Sportsfield Specialties, Inc. is a busy equipment manufacturer with locations in Upstate New York and North Carolina. Its sales team works year-round and throughout the U.S. to provide high schools, colleges, and professional sports venues with world-class field equipment from their extensive line. For Sales Managers at Sportsfield, past experiences enhance versatility and communications skills, which are both key to keeping customers in the sports construction industry satisfied.
Sales Managers at Sportsfield benefit greatly from understanding the construction process from design to installation. Alex Fletcher, Western Regional Sales Manager at Sportsfield, graduated with a degree in construction management from Alfred State University. He said this background helped him tremendously.
“My project management skills benefitted me immensely,” Fletcher explained. He added that his prior experience made it easier to understand the needs of his equipment installers and affords him the opportunity to have informed conversations with design engineers. “My knowledge helps us reach our project goals more efficiently,” he said.
Matt Moyse, Northeastern Regional Sales Manager, graduated from Binghamton University with a degree in Political Science. He also sees the benefits from his college studies. While at the university, he developed his negotiating and communication skills and uses them in his job to determine what is needed to complete a project successfully.
Fletcher and Moyse both started at Sportsfield as customer service representatives working alongside a Regional Sales Manager. This earlier first-hand experience allowed them to understand the business and witness sales transactions from start to finish. When they were moved into their Sales Manager positions, they were already adept at the daily tasks related to their roles and could engage their customer service representatives in meaningful ways. This diverse knowledge helped them reach success within their territories as Sales Managers.
“A huge part of being a customer service rep is to make sure our clients receive the correct information about lead times and pricing – there’s constant communication,” Moyse explained. In the management role, communication continues to be crucial to the job.
Moyse, a New York resident, covers the Northeast region and while he’s able to easily travel to meet with clients, he also relies on phone calls, email, and even social media sites to stay connected. “It’s impossible to be in two locations at once,” Moyse said, “so I make myself accessible across multiple platforms to answer questions and resolve issues.”
Fletcher, also a New York resident, works with clients on the West Coast. This means making himself available to customers in a time zone three hours behind him. “My noon is my clients’ 9am,” he said. Fletcher must take this time difference into account when conducting business. Also, extensive travel becomes a necessary, and often time consuming, means to having face-to-face meetings.
Although Fletcher and Moyse come from different backgrounds and use different skill sets to manage their regions, they both agree it is ideal to stay connected and follow up on projects to maintain positive long-term relationships.
At Sportsfield Specialties, Sales Managers are faced with busy schedules, geographic challenges, and complex projects. Reaching success in this bustling atmosphere means effectively communicating with customers and possessing versatile skillsets that enhance their abilities in sales.
Written by Timothy Peterson, Marketing & Sales Intern and sophomore at SUNY Oneonta