Yentl Leaper: Feisty with a fervour for life
When Sherrie Leaper in 1987 named her daughter after the main character is the 1983 musical drama Yentl, she could only hope her oldest child would grow up to exhibit the same talent, curiosity and ambition as portrayed by the film’s main character. And, 29 years later, she is all but surprised.
POLOKWANE – As a sales consultant for a well-known courier company, Yentl Leaper shows tenacity, persistence and flair – all the traits managers would tell you, are key to being a strong marketer.
Yentl was recently voted by local clients in first place as the company’s top sales consultant in service delivery in a monthly service rating survey monitored by her company over the last financial year. This was no easy feat, as she was the only consultant nationwide who achieved all 18 incentives which formed part of the company’s incentive programme.
She has been with the company since November 2014, and her job entails consulting with business clients, canvassing for new accounts and introducing the company to new clients across the province.
This, she says, is the driving force behind her every day success: to set her sights firmly on growing the local branch, “I put my heart and soul into what I’m doing”.
Her story is one that closely mimics the essence of the film of which she is the namesake: Born half-Palestinian, half-Zimbabwean, a much younger Yentl moved to South Africa with her family some years ago. They were a family with interests in game and since Polokwane was the closest halfway house to Johannesburg from Zimbabwe, the family owned a piece of land here.
The city was a natural option to come and stay eventually. As the main character in the film Yentl refused to accept an ordinary or traditional life, she’s assertive and daring in her own right.
As a marketer, she admits the local market is inundated with competition in the field she works in.
“People often stick with the service providers they know and have known, often paying much more for a poorer service. I often tell prospective clients to give me just one month and, if they are not satisfied with our service, they can go back to their former service provider.”
She views sales and marketing as the first and foremost service in most companies, “sales is the backbone of all companies and often provides jobs for most other functions”. Yet, she doesn’t hesitate to give credit to the team with whom she works. “It takes an entire team to make service happen efficiently – from customer service, operations to management. I can sign up an account, but if the support lacks, we will lose business. It remains a collective effort.”
Yentl has advice for those thinking of pursuing a career in sales: “You have to be confident in yourself and in what you’re selling. You need to be persistent, and not take ‘no’ for an answer. You have to create a diplomatic way of pursuing clients until the account is yours. And, be adaptable. Don’t make it an option to help a client, find a way to do it.”
And, in the words of Henry Thoreau, she concludes with her own motto for success:
“Sucking the marrow out of life is what this life is about”.
