I recently had the pleasure of being on the judging panel for the Samsung and ERT Sales Person of the Year 2011 competition.

It was a really interesting day, watching 10 finalists each give a demonstration of Samsung Smart TV and show how much knowledge they have about the technology and its benefits. I felt like Gary Barlow on the X Factor .

I was very impressed by several of the finalists – it’s heartening to know that there are some great, young, dynamic sales people out there in our industry. 

I’d like to take this opportunity to thank the finalists and the winners – well done.

However, what surprised me was that when some of the sales people had to give demonstrations to the judges, a few of them said that their stores were not equipped with wi-fi. 

This seems to be a major problem in the electrical retailing sector, which is rather worrying, especially when new technologies such as Smart TV, internet radio and streaming are dependent on wi-fi and need to be demonstrated in-store, so that consumers can experience and understand the benefits.

Going forward, manufacturers need to work with retailers to help them ensure that, wherever possible, wi-fi networks are set up in-store. It’s certainly something that needs to be addressed as soon as possible.

In a recent issue of ERT (November 4: Ask The Expert – page 16), we teamed up with Sony to provide training advice on selling connected TV. 

In the article, Sony’s category marketing manager for home entertainment, Ben Law, stressed the importance of having a good internet connection in-store, so that consumers can enjoy a smooth, slick experience. 

However, if this is not possible, manufacturers are offering discs and USB sticks that can replicate the connected TV experience in-store. Retailers should ensure that they take advantage of these handy tools.

Several retailers I have spoken to recently have told me that streaming music will be the next big thing in our industry. 

As a recent convert to the joys of high-end audio streaming (I’ll be blogging about it soon here), I completely agree. It’s changed the way that I listen to music and has opened up a whole new world.

The technology isn’t yet mainstream, so there are plenty of opportunities to get in there early. Full stream ahead, anyone?