Fall - InsideOutdoor Magazine
Fall - InsideOutdoor Magazine
Fall - InsideOutdoor Magazine
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Editor’s Letter<br />
component brands, retail hands<br />
While it’s the manufacturers of outdoor apparel and gear who buy their<br />
stuff, outdoor textile and component brands have good reasons to be<br />
communicating with their customers’ customers. After all, the basic model<br />
for a branded component is to drive a premium by offering additional benefits<br />
and features, and up to this point nothing has been more effective for conveying<br />
those value-adds to the public than the helpful, trustworthy and costumer-facing<br />
specialty retailer.<br />
The good news is component suppliers have more ways than ever to reach and<br />
teach staffers on the sales floor and impact the shopping experience. Today’s online,<br />
digital and anywhere-accessible educational tools certainly can be cost-effective and<br />
convenient, and a recent survey of Inside Outdoor readers by CORDURA suggests<br />
retailers are open to utilizing them.<br />
When asked to rank the most effective methods for helping sales teams understand<br />
product component benefits, for example, (1 for most, 6 for least) more than a third of<br />
respondents picked online training as number one or two among a half dozen mediums.<br />
More than a quarter ranked video tools either one or two. Even QR codes – a technology,<br />
keep in mind, available to only a small percentage of shoppers – have impressed<br />
a fair number of folks. In a separate question, more than half of retailers said QR tags<br />
were very or somewhat helpful to increasing product sales.<br />
Also encouraging, retailers are still keen to more traditional methods of product<br />
education. Far and away, retailers continue to view the old-fashioned, hands-on<br />
product demonstration as the most powerful way to empower floor staff. More than<br />
three-quarters of retailers picked product demos as the most- or second-most-effective<br />
tool. A mere 4 percent ranked it at the bottom.<br />
Please rank the following from most to least effective in helping you or<br />
your sales team understand the benefits of the products you sell.<br />
% answering 1 or 2<br />
Product demonstrations 77.09%<br />
Brochures/information cards 42.71%<br />
Online product training (webinars, brand Web sites, etc.) 34.37%<br />
Product training videos 26.04%<br />
Sales incentives/contests 12.5%<br />
Displays or posters for team/break room 7.29%<br />
Source: CORDURA; Inside Outdoor<br />
How helpful would each of the following be in increasing sales of<br />
products made with CORDURA fabric in your store(s)? % answering<br />
very or somewhat helpful<br />
Training of sales team on benefits … 79.6%<br />
Fabric hangtags 77.5%<br />
In-store signage 65.97%<br />
QR codes to dedicated site 52.05%<br />
Have more products with CORDURA on floor 50.01%<br />
Sales contest 44.9%<br />
Source: CORDURA; Inside Outdoor<br />
Other low-tech devices also fared well. More than three-quarters of retailers said<br />
hangtags were important to increasing sales, while two-thirds felt the same way<br />
about in-store signage. The most helpful educational tool, not surprisingly, was once<br />
again in-store training and demos.<br />
If nothing else, the findings seem to suggest component brands should consider<br />
more directly partnering with independent sales reps. If something else, it’s comforting<br />
to know that despite the instant-access, full automaton and slick interfaces available<br />
today, still nothing beats the welcoming hand and warm smile of old-fashioned<br />
personal contact. –MV<br />
Martin Vilaboy<br />
Editor-in-Chief<br />
martin@bekapublishing.com<br />
Percy Zamora<br />
Art Director<br />
outdoor@bekapublishing.com<br />
Ernest Shiwanov<br />
Editor at Large<br />
ernest@bekapublishing.com<br />
Berge Kaprelian<br />
Group Publisher<br />
berge@bekapublishing.com<br />
Rene Galan<br />
Account Executive<br />
rene@bekapublishing.com<br />
Jennifer Vilaboy<br />
Production Director<br />
jen@bekapublishing.com<br />
Suzanne Urash<br />
Ad Creative Designer<br />
suzanne@cre8groupinc.com<br />
Beka Publishing<br />
Berge Kaprelian<br />
President and CEO<br />
Philip Josephson<br />
General Counsel<br />
Jim Bankes<br />
Business Accounting<br />
Corporate Headquarters<br />
745 N. Gilbert Road<br />
Suite 124, PMB 303<br />
Gilbert, AZ 85234<br />
Voice: 480.503.0770<br />
Fax: 480.503.0990<br />
Email: berge@bekapublishing.com<br />
© 2011 Beka Publishing, All rights reserved.<br />
Reproduction in whole or in any form or<br />
medium without express written permission<br />
of Beka Publishing, is prohibited. Inside<br />
Outdoor and the Inside Outdoor logo are<br />
trademarks of Beka Publishing<br />
6 | <strong>InsideOutdoor</strong> | <strong>Fall</strong> 2011
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