a Recruiting Workshop for Nutrition Educators

Creating Meaningful Conversations a Recruiting Workshop for Nutrition Educators Developed by Howard Armstrong and Linda Melcher Revised by Linda Melcher, MS, RD

Survey Results: Nutrition Educator’s # 1 Challenge when Recruiting • Locating customers • Ensuring eligibility • Getting a true commitment • Recruiting for afternoon classes • Client’s emotion • Length of lesson series • Explaining the program • Transportation • Finding agencies • Getting customers to show up • Forms are too long

Survey Results: What works best when recruiting • Work with agencies, organization and preformed groups • Referrals • Word of mouth • Face to face • Free, Incentives, New recipes • Use marketing materials and impacts

Survey Results: What works best when recruiting • Tell why you want to work with them • Personal phone contact and mailings • Take classes with a friend • Offering a variety of times and locations • Make class time meet participants need • Location same as other classes

Goal of Workshop enhance and build skills used by nutrition educators to recruit participants for nutrition classes

Nutrition Educators will learn: • amateur vs. professional approaches to selling and how it relates to recruiting • the art of asking questions • listening techniques that demonstrate concern for prospective customers  program features vs. benefits

Nutrition Educators will learn: • forms of resistance and techniques to use for each • clues to that determine customer interest techniques that get a customer commitment

Nutrition Educators will:  ask questions to uncover needs  use listening techniques to understand needs • describe program benefits to motivate customers to enroll • neutralize objections • make enrollment a natural conclusion to the conversation • HAVE FUN!!!

Segment 1: Recruiting vs. Selling • Professional selling is a natural process between two people • One has a problem or need • One has a solution • Sales people must uncover the need before a sale happens • Recruiting is an informal professional selling endeavor

Exercise 1A: Pro vs. ConParticipant Outline pg. 1 Discuss experiences with sales people. Negative Pushy Positive Friendly Considerwhy they were negative or positive. Conversation is

Recruiting vs. Selling • How do the negatives and positives relate to what we do? • What are we doing that might turn customers off?

Exercise 1B: Locating Customers Participant Outline pg. 1 • List places to find your target audience • What three new places will you try?

Segment 2: Creating Need- Satisfying Conversations Going from amateur to professional requires you to stop making sales presentations and start conducting need-satisfying conversations!

Definition • Conversation is a method of communication

Communication is getting and giving information Definitions

Uncovering Customers Needs What’s wrong with these questions? • Do you find it hard to feed your family well? • Would you like to join nutrition classes? • Will your agency provide referrals to our program?

Closed Probes • Can be answered with one word • Do not stimulate conversation • Leave you no where to go • Sometimes used to direct conversation (ex. lawyers in a court room)

Open Probes • Stimulate conversation • Usually begin with the letter W • Who, what , where, when • Why (use caution) • How • Tell me more • Build rapport • Uncover needs

Do you find it hard to feed your family well? Would you like to join nutrition classes? Will your agency provide referrals to our program? When it comes to feeding your family, what is important to you? Where do you go to find information about nutrition? What kind of nutritional help do you see your clients needing? Compare the difference

Build Rapport • Create a safe environment • Welcome, smile, laugh • Tell the person that you’re happy to meet her. • Give a sincere compliment. • Share something about yourself • Use open body language • Listen to her. • Create a comfortable setting • Remove barriers, • Talk to her children. provide toys for children • Show an interest in her • Talk about her children Make a new friend!

Building Rapport with Agencies • Know their mission Google them Read articles and brochures • Know how their mission connects with yours • Know how you can help them meet their mission • Respect their time • Be prepared

Building Rapport with Agencies Identify an authenticator • Person who has influence with person making decisions Example: a volunteer for a food bank who has taken your classes

Exercise 2A(Participant Outline p. 2) • Describe how you set the stage to build rapport with customers. • Ex: Introduce yourself, compliment children… • Develop three rapport-building questions to stimulate conversation. • Ex: What kind of activities do you enjoy doing with your family? • Ex: I saw the article in the paper about your Fun Run this past weekend. Tell me more about it.

Exercise 2B Develop three open probes to use to uncover your customer’s needs. Individual Ex: When it comes to feeding your family, what are some things that are important to you? Individual Ex: Wheredo you go to find information about nutrition? Agency Ex: What kind of nutritional help do you see your clients needing?

Survey Results: Reasons People Join Nutrition Classes • To improve health of kids, family, self • To save money • To learn to cook • To get help with picky eaters • To lose weight • To get help with meal management • menus, reading labels, food safety

Survey Results: Reasons People Join Nutrition Classes • To get help with shopping • To get incentives • To get help from other services • To get credit for something • To meet people and make friends • To gain job skills and build resume

Participant Outline SEGMENT 2: Creating Need-Satisfying Conversations Going from amateur to professional requires that you stop making sales presentations and start conducting need-satisfying conversations. A conversation is a method of communication. Communication is getting and giving information.

