Business lesson #4: Know your product inside out

I went into tutoring after about a year working in 2 companies. I partnered with a student's mother to start a new venture. We imported diabetic-friendly rice from South Korea. I went along with the venture because it seems like I can learn a thing or two. Everything happened in a rush. We created business cards and printed several huge banners with the product information on it. But the resolution was so bad that the words on the banners were blurred and unreadable. We set up a booth in a trade exhibition in Singapore Expo. My girlfriend came to help. I felt bad in the days leading up to the exhibition, because I knew nuts about the product! But there was no turning back. Things happened very fast. I had wanted to discuss strategy with my partner but was afraid to do so. She had prior experiences selling products too, and I did not want to question her. On reflection, that was a bad mistake on my part. I had a few suggestions which could have really improved our chances had I been more determined to make them, rather than drop feeble hints now and then.

The supplier claimed that the rice was doing miracles to diabetics in Korea. They had anecdotal evidence in the form of a video, which we played in front of our booth. We had tried to get endorsements from doctors for our products, but failed. I had tried to understand the technical documents on the product that the supplier sent over, but couldn't understand it. It was too late to get a knowledgeable representative from Korea to help us, not that we had any chance of getting him even if we had the time. I tried my best to explain to visitors to our booth.

And then it hits. I was somewhat anticipating it. A man with his wife and son came to my booth and questioned me about the rice. I had nothing better to offer him other than to ask him to trust me. I referred him to the huge, unreadable banner in our booth in an effort to save the situation. But it just made matters worse. He yelled at me, saying that I should not be selling such stuff and telling me that his son has diabetes. Fortunately, he left without creating more commotion.

That was a really bad experience. Although we had some sales that day, one bad incident was enough to ruin everything. One bad incident was enough to expose your vulnerability - in my case, my lack of knowledge of my product. So, always be prepared. Know your product inside out. Not only will it help you in your sales, but it will also give you greater confidence and passion in selling.