We’ve had great success working with a large variety of businesses to help their teams become more effective by delivering bespoke in-house training programs.
Clients have included large companies such as Accenture, Bateman Engineering, Linfox Armaguard, IMI Australia and Schneider Electric as well as medium-sized and national companies across many sectors such as:
- Industry superannuation funds
- Instrumentation and calibration equipment distributors
- Aqua farm feed products
- Construction products
- Trades contractors
- Accounting firms
- RTO’s and Group Training Organisations
- Hydraulic systems
- Workwear and safety gear
- … and more
Read their feedback below.
I wanted to give the team specific tools to deliver growth; I’m happy to say the program you presented delivered just that.
“Dear Stuart, I wanted to write to you to express my sincere thanks and satisfaction following the recent sales training you carried out for our Australian and New Zealand Sales team at the Kingston Links Golf and Conference Centre in Melbourne.
This was the first time we had our whole ANZ sales team together for many years and I wanted to give them some specific tools that they could use in the planning their sales territory and delivering the much-needed growth whilst improving customer satisfaction. I’m happy to say that the program you presented delivered just that.
In particular the team found great benefit in understanding communication styles, effective listening and using the S.O.X. questioning methodology to understand where the customer is in the buying cycle, what they actually want and how we are best capable to deliver this.
I thought the pre-work that you asked for added to the overall effectiveness as this gave each person an understanding of their own personalities and how they can get the best from themselves and also understand how they can best interact with customers of alike or differing personality traits.
The inter-group work during the training session was effective in getting the team to understand customer concerns and possible objections which led to us agreeing several action points, one of which will be to develop a frequently asked question cheat sheet and an equally important answer cheat sheet.
In summary I can state with confidence that the team thoroughly enjoyed the training and appreciated the tools they received, and I look forward to seeing the benefits translate into sales and enhanced customer satisfaction levels.”
Andy Evans
Managing Director ANZ
IMI Australia Pty Ltd, Melbourne (Motion and fluid control technologies)
Within the first break one of my team said she’d “learnt more in the last couple of hours than she had in the last 6 months.”
“For a tech start-up it’s very easy to become obsessed with culture. What does culture mean? How can you create a cool culture? It seems hard to ignore Silicon Valley’s ping pong tables and bring-your-dog-to-work days.
However, at Receipt Bank we fundamentally believe that “tomorrow we get to do it all again… but better!” With this comes a responsibility for continual (and obsessive) curiosity. Learning, reading and thinking. Developing and mastering skills so we’re better as individuals and as a team. This becomes harder when you’re growing at pace and there’s no time to lose with developing and on-boarding our team.
At the beginning of the year it was evident professional sales training would contribute to our success. However, I had no idea how big the impact would be.
It’s not often I have such confidence so quickly, but within the first 30 minute phone call with Stuart I knew he understood what I wanted to achieve. Stuart asked me and my team a number of probing and thoughtful questions, which meant he really got to know our sales process and the team structure.
Before the first session Stuart spent a lot of time with me, over a number of weeks developing the consultative and conversational approach. We split the workshop into a number of sessions for the team – focusing on different roles and different themes.
Stuart quickly made the team feel comfortable and engaged during the sessions. Within the first break one of my team said she’d “learnt more in the last couple of hours than she had in the last 6 months.”
Stuart’s investment in getting to know our company and the team has been hugely valuable to us, and to me personally. The workshops have bred a level of confidence and curiosity. Encouraging the team to step back and think about their roles as advisors and the relationships they have with our partners. This approach has now remained embedded months after the initial workshops.
With Stuart’s help the process of handling objections, setting an agenda and using relevant case studies and insights has become second nature to the team.
Stuart’s thoughtful, consultative approach was evident in developing the content and delivering the workshops – but also in the weeks and months following the training. I can’t thank Stuart enough for his continual help, advice and time – his training instantly made a difference and importantly continues to do so on a daily basis. Stuart’s sessions have helped me to embed the consultative approach within our culture.”
Sophie Hossack
Country Manager, Australia & New Zealand
Receipt Bank, Sydney (Online software for bookkeepers and accountants)
We have seen great results from Stuart and are now converting 1 out of 5 initial contact visits
“Totally Workwear Brisbane engaged the services of Stuart Ayling to increase the knowledge of our Sales Consultants and Sales Representative in the area of direct selling and selling techniques.
