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Do you need product knowledge skills to function well in your job role? This article provides a guide on how you can develop the skills and include them on your resume.

 

What are Product Knowledge Skills?

Product knowledge skills are the abilities to knowing about the company’s product and services and to properly communicating it to customers or clients. Generally, marketers or salespersons who are working in customer-centric positions are expected to know product features, benefits and uses. They may also learn about support and troubleshooting so that they can give customers the proper guidance they need once customers have issues with a product. With the availability of this knowledge, the sales department can make customers feel satisfied with the purchase of their product and inspire them to be loyal customers of the organization.

Types of product knowledge

• Pricing Structure: Most customers want to be aware of the price of a product. A product can come in different models or price tires and possessing this information can enable you to give customers accurate knowledge of the product price.
• Models, styles,and colors available: Comprehension of product features guarantees that employees can present this information accurately and also convince every customer. This information can boost the chances of making sales because you are informing customers about all the options available for them to patronize.
• Product Uses; You should have extensive knowledge about the purpose of a product toconvince customers about the benefits of the product. This can help employees present a product as the necessary need of a customer.
• Service, warranty,and repair information: if you are selling technology, customers may inquire to know about warranties and their cost of service repair. This can enable them to plan for potential costs and also decide if they want to continue working with the company or if they have a warranty for repair or replacement needs in the future.
• Target audience: who is your product made for? What purpose does it serve and what are the benefits of your product? Once you have accurate answers to thesequestions, you can easily identify your target audience. You need to know who you are selling to and who your suitable customer is. This will help your organization to reach out to a specific target audience.
• Your brand: Who are your main competitors? Are you a market leader and is your organization a corporate organization? Theseare questions you need to ask to differentiate your brand from another brand. This will also help your employees to market your brand name and purpose to customers.

 

Importance of Product knowledge Skills

• Helping associates provide factual information

When employees have an excellent understanding of a product, it will become very easy for them to respond to customers’ questions and provide accurate information about a product. It will also make employees pay attention to the benefits of a product. When customers receive accurate product information, they patronize the product more.

• Boosting enthusiasm and encouraging sales

If employees understand the product they are selling and can demonstrate their passion for them, customers’ enthusiasm about the product will increase drastically. This knowledge is very vital because it will make both employees and customers eager to share the product benefit and draw the attention of customers who are willing to make a purchase. Understanding the benefits makes an employee convince customers to give the product a try and testify later.

• Building trust with Customers

Providing customers with factual information about a product builds employee credibility in the eyes of customers. This makes customers trust the organization to provide excellent products and services. When employees provide product information that aligns with the product, they earn the trust of their customers. Establishing trust increases the chance of customers making higher purchases.

• Making a Good Impression

When employees communicate with customers, it allows them to demonstrate the knowledge of their product and inform customers why their product is more peculiar than that of their competitors. This shows that employees comprehend the prospective client’s needs and create a positive lasting impression. When customers sense that a seller cares about providing a pleasant and excellent buying experience, they may become loyal to the company and forsake other companies.

 

How to Improve Product Knowledge Skills

• Offer practical experience

Allow employees to familiarize themselves with the company’s product through experience. You should let employees first test the product of the company and give their feedback. You can give employees the product free or offer them a discount so that they can purchase them. This will give employees a testimony about the product and this allows them to share their information with their customers.

• Encourage both conventional and creative information sources

Help employees get knowledge about a product through different sources. For instance, encourage them to read books about marketing a product and how to get feedback from customers and team members. They can also go online to get information through the company’s website. The more they explore other sources of knowledge, the more they have vast knowledge about the product.

• Focus on Customer Needs

As employees gain more knowledge, ensure that this knowledge focuses on customer needs. They should also know product features that customers may find very interesting. This approach allows each salesperson to present customers with factual information about the amazing benefits of the product that can meet up with the needs of customers. It also makes customers feel that the company cares deeply about their needs and she is not just out there to maximize the product.

Continuously Assess Employee knowledge:  You need to make it a routine to assess employee knowledge at intervals to ascertain if they have the requisite knowledge about a product especially if your organization usually introducesa new product at intervals. To achieve this, once in a while distribute surveys about your product to employees whether online or offline to ascertain their knowledge about the product.

• Offer incentives:

You should consider improving the knowledge of your product by offering an award to the best employee on a training exercise or product test. You can also give accolades to the most hardworking employee that has brought a lot of customersto the organization. This keeps employees motivated and engaged and also makes them pursue more knowledge about the product.

