Issue 3 - April 2007

Greetings from the Furniture Training Company. We are very excited to be moving forward with online furniture sales training this summer. We are preparing to release our latest training program, SalesForce: Selling with Service. This program is the sequel to Fundamentals of Product Knowledge. Some may wonder why it is the sequel and not the premiere product. It is because sales associates cannot use their skills to sell furniture until they have a solid foundation in furniture product knowledge.

This newsletter focuses on giving you and your sales associates the knowledge you need to successfully sell furniture. Feel free to contact us and share your training knowledge and ideas. Good luck with your training, and enjoy the Furniture Training Newsletter.

In This Issue...

• Important Announcement: Server Upgrade
• In the News: Wickes Furniture Goes On-line for Furniture Training
• Article: Benefits of Online Training
• Tips and Techniques: The Purpose Statement
• Feature Story: The Importance of Certification
• Did You Know...

Important Announcement: Server Upgrade

Due to increased growth, we will be upgrading our servers on Friday, April 13, to better serve our customers' current and future needs. Because of this, the Fundamentals program will be unavailable from 8 am. until 12 pm. Mountain Time (10 am to 2 pm Eastern). You will be able to log in again as normal after that time. Thank you for your understanding.

Wickes Furniture Goes On-line for Furniture Training

Logan, UT – March 29, 2007. Fundamentals of Furniture Product Knowledge, an award-winning sales training program for retail furniture sales associates, has been selected by Wickes Furniture to meet the furniture product knowledge training needs of its retail furniture sales associates and other employees....

Read the full press release...

Benefits of Online Training

More individuals, companies, and industries are turning to online learning technologies as their preferred mode for delivering and receiving training. As recently as six or eight years ago, comparatively few companies were using the Internet as a training medium. Today, however, it is the fastest growing sector of the training industry. Why the change? Quite simply, online training provides the means for delivering more training to more people at the lowest cost.

The attributes of online training that provide the greatest benefits to a furniture retailer are (a) convenience, (b) individualization, (c) interactivity, and (d) cost effectiveness.

Read the full article...

Tips and Techniques: The Purpose Statement

Your goal as a sales associate should be to assist and direct customers through the buying process. The method of gaining your customers' permission to discuss their wants and needs is called sharing your Purpose Statement. This is where you sell yourself to your customers. If delivered correctly, your purpose statement will convince your customers that you have their best interests at heart and are fully qualified to assist them. The following are the four elements of a Purpose Statement:

• Show your enthusiasm to help.
• Explain your reasons for wanting to help.
• Sell the benefits of your assistance.
• Ask permission to assist the customer.

One sales associate, after learning how to share her Purpose Statement said, "I rarely have anyone refuse to let me ask them some questions. In fact, they seem relieved at how willing to help I am. This idea, more than any other, helped me to be successful."

Important Announcement

Due to increased growth, we will be upgrading our servers on Friday, April 13, to better serve our customers' current and future needs. Because of this, the Fundamentals program will be unavailable from 8 am. until 12 pm. Mountain Time (10 am to 2 pm Eastern). You will be able to log in again as normal after that time. Thank you for your understanding.

Feature Story: The Importance of Certification

Tommy Davis, the General Manager of Olinde's Furniture in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, is happy to report that all 19 of his sales associates are now Fundamentals Certified! More importantly, he is excited to see the changes that are happening as the confidence level of the sales associates increases. Even veterans like Davis, who has been in the industry for 20 years, are learning about rugs, fibers, and other products that make them feel like true furniture professionals. Becoming Fundamentals Certified has made such a great difference in his associates' ability to sell that Davis now requires all new employees to certify before they can step onto the sales floor. Fundamentals of Furniture Product Knowledge has definitely helped Davis and his associates sell more furniture.

Did You Know...

Energy Star is an international symbol designed by the U.S. Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency to identify products that are energy efficient. By switching to appliances that have earned the Energy Star, consumers can save about one-third on their annual energy bills, and in some countries can also get additional incentives like tax deductions. Energy Star appliances also help protect the environment by conserving natural resources and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The Energy Star program began in 1992, but as concerns about the costs of energy use and its environmental effects grow, Energy Star appliances are becoming more important to consumers.