Our business needed improvement and awareness of how to approach a potential customer. This is extremely important to us for the current climate and the general market moving forward. Our business always wants to be ahead of the pack and Stuart has equipped us with the necessary skills and mindset to be a business at the forefront of our market.
A number of staff members who engaged with the training walked away with a completely different perspective on how to sell & how to engage with a potential customers.
We chose Stuart due to his consultative approach to the way he directed his message and his team focused training. We found that not only did we learn a lot from Stuart, we also found that it was a great team bonding session over the course of the training period.
We found that for our field reps making initial contact with potential clients was an area for improvement, and Stuart went out of his way to do some practical training out in the field with them. My Sales Representatives found this approach to be the most practical form of training they have experienced, and we have seen some great results come from the new techniques shown to us from Stuart. We are now converting 1 out of 5 visits from making initial contact.
We found Stuart to be extremely punctual and friendly during his time with Totally Workwear and would have NO hesitation in referring Stuart’s services to any business looking to grow their sales. His valuable lessons will last forever.”
Josh Mitchell
Sales Manager
Totally Workwear Brisbane (Industrial and corporate work wear and safety gear)
The content of the sessions was customised to suit our needs, with a lot of preparation put in by Stuart
“I had identified a couple of skill gaps within my team, around becoming a “Trusted Technical Advisor” to customers, and communications with customers, particularly around confidence, being persuasive, difficult conversations, and knowing when to say “no”.
We have a small number of customers and compete with much larger, multi-national Aquafeed organisations, who are good at marketing, and can compete on price. Our advantage is being local, small and flexible.
To harness this we want to provide added-value through development of superior (and more expensive) diets which provide a better ROI, as well as delivering superior on farm technical support through a relationship of mutual trust with our customers. In order to sell the more expensive diets and develop such relationships, the team needed skill strengthening in these areas.
Usually I would have sourced a training provider through word of mouth. But I am new to Australia and the recommendations I received from my colleagues were wide of the mark. I thus did a web search, short listed two service providers, spoke to them both and had them provide proposals.
Stuart’s approach was very much flexible and customised to our needs, even at the proposal stage (relative to the other offering from a larger provider) and was hence the obvious choice.
The content of the sessions was customised to suit our customer interactions, with a lot of preparation on the part of Stuart, who had two face-to-face meetings with me, and one meeting by phone or in person with each of the delegates prior to the training session.
The sessions were informal and participative, but well chaired to ensure the participation didn’t take over. I don’t consider there to have been any single “best” among the various facets of what was an excellent program.
It is rather early to see actual impacts, but I expect my team to handle customers better, foster closer relationships with them, feel more confident in their presentation and in selling a value proposition. All this will lead to maintenance or increase of market share and margins.
I would have no hesitation in recommending Stuart Ayling to other businesses. Stuart was very involved with myself and my team before and in between the sessions (which were 3 months apart), and continues to offer himself to provide answers to queries and one off advice going forward.”
Dr. Sunil Kadri
Head of Sales and Business Development
Ridley AquaFeed, Brisbane (Aqua farm feed manufacturer)
It has really built our capabilities as a management team
“The work that we do is often very reactive. Our management team are responsible for operational matters but also need the time to work on important improvement projects that will benefit the entire team and company. Our project managers make and receive a huge number of calls per day which can be very disruptive.
We wanted to make sure our team had the skills to manage the demands of the role without feeling overwhelmed, and still manage to attend to those important tasks that get lost amongst more urgent matters.
To deliver the training we wanted someone who ran their own show so that we knew we would get a quality tailored product instead of something mass produced. Stuarts approach also focuses on encouraging a change in behaviour and thinking as opposed to just learning ‘tips’ and ‘tricks’.
From the outset Stuart made a point of getting to know our business and getting to know our individual needs. For the actual sessions we liked Stuart’s no-tech approach as it made the sessions feel very personalised and relevant instead of just working from a PowerPoint.
The sessions were engaging and having them split over two weeks allowed us time to digest the information which I think has made it sink in more.
We were impressed by how relevant the training was and how it contributed to our business in more ways than just learning time management and personal organisational skills.
