Bridging Product Development and Sales

In this episode of Inspiring Innovation, we sit down with Ellen Kershke, a technical expert turned sales professional at Polo. Ellen shares her unique experiences and how her background in product development has benefited her current role in sales. We discuss the crossover between these fields and how it has helped Polo better serve its customers. Ellen shares stories from trade shows, strategies for managing customer relationships, and the importance of communication and understanding technical details. She also highlights the unexpected ways her product development expertise has enhanced her sales efforts, allowing her to provide tailored solutions and more effectively navigate customer issues. Tune in to learn about the critical factors in maintaining strong customer relationships, recent trends in the medical market, and the value of solution-oriented thinking in manufacturing.

00:00 Introduction to Inspiring Innovation

00:59 Meet Ellen Kershke: From Product Development to Sales

01:46 The Anaheim Trade Show Experience

04:10 Misconceptions Between Sales and Product Development

07:16 Influence of Product Development on Sales Approach

08:56 Polo's Unique Design Process

10:29 Lessons from Product Development Applied to Sales

13:23 Maintaining Strong Customer Relationships

26:48 Trends in the Medical Market

27:55 Final Thoughts and Wrap-Up

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Polo Custom Product designs, engineers, and manufactures custom products for OEMs in the medical, fire & safety, and defense industries. Polo Custom Products has experts on staff to globally source and procure your specialty formulation materials. Our experts in quality assurance test and ensure all custom products meet standards and your requirements.