you put together is producing results, saving money, in some cases saving lives, and just making things easier for people is really rare."   Get the full show notes at distributiontalk.com.  *** Distribution Talk is produced by The Distribution Team, a consulting services firm dedicated to helping wholesale distribution clients remove barriers to profitability, generate wealth and achieve personal goals.     Edited & mixed by The Creative Impostor Studios. Connect with Jason on LinkedIn. Connect with Carolyn on LinkedIn. Thank you to our sponsor, The Distribution Team's seminar: Turning Branch Managers Into Business Managers. November 14-15, 2019  in Atlanta, GA. Get details & register: http://www.distributionteam.com/training