The training ultimately got us thinking more strategically about how the business is structured and the gaps that maybe exist that are preventing us from working as efficiently as possible. It has really built our capabilities as a management team and got us thinking about some bigger picture things that maybe need to change in order for the entire team to work more efficiently.
As individuals we are now talking in time management lingo around the office which shows a big increase in awareness about things that impact on our ability to be efficient.”
Mia Graham
General Manager
M2 Electrical, Brisbane (Commercial electrical contractors)
The participants immediately felt engaged
“Our team regularly holds internal technical presentations to support continuous growth and learning as well as foster team cooperation. Each team member presents in turn on a technical topic assigned to them at the beginning of the year. We engaged Stuart to give us training on presentation skills, to give us better understanding and practice in that softer skill, and further improve the effectiveness and quality of these technical sessions.
The second – indirect – goal was to give our engineers better skills when it comes to communicating and presenting technical information with external stakeholders, like our customers or partners.
Stuart was very keen to listen and understand our challenges and identify areas of improvement. He came to our office prior to the training day to understand our infrastructure, meet us face to face and ensure the training he was preparing was meeting our intended goals. As a result, the session he delivered was a great balance between general training on presentation skills and customised topics/items to suit our needs.
On the training day, the participants immediately felt engaged as Stuart demonstrated his understanding of our needs and challenges, and how he wanted to lead the team to address them. The advice was practical and meaningful, and the training was delivered in a very professional manner with direct personal feedback and tips.
Stuart also followed up after the training to see how our team was progressing, and made himself available for any questions or support, which we really appreciated. The training certainly gave our team a renewed momentum in our technical sessions.
Our team will greatly benefit from the presentation tools and techniques and will be able to apply them every week during our training session. The presentations will be better prepared and delivered, resulting in a better training experience and more efficient team development.”
Frederic Vanhove
Principal Engineer, Pacific Delivery – Projects and Services
Schneider Electric, Brisbane (Industry process automation)
We had a very positive result from involving Stuart
“We were looking for a sales trainer who has operated in the technical space that could assist our business with front line sales training and we had a very positive result from involving Stuart in our Managers Conference last year.
Stuart has an easy to relate to style of delivery and this works well with our technically skilled employees. We appreciated his experience and background in technical sales training and delivery, as well as his down to earth approach to what we needed.
In dealing with customers there are only two areas of business: getting more from existing customers and hunting for new ones. Stuart provided the tools and methods for both these approaches.”
Russell Varley
Human Resources
Southcott, Sydney (Hydraulics and control systems)
The format and content was ideal
“Thank you so much for a brilliant session on Thursday. I think the format and content was ideal for where we are at with our presentations and your delivery style has received very positive feedback from the team.
Thanks also for your notes, we will begin applying the outcomes from the ‘tune up’ session and I appreciate the offer of a final review once we have made the necessary changes.
Stuart, it is a benefit that you are now familiar with our sales team and have a good understanding of our business approach, therefore I hope there will be opportunities to work together on our sales development projects in the future.”
Rennie Colston
Sales Director
Kilargo, Brisbane (Architectural, fire, smoke and sound seals)
You realised there were a lot of complexities in play
“Thank you Stuart for a great day of training with the Community Education sector. While many of the participants have skills in marketing, the purpose of the day was to get them thinking a little differently, as they approach a new chapter in their businesses. This means different competitors, and a strong need to focus on a different way of analyzing a point of difference. You did a great job in helping the group to define that.
I appreciated your willingness to hear the background of our organisations in our pre meeting discussions, and the care you took in understanding many of the issues. While this in some ways was a basic marketing seminar, you realised that there were a lot of complexities in play, which you spent a lot of time analyzing pre-session.
As a result of the session the group are now more confident to tackle the challenge ahead in terms of preparing for the new Smart and Skilled funding regime. There is still a lot of trepidation, but the session has enabled the clients to think more strategically about their marketing and their relationships with clients – both funders and students.
The relaxed and personable approach you brought to the training put the group at ease and enabled them to openly discuss some issues that might have been brewing in the background.
Thank you again, and I look forward to next time.”
