Training
May 2011
Avon Cosmetics – Regional Sales Training in Western Europe, Middle East and Africa
Avon Founder David H McConnell offered women a rarity in 19th century America: a chance at financial independence. In 1886, it was practically unheard of for a woman to run her own business. McConnell, a bookseller-turned-perfume entrepreneur, offered women the opportunity to create and manage their own businesses through what later became known as direct selling.
For 125 years, Avon Representatives have brought beauty and an earning opportunity into the lives of women – first at home through door-to-door sales, then in the workplace to colleagues and friends, and now online. Through the decades and across continents, Representatives are dedicated to building personal relationships with the customers they serve. It’s a commitment that’s both timeless and universal.
With 6.5 million independent Avon sales Representatives in the world, collectively earning more than $4.5 billion a year, one of McConnell’s founding principles, “to provide individuals with an opportunity to develop and earn in support of their wellbeing and happiness” still rings true today. Not only does Avon provide an earning opportunity, but it also offers women the chance to become entrepreneurs; to recruit, manage, train and develop their own teams to achieve financial independence and realise their dreams.
Training: A Critical Pillar to Success
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Whether an independent Representative, an independent Sales Leadership Representative, an Avon Zone or Division Manager or a head office Avon associate in any country in the world, everyone has access to training. Training is a fundamental part of Avon’s business model and focus is placed on supporting the development and growth of our people to maximise their earnings and help them achieve their personal dreams and goals.
A dedicated WEMEA-wide regional sales resource centre was created combining sales training, sales support and analytics. The region training team ensures each country sales team has the best-in-class materials, trainer support and online training. As a people business, our training cornerstones are personal contact and building strong relationships through communication, coaching and social interaction.
At Avon, we take responsibility for personal and professional development through the 70/20/10 principle. This balanced approach to learning has been proven to deliver the most effective results, and this is true across the organisation.
Specialised sales training models have been developed and are rolled out in all markets, ensuring that everyone is aligned and receives the same training, which is built around Avon’s sales model and grounded in fundamentals and a proven and winning formula.
Moving with the Times: Training in the Virtual World
While training in a classroom is still a valuable and effective approach, today Avon is leveraging technology and embracing the social media revolution which touches everything we do. By offering more formal training online, leveraging technology, Avon ensures that training is robust and wide-reaching and everyone has access wherever they are in the world. Avon Connects is a new online community, built on social media principles which has been piloted in the UK and Romania and is transforming the way Zone Managers, Sales Leaders, Representatives and customers interact with each other and with Avon. Direct selling is a networking business, and Avon Connects gives the opportunity for Representatives to network and share their own best practices and training tips.
A Case Study of Success: Litsa Farsaraki, Senior Executive Independent Sales Leader, Avon Greece
The personal touch with our people is really important to Litsa Farsaraki, one of Avon’s top independent Sales Leadership Representatives from Greece, who believes that the her business has grown as a result of the opportunities for training given by Avon and her commitment to the training and development of her own team.
Litsa started with Avon at the age of 18 and quickly achieved the status of top Presidents’ Club Representative while still working part-time hours. Litsa soon realised the potential with Avon and thanks to the support of Avon and her family, she made the decision to become her own boss and focus on becoming a successful Avon Sales Leadership Representative.
Litsa believes that training is a critical factor to her success – a belief based on the training and development she had received as a Representative and the support of Antonia, her Zone Manager.
Today, Litsa, who manages a team of 850 Representatives and Sales Leaders, says, “I have achieved my goal by building my own business and helping others to do the same by ensuring that I support their development through regular contact and training. I earn a respectable income, I have bought my own house and car, and I’ve won many awards and holidays, meaning I get to travel and see the world, thanks to Avon.”
Further support which Litsa feels helped her succeed was training in sales techniques and online information and reporting packages available to help her manager her business.
On Avon’s formal sales training model, Litsa commented, “It helped me to guide and motivate my Representatives and to present the brochure in the best way in order to reach the maximum number of customers and earnings. Within this model, I feel training is the most important step in creating successful, productive Representatives. It’s here that Representatives develop their skills, learn how to increase their customers and their sales, build their own business and become successful.
“I can say with certainty that my success was the result of my hard work, passion and ambition, but most of all, of my very well-structured training. My Area Manager has been always there for me and I benefit from one-to-one coaching sessions together.
“The economic crisis is a global reality and has affected everyone, especially in Greece, where unemployment rose dramatically. Avon’s opportunity offers women the chance to earn an income for themselves and their families. I was touched to learn that one of my Sales Leaders could afford a Christmas celebration for her family because of her Avon earnings.
“My personal vision is to recruit, lead, train and develop as many Sales Leaders as possible and help them to become top Sales Leaders themselves. I feel honored to watch them receive pleasure from their work, getting better, achieving their own dreams and, finally, making their life better,” she concluded.
