March 5, 2021
K-State Sales Team competes at 2021 University of Toledo Invitational Sales Competition
The Kansas State University Sales Team competed in the virtual University of Toledo Invitational Sales Competition, hosted by the University of Toledo on Feb. 25-27. The competition had 33 universities and 72 students participating in the event. What makes the competition unique is that it is the first and only national sales competition to focus exclusively on non-seniors.
The K-State team consisted of Hunter Hartner, freshman in professional strategic selling and marketing, Belleville, and Collin Thompson, junior in professional strategic selling and marketing, Olathe. Student coach Landen King, senior in professional strategic selling, Overland Park, helped prepare the student competitors for the competition.
The competition consisted of multiple role-play events that were sponsored by 3M. The team placed 18th overall. Hartner finished tied for 13th out of 36 competitors in the freshman/sophomore division. In the junior division, Thompson tied for 20th out of 36 competitors.
"The University of Toledo Invitational Sales Competition is a great opportunity for students to enhance their sales skills," said Kellie Jackson, managing director of the National Strategic Selling Institute and sales team coach. "With 3M as the sponsor, it provides students the opportunity to sell a technical product with a clear return on investment, unlike other competitions that concentrate on selling a service with perceived value. I was proud of the team's accomplishment, under the direction of King, and look forward to their continued success."
The K-State Sales Team is in the College of Business Administration's National Strategic Selling Institute, which has been named one of the top sales programs in the country for nine straight years by the Sales Education Foundation. The team consists of students who are enrolled in the certificate or major in professional strategic selling. In fall 2018, Kansas State became just the 19th university in the U.S. to offer a major in professional strategic selling. Students can also earn a certificate in professional strategic selling, which is open to all majors at the university. The professional strategic selling program introduces students to the fundamentals of sales and its innovative curriculum and sales labs allow students to develop the skills needed to be successful.
The team will be competing in several competitions throughout the school year across the country. For more information on the National Strategic Selling Institute or the K-State Sales Team, please contact kstatesalesprogram@k-state.edu.