Seven – A Lucky Number
Having recovered from the blows of fate that caused me significant damage, I decided to continue my work activity and somehow learned about the existence of the company SEVEN. These guys were engaged in finding promoters for various projects. Something like a promoter exchange. I remember they were located on Solzhenitsyn Street in Moscow. How did I find out about them? I don't remember. Maybe some advertisement. When I came to their office, a young girl somehow vividly assigned me to one project. It was a PR company promoting the BSH brand in the Moscow market. I got a hotel of major household appliances.
Big Brand, Big Appliances
First, we were taught a bit. And, by the way, I really liked the training. The Germans were sensible about what they were promoting. I started to understand household appliances. We quickly learned about ovens, washing machines, dishwashers, microwaves, built-in appliances, refrigerators. Then we were distributed to points. At first, I remember I got to a store and got a female mentor. She explained and told me a lot. But one day we almost had a quarrel. She was dissatisfied with me and made a small scandal.
One Man Army
After being at that point as an intern for a while, I was immediately redirected to another point. There, I had to work alone. The difficulty was that a promoter, in essence, does not have the right to sell the equipment. He can only persuade the buyer to choose his brand. But often, the sellers from the store itself asked to push an additional paid warranty for the sold equipment. Essentially, it's money for nothing. But that's how stores made money. Sometimes a seller could refuse the promoter the sale of his equipment because it didn't have that very additional warranty.
On top of everything else, competitors work in the hall: a huge number of people who are promoters of other brands. They could interfere with each other in every possible way. Once, this fact played against me.
First Point
All the large and pass-through stores were mainly located outside Moscow. Therefore, I was appointed as a promoter to the farthest store imaginable. It was the Mega in Khimki. And it took about an hour and a half to get there. At the same time, we remember that I am in my second year of study. The first point immediately made it clear that we would play hard. In addition to swearing at me by the employees, I was almost dragged into a fight with one of the sellers. He somehow worked in coalition with one rude saleswoman. They constantly provoked me. It was clear that I was somehow interfering with their business.
In fact, the hall was filled with a tense atmosphere. Trade represented a constant war between groups of promoters and sellers. But most of all, a promoter hated another promoter. All this led to the atmosphere getting extremely heated. And as a result of another quarrel, I was expelled from the store. It seemed like I violated public order. It all happened quickly – just a few days were enough for me not to work there anymore. The only plus was that once I sold German equipment to one artist. He was a famous KVN player from a famous team.
Second Point
The second point turned out to be slightly better. It was the same huge shopping center on the outskirts of Moscow, somewhere near the Schelkovskaya metro station. Only from there, you still had to walk or take a bus. Everything was like in a fog. Sellers in red, promoters in white. Every day was similar to the previous one. The only good thing was that it all unfolded in the summer. And also, there I met a wonderful person. A competitor from Samsung. He was from the southern lands. It was very easy and fun with him. We constantly started something and laughed. They even wanted to discipline us. Thanks to this, time there passed quickly.
Third Point
Apparently, someone from the management was displeased that we were working with Samsung in tandem. And they decided to transfer me to another store. In fact, the reason could be completely different. But it turned out that I moved to the Technosila store. It was located in the same area, just a little closer to the metro. It is considered the first store opened by the Technosila network. But our connection with that guy was strong, and he often came to my store. And we laughed again. The store itself was rather dull. People were more or less calm. But one day, a conflict still occurred.
An elderly customer started to complain that I hadn't served him fully. He wanted to buy some small household appliances. But he turned to me for consultation. I tried to explain that I was not from that department. And I offered to bring another consultant. He agreed, and I went to look for her. Maybe I even told her that a customer was waiting for her. But she didn't come to him. And the client lashed out at me. This attracted the attention of the store manager, and after a while, I was removed from there.
Fourth Point
The fourth point was Mega Belaya Dacha. There, I was placed in a large chain store. Everything as usual. The same structure, the same rules. Conflicts were inevitable. And I had a quarrel with a representative of a competing firm. The other promoters also immediately disliked me. I worked there for a while, but then managed to beg for a point closer to home.
Fifth Point
Probably, the calmest of all. Close to home, low traffic, no special conflicts were observed. By that time, I had deeply plunged into depression because of a breakup with a girl. It affected my health and work. Once, when I had already worked almost a month, I was informed that my point was not available to our promoters at all, and there were no guys of ours there. That is, how I ended up there at all, no one knows.
Sixth Point
I got a new supervisor (senior over the promoters, to whom I report), and they threw me back to the north, to the river station, to some roadside shopping center. There, tension immediately arose between me and an employee promoting Samsung. She exhibited passive aggression, tried to manipulate, and eventually snitched on me to the boss. I had to go to him and talk. I was baselessly accused of something. When I returned to her, I spoke ill of her directly to her face. For this, one of the store employees attacked me and hit me in the face, breaking my nose.
Conclusion
In the process of my work as a promoter of major household appliances, I encountered numerous difficulties and obstacles that not only tested my resilience but also contributed to my personal and professional growth. Here are the key professional qualities I was able to develop during this period:
1. Resilience and stress resistance: I learned to maintain composure and continue working even in the most stressful and conflictual situations, which was an integral part of my daily work.
2. Adaptability: My ability to quickly adapt to changing conditions and requirements in different trading points proves my flexibility and readiness for changes.
3. Communication skills: Working with customers, interacting with store employees, and establishing contacts even with competitors, I significantly improved my persuasion and communication skills.
4. Learnability: My interest and ability to learn, especially in the field of characteristics and features of household appliances, significantly enhanced my effectiveness as a promoter.
5. Conflict resolution: I learned to find compromises and solutions in difficult situations, as well as to defend my interests when necessary. This experience not only enriched my professional skills but also brought me valuable lessons that I can apply in the future.