Sales success in rural markets isn’t about product — it’s about people, leadership, and knowing your patch inside out.

In this episode of The Rural Sales Show, St John Craner sits down with Trevor Dennis, Managing Director of Haifa Australia, for a grounded and insightful conversation on what’s really shaping rural sales performance today.

Together, they explore the fundamentals of great selling and great leadership — from mentoring and mindset to recruitment, relationships, and reading market dynamics. Trevor shares his journey through agribusiness and sales management, revealing why the best reps still win on trust, curiosity, and genuine customer connection.

You’ll learn:

- Why sales managers who coach — not just direct — build better-performing teams.

- How self-awareness and honest feedback shape long-term sales success.

- What to look for when recruiting rural sales talent (and what to avoid).

- Why time in the market still beats time behind a desk.

- How to build deeper customer relationships that last beyond the transaction.

- Why people-first selling outperforms product-first selling every time

Trevor and St John unpack the realities of rural sales, the power of mentoring, and the human side of leading teams in today’s competitive agribusiness landscape — lessons that matter whether you’re managing a territory or developing a national team.

🎧 Listen now to learn how investing in your people, your coaching, and your customer relationships can transform the way you lead and sell.

📌 Resources:

- Learn more about ⁠Haifa Australia⁠: https://www.haifa-group.com/haifa-australia⁠

- Connect with Trevor Dennis on ⁠LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/trevor-dennis-310965/

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Grab your copy from Amazon⁠ here: https://www.amazon.com.au/365-Days-Rural-Sales-Mastery/dp/B0F1489HH4/

(or join our Facebook Group below to get a free online copy).

Want to make more rural sales? Get your FREE copy of my first book “How To Succeed In Rural Sales” ⁠Ebook: www.ruralsalessuccess1.com/ebook

Connect with or Follow me on LinkedIn: nz.linkedin.com/in/stjohncraner

Subscribe to my weekly rural sales email (which goes out to 3500+ rural sales professionals worldwide) here: bit.ly/3voaPS7

To join our private Facebook Group where we share a ton of free rural sales and lead generation tools almost daily join here: www.facebook.com/groups/285326399207141/

For details on our training programmes you can check out what we do for sales teams with our Rural Sales Success™ programme here (www.ruralsalessuccess1.com/programme-invitation) or for managers with our Rural Sales Manager Mastery™ programme here (www.ruralsalessuccess1.com/programme-invitation)

For more on us, what we do and who we work with: www.ruralsalessuccess.com / www.agrarian.co.nz