Just Looking: Welcome

So, why did Mark Askey decided to start a blog?

I have spent the last 15 years in various aspects of retail and have an opinion about retail sales, so I figured the next step was to start being more vocal. In today's environment that meant I need to start a blog.

Seriously, I think there is a real lack of support for the retail sales environment. I think that we focus so much on all the other stages, that the process of 2 people interacting to exchange money for goods or services gets downplayed as unimportant. I think it's the most important part of the process. Maybe not as exciting as a direct mail campaign or a Super Bowl ad, but infinitely more important.

I also feel that though there are so many weblogs, website and documents on the stages of bringing a product to the customer, the final stage - retail selling - isn't well covered. Over the years I have frantically searched for a resource of information aimed at the retail sales person.

With the exception of a few websites, the majority of the sites I found were general sales or outside sales. As a sales person I spent a lot of time trying to convert the outside sales method to the retail sales model. As a Sales Manager I refined what I had learned and passed it along to my team. This weblog is my way of spreading my thoughts farther.

My hope this becomes a place to come and find out what is new in the retail sales arena. Sort of the Gizmodo of retail sales and hopefully with some of the same humor. I will try to provide information for sales people and sales management and especially for the entreprenuers who are doing both. Each week I hope to review a few sales books and find ways to implement them into your sales career. Many of the books out there have gems inside that can be applied to retail sales. I will try to help identify them for you. I will pass along my observations and experiences with retail situations I encounter. And most of all I will tell you what I think, because that is why people start blogs.

Plus I hope to spur discussion and thought on how other retail sales people are getting it done. I also hope in some way to influence the environment and peoples methods. Instead of having to reinvent the wheel like I did, I hope to provide you a headstart.

I hope you enjoy it.

Mark Askey