“A knowledge test is one thing but being able to see people use knowledge and assess what they actually do…that is much more powerful and that’s what Rehearsal allows us to do.”

The Challenge

A major online retailer was looking for effective ways to onboard new associate account executives to its sales team. Its recruiting program is highly selective and only chooses new hires from the best colleges and universities in the U.S. While the recruiting process ensured that these new graduates had the intellect and desire to handle the job, the company had to find a way to train the new hires to master key objectives and handle any customer objections with confidence at any point throughout the sales process.

The Solution

The online retailer built the Rehearsal platform into its launch plans for a cohort of new hires who were fresh out of college. The new hires were trained on a product and then asked to record their “pitch” for that product using the Rehearsal platform. The pitch had to be no more than two minutes in length and needed to address the benefits of the product and why the product would make a difference for the customer. Their “pitch” was then replied to by a role play of a customer objecting to the pitch. From there, the new hire would have to use what was learned in the sales training program to respond with a remedy for that objection. In all, each new hire was responsible to complete 12 role plays — each addressing a different objection. All role plays were graded against a standard set of criteria and by a group of sales managers and executives.

The Results

The company evaluated the Rehearsal platform based on three areas: user experience, engagement, and “lift” in performance. The students described the user experience as supportive of their busy lifestyles as it allowed them to train anytime, anywhere. Each student was asked to complete 12 role play scenarios — all students completed all 12 scenarios. As for “lift”, by watching the students’ performance videos, they could see where the group struggled and were able to quickly adapt training materials to make immediate adjustments in performance.

The company is now broadening this program to the North American Sales force of approximately 200 employees. The Rehearsal platform will be integrated into the onboarding plan for new salespeople and become part of the accreditation process for existing salespeople. Going forward, a salesperson will receive a certificate of completion that not only shows the student attended a training session but that there exists proof that the student knows now to apply what was learned and to a standard that the company expects.

We found this. We love this. Here’s why. We run a company based on practice. Every time we give a demo or discuss our technology with a new client, we are asked: “On average, how many times does someone record a response before they submit a final version?” We can tell you that answer: It’s 6.

But the beauty is not in that number. The beauty lives in what happens next: trying again. The Rehearsal technology works to combine practice with coaching. The process should be cyclical and should be evaluated either by reaching an expected level of performance (as deemed by the organization or manager) or by seeing continuous improvement. Maybe you have defined specific outcomes for yourself that will indicate that you made. Sly Stallone wasn’t going to stop trying until his Rocky script was sold with him as the main character. It took 1500 tries!

Maybe you are trying to get through a presentation without speaking too quickly or without ever saying “um”. It may take 6 times. It may take 100. But with Rehearsal, you’ll know when you’ve made it and you’ll have the documentation to prove that you’ve done it and the confidence to know you can do it again.

Maybe you are trying to make a big sale. When it’s a big deal, do you stop with the very first “No”? Of course not. But you certainly don’t go back again with the same approach, pitch, or message. You create a new one and you practice it. It may take 6 times. It may take 100. But when you finally get the sale, you’ll know exactly what you looked like and how it sounded because with Rehearsal you’ll have it documented. And better yet, you can share what worked with others on your team. Or show your manager exactly how it happened. If the founder of Pandora.com stopped at the 299^th try, you may never have had the chance to listen to Michael Jackson all the time, every day, and on every device you own.

Practice matters. All the good ones do it. How many times will you try?