{"id":25209,"date":"2015-03-25T09:00:59","date_gmt":"2015-03-25T13:00:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/biznews.fiu.edu\/?p=25209"},"modified":"2016-05-19T15:13:02","modified_gmt":"2016-05-19T19:13:02","slug":"college-of-business-students-show-off-their-sales-savvy-in-two-languages","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/biznews.fiu.edu\/2015\/03\/college-of-business-students-show-off-their-sales-savvy-in-two-languages\/","title":{"rendered":"College of Business students show off their sales savvy in two languages."},"content":{"rendered":"

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With a changing landscape that demands greater focus on critical thinking, analytical skills and the ability to negotiate, business-to-business sales is increasingly capturing students\u2019 attention. At FIU\u2019s College of Business, they\u2019re tackling the selling hands-on.<\/p>\n

Using role-playing techniques, 42 students in the FIU Professional Sales Program participated in the annual Sales Tournament. At the March 6 event, they were tasked with selling an iPhone\u00a06 Plus to a medical facility executive during a 15-minute in-person meeting. All of the buyers and judges in the competition were executives from Miami-based companies.<\/p>\n

Now in its second year, the sales tournament introduced a Spanish-language track, where the selling and buying conversation was conducted in-language and students were judged by local Hispanic sales executives.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s such a need for candidates and employees that are bilingual that it\u2019s important students recognize it,\u201d said Erika Cabrera, sales recruiter at ADP, which provides human resource, payroll, tax and benefits administration, and one of the judges. \u201cWe do a lot of business with a variety of cultures, especially in Miami, and Spanish is what I search for.\u201d<\/p>\n

Of the students who participated in the March 6 tournament, 18 also did it en espa\u00f1ol<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe sales process is the same regardless of language,\u201d said Rafael Soltero Venegas, visiting instructor in the College of Business\u2019 department of marketing. \u201cThe biggest challenge that students face in sales is practice, and that\u2019s what makes the process more effective.\u201d<\/p>\n

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There were five winners in each segment of the tournament:<\/p>\n