In the world of sales, there are often no right answers. What would you do in this tough sales situation? Make the call below, and see instantly how your judgment compares. Final results will appear in LBM Journal. Be sure to check back next month for a fresh Tough Call.

Tough Call - Gravy Train and the End of the Line

Your company just lost the product exclusive that’s fueled your sales and growth.

You’ll never forget the day you were plucked from the sales force and offered the job as sales manager. It was no accident.

The key to your success was an uncanny ability to position your company’s products as far superior to those offered by the competition. In your mind, there was no comparison, especially between Gravy Train Windows & Doors, for which your company had an exclusive, and whatever it was your competition carried.

Your passion, enthusiasm and absolute belief was contagious. Once local builders and remodelers caught the bug, nothing else was good enough. The result: your sales grew and your company flourished.

Your company managed to land the exclusive in your market for this very hot brand by having leadership willing to take a chance back in the early ‘90s, when Gravy Train Windows was a shoestring start-up, desperate for distribution.

Your company’s owner/sales manager, to his credit, was always on the lookout for products with a significant competitive advantage. But that was only part of it. More importantly, he instilled the determination in his sales team not to simply write orders for the brands customers requested, but he taught you and your fellow sales reps to also ask informed questions, and recommend the products that you knew to be the best fit. (“This,” your boss explained, “is the difference between selling and taking orders. Anyone who can fog a mirror can take an order. We’re better than that. And that’s why our customers keep coming back.”)

Over the years, as the Gravy Train Windows brand grew nationally, your team made the most of your exclusive arrangement. And you were the undisputed master at using that exclusivity to open doors with more builders and remodelers.

For over a decade, Gravy Train Windows was the foundation for your success.

As long as your yard was the sole stop for Gravy Train Windows, the road ahead looked smooth and straight.

They say that nothing lasts forever… and in the case of your company’s exclusive with Gravy Train Windows, they were right.

For a variety of reasons—new ownership for Gravy Train Windows and fresh competition from a national chain—your exclusive has reached the end of the line. Personally, you’re devastated. And why not? The key to your success is no longer yours alone. But you have a bigger problem.

As the sales manager, it’s your job to keep your team motivated, inspired—and productive. Your livelihood, and the future of your company, depends on your ability to minimize this blow and move aggressively forward. What would you do?

GOT A TOUGH CALL OF YOUR OWN? Send it to Rick@LBMJournal.com. If we publish your Tough Call, you'll win a free LBM Journal shirt. And don't forget: there's a new Tough Call each month: check the back page of LBM Journal or come back to www.LBMJournal.com next month for a fresh challenge. If you don't get LBM Journal, subscribe today! It's free for qualified subscribers.