Participant Outline Getting Information : To conduct need-satisfying conversations, it is important to set the stage with good questions. The problem with closed probes is that they can only be answered with the words yes or no . Open probes are questions thatstimulate conversation and usually begin with the letter W (who, what, where, when, why, & sometimes how).

Segment 3:Listening Skills “There is no greater respect we can give a person than listening to him.” The Road Less Traveled M. Scott Peck

Exercise 3 • Individually complete the Listening Skills Exercise. • In groups of 3, discuss each question and come to agreement on the answer. • Note: You must come to agreement on all questions!

Questions to Consider • How many questions did you disagree on? • How many were resolved? • What process did you use to come to agreement on the answers? • Was there more information giving than information getting? • Were you forming your rebuttal while the other person was talking?

Segment 4:Active Listening • Requires action! • Demonstrates you heard and understand what was said • Allows clarification • Demonstrates genuine interest in what the other person said

Segment 4:Active Listening Techniques • Supportive response (affirmation): demonstrates support • “I see”, “uh, huh”, “sure’, “tell me more”

Active Listening Techniques • Interpretive response (clarify): • paraphrase back what you think was meant in your own words

Active Listening Techniques • Reflective response: repeats the last few words with a question mark tone in your voice. Encourages them to expand. • Ex: A mom shares that she is worried because her child has not been eating lately… “Not eating lately?”

Active Listening Techniques • Summary Response: recaps what was said, does not repeat everything • “let me see if I understand”, “let me see if I have it”, or “is that it?”

Exercise 4: • In groups of 3, appoint a speaker, a listener, and an observer. • Speaker and listener identify one question on the listening skills exercise where they disagreed. • Speaker explains reason for her original answer. • Listener must demonstrate she heard what was said using active listening. She may not rebut! • Observer notes listening skills and reminds listener that she may not speak until speaker has finished. Rotate roles: Speaker Listener Observer Speaker

Participant Outline SEGMENT 3: Listening Skills The second part of “Getting Information” is listening. SEGMENT 4: Active Listening 1. A supportive techniqueindicates empathy. I see…, I understand… 2. An interpretive response is one that clarifies. Paraphrases back what you think was meant. 3. A reflective response repeats the last few words with a question mark at the end. 4. A summary response summarizes what has been said. “Let me see if I have it…”

Part I Summary • Recruiting is a form of selling • Professional selling requires you to stop making presentations and start conduct need-satisfying conversations • First step is to build rapport • Getting information requires use of open probes and active listening

Segment 5: The Other Side of the Coin: Giving Information • Features describe your service • Benefits result from using your service

Features of Nutrition Education • Classes in nutrition, meal planning, food preparation, food resource management, and food safety. • Newsletters • Recipes • Reinforcements

Benefits of Nutrition Education • Improved health • Money saved on food bill • Reduced health care costs • Moms gain confidence, learn skills • Healthy weights achieved

“Data Dumping”

Benefits give customers a reason to enroll. • People do not buy products, they buy solutions to problems.

Exercise 5: Individually or in small groups, create a list of features of nutrition education. Create benefit statements for three features. Example Feature - Menu planning Benefits – By spending a little time planning menus before you shop, you will save time at the store and during the rest of the week by not having to go to the store for forgotten items and knowing what you are going to have for meals. You will also save money, enjoy the benefits of improved nutrition, and feel more in control.

Participant Outline SEGMENT 5: Features and Benefits Amateurs will almost always make use of features while professionals talk about benefits. A feature describes the service or product. A benefit tells how the service helps customers. It is benefits that give your customersa reason to enroll.

Segment 6: Getting Benefits into the Conversation • Introductory benefit statements help you get benefits into the conversation. • Start with an identified need • Match a benefit with the need

Introductory phrases that begin describing a need include: • “Studies have shown....” • “A big point that we make with our participants is....” • “You may have seen our most recent promotion on....” • “One of the biggest challenges (problems, issues, concerns, hassles, downers, etc.) facing moms today is....”

Individual Example: A young mom revealed to you that she has trouble making her food resources last all month. “You’re not alone. Making food resources last all month is one of the biggest challeges facing moms today (need). You’ll be interested to know that, on average, my participants save $50 a month of their food bill. We have many cost saving tips that get shared during our classes, and we have so much fun at the same time” (benefit).

Agency Example: An office manager for a local SNAP office revealed to you that the case load at their office often overwhelmed the benefit specialists. People have to wait for appointments and both were often frustrated. She did not feel she could ask workers to do one more thing.

a Recruiting Workshop for Nutrition Educators