Prelim

Topics in Personal Selling

Definition

Personal selling is also known as face-to-

face selling in which one person who is the salesman tries
to convince the customer in buying a product. It is a promotional method by which the salespe
uses his or her skills and abilities in an attempt to make a sale.

Description

Personal selling is a face-to-

face selling technique by which a salesperson uses his or her
interpersonal skills to persuade a customer in buying a particular product. The salesperson trie
highlight various features of the product to convince the customer that it will only add value.

However, getting a customer to buy a product is not the motive behind personal selling every t

Often companies try to follow this approach with customers to

make them aware of a new product.

The company wants to spread awareness about the product for which
it adopts a person-to-person
approach. This is because selling involves personal touch, a salesperson
knows better how to pitch a product to the potential customer.
Personal selling can take place through two different channels -

through retail and through direct-to-

consumer channel. Under the retail channel, a sales person interacts with
potential customers who come on their own to enquire about a product. The job
of the salesperson is to make sure that he understands the need of
the customers and accordingly shows various products that he keeps under
that category. Under the direct channel, a salesperson visits
potential customers in an attempt to
make them aware about a new product that the company is launching or
it may have a new offer which the customers may not get from the open market.

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Evolution of Personal Selling

Contributions of Personal Selling

1.1 Contributions of Personal Selling: Salespeople and the Employing Firm

• Salespeople generate revenue

• Salespeople provide market research and customer feedback.

• Salespeople become future leaders in the organization

1.2 Contributions of Personal Selling: Salespeople and the Customer

• Salespeople provide solutions to problems

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• Salespeople provide expertise and serve as information resources

• Salespeople serve as advocates for the customer when dealing with
the selling organization Classifications of Sales Approach

A. Stimulus Response Selling

B. Mental States Selling

C. Need Satisfaction Selling

D. Problem Solving Selling

Stimulus Response Selling

Mental

States

Selling

Salesperson

Buyer

Continue

Provides

Responses

Process until

Purchase

Need Satisfaction Selling

Attention

Interest

Conviction
 Desire

Action

Problem Solving Selling

Uncover and

Present Offering

Continue Selling

Confirm Buyer

to Satisfy Buyer

until Purchase

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Needs

Decision

Define

Generate

Evaluate

Continue
Alternative

Alternative

Selling

until

Purchase

Sales Process

A. Selling Foundations

In order to
be successful in today’s global business environment, salespeople must have a solid
relationship building foundation. They must:

• Be trustworthy and behave ethically

• Understand buyer behavior

• Possess excellent communication skills

B. Selling Strategy

c The must develop strategies for:

• Their sales territory

• Each customer

• Each sales call

C. Initiating Customer Relationships

• Prospecting

• Preapproach

• Presentation Planning
• Approaching the customer

D. Developing Customer Relationships

• Sales presentation delivery

• Earning customer commitment

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E. Enhancing Customer Relationships

• Adding value through follow up

• Self leadership

• Teamwork

Sales Careers

Characteristics of Sales Careers

1. Job Security - sales people are revenue producers and

thus enjoy relatively good job security compared with other occupational group.
2. Advancement Opportunities - in
highly competitive markets, individuals and companies that
are successful in determining and meeting customers needs will be rewarded
with opportunities for advancement.

3. Immediate Feedback - salespeople receive constant immediate feedback on

their job performance, the results of their efforts can be plainly observed by
both salespeople and their sales managers and it is a source of motivation and
job satisfaction.

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4. Prestige - sales is not a prestigious occupation in the eyes of

the general public, but the general public learns more about the activities and
qualifications of professional salespeople, the image of
the salespeople and the prestige of selling. Salespeople are frequently seen
as knowledgeable, well trained, educated, and capable of
solving customer problems.

5. Job Variety - jobs are multifaceted and dynamic, for a person

seeking the comfort of a well established routine, sales might not be a good
career choice. Customers change, new products and services are developed and
competition introduces new elements of rapid pace.

6. Independence - is a frequently a by-product of

decentralised sales operations in which salespeople live and work away
from headquarters, therefore working from their homes and making their own
plans for extensive travel.

7. Compensation - is generally thought to be a strong advantage of

sales careers. Pay is closely tied to performance, especially if commissions and
bonuses are part of the pay package.

How to earn TRUST?

1. Expertise

2. Dependability

3. Candor
4. Customer Orientation

5. Compatibility/Likability

Knowledge Bases That Help to Build Trust and Relationship

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A. Promotion and Price

• the ability to use this knowledge often makes the difference between
a well informed buyer who is ready to make a decision and another buyer who
is reluctant to move the sale process forward.

• price can be another area that makes a buyer hesitant if not properly explained.

• knowledge of pricing policies is important because the salesperson often

is responsible for quoting price and offering discounts.

