Getting onboard with Snap-on

Sarah Stowe

Snap-on franchisee, Trent Levi talks about how his sales development manager helped him grow his business.

My career as a Snap-on Tools franchisee really started with my sales development manager (SDM), Martin. For the first four weeks, from about 7:30am till at least 6pm, Martin was on the road with me and my new Snap-on truck the whole time. He taught me everything including sales techniques, the on-truck computer system, how to

liaise with customers, how to present myself, as well as extensive product training and much more.

Since that solid beginning just over two years ago, I’ve maintained a close relationship with Martin and continue to receive training. At Snap-on, our SDMs are really there to teach us to follow a program that covers how to run a successful business. There’s so much to take in when you first start any business, it’s not unusual to call your Snap-on SDM up to 15 times a day. The Snap-on program is in place to help you get your head around everything and is designed to be followed throughout your entire career with the company.

Financially, the business begins by setting up a weekly needed target that covers both your business costs and personal outgoings to ensure you’re breaking even, but obviously, the goal is to then exceed it. Your SDM is the person who pushes you and works with you to be able to do this. I continue to have daily contact with Martin to keep me on track with the program.

Together, we also regularly monitor my sales figures. Martin is fantastic at noticing the signs and acting immediately if there is a dip in my sales growth. He will contact me to work out the reason for any decline (as there is always a reason) and help me devise a plan to remedy it. This sort of session has turned my business around, particularly this year, for the better and I continue to produce significant year-on-year growth.

In the end, your SDM is there for you to succeed, and without Martin, I don’t know how I would have been able to get to where I am today.