Debbie Littlehales
Professional Development Manager
Community Colleges Australia, Sydney (Community, vocational and adult education)
Stuart was patient, flexible and knowledgeable
“Stuart was patient, flexible and knowledgeable. He took the time to truly understand our business. He cares about implementation and is dissatisfied with producing a plan that merely sits on the shelf. Without Stuart’s guidance and involvement, we would still be undertaking our adhoc promotional efforts. We now have a strategic marketing plan & action plan for our organisation that is practical, purposeful and aligns with our strategy.”
Helen Zwicker
Executive Officer
Kiama Community College (Vocational and adult education)
Sales figures up by 20% on last year
“We wanted help with sales techniques to change the way we approached our customers, with an aim of our sales team focusing more on sales and not simply customer service. We choose Stuart Ayling from researching his experience and topics covered in the sales training, and we gained confidence in Stuart through initial contact with him.
As a direct result of the training our sales team has gained specific knowledge of more effective sales techniques, as well confidence and motivation. And I am pleased to say I have seen significant improvements in their performance already.
Overall the sales team, including myself, was extremely impressed with the training provided. It has been very beneficial and we feel it will continue to add to our overall professionalism in sales.”
Update 12 months later:
“Since we did the training with you, at this time last year, the sales reps have been more enthusiastic and motivated and their relationship with customers and within the team has improved markedly.
Sales Reporting is more informative and sales figures have increased too, up by 20% on last year to date!! They also continue to pick up new customers, as well as continuing their ongoing relationships with current customers.”
Sharyn Moran
General Manager
Betta Blinds & Awnings, Sunshine Coast (Manufacturer of quality Australian-made blinds)
The result is fantastic!
“I wanted to improve my professional online profile as the Head of the Estate Planning division of our firm Estate First Lawyers. I wanted a professional look to the presentation of my image and to create impact when people viewed it.
Fortunately Stuart is knowledgeable and intuitive when it comes to professional services marketing. He was able to quickly glean what I wanted and yet spent time with me understanding the business and the result to be achieved.
He was instrumental in ensuring that the project was completed, which was a challenge because there were so many people to organise, including web designers, photographer, video production, etc. I found Stuart had an amiable and patient yet businesslike approach which makes him very pleasant to deal with.
I am reminded that while I am tempted to create my own marketing material, the final result is much more polished and targeted if you use a professional (and objective) marketer like Stuart.
The result is fantastic! I’m very happy and it’s a great improvement on what was there before. With the high profile that I now enjoy on Google and YouTube, I can market more effectively to clients and also to prospective employees.”
Ann Janssen
Special Counsel
Estate First Lawyers, Brisbane (Estate planning legal services)
The best thing is I now have a road map
“The objective of engaging Stuart Ayling was to put together a cohesive marketing strategy for the business. Our company has been operating successfully for over 40 years and it was time we paid more attention to our marketing.
We chose to work with Stuart as he was recommended to me as someone that has a very practical approach to marketing. And I decided we needed to engage a consultant with specific marketing knowledge mixed with a broad experience, which Stuart has, to ensure implemented recommendations would deliver a return on investment.
I found Stuart has a likable character and is very easy to work with. The best thing is that I now have a road map of specific marketing activities that can be implemented with confidence.”
Donna Cazzolato
General Manager – Sales and Marketing
Angelo’s Fresh Pasta Products, Brisbane (Food manufacturing)
Our sales results have increased since Stuart’s sessions
“As with all sales companies our ultimate goal is to increase sales and this of course starts with improving the day to day skills of our sales team. This is why we continue to invest in our sales team and look for new ways of increasing their skill base.
The first time I chose to get Stuart involved in our sales conference was based on a recommendation from a colleague; however, after using Stuart once we have utilised his skills again at our recent sales conference and we will continue to do so in the future!
Stuart’s training methods have enabled our sales team to challenge their current practices and to see new innovative ways of improving their selling skills in a fun and interactive environment. Our sales results have increased since incorporating Stuart’s sessions into our sales conference and this has been during a downturn in the market.”
Justin Zakaras
National Sales and Marketing Manager
Danley Construction Products, Brisbane (Concrete construction products)
Stuart created a positive learning environment for all involved
“We identified an opportunity to improve our sales team’s presentation skills and needed professional help to make it happen. Stuart took time to understand our business and the training requirements of our staff. He was thorough in the pre-planning stage and was able to understand our training objectives and tailor his course to suit.
