Sales Management ch.2

Factors Making the Sales Career Attractive

Autonomy and Personal Initiatives Opportunities

Variety of Challenging Activities

Financial Rewards

Favorable Working Conditions

Opportunities for Advancement and Development

Opportunities to work remotely/virtually (Benefits:

Key Factors for Success in Selling

Listening skills

Planning and time management skills

Ability to adapt sales style to situation

Tenacity

Well organization

Verbal communication skills

Ability to interact with people at all levels of the organization

Ability to overcome objections

Closing skills

Personal planning and time management skills

Follow-up skills

B2C vs. B2B

Most salespeople are involved in retail selling (B2C)

Larger volume of sales accounted for by industrial selling (B2B)

Sales to resellers,Sales to business users,Sales to institutions

Trade servicer

Provides customers with merchandising and promotional assistance

Missionary seller

Persuades customers to buy products from distributors

Technical seller

Offers current customers technical/engineering assistance

New business seller

Identifies and obtains business from new customers

Stage of the Selling Process

1)Prospecting for Customers

2)Opening the Relationship

3)Qualifying the Prospect

4)Presenting the Sales Message

5)Closing the Sale

6)Servicing the Account

Prospecting for Customers

Fundamental step in selling

Critical to increasing sales

Requires Hard work

Has Delayed payoff

Requires Design and Discipline

Enhanced by technology (Internet), social media and use variety of means

Opening the Relationship

Called also “The approach”

Identification of Who is likely to have the greatest influence to initiate the purchase process? Generate interest in to obtain information needed to qualify a prospect

Identify key decision makers, desires, and relative influence

Qualifying the Prospect

Assess if the prospect has a need for product?

Possibility to make the prospect aware of need?

Evaluate if the sale made by the prospect will be profitable to the company?

Presenting the Sales Message: Core of the Selling Process

Purpose of the Presentation

Transmit information, Persuade the prospect to become a customer

Common mistakes/complaints about sales presentations:

Poor delivery,Too aggressive or abrasive,Lack/Inadequate knowledge of competitors’ products and services,Lack of knowledge of client business/organization,Putting down competitors

Closing the Sale

Begins with first contact Requires:

“Asking for the order”,Trial Close,Understanding the prospect and buying process

Paced by the salesperson

Requires continual improvement

Servicing the Account

Excellent service bolsters Prospect/Customer loyalty, and Trust

Follow up to check satisfaction with:

Product,Installation,Training, Maintenance,Billing

Satisfied customers = Repeat customers (boost sales)

Initiators

Perceive problems/opportunities requiring new product or service

Users

Use or work with the product or service

Influencers

Provide information to evaluate products or suppliers

Gatekeepers

Control the flow of information

Buyers

Contact selling organization and place order

Deciders

Have final authority to purchase

Controllers

Determine budget availability

Selling centers

Bring together individuals to help salespeople be more effective

Team selling structure

Teams formed to meet customer needs

Matrix organization

Serves as internal consultants and provides their expertise in support of salespeople or the overall Sales department

Key account

Key accounts are mostly managed by senior salespersons or managers dedicated to servicing important customers

New-task purchase

First-time purchase of complex and expensive product or service

Modified rebuy

Requires modification to existing purchase decision and may open door for new suppliers

Straight rebuy

Reorder item purchased many times in the past