A well-known window manufacturer with a substandard POS software was losing out on sales because of how difficult it was for their dealers to use it. The company needed a plan that would ensure a smooth roll out of their new software system, drive excitement among the Sales team, and support adoption through their channel, ultimately increasing sales. 

Here’s how they did it successfully.

The Problem: 

The window manufacturer had carefully developed a new POS software to replace the clunky, cumbersome existing option, and it was ready to roll out. Problem solved, right? Wrong.  

Simply launching a new product with the promise of a better experience isn't enough to ensure successful adoption. Why? Because people are afraid of change! Even when something isn’t working, a surprising amount of people will grin and bear it rather than learn a new way. It’s human nature, and it’s the reason why a plan for Change Management and Training is critical to getting everyone on board when you’re rolling out a new product. 

If this sounds nebulous, let’s take a look at the problems each constituent was grappling with to show how common the phenomenon is and highlight the ways it manifests (some of these will probably be familiar to you).

• Internal Customer Support: This team had a high level of change resistance and felt classroom training was a waste of time because it had failed them before. They were also worried about having the know-how to confidently support customers with the new platform when the calls started coming. 

• Sales Leadership: This group wanted their teams to focus more on selling rather than defaulting to the role of software trainer. They wanted reps to redirect their energy toward adopting new selling methodology and building strategic growth plans with dealers. 

• Sales Reps: The reps themselves had a high level of change resistance. They didn’t know how to add value if they weren’t the ones leading the training, and they didn’t trust that others would do a good job. Plus, they were terrified that the dealers wouldn’t want to bother learning the new POS and, as a result, opt for a competitor’s product (which, ironically, was already happening anyway).

• Dealers: This group had a love/hate relationship with the software. While they didn’t like using it, they had invested a lot of time in learning workarounds and building their own business processes for using the old platform. It wasn’t easy or efficient, but who had time to learn something new or spend hours in a classroom? Plus, they could always sell another product if the manufacturer tool was easier. 

The window manufacturer knew it had resistance issues across the Sales funnel, which put profitability at risk in a significant way. 

The manufacturer knew it couldn’t just release the new POS and hope for the best. In order for the initiative to be successful, we needed to get at the root of the issue: resistance to change. 

The Solution:

Our plan would address the reasons why people were resistant to change, and create a path forward that allowed them to push through those barriers in the most painless way possible.

In other words, we created a Change Management and Training strategy to introduce the new program to key internal and channel partners across the national network, and give them the support they needed to embrace the newness. 

As a result, the client had an actionable Learning Strategy that:

• Delivered learning experiences specifically designed to overcome obstacles to customer adoption.

• Reinforced strategic selling skills of the Sales team, positioning them as change agents.

• Engaged and prepared customer service teams to create an exceptional customer trial experience.

• Provided customers with a variety of learning methods that aligned with their needs and preferences.

•  Leveraged Change Adoption Theory to: 

• Help the customer support team accept the shift to the new platform

• Help the reps understand how to recognize adoption resistance and "SELL" the change to dealers 

• Include learning experiences and exercises to overcome specific reasons dealers resist change

The Result:

This strategic approach resulted in a Sales team that was better able to build trust and confidence with customers, and accelerate adoption. But that’s not all. 

It also yielded a Customer Service team that felt supported and engaged, and a customer base that went from feeling hesitant about learning a new POS to feeling excited and encouraged. 

Not only did customers realize that the new POS wasn’t that difficult to learn, they also appreciated how many problems it actually solved for them, and how consumer-friendly the interface was. Now they had a tool they knew how to operate, and felt confident using in front of their customers to create a more collaborative and high-touch selling experience. 

In the end, the client was able to drive greater internal and dealer buy-in for the new software platform. Sales and Customer Service could effectively guide their dealers through the stages of change, secure key commitments, support faster adoption of the new software platform and, ultimately, drive increased window sales.