With only one day we had a lot of material to cover and Stuart created a positive learning environment for all involved. Initially addressing the presentation structure in theory, Stuart created a safe environment for the team to ‘test’ their new skills by presenting to their peers.
I had positive feedback from all who participated and the result of improved presentations is already evident. Stuart provided our team with the steps and strategies to provide an effective presentation in the future.”
Kylie Kinsella
Sales Manager – Australia & NZ
Hurll Nu-Way, Melbourne (Heating, cooling and process equipment)
Our sales people now have structured, practical selling tools
“As our sales people are from a technical design background I wanted training to enhance the selling aspect of their role by providing them with sales techniques that would compliment their more technical personalities. I chose to work with Stuart because his training methods were specifically tailored to teaching technical people how to sell.
The outcome is that our sales people now have some structured, practical selling tools to assist them in the selling process and these tools work! This has already resulted in a significant increase in their confidence when dealing with customers.”
Steve Bamford
General Manager
Beaulieu Pacific, Brisbane (Commercial textile design and manufacturing)
As a result … pre-meeting and planning sessions are now completed
“Bateman Engineering was looking for a training program to increase the effectiveness of our team’s client meetings. As part of that we wanted to address the implementation of pre-meeting planning and a structured/strategic approach to meeting outcomes.
My initial contact with Stuart highlighted that he had personally had the experience to credibly deliver our training needs. Stuart initially engaged well with myself and the key decision makers in our training decision process. He later worked with the members of our team prior to the training to ensure that he fully understood both our business and our training needs.
As a result of the initial training and follow up sessions our teams are now more mindful of both their own and other’s communication styles, and pre-meeting planning and strategy sessions are completed for nearly all major meetings.”
Wes Granzin
Manager: Proposals
Bateman Engineering, Brisbane (Engineering and project management services)
We are now engaging Stuart on a monthly basis via webinars
“We have used Stuart Ayling now for several years in our sales training exercises at our national sales conferences. Stuart has always been very accommodating to our requirements and run the training courses accordingly. We are now engaging Stuart on a monthly basis via webinars to further instruct our sales force to enforce the sales principals.
I have noticed an improvement in the sales force in preparing and dealing with our customers. We have also found his weekly e-mail tips of great value, which gives AMS an edge.
We would recommend Stuart’s training course to any organisation that wants to improve their sales performance.”
Dirk Kuiper
General Manager
AMS, Melbourne (Instrumentation and calibration equipment)
Our team are more comfortable and confident in the sales arena
“Stuart Ayling recently ran a sales training day for our team of business accountants and financial advisers. We had a mix of partners, client managers and other staff in the sessions. I found the day to be a great way of picking up new communication and selling skills. We also brushed up on our existing skills.
When talking to the rest of the team, they concurred with my assessment of the day. Our team are more comfortable and confident in the sales arena, knowing that they are now better able to help our clients.”
Peter Crothers
Partner
Insight Business & Financial Services, Toowoomba (Accounting and business services)
With Stuart Ayling it was money very well spent
“Running a team of salespeople is like herding wild cats in a busy bus depot. Training them in art of professional selling improves the performance of the team from a strategic and measured aspect, however, it will still do little to address the greatest cost of sales – the loss of trained personnel due to poor decision making processes in their personal lives.
In a nut shell, I needed to devise, a plan that would help me influence my sales team outside of my immediate sphere of training and influence (my classroom).
After discussions with Stuart Ayling over lunch, it became refreshingly apparent that we were on the same page. Stuart was not only sympathetic with my plight but also familiar enough with the issues to be asking me those same difficult questions I had already considered. Of course I didn’t have the answers as this was what I sought possibly from him, however, it did confirm that Stuart had quickly listened and accurately identified the issues.
Stuart departed vowing to reunite with the basis of the solution. And so he did. A couple of meetings later – after much work by Stuart – I was sufficiently armed with a strategic plan and the confidence to engineer my own new training program based on the the user friendly manual Stuart had developed called ‘My Business Guidebook – a guide to running myself as a business’.
