What Makes a Good Seller?

Companies have curtailed inventory over the years, but many still rely on drivers for choices. Supervisors offer drivers some tips in deciding what to offer.

With the growth in use of planograms and handheld computers, vending route drivers often feel they have less input in deciding what products go in the machine. Many drivers are limited to choosing a handful of machine facings.
Drivers often feel that the restrictions minimize their role in the overall business. Nevertheless, these selections can make a difference to the customer, to the vending company’s profitability, and in the case of drivers paid on commission, to the driver’s income.
Drivers who are limited to choosing only a few facings often think that their choices are not important. This is an incorrect assumption. The “wild card” facings are important, given the fact that all locations have their unique needs. The driver who manages to fill these slots with popular selections will be providing a valuable service to the customer and to his or her own company.
Drivers should understand why their employers have these “wild card” facings in the first place. Vending companies realize that drivers are in a position to hear, first hand, about special requests from customers. There is no way for a vending company to know all the products that a given location will request. MORE