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How does a relatively new salesperson leap over a steep learning curve, look the part of a seasoned pro, and deliver some major results? Just look at Shelby Estes.

As she continues to establish herself in her DFW territory, Shelby leans in on what she knows, she leans on the support staff around her, but she never budges on her consistent response to client needs, or her consistent pursuit of obtaining new prospects. In other words, she just keeps moving, no matter what challenges or uncertainties come her way.

A great example of this? First Baptist Church in Keller.

The Business Challenge.

It was mid-fall 2022, and Shelby was out introducing her to current clients and developing relationships as quickly as possible.

“When you first start out, they tell you to reach out to current customers. Do introductions. See how they are doing, how their workflow is going,” Shelby said. “You don't want to just come in and say, ‘I’m your new rep, I need you to buy something now because your lease is up.’”

So she made her way out to First Baptist Church in Keller in that spirit. Introduce herself and assess their current fleet (which included MFPs, a variety of printers, and a production unit) long before the lease was up mid-year 2023.

She discovered two things pretty early on at the church: One, there was an entirely new cast of players for this long-time Datamax customer. So even though this wasn’t a First Time Account opportunity, it would need to be treated in a similar fashion so that rapport could be re-established.

Two? The fleet was in need of reorganization. Too many types of printers, too many types of toner, and a general lack of fleet optimization.

Streamlining their fleet quickly became a big priority for Shelby.

“They loved Datamax, they were really happy with the service,” Shelby recalls. “But they wanted to save money, they were looking to consolidate/streamline all of their print devices, and make workflow (and billing) easier moving forward.”

The Thought Process.

Patience. Persistence. Preparedness.

All told, putting together a package that worked for all parties took time.  Shelby and the team worked through at least four different proposals with the church leadership, as they weighed the opportunity to remove desktops but also satisfy end users, as well as develop a plan that would best streamline their overall operation (which is a big one). It would have been easy to get frustrated, but Shelby kept her patience.

“They had different Lexmarks, they had a few walkups, but they also had different machines they’d bought from Best Buy,” Shelby said. “The inside of the church is not unlike an office building. They have a lot going on and they wanted to ensure that their needs were met.”

Shelby was equally persistent in being flexible and responding to questions as quickly as possible. She didn’t always have the answers, but she leaned on people like Sales Manager Linda Narcho and Service Manager Shawn Hay to get those answers fast.

Preparedness. It was essential for this ever-changing move.

“I think it’s really just being honest with yourself. I was new, and there was so much to learn. But working to stay on top of it and staying as organized as possible was important for me. And asking for help when I needed it was the biggest thing – just knowing what you do know but also realizing how important the resources around you are,” Shelby said.

The Prevailing Results.

The large-scale deal went through and Shelby secured a big win.  They successfully streamlined operations, they developed a rapport with a new leadership group at the church, and Shelby remained ever-present in a deal that was certainly a marathon, not a sprint.

“I think it came down to simply meeting their needs and staying honest. Even having to go back and say, ‘You know what, this won’t work.’ And having that honest conversation. We didn’t give up after that first proposal. We made sure that the customer was fully understood and supported throughout the duration.”  In other words, Never, Ever Give Up.

A seasoned pro in the making, lessening the learning curve through Patience, Persistence, and Preparedness. That’s Shelby Estes. Stay tuned, Datamax.