I had already produced useful manuals in the past so I was quite critical as to how effective I truly needed Stuart’s input to be. Bad ideas are expensive in business however with Stuart Ayling, it was money very well spent. My return in terms of retention of expensively trained valuable Consultants will be immeasurable. I urge any and all in business, if Stuart Ayling can assist – it will be money very well spent.”
John B. Lonergan
Sales Manager
Altec, Brisbane (Builders and Designers)
We have already seen a new client on board as a result
“Like every business we have a Sales Team that is varied in experience levels and of course abilities, so we were attempting to bring them together and deliver some structured training so that a core set of skills could be developed.
What impressed me straight away with Stuart was his ability to get the right information out of us as Managers as to what we really wanted to achieve as a business.
Stuart then tailored his course detail to suit life experiences from a day-to-day point of view which really gave me some confidence that we were on the right track with this style of training.
We all learnt or were reminded that a structured approach to everything in business is vital. For our Team members that had never been exposed to this style of training, it gave each individual some understanding and structure for review or simply to remain on track in their daily routines.
For our Team members that had been through courses in the past it was a timely reminder that there is a structured approach to selling and that was a motivation for many of the Team! Successful sales is not just based on personalities there is a science to long term success.
I expect to see very positive results from this investment in our people and business. In fact we have already seen a new client on board as a result of our revised learning’s from the two-day workshop.”
Mark Mahoney
Managing Director
iMS Group, Sydney (Print design and pre-press services)
Stuart put the sales training across in a way they could accept
“We have never had any formalised sales program. Different people in different locations doing it differently. Wanted to bring them all together share experiences and get everyone to use the best methods.
I did not speak to anyone else, as I have done quite a lot of sales training in the past and Stuart seemed to GET what we were after on our first meeting.
Our people are technical types and sales does not come naturally to them. Stuart put the sales training across in a way they could accept as a part of our service offering with out them feeling like “salesmen”.
All our staff are all now using similar improved techniques and more importantly they feel better about themselves and what they can offer the customer. They feel now they offer a valuable service, giving them more confidence dealing with the customers.”
Gary McDonald
Managing Director
Grip Moto, Brisbane (Automotive panel repairs)
Thank you for your keen personal insights into my challenges
“Stuart, I reckon I knew I was too technical, too ‘know all’, and too right! I just didn’t know how to fix it.
You’ve shown me how to: present the essential messages using pictorial-only prompts; not stumble over trying to regurgitate the accompanying, all-encompassing written down ‘sound bites’; and confidently leave the detail to question time.
Now with my presentations I aim to:
- Be concise, measured, and conciliatory.
- Let the essentials do the talking.
- Provide time for ‘talk-back’, and
- Leave the detail in the handouts.
Thank you for your keen personal insights into my challenges, your gentle encouragement towards my recognition of them, and thus putting me on-track to their rectification.”
John Cottle
Managing Director
Uranex NL, Melbourne (mining company)
Note: John is commenting on his new presentation format and style developed during a private presentation skills coaching clinic.
Every aspect of the course applied directly to our day to day jobs
“Our staff aren’t involved in direct selling and therefore we don’t hire sales persons. However we are often negotiating deals and needed to train staff who are seen to be in a public relations role on how to “close the deal”. We needed to be more assertive.
We initially decided to use Marketing Nous because of the comprehensive website. It was very informative and user friendly. Stuart Ayling was in touch with me immediately after I requested contact.
We engaged Stuart to conduct a one day in-house course specifically designed to suit our company’s needs. Every aspect of the course applied directly to our day to day jobs.
If we had gone to a generic course we may have only picked up one or two relative points, whereas the entire contents of the tailor made course were useful, well delivered and interesting. As a result of the course we are able to understand how sales fitted in to our current roles and how to deal with people in business with confidence.”
Kathy Boorman
Manager Taxi Services
Black & White Cabs, Brisbane (Taxi cab services and leasing)
Extremely well received
“Thanks Stuart for your presentation at our 2009 convention. It was extremely well received and the time you spent researching our industry prior to presenting was evident and appreciated by our delegates.”
Rennie Schafer
Executive Officer
Self Storage Association of Australasia, Sydney (Industry association)
Stuart Ayling was a clear leader to partner with AUSCOAL Super
“AUSCOAL Super was looking for refinement and improvement for our Australia wide based financial advisers, planners and managers who constantly present face to face seminars and workshops.
