Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/45785
MANAGEMENT MARKET WATCH How To Be I n Arthur Miller's 1949 play, "Death of a Salesman," Willy Loman represents the worst- case scenario of a salesperson's life – total regret at how his career has treated him. No one knows more than the well-traveled rep that the life of a salesperson is not always a caber- net. The world is not your oyster unless you understand the rules of the game and play by them. Just a few years ago, a family mem- ber of a top-notch Amador County winery (and someone that I had known for a long time) popped into the waiting room at Beverages & More corporate headquarters and announced that he had brought a few wines for me to taste. He was oblivious that I was stacked up with projects, meetings and deadlines, and was dejected that I could not see him. He didn't realize that his unexpected drop-in was a big no-no in the business, and that appointments are almost always required. My opinion of him as a salesperson plummeted, because he didn't have the com- mon sense to know that every- one's time is scarce and valuable. Even if this vintner later learned to SHORT COURSE Do your research. Know the do's and don'ts of sales. Understand the relationship between the vendor and supplier. Take care of your accounts. WWW.VWM-ONLINE.COM WILFRED WONG A Sales Rep Follow the rules to gain access to potential buyers follow the protocols of making a proper sales call, I would be reluc- tant to see him, because there are so many other vintners with really good wines who have practiced smart salesmanship all along. Wilfred Wong is cellarmaster for Beverages & More and a San Francisco- based wine writer. eral manager and wine buyer for the business. This vintner didn't do his homework on who makes the wine-buying decisions at Ashbury Market. DO YOUR HOMEWORK At BevMo, countless vendors and suppliers ask me, "So what do you do here?" This always sur- prises me and begs the question: "Don't you guys do your research before you call on accounts?" Being in sales is not rocket science; all one has to do is to use common sense before making the first call. My good friend, Gerald Weisl, Drop-in sales calls are not welcomed by most wine buyers. Going back 20 years, I recall that a certain winery owner looked at me with distain as I was cleaning the sidewalk in front of Ashbury Market, our family wine business in San Francisco. In arriving for a sales call, he rudely walked past me, obviously thinking that I was "only" the street sweeper; he was directed back to me by one of our deli assistants, and the appoint- ment did not go swimmingly, and I never did buy his wines. I might have been sweeping the street, but I was also the co-owner, gen- proprietor of Weimax Wines & Spir- its in Burlingame, Calif., is without a doubt one of most independent and unique wine merchants in the world. As the main force of his business, Weisl saves himself headaches by including a detailed manifesto on his website, titled "How to be a Wine Sales Rep," which he hopes salespeople will read before they make their first call – or before they decide to go into wine sales as a career. (See the manifesto at www.weimax. com/how_to_be_a_wine_sales_ rep.htm). So how do wineries get their wines in front of me, the cellarmas- ter at BevMo, or Trey Beffa of K&L Wine Merchants, or Pat Morgan, senior national wine buyer for Cost Plus World Market, or Christy Berg- man, owner of The Secret Wine Shop? Every wine buyer from the corner market to the mega-chain operation has far more suitors than the appointment calendar can han- NOV - DEC 2011 VINEYARD & WINERY MANAGEMENT 25