Question

Joe Reeka is a senior sales representative for Power Flour, LLC, a supplier of flour to private-label brands in supermarkets as well as to bakeries across Europe. Power Flour has developed a new white flour with a non-traditional bleaching agent, which will allow for the baking of bread products with lower carbohydrates but without a change in taste. Joe feels this new flour product would be ideal to sell to Rising Action Bakery and has sent information on the new flour to its purchasing department.

Rising Action Bakery is a small but growing chain of bakeries in Germany, specializing in “home-baked” premium bread products. Its products are baked at a central bakery and shipped to its retail stores. The management team is quite ethnically diverse including talent recruited from multiple global regions. CEO is Ana Paula Gutierrez, and she has a small senior management team consisting of a production and operations manager, Dawn Chiles; a sales and marketing manager, Nimesh Patel; a purchasing manager, Joan Wells; a finance and accounting manager, Matt Simon; and a store coordination manager, Dan Levy. Each manager leads an assistant manager/coordinator and an executive assistant. Rising Action also has a store manager and staff for each of its 24 retail stores.

Ana Paula and her five managers are meeting to discuss the results of the sales and marketing department’s recent market research study on the future of low-carbohydrate diet. The results indicated that the trend may not continue, but that low-carb bread products would be in high demand for at least the next two to three years. Sales numbers have been down since the rise in popularity of low-carbohydrate diets, and Nimesh is concerned with maintaining, or hopefully increasing, Rising Action’s market share by adding low-carbo products to the marketing mix. Dawn’s main concern is to produce the low-carb bread efficiently and without having to purchase new equipment. Dawn’s assistant manager handles determination of quantities for ordering and would be involved with developing the new bread product and determining the type and amount of flour to be used. Matt is concerned that this will be a large investment in a possibly short-lived product and that the forecasted budgets did not anticipate such as outlay for inventory expense.

Joan is worried about purchasing the right amount of flour for the production needs but also keeping within the budgets determined by finance. Further, Joan is bound by Rising Action’s policy of getting three bids on supply purchases. Dan is excited at the prospect of new low-carb products for the retail stores but must make the store manager aware of the changes. The stores would be instrumental in collecting feedback form their customers to determine the success of the new products. Ana Paula trusts the decision making of her management team, but ultimately she is responsible for the new products and especially has a hand in developing recipes that are up to Rising Action’s taste standards.

Joan’s purchasing assistant, Janice, received the written sales information from Joe Reeka of Power Flour about the new low-carb flour and has called him back for further information.

1 What stage of the sales process is the sales opportunity? Explain your reason.

2 What should Joe’s sales objective be for this initial meeting with Janice, the purchasing assistant?

3 Which individuals at Rising Action Bakery will it be important for Joe to establish a relationship with to advance this opportunity through the sales process? Why?

4 What is the business problem that Rising Action Bakery is facing?

5 Which of the individuals at Rising Action Bakery would benefit the most (i.e. who is feeling the most pain within the company regarding their current challenges) from working with Joe? Why

6 Which individuals at Rising Action Bakery might try to stop Joe/Power Flour (i.e. anti-sponsors) from succeeding in making a sale if Joe doesn’t overcome their concerns / objectives? Explain.

7 Who do you think the decision maker at Rising Action Bakery will be? Explain

7 What could you envision the steps in the decision making process for Rising Action Bakery to add a new flour ingredient / product….. i.e. what could the next steps be for the two sides after an initial meeting. Think about the steps involved in a new product launch…inhouse testing in a pilot, test marketing in stores, etc.

8 Who will Joe want to makes sure he engages in the interview process?

9. For a product like a low carb flour what format would you envison the demonstration / presentation stage to take?

10. What are 5 good introductory questions (i.e. approach questions) Joe should ask Janice in the first meeting?

11. What are 5 good interview questions Joe should ask in the follow up meeting he will succeed in securing?

12 Summarize why Power Flour could provide a good solution for Rising Action Bakery, given the concerns an constraints of the various managers who could influence the decision?

please answer all questions

Answer 1

Answer 1

There are generally 5 main steps in the sales proces that are : (1) Initial Contact & Rapport Building ,(2) Needs Discovery ,(3) Offer a Solution ,(4)Handle Objections & Close the Sale (5)Follow Up, Repeat Business & Referrals.Out of thiese sales process in sequence , the step first that is Initial contact and rapport building is the sales opportunity in which the seller can provide the surity of all the need satisfaction of consumer and also by proper sales presentation the Seller can grab to opportunity to sale .

Answer 2

The sales objective of the Joe for this initial meeting with Janice, should not be only sale but also , a proper presentation of the benefit of the RISING ACTION BAKERY and how it can benefit them if they sales those low carbohydrate product in the market and depending upon the desperation of Janice Joe can establish a proper profit maximization deal with them as they are in need .

Answer 3

Dawn who is the operation and production manager is the idividual at rising action abkery with which Joe can establish a relationship to advance his opportunity through the sales proces as Dwan dont want any extra purchasing equipment and he want effeicient low carbohydrate bread .So that is why he is the correct person to approach for relationship

Answer 4

Rising action bakery is facing problem with each manager under the Ana because of inssufficiency in each department , like Not enoug inventory , not able to purchase extra equipment for the low carbohrrate bread , short time for profit as demand is getting low , etc .Apat from this the main problem is the trend which are not following so sales barier are there .

have a good day !