Being a not for profit AUSCOAL Super needed the presentation skills without the hard sell and after extensive research Stuart Ayling was a clear leader to partner with AUSCOAL Super.
The professionalism of our organisation has lifted through both presentation content design and presenting skills thanks to the great support and assistance from Stuart Ayling.”
Bruce Watson
CEO
AUSCOAL Super, Sydney (Industry superannuation fund)
Stuart certainly provided me with an edge for my presentation
“I had to present in a lead spot at a recent major Australia-Pacific conference. Our company was a major sponsor of the event, and it was vital that my presentation be of the very best quality to the large group of potential future customers attending the event.
I engaged Stuart to give me the edge to turn this into a great presentation. He drilled me hard and we significantly reworked my presentation and presentation technique to great effect.
My presentation was done with great confidence and impact, with great feedback from the attendees.
Stuart certainly provided me with an edge that moved my presentation from a likely mundane talk to an engaging high impact presentation. Thanks again Stuart.”
Richard Green
Managing Director
CatapultBI, Brisbane (Software development)
As a result my presentations at the conference were so much better
“Thank you very much Stuart for your help with my presentation skills. As a result my presentations at the conference were so much better. You will be pleased to know I was more animated; came out from behind the podium; engaged with the audience; and gave them the ‘promise’ so there was a definite ‘what is in it for me’ at the end.
I changed the PowerPoint’s as you suggested, and I could see my presentation really resonated with them. Thank you again for your wonderful help – it was very useful.”
Dr. Helen Higgins
Senior Researcher
Blue Care, Brisbane (Aged care services)
I used your ideas from the clinic and they really worked!
“Stuart, my new presentations in Melbourne went very well, much better than what I was doing before. Our share price jumped by 60% over the two days I was presenting to investors… I used your ideas from the clinic and they really worked! Thank you.”
Managing Director
ASX Listed Mining Company
Name withheld for privacy. Commenting on his new presentation format and style developed in a private presentation skills coaching clinic.
The training had maximum relevance
“I was looking for training in an area where we had no skills, no previous training and possibly a natural resistance. For most accountants, “sales” is a dirty word and most sales training programs seemed geared to product type sales which I felt may have conflicted with my idea of professionalism and long term client relationships.
When I saw on your website that you specialised in sales for professional services firms, I felt comfortable approaching you. And after our initial discussions (and the questions you asked), I was confident I’d made the right decision.
From the training sessions we’ve learnt new skills for communicating with clients and can now get them to articulate needs that we can meet. Consequently we are able to increase revenue for the firm.
Most importantly, we’ve learnt to shut up and listen! And we no longer feel like we’re trying to talk clients into something (which is how we have felt previously when in any type of sales situation).
For me the most valuable thing was how much work you had put in personalising the training to our firm. The training had maximum relevance because we looked at every day problems we encountered in real life. There were no glib answers that we could have brushed aside as being irrelevant to our situation. You helped us develop scripts for sticky situations & greatly increased the confidence levels of my team.
Also, you imparted a lot of information. At other training sessions I’ve felt the trainer has about 1 hour of content and spins out the day with endless “now break into small groups and…….”. You didn’t do that.
Your follow up after the sessions was also relevant & valuable. I will definitely get you back for a refresher!”
Anne Barry
Principal
AB Accountancy, Brisbane (Accounting services)
He tailored his presentation to our areas of interest
“We wanted to improve our Customer Service Representatives understanding of how important the delivery and handling of our corporate message is in the sales process, how to handle different personality types and to improve their communication skills.
I choose Stuart as he was local, appeared to have a solid following, was professional and importantly he tailored his presentation to our areas of interest. As a result our CSR’s now have a clearer understanding of listening, asking the right questions, probing and properly handling customers and prospects. I believe they will incorporate what they learnt into their everyday routine of meeting and greeting and selling to customers.”
Colleen Holliday
Director
Innotek Australia, Gold Coast (Hi-tech pet products)
Impressed by the simplicity of the program without the hype
“After researching several marketing / sales training companies AMS selected Stuart Ayling of Marketing Nous to run a custom-designed sales training course in Melbourne.
