Imagine the impact and the potential value of having a top business coach at your fingertips anytime you have a question. Better yet, imagine having several business coaches/mentors who are all respected industry experts available to answer most any business question you have. With the Next Accelerator, that is exactly what you get.

My last article talked about the importance of continuing education for both manufacturers and retailers to remain competitive and to be successful. Natural Products Expo East is an excellent place for manufacturers and retailers to keep current on trends in the marketplace, competitive threats, new products, better ways to grow sales and how to connect your brand to shoppers.

The Next Accelerator just announced that it is offering free registration. The Next Accelerator is offered by New Hope Natural Media. It is an invaluable resource connecting the top industry experts and thought-leaders with brands at all levels of development. It includes a huge library of resources answering most every question any entrepreneur might have from raising seed capital to supporting a new product idea to gaining incremental distribution at top retailers. Next Accelerator subscribers can watch short video clips and read impactful articles on a variety of topics.

Next Accelerator also offers a question-and-answer forum for subscribers. Subscribers can ask questions of leading industry experts—the next mentor team. You can also join the conversation at any time if you need additional clarification on most any subject. Top athletes and professionals from all walks of life surround themselves with expert advisors and coaches, you should too. 

For the top athlete, a professional trainer helps them develop the muscles and skills to “bring home the gold”.  Just as the top athlete needs to work hard each and every day, so does the business professional who wants to be outstanding in everything they do.  

Top CPG companies provide constant training and development opportunities to their teams. They know that their investment pays huge dividends in increased sales, incremental distribution, effective promotions along with the trust, respect and admiration of their competitors. Their training budgets are a top priority.  Quality training can be very costly.  I experienced this first hand having been blessed with the opportunity to have worked for two of the most progressive companies in CPG industry. Regular continuous trainings helped develop me and my co-workers enabling us to have the top selling brands in most every category we competed in.  Incredible training also laid a strong foundation for me that opened a lot of doors to new and greater opportunities eventually allowing me to become the first person certified at the highest level of category management proficiency, Certified Professional Strategic Advisor (CPSA).

Smaller companies typically don't have the finances or the luxury of supplying this kind of training for their teams. This is why taking full advantage of any training opportunities whether it be at Expo East or through the next accelerator is critical to their ability to remain competitive and to stand out from the competition.  Companies that commit to programs to train and develop their employees have a greater opportunity to succeed in any economy and in any channel. 

Quality training can be the great differentiator when it comes to winning at shelf. People are the greatest resource any company has. Savvy companies measure their success based on the ability of their teams to work together toward a unified goal.

Take advantage of these invaluable resources to grow your business. I hope to see you at Expo East!