Get ready, pleasure professionals. Australia is looming big on the horizon as the next sex toy nirvana.
Sound a bit exaggerated? Not if you ask Linda Zerella, who's definitely creating some thunder down under — with the rumbling of vibrators, anyway.
Remember that your attitude will determine your success.
This mum-of-three was simply seeking a way to work from home and wound up CEO of an adult distributor. After opening an online retail outlet with her uncle, Zerella made introductions with Australasian Adult Product Distributors as an e-commerce customer. A few transactions later, Zerella was eventually asked to become part of AAPD's dedicated team.
Zerella's background lies in finance, but she's got as much of a knack for numbers as she does for customer service. Since her promotion to CEO roughly four years ago, Zerella has realized the key to better business was as old-school as bad jokes about shrimp on the “barbie.” Ask your customers what they want, and their loyalty you shall receive.
Now, Zerella is poised and proud to share the secrets of her — and AAPD's — success. In her Women in Adult spotlight, Linda Zerella discusses doing what she does best: helping good companies become great ones.
XBIZ: Tell me a little about your career background since folks across the pond may require an introduction.
Linda Zerella: It has been close to four years since I have held the position as CEO with Australasian Adult Product Distributors (AAPD) and in that time, I have learned so much from our customers. I previously had a close relationship with AAPD from when I had my own business and was one of their customers.
When I was offered the position to join the AAPD team, I knew where they were lacking in the customer service department and it was my mission to rectify the issue. Within 12 months, I went from sales representative to financial controller to CEO and four years later, we have a very strong sales team and we are continuing to improve on our amazing customer service.
XBIZ: What originally drew you to the adult products industry? Did you begin this type of career on purpose, or were you — like many pleasure industry pros — led here almost by accident?
Zerella: After I had my third child, it was not worth going back into the workforce because the childcare fees were just too expensive. I wanted to create a business from home, so I collaborated with my uncle to go online. When we were brainstorming what to sell, we both agreed selling adult products would be lucrative. We both had no experience or knowledge of the adult industry, but my uncle knew the late John Myall, who at the time ran AAPD. The rest is history.
XBIZ: Tell us a bit about your daily life as CEO of AAPD. What are some focal points of your position in the company? Where do you give your energy to keep the company succeeding in the day-to-day aspects?
Zerella: I am currently streamlining this process. We operate to ensure our customer expectations are met. This is a strong focal point for me. This means working closely with our IT department to make sure our website is constantly changing; featuring tools our customers have requested; working with our freight company to ensure quick delivery times; and working closely with our warehouse so I can see that orders are being picked and sent within 24 hours of being placed. I am constantly speaking with the sales team and gauging feedback they receive from our customers.
I am hands-on and do not believe my title makes me any better than the rest of my team. It is not uncommon for me to answer the phone, be in the warehouse picking orders, unloading containers, and even picking up a broom. I have high expectations and I am a firm believer you lead by example. I feel very fortunate that we have a great team and everyone who works at AAPD is valuable.
I love my job and the people that work for me. I believe in AAPD and what we represent, and that is what keeps me going. The goals I set are very high and each time we hit one, the challenge to be better motivates me even more.
XBIZ: What were some of your goals for your team and the company once you joined AAPD?
Zerella: I remember sitting with AAPD’s long-term accountant and discussing the issues we were facing as a business and what I had to do to turn the company around. In that meeting I was confronted with a long list of issues I had to tackle if I wanted the business to succeed. Difficult decisions had to be made.
On my long list of tasks to accomplish, one thing that stood out that was crucial to changing the direction of the business was to restructure the organization. My interpretation of this, in short, was flipping the traditional structure. Where you would normally see the director at the top of the chart, now it sat at the bottom.
Obviously, I work for Australasian Adult Product Distributors and answer to Bill Nash, but who am I really working for? I work for our customers. Our customers are our business. It does not matter what industry or sector you are in, whether it be retail, distribution or manufacturing. We are all working for our customers. Without them, we have no business or, more importantly, no job.
XBIZ: In your expert opinion, what is the best way to serve B2B customers these days? What have you discovered from a CEO's point of view?
Zerella: I think through the years, good old-fashioned customer service has been lost and a sense of entitlement, complacency and expectation have replaced it. Who are we to tell our customers what they want? Our customers have more choices now than they ever did, so it is important to stand out from the crowd and have a point of difference.
I believe if you slow down and take the time to listen to what your customers are asking for and feedback they are providing, you can learn a great deal.
Yes, it is our job to present new products and make suggestions, but it is also our job to find out what our customers want. My outlook for AAPD is that our customers are our front-line workers, per se. They are dealing with the end consumer and when our customers are asking for products or specific brands that we do not carry, it is of utmost importance that myself and my team are out searching for them or finding alternatives.
XBIZ: How have you improved customer relations and met the goals that you set a handful of years back?
Zerella: These days a lot of businesses are more focused on the sales than customer service. My background is finance, so I am a numbers girl at heart. But what I had to do to turn the business around was change our business model to focus on customer service as a priority. Once you remove the numbers from the equation and focus on the customer, the sales will come.
At AAPD we are customer service-driven, which means our No. 1 goal is maintaining customer relationships. Understanding each customer as an individual and working with them on supporting their singular needs is a crucial part of our success.
XBIZ: What cornerstones of customer service do you believe are pertinent for all pleasure industry businesses today? What should sales reps be doing to improve their relationships?
Zerella: I feel there is something special about being in-store that gives me great insight. Understanding your customers' demographics is very important, and much can be learned in spending time onsite with them.
Each customer is different, and their requirements are never the same. I have different types of relationships with all my customers, as do my sales team. I am also always open to feedback on how we can improve. If a customer has taken the time to bring something to my attention, I will take the time to look at how can I fix it and improve.
Investing in your customers is important. Several years ago we created a customer survey. That was one of the best things we ever did, as that survey gave us insight as to what our customers expected from us.
Expectations and requests were varied. Our customers wanted a better website, which we completely restructured. Not only did we build a new site that was easier to navigate, but we approached customers as to what features they wanted from the website to make it easier to order.
XBIZ: What was one major change you implemented in your career with AAPD to better assist retailers?
Zerella: When I started at AAPD, testers for brick-and-mortar shops were virtually non-existent. The expectation to purchase six of one product to receive a tester is unattainable to most customers. I made it my mission that if our customers request testers, we will use our own inventory to facilitate this if our suppliers did not assist. Customers would not be required to purchase six of a product but two. This was costly in the beginning, but the reality is, once they have a tester they sell more. The customer’s initial outlay was not expensive and as soon as they sold one of that particular item, they would re-order. These days obtaining testers from our suppliers is easier, and a good example of this is Satisfyer and Lovehoney.
XBIZ: What has this last year, as unpredictable as it has been, taught you about the future of doing business in the adult sector? What advice can you share with the industry?
Zerella: We are always working to improve through communication and digital technology to get information about our brands to our customers, and they appreciate our efforts and in turn our customer base keeps growing.
If 2020 has taught me anything, it is that Australasian Adult Product Distributors is more resilient and stronger than ever, thanks to the hard work of my team and the support from our customers.
Remember that your attitude will determine your success
Each month, XBIZ spotlights the career accomplishments and outstanding contributions of Women in Adult. WIA profiles offer an intimate look at the professional lives of the industry's most influential female executives.