B. Market and Customer Knowledge

• is critical to the success of today’s salesperson

• companies send their salesforce out to call on all customers types

• larger companies typically break their customers into distinct markets

• having the sales force learn one line of business well allows the salesperson
to concentrate n the needs of a specific market

• the salesperson can become an expert in one line of

business more quickly than if he or she had to
know how the entire marketplace used the salesperson’s products

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C. Competitor Knowledge

• salespeople must have knowledge of

their competitor’s strengths and weaknesses o better understand their own
products position hen comparing

• a good salesperson must adjust his or her selling strategy pending on

whom he or she is selling against

• salespeople must be able to

deliver complete comparative product information in a sales presentation

• comparisons of competitors’ product for a customers’ decision

is critical especially when our features and benefits are superior to those of
the competition

D. Technology Knowledge

• salesperson must use technology to their advantage

• a good salesperson must recognise these preferences and act accordingly

• technology can build bridges to prospects and clients and develop relationships
Sales Ethics

• refers to the right and wrong conduct of individuals and institutions of

which they are part.

• ethical standards for a profession are based on society’s standards and

most industries have developed a code of behaviours that are compatible with
society’s standards

• sales ethics is closely related to trust

• deceptive practices, illegal activities, and non customer-

oriented behaviour have to be attempted only once for a buyer to lose trust in
his or her salesperson

Image of Salespeople

• a sales professional deserves and receives high level of respect on the job

• buyers who do not interact with professional sales people on

a regular basis may believe in the negative stereotype of the salesperson
as a pushy, shifty, not-to-be-trusted.

3 important areas of unethical behaviour:

A. Deceptive Practices

• Deceive

• Hustle

• Scam

• Exaggerate

• Withhold bluff

B. Illegal Activities

• Defraud

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• Con

• Misuse of company assets

C. Non-Customer Oriented Behaviour

• Pushy

• Hard sell

• Fast talking

• High pressure

Types of Buyers

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Decisive Danielle is directive. She solves problems in a decisive, active, and

assertive manner.

She’s proactive, results driven, and wants to win. If

you’re dealing with Danielle, she might seem pushy and overbearing, and may
lack tact. She’s probably pretty demanding and wants things to happen her way
and in her timeframe.

If you’re selling to Decisive Danielle, you should be decisive as well, and

demonstrate willingness to take some risks on your end that can help her
succeed. Don’t worry too much about conflict that may arise with Danielle –
it doesn’t bother her, and she may even thrive on it. Building consensus is
not her natural thing. Not only does she not like the idea of forming
a committee, she doesn’t like the word.

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Collaborative Claire is the yin

to Decisive Danielle’s yang. Collaborative Claire likes to solve problems with
other people. She’s deliberative, tactful, diplomatic, and adaptable. In
a world where people can be pretty blunt, it’s likely you’ll find her to
be respectful of you and everyone else.

If you’re selling to Collaborative Claire, keep in

mind how important consensus building will be to her. You’ll have to work
with her to understand and include all of the various buying influences.

Make sure you facilitate discussions to draw out Claire’s and

everyone else’s thoughts, needs, and questions. Don’t get frustrated if
things take a while, and if you need to push back, do it tactfully. If
she is going to buy, she will buy when she is ready and her team is all on
board. Need to make a big decision…let’s form a committee!

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Relationship Renee is interactive. Social interaction and

engagement are important to her. She’s
enthusiastic, a creative problem solver, a team player, and (of course)
a relationship-builder. She likes the big picture, and she’s not shy about taking
up a lot of air time in discussions. A question or two will really get her going.

If you’re selling to Renee, you might want to keep technical details to

a minimum. Make sure you hear her ideas, and share (and stoke)
her enthusiasm with your own. Renee probably weaves fairly
seamlessly between talking about business and personal matters. You might find
the talk about her recent vacation or your son’s basketball team goes on for a bit.
When discussing ideas, don’t overdo being the “voice of reason” or
reality. What you might see as realism, she’ll see as a downer.

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Skeptical Steve is the yin

to Relationship Renee’s yang. Steve is introspective. He’s a reserved
critical thinker. Skeptical Steve won’t embellish and doesn’t want you to do so
either. It takes a while for Steve to develop trust with people, which
can be great for you if you put in the time and effort. (By the way,
Steve doesn’t mind being called a skeptic. He’s proud of the realism he brings
to the table.)

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If you’re selling to Skeptical Steve, don’t be surprised

if he’s not super comfortable on the phone,
and prefers email to communicate. Don’t be unnerved by lack of
gestures or “feedback”; he tends not to be demonstrative one way or the other.
Don’t try to be too personal or friendly too fast. And
know that Steve might not share much at meetings, but you still need to
make sure his needs are met or he could quietly block your sale. And you
might never even know it.

