Persuasive Memorandum Essay

Under Armour has established itself as a highly successful sports wear brand, the reason for its success is the fact that products manufactured by U.A are designed with full understanding of an athlete’s needs. The U.A’s branded store at Annapolis appears to be highly popular among sports enthusiasts as it offers them a unique opportunity to experience the entire range of U.A’s products 2 The sales associates at the Annapolis store are a highly knowledgeable team, and possess an in-depth knowledge of U.A’s extensive product line. Presently our sales associates are highly capable of assisting customers in choosing the right product for an intended purpose, however there is a need to retrain our sales team so that in addition to addressing the customers intended purpose, they can determine the customers physical condition or body type and recommend a product that ideally suits the customer. Why does U.A need to retrain its Sales Associates? No two individuals can ever be same so a product that suits one person’s body type may not necessarily suite the others body type. For instance when a customer asks for a pair running shoe, our sales associates will be capable of showing them the complete range of running shoes, and then let the customer take his pick. In order to guarantee customer satisfaction it is essential to determine the customers foot type, whether he/she has a supinator, pronator or neutral arched foot 3. This knowledge will help the sales associate to recommend a shoe that is most likely to provide optimal fit and maximize performance. In the same way other products such as inner wear need to confirm to the wearer’s physical condition in order to ensure an optimal fit and comfort, hence a retraining programme is required to develop these skills among our sales associates. Advantages of the retraining programme The retraining programme will add value to the Under Armour brand, people will begin to identify the brand as one that truly assists athletes in achieving superior performance. Customer satisfaction levels may increase, because when customers are given a product that suits both their need and their body type, there is seldom room for complaints. The retraining programme will make the sales associate more confident and help them to increase their knowledge base, and learn more about newly introduced product categories such as footwear which was launched in April 2006 4. The concept of providing high level technical assistance to buyers will serve as an addition to the company’s U.S.P’s (Unique Selling Points), this may lead to increase in company’s retail sales. Major Concerns related to the retraining programme A primary concern related to the retraining programme is that, it will effect the operations across several departments. Revision and up gradation of the existing product training programme will require collaborated effort from product design department and the training department hence this may effect normal operations of the product design department, however the advantages of the retraining programme will far outweigh minor inconveniences that shall be encountered in the process of implementing this idea. Concerns about the training programme hampering the store operations can be taken care of by dividing the sales associates into maximum number of small batches, this will ensure that sufficient staff is available at the store while each batch in turn undergoes intensive product training. It is hoped that the retraining programme will help in creation of a highly skilled sales force capable of providing the customers with a unique shopping experience.