Professional Selling Final

Why learn about personal selling?

Learning about personal selling enhances communication skills, builds relationships, and improves understanding of customer needs, ultimately leading to increased sales effectiveness. Everyone sells

How do salespeople create value in a business?

by understanding customer needs, offering tailored solutions, and fostering long-term relationships.

What are the two main sales channels?

direct and indirect

distribution channel

set of people and organizations responsible for the flow of products ad services from the producer to the ultimate user

Business-to-business channels

Direct sales, distributor sales

Business-to-businss-Direct sales

sales made directly to consumers without intermediaries.

Business-to-Business-Distributor Sales

sales made through intermediaries who purchase products from manufacturers or wholesalers and sell them to retailers or end users.

Consumer Channels

Direct sales, distributor sales

Consumer Channels-Direct sales

involve selling products directly to consumers, eliminating the need for third-party intermediaries.

Consumer Channels-Distributor Sales

sales made through intermediaries that purchase products from manufacturers and sell them to consumers or retailers.

Field salespeople

are sales representatives who meet customers in person to sell products or services, typically focusing on building relationships and closing deals outside of a traditional office setting.

Inside salespeople

sales representatives who primarily conduct their business from the office via phone, email, or video conferencing, rather than meeting clients in person.

Salesperson’s role: Taking orders or creating new solutions

These salespeople work with buyers to develop new systems and methods and sometimes even new products to increasae the retailer’s sales and profits

Important of the purchase to the customer

refers to how significant the purchase decision is to the customer, impacting their satisfaction and loyalty based on the perceived value and benefits derived from the product or service.

Stage of Buyer-Seller relationship-New or continuing

Describes whether the buyer-seller interaction is in the initial phase of establishing a relationship or if it involves ongoing interactions. This stage influences the strategies and tactics employed by the salesperson.

Emotional intelligence definition

Is the ability to effectively understand and regulate one’s own emotions and to read and respond to the emotions of others, and this is an important trait for salespeople

Stages of emotional intelligence

1. being aware of ones own feelings and emotions

2. controlling one’s emotions

3. recognizing customers’ emotions

4. using one’s emotions to interact effectively with customers

Are salespeople born or made

Can be made, people can learn to work hard, plan their time and adapt their sales approach to their customers’ needs

Types of presentations

Standard memorized presentation

Outline presentation

Customized presentation

Standard memorized presentation

completely memorized sales talk, the salesperson presents the same information in exactly the same way each time.

What does the standard memorized presentation ensure

that the salesperson will provide complete and accurate information about the firm’s products and policies.

Outlined presentation

prearranged presentation that usually includes a standard introduction, standard answers to common objections raised by customers and a standard method for getting the customer to place an order

Customized presentation

based on a detailed analysis of the customer’s neeeds.

Assertiveness

The degree to which people have opinions about issues and publicly make their positions clear to others. Under tension they tend to confront the situation

Responsiveness

based on how emotional people tend to get in social situations.

Categories of social styles

Drivers, expressives, amiables, analyticals

Social style drivers

high on assertiveness and low on responsiveness

great desire to get ahead in their companies and careers

swift effcient decision makers

focus on the present

base their decisions on facts, take risks

not interested in simply technical information

Social style expressives

high on assertiveness and high on responsiveness

warm, approachable, intutive and competition

focus on the future directing their time and effort toward achieving their vision

little concern for practical details in present situations

base their decisions on their personal opinions and the opinions of others

act quickly, take risks but tent to be impatient and change their minds easily

Social style amiables

low on assertiveness and high on responsiveness

close relationships and cooperation are important to amiables

make decisions slowly, building a consensus among people involved in the decision

avoid risks and change their opinions reluctantly

avoid conflict

Social style analyticals

low on assertiveness and low on responsiveness

facts principles and logic

suspicious of power and personal relationships

make decisions slowly, in a deliberate and disciplined manner

Identifying customers’ social styles

helps sales professionals tailor their approach to meet varying communication needs and preferences effectively.

Social styles and sales presentaions

involve adjusting communication strategies based on customers' social styles, enhancing connection and persuasion.

prospecting

the process of locating potential customers for a product or service. the most important activity that many salespeople do.

Lead definition

a potential propsect that may have exptressed an interest in your offerings through behaviors like visitng your webstie, subscribing to your blog, or downloading a white paper

Qualify the lead definition

process of determining whether a leead is in fact a propsect

Sales funnel

Leads (1000), Propects (200) Customers (15)

Does the lead have the ability to pay?

This question assesses whether the lead has the financial resources to purchase your product or service.

Does the lead have the authority to buy

This question determines if the lead has the decision-making power to approve the purchase of your product or service.

Can the lead be approached favorably?

This question evaluates whether the lead is open and receptive to discussing purchasing options and engaging with your sales approach.

Is the lead eligible to buy?

This question examines if the lead meets the necessary criteria or qualifications to make a purchase, such as meeting age or credit requirements.

