The Hive Network Opens to All Suppliers

June 19, 2014 - PRLog -- The Hive Network (www.thehivenetwork.org), the industry’s new educational hub for suppliers, announced today that it is now open to all suppliers, where previously only veteran suppliers were able to participate.

“There’s a great disconnect in our industry between what sales trainers think is effective, and what really works from a customer’s viewpoint,” said Hive founder Shawna Suckow, CMP. “There’s a lot of supplier frustration out there right now, as they struggle to understand the planner species. We realized that we were excluding an entire generation of newer suppliers, who will certainly become frustrated using traditional sales methods with planners.”

The CCSE (Customer-Certified Sales Expert) is a new designation offered by The Hive Network. Coursework is comprised of a series of on-demand, web-based sessions taught primarily by veteran planners who belong to the Senior Planners Industry Network (SPIN).

The CCSE curriculum features topics taught from the planner perspective for suppliers, such as: how to sell better at trade shows, how to form relationships with planners in today’s overly-marketed marketplace, how to prospect correctly on LinkedIn so you don’t get ignored, and how to craft proposals that get more attention and better results.

“The Hive is just for suppliers, and they can hear directly from the industry’s most veteran planners on how to sell more effectively,” said Suckow. “After all, who knows better than their prospective customers what works and what doesn’t?”

Suppliers who earn their CCSE designation will have access to SPIN’s private planner gatherings at major industry events like WEC, IMEX, ASAE’s annual conference, IncentiveWorks, and more.

Suppliers can sign up for the CCSE program for $395, which includes all the necessary coursework, and gives them a full year to complete it at their convenience, on-demand and on-line.  The Hive Network is currently running a promotion: new members who sign up by July 15 receive a $100 Amazon gift card.  A la carte courses are available to non-members for a per-course fee.

To learn more about the CCSE designation or to join the program, visit www.thehivenetwork.org or email catherine@thehivenetwork.org.

The Hive Network is an educational resource for hospitality suppliers, offering the collective wisdom of senior-level planners to help suppliers navigate the sales process with less frustration.