Past success is an indicator of future success. The way it’s been

done, established methods, and data are important to Analytical Al.
This doesn’t mean he won’t lead the pack and do something new, it
just takes a lot of processing for Al to take a leap of
faith. Al’s cautious. He follows rules, procedures, and established standards.
He’s a comprehensive problem solver because he examines
from all the different angles.

If you’re selling to Analytical Al, provide the backup and data that will help
him make a decision.

Appropriate detail will be important (and “appropriate” to

him is more than most). At some point,
because he can sometimes leave the data gate open longer than it needs to be,
you might need to push back. But take special care not to
criticize as he might take that more personally than most. If you push him too
hard to move before he has completed his analysis, you can find yourself and
your sale blocked.

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Page 15
Innovator Irene is the yin to Analytical Al’s yang. When it comes to rules,
procedures, and how things were done before, Irene couldn’t care less.
While Al might say, “Past success is an indicator of
future success.” Irene would say, “What got us here won’t get us there.” Innovator Irene
develops ideas and strategies independent of rules. She’s informal and
solves problems creatively.

Boundaries are for testing, pushing, and crossing…that’s what Irene says.
(Anyone who has a 3

year old has met this side of Irene.)

If you’re selling to Innovator Irene, brainstorm with her. Stoke ideas for
new ways of doing things.

When you help set the agenda, allow it to become Irene’s agenda, not yours.
Don’t shut down creative talk, but keep it moving forward as Irene can be on
the disorganized side. Don’t give Irene
the sense that she, personally, will have to do much detail work if
she buys from you as details put her off. Instead, show how working with you
will bring those ideas into reality.

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The Buying Process

9776. Problem Recognition

• need can be triggered by internal or external stimuli

• point of importance: is to identify what triggers the need

9777. Information Search

• 2 levels for information search exist

a. heightened attention where one becomes more receptive to information

b. active information search

point of importance: is what are the major information sources, which are four
categories: a. Personal: friends, family, neighbours

c. Commercial: advertising, salesman, packing

d. Public: mass media, consumer ratings organisation

e. Experimental: handling and examining the product

9778. Evaluation of Alternatives

• beliefs and attitudes affects this process

9779. Purchase Decision

• sub decisions have to be taken about:

a. brand

f. dealer

g. quantity
h. timing

i.

method of payment

• timing and steps in the process depends upon the product that needs to
be purchased 9780. Post Purchase Decision

• post purchase satisfaction

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• post purchase actions

• post purchase product uses

Types of Purchasing Decisions

Minor New Purchase –

these purchases represent something new to a consumer but in the
customer’s mind is not a very important purchase in terms of need, money or
other reason (e.g., status within a group).

Minor Re-Purchase – these are the most routine of all purchases and often
the consumer returns to purchase the same product without giving
much thought to other product options (i.e., consumer is brand loyalty).

Major New Purchase – these purchases are the most difficult of

all purchases because the product being
purchased is important to the consumer but the consumer has little or no
previous experience making these decisions. The consumer’s lack of
confidence in making this type of decision often (but not always)
requires the consumer to engage in an extensive decision-making process..
•

Major Re-Purchase - these purchase decisions are also important to

the consumer but the
consumer feels confident in making these decisions since they have previous experience
purchasing the product.

Current Developments in Purchasing

1. Supplier relationship management is becoming a core competency

2. Value creation is more desired that price management in the future 3.

Innovation transfer is required for the success of the entire supply chain 4.
There is a movement toward portable manufacturing

5. Contingent work forces are becoming more prevalent in business

6. Internal and external collaboration is a business requirement

7. Business strategy alignment will be required between all links in the supply
chain 8. Distribution, logistics and
asset management will continue be a bigger priority 9.
Agility, flexibility, integration, transparency and alignment will dominate competition
10. Life cycles are becoming shorter

Sales Communication as Collaborative Process

• Traditional selling has been described as "talking AT the customer" and

trust based selling has been referred to as "talking WITH the customer"

• Trust based sales communication is the sharing of meaning between buying

and selling individuals that results from the interactive process of
exchanging information and ideas Page 18

• The critical capabilities for effective selling include: a. questioning

b. listening

c. giving information
d. nonverbal communication

e. written communication skills

Verbal Communication Questioning

1. Probing Questions

• designed to penetrate below generalized or superficial information to

elicit more articulate and precise details for use in needs discovery and
solution identification. Tather than interrogating a buyer, probing
questions are best used in a conversational style:

• Ex) (1) request clarification ("can you share with me an example of

that?" "how long has this been a problem?"), (2)
encourage elaboration ("how are you dealing with that situation now?"

"what is your experience with ____?"), and (3) verify information and
responses ("that is interesting; could