Other criteria

likelyhood of buying, timing of purchase

Satisfied customers

Current and previous customers are contaced for additionbal business and leads

Networking

Salesperson uses personal relationships with those who are connected and cooperative to secure leads

Spotters

Salesperson pays someone for lead informaiton

How and where to obtain prospects

satisfied customers, spotters, networking

impression management

how salespeople can manage the buyer’s impression of them

Open questions

require the prospect to go beyond a simple yes/no response

Closed questions

require the prospect to simply answer yes or no to offer a short, fill in the blank type of response

SPIN

Situation

Problem

Implication

Need payoff

Situation Question

Who are you currently advertising with?

Problem Question

Why are you looking to switch

Implication question

How much money do you think your losing becuase of an infective ad

Needs-Pay of question

How much money would you have if you didn’t have an infective ad?

Reiterating needs you identified before the meeting

to confirm and address any new developments.

Additional considerations

not uncommon for the buyer to initiate the first contact witht the seller

propect will refuse to answer some important questions becuase the information is confidential

Developing a stragety for the presentaion

Salesperson present an agenda for the sales call and buyer is encouraged to make suggested changes

Feature dumping

is when a salesperson lists product features without relating them to customer needs, often leading to information overload.

Feature

a quality or characteristic of the product or service

Benefit

the way in which a spesific feature will help a particular buyer and is tied directly to the buying motvies of the propect

Using nonverbal cues

an important aspect of making adjustments is interpretating a propsects reactions to the sales presentation

Verbal probing

taking the pulse of the situationby asking targeted questions to gauge a prospect's needs and responses.

Trial close

salesperson takes the pulse of the situaion

making adjustments

salespeople can alter their presentations in many ways to better align with the prospect's feedback and needs.

when do buyers raise objections

anytime during the buyer-seller relationship

Five major types of objections

Objections related to needs

Objections related to the product

Objections related to the source

Objections related to the price

Objections related to time

Objections related to needs

are concerns from buyers that their specific requirements may not be met by the product or service being offered.

Objections related to the product

are concerns regarding the features, quality, or performance of the product or service in question.

Objections related to the source

are concerns about the credibility or reliability of the salesperson or company providing the product or service.

Objections related to the price

are concerns from buyers regarding the cost of a product or service and whether it aligns with their budget or perceived value.

Objections related to time

are concerns from buyers about the timing of a purchase, including whether it is the right moment to buy or if they need more time to consider their options.

Anticipate objections

is the practice of predicting and addressing potential buyer concerns before they arise to facilitate a smoother sales process.

Forestall known concerns

is a proactive approach in sales where sellers identify and address common buyer objections before they are expressed, thus facilitating a more effective sales conversation.

Relax and lsiten- do not interrput

is a communication strategy in sales where the seller focuses on staying calm, allowing the buyer to express their thoughts and concerns without interruptions, which can help build rapport and trust.

Evaluate objections

is the process of assessing and analyzing the concerns raised by potential buyers to effectively respond and provide solutions.

Always tell the truth

is a fundamental principle in sales that emphasizes transparency and honesty in all communications with buyers, fostering trust and integrity.

Direct denial

-the salesperson makes a relatively strong statement to indicate the error the propsect has made

Indirect denial

-denies the objection BUT attempts to SOFTEN the response

-Recognize the position of the customer who makes the objection and then continue by introducing substantial evidence

-assure prospect that the question is a good one

Compensation method

-Acknowledge objections and then show any compensating advantages

Referral method

-relating how others found initial opinions to be unfopunded after they tried the producy

Revist(boomerang) method

-salesperson turns the objection into a reason for buying

Acknowledge method

-buyer voices opinions or concerns to vent frustration

-salesperson listens, acknowledges, pauses, then moves to another topic

Postpone method

-buyer raises objections the salesperson would prefer to answer later in the presentation

-ask permission to asnwer later

-most useful with price objection

When to use direct denial

only when the objection is blantatly inaccurate, potentially devastating to the presentation, not when propsect is merely stating an opinion

Superior benefit method

benefit of one attribute overcomes concern about a less important attribute

What is the referral method also known as

feel-felt-found method

What to not do with a price objection

don’t lower the price

Usisng up-to-date information

make sure to have the most current pricing information available to them, also including competitiors prices

establish the value

establish the products value before the sales person spends time discusing the price

use communication tools effectively

to convey messages clearly and engage with customers during the sales process.

obtaining commitment

closing asking fro the buyer’s business:

“asking for the money”

The importance of securing commitment

-tells the salesperson what to do next

-defines the status of the client

When to attempt to obtain commitment

Buying signals, closing cues

Buyer comments

best indication that he or she is considering commitment

Buyer questions

are verbal or nonverbal signals that reveal the buyer's interest in proceeding with the purchase decision.

requirments

are conditions that have to be satisfied before a purchase can take place

benefit statements

are statements that highlight the advantages or positive outcomes of a product or service for the buyer, helping them see its value.

Responses to trial closes

are reactions or answers given by the buyer during trial closing questions that indicate their level of interest, readiness to buy, or areas of concern.

How to osuccessfully obtain commitment

maintain a positive attitude

let the customer set the pace

be assertive not aggressive

sell the right items in the right amounts

effective methods

direct request

benefit summary

balance sheet method

probing method

alternative choice

other methods

direct request

asking the buyer for commitment