Pernod Ricard S.A. is the world’s third largest wine and spirits group with operations on every continent. In Australia, Pernod Ricard Pacific is Australia’s largest wine and spirits company, employing more than 100 field sales personnel. Pernod Ricard is known worldwide as the producer of Jacobs Creek, the most exported bottled Australian wine and the leading wine brand in the United Kingdom, Ireland and Scandinavia. Other Pernod Ricard brands include Chivas Regal, The Glenlivet, Malibu, Beefeater and Mumm.
The previous manual paper-based system for field sales representatives presented the company with a number of challenges. The volume of paperwork curtailed productive time in the field. A one-hour call would typically generate fifteen minutes of down time for completion of paperwork. The sales process was lengthy and complex, slowing down turn-around of orders.
There might also be a lag of as much as a week before information could be entered into the central system. This disconnect between field operations and the company’s back office systems meant that sales personnel might not be aware of issues with orders until they were raised by the customer. There was also limited availability of historical sales data.
Pernod Ricard saw the opportunity to increase field force efficiency, improve customer service and, as a result, increase their profitability. After a rigorous and diligent selection process, Pernod Ricard selected the a Mobile Field Force Solution from Quofore.
In the field, the Quofore Mobile Client – running on i-mate Pocket PC devices and synchronizing wirelessly with head office – provides all the information each sales representative needs to manage their territory and customers; effectively and efficiently.
They receive their call plans by synchronizing their devices with the Quofore database. This also gives them up-to-date product and customer information, current sales history, promotions and management objectives.
Promotions such as tastings or special offers can all be recorded, and availability of promotional stock can be confirmed for the customer. Sales personnel are also able to record exceptions – for example, why a promotion was not accepted. This all adds to a ‘complete’ view of the customer’s requirements. All data captured in the field is fed into the back office system by the sync process.
With detailed customer information available, the sales force can see exactly what each of their customers has purchased and what promotions they’ve participated in. Representatives can be proactive in their recommendations and have the information on hand to address customer issues decisively. This gives customers confidence that items will be actioned immediately.
Pernod Ricard sales management is able to analyze performance for individual outlets and representatives as well as for overall sales. There is now clear visibility of what activities have been recorded for each sales call. Seemingly simple observations made by the sales representative – about product availability or why a customer didn’t participate in a promotion – provide valuable detail for improvements in marketing and sales strategy.
“All orders going to Customer Service have been dealt with in a very efficient manner. The way we are handling orders now has been fantastic. Since receiving my PDA, I have not had one problem. Keep up the good work!” Bernadette Weston, Pernod Ricard Pacific Customer Service Manager.
Procter & Gamble