All staff at AMS were impressed by the approach of Stuart and the simplicity of the program without the hype generally associated with these courses. The comments by all staff were very positive and that they picked many things that can be used in their sales presentations to customers.
We thank Stuart very much and look forward to using Marketing Nous again in the future.”
Dirk Kuiper
General Manager
AMS Instrumentation and Calibration, Melbourne (Technical monitoring equipment)
The cost of your workshop was a great investment
“As I expressed after your sessions to our team, I was very impressed with your presentation, content and direction taken. More importantly, our people have absorbed the many points covered, and the concepts are now coming up in client discussions.
Better yet, these discussions are positive and outcome oriented – yes, they are using the stuff, and it works!
We are now revisiting the workbook from your presentation as a refresher, and we will be doing this quarterly. As an aide-memoir, the workbooks are priceless, and since they were used to record personal observations, are easily built on.
Overall, the cost of your seminar was a great investment for CPAP Australia. Thanks mate!”
Trevor Cuthbert
Operations Manager
CPAP Australia, Brisbane (Sleep apnoea products)
There has already been some great achievements from the sales course
“We wanted a workshop that would help us to increase confidence, focus on asking the right questions, overcoming blocks, basic sales training and a refresher for some staff. We looked at Stuart’s website information and after a discussion with him we felt confident about his ability.
I’m very satisfied and believe everybody got some thing out of it. The team is more confident, knows what questions to ask, and has learnt that repeat visits will get results most of the time. There has already been some great achievements resulting from the sales course especially in our NSW territory.”
Eric Wai
Managing Director
Sentry Medical, Sydney (Medical consumables and supplies)
Stuart delivered every aspect of this and more
“With a new and young team with little previous sales and client meeting experience I wanted to provide a training workshop that would improve our teams confidence and provide simple easy to use strategies to arm them for those daunting client meetings.
Stuart delivered every aspect of this and more, providing us with simple easy to use steps and procedures to effectively hold a meeting to gain the desired result, plus invaluable information in other important areas of communication.
Thank you Stuart for opening our eyes to how easy a client meeting can be if planned well.”
Phoebe Greening
Partner
MGA Accountants, Gold Coast (Accounting services)
Stuart provided us with practical, easy to use systems and techniques
“As a results driven business we are always looking for new ways to continually develop and challenge our team to deliver greater results not only for our business but also our clients.
Stuart provided us with practical, easy to use systems and techniques that I have no doubt will deliver new and exciting results in the future.
Thank you Stuart for your energy and knowledge imparted to us!”
Andrew Oldham
General Manager
GPL Network, Gold Coast (Business coaching services)
The feedback was very positive, and communications at meetings has since improved markedly
“We were all very impressed by Stuart’s preparation in coming and interviewing us to determine what we wanted from the program and indeed in how he was then able to tailor a program to suit our presenting format and requirements.
The day gave us an easy structure to follow and some presentation guidelines to ensure that at every opportunity we were delivering the messages as effectively as we could.
The feedback from the participants (our coaches and management team) was very positive and more importantly the structure and communication at meetings has since improved markedly, with the coaches now more comfortable in presenting because they have a simple formula that works.”
James Holbeck
Personal & Career Development Adviser
Queensland Reds, Brisbane (Queensland Rugby Union)
Stuart Ayling has exceeded our expectations
“Snelleman Tom engaged Stuart Ayling to give our accountants practical selling and communication skills. As the investment of time and money were substantial, we compiled a detail brief and contacted four training providers who specialised in the area of providing sales and communication training to professional services firms.
In his proposal, Stuart clearly demonstrated an understanding of our team and our needs. He presented a tailored workshop program for discussion that would optimise both the training outcomes and the retention of the newly learned skills.
When considering the various proposals from the training providers we found Stuart’s recommendation to be priced competitively and more importantly, spot-on for what the company wanted to achieve.
Stuart delivered the workshop program to our consultants over 3 days within an 8 week period. Our team found that building their skills this way and the email communications from Stuart over the 8 weeks helped achieve more meaningful results.
Stuart Ayling has exceeded our expectations. Not only has he delivered on his promises, but he has provided us with valuable ‘follow-up’ guidance which can be managed in-house to make the most of the training.”
Grant Titman
Director
Snelleman Tom Consulting Accountants and Financial Planners