Position: Feed Sales Specialist Pay: $70,000/yr. + FULL BENEFITS PACKAGE Position Summary: Responsible for promoting the sales of feed products and services that will provide the most benefit for the customer-owners, and to establish credibility through communication in a manner that will optimize market share and savings, improving efficiency and resulting in outstanding customer service.
Duties & Responsibilities: - Actively make sales calls to both existing feed patrons and new prospects to increase product sales and to increase market share of feed and related products to dairy and livestock producers within assigned geographical area as directed by management. Make 8-10 effective sales contacts per day in an efficient manner. Take written orders and contract feed and other products on an on-going basis. Build a client base focusing on credit-worthy producers. Grow feed product sales to livestock producers directly impacted by your sales efforts to reach annual budget goals of Feed Division.
- Increase use and sales to existing and new customers of specialized products to include newly developed product lines. This includes preservative products, animal health products, plastics for forage and feed storage, feed additives, specialty feed products, and other product lines that can generate new sales and margin for the cooperative.
- Build relationships on dairy and livestock operations and ask for opportunities to bid on feed and mineral mixes and loads of commodity feed products. Follow up in a timely manner to all feed bids and price quotes provided to prospects. Track how we compare on all bids provided on both bids we attain and bids we lose.
- Maintain and manage a target call list of 100 - 150+ accounts, actively contacting this group to assess what they buy, who they buy from, and how the company can become their supplier of choice. Work with sales management to develop account strategies to grow the company's influence in the marketplace.
- Provide a high level of technical production service to customers: Rations, Record Analysis, Inventory Management, Feed Budgets, etc.
- Provide nutrition and production management services to client base according to client preference.
- Monitor and document production and profitability improvements for dairy producer clients implementing program and product recommendations. Ensure documentation is reviewed with the producer.
- Be an active participant of a sales team to grow company's influence within the assigned sales region. Effectively utilize internal and supplier resources to increase market influence and grow market share.
- Monitor and work within the company's credit policies and work with management to enforce credit policy while maintaining customer relationships.
- Help provide newsletter articles and/or direct mailer pieces as appropriate to targeted livestock producers on topics that are timely and important within the company's market territory.
- Assist other divisions with leads on prospects and communication of situations that are occurring with producers that you work with.
Qualifications: - Bachelor's degree in an agricultural field with at least 2 years of experience in sales.
- Should be organized and have the ability to think outside of the box to develop new and informative marketing campaigns.
- Must be able to communicate well in both oral and written formats.
- Demonstrate strong sales skills.
Working Conditions & Physical Requirements: - Must be able to lift up to 80 lbs.
- Ability to bend, reach, stoop, and climb as needed.
- Employee will be exposed to feed dust which will require the use of personal protective equipment (PPE).