 

Jobs that require Product knowledge Skills

• Sales Representative: A sales representative of an organization must have an elaborate knowledge of a product such as a price, benefits,and maybe warranty. This is very important because most customers will usually inquire about a product from the sales rep.
• Marketer: a marketer of a product must possess sufficient knowledge of the product toconvince customers to buy the product. This knowledge is very much essential and one such knowledge is the benefit of the product. This is highly vital to make customers loyal to the organization.
• Call Representative: Most customers call the call representative of an organization to complain about a product or to obtain more information about the benefit of a product. The call representative needs to knowa lot about the product because customers can ask any question.
• Product Specialist: A product specialist is someone who needs to have elaborate knowledge needs to have extensive knowledge about a particular product togive the employees of that organization orientation about the product.
• Business Manager; the business or the company manager needs to have extensive knowledge about the product totrain others or other employees about the knowledge of the product. Some organizations usually introduce a new product at intervals, it is the responsibility of the business manager to have excellent information about the new product to groom employees in the knowledge of that product.
• Quality manager: Most organizations in the contemporary era engagethe services of a quality manager. A quality manager is someone that ensures that a product meets up to standard. It is very much important for the quality manager to have extensive knowledge of the product such as the price, quality, purpose, and target audience.

 

How to include product knowledge Skills in Your Resume

• Describe your experience as A product Manager or Specialist: Most job organizations are on the look for experience and skillfulness. The best way to make your resume catchy is to describe your role as a product specialist or your past proven experience that relates to the job. Describe how you were successful at your previous work placement and how you were able to carry out your responsibilities as expected. You should also describe your achievement and the award and accolades you received.
• Describe your Marketing Skills: the essence of product knowledge skills is for the organization to market itsproduct excellently. At this point, discuss how an excellent product marketer in your previous work placement are and how you were able to convince people to patronize your products. The effect of product knowledge is the ability to make incredible sales.
• Emphasis on Your fast learning Ability and Memory Retention Skills: this is very much important because you cannot possess excellent product knowledge if you do not possess excellent learning ability. Describe your excellent learning ability and how you easily retain knowledge once taught about a product.
• Highlight your Product Knowledge Skills: At this juncture, you need to highlight the product knowledge skills you possess and they are;
  • Price Knowledge
  • Active listening skills
  • Paying attention to details
  • Communication skills
  • Interpersonal skills
  • Analytical skills
  • Problem-solving skills
  • Critical thinking skills
  • Target customer
  • Brand knowledge
• Complementary product
• Knowledge of competitors

 

Examples of how to include Product Knowledge Skills in your Resume

Product Specialist Resume Sample

• Examined and analyzed market trends and client feedback to forecast future trends.
• Conducted Q & A sessions for clients and company employees to ensure complete product knowledge of users and sellers
• Equipped Ad hoc reporting analysis metrics for the management team
• Trained and familiarized intercompany personnel on the complete product line to promote sales and product development  for 2 years
• Liaise between consumer end-users and the product development team to recommend product enhancement.

Pharmaceutical Sales Representative

• Serviced pharmaceutical client account for 20 organizations
• Evaluated client needs based on current objectives, supply, and demand, and seasonable variables
• Formulated customer relationships with more than 100+local physicians and dental practices
• Collaborated with the sales and marketing team to determine the best products to promote or withdraw

 

How to demonstrate product knowledge Skills in an Interview

• Demonstrate you are a lover of knowledge: The best way to showcase your product knowledge skills is to demonstrate that you are someone that loves knowledge and you are willing to continue learning. Interviewers love a candidate who has a hunger for knowledge and this will make the interviewer conclude that you will be willing to learn more about a product.
• Be inquisitive: Someone who loves knowledge is someone who asks Ask the interviewer a lot of questions about his or her product, price, and use. This will go a long way to convince the interviewer that you are willing to learn quickly about the product and that you are interested in the conversation.
• Be attentive: in the course of the interview be very much attentive. Demonstrate to the interviewer that you are an active listener because someone who wants to learn must be willing to pay keen attention to
• Be prompt: be very prompt when answering questions, and do not take a long time to answer questions asked by the interviewer. Once you are prompt in answering questions, the interviewer will be convinced that you learn quickly and that you have excellent thinking abilities.

 

Examples of Questions to Test your Product knowledge Skills

• What purpose does this product serve?

This question is a great way to test your knowledge of a product and its uses. It will also show that you are aware of the company’s goals or mission and ensure that you discuss the primary purpose of the product when answering the question.

• Who are our competitors?

This question is a great way to test your knowledge of the industry the company belongs to and also how the company can improve its products. When answering the questions state at least two or three competitors of the company.

• Who is the target market for the product?

This question is an excellent question to test your knowledge on knowledge of the product and its target audience. It is also a good way to explain the demographics of the target market and the target audience.

• What, in your opinion, are the benefits of the product?

This question is an excellent way to test your knowledge of the benefits of the product. When answering this question, start with the most essential benefit of the product.

• What comparative advantage does the product have over others?

This question is to ascertain what makes the product peculiar from other products. When answering the question use your personal experience with the product as an example.

 

Resume Skills