I hope that none of my prospects or customers read your editorial. It seems inappropriate to editorialize on the "likely" abilities of sales people within the various sales channels for fiber-optic cable.
It is not true that manufacturers` representatives would necessarily have the lowest level of product knowledge. In fact, they are usually highly intelligent engineers capable of learning about the product and its applications. They probably sell a variety of products from the same industry and therefore understand how the whole system fits together--synergy. Indeed, their career is at stake if they mislead customers because they will never again set foot on that account`s premises.
I am a sales representative with 20 years` selling experience in the fiber optics industry (the past 11 years as an independent) and I`ve come across few reps who do not know their "beat." And if they don`t know, they will say so and get the answer from the factory--which is standard operating procedure.
Norman Fein
Fiber Networks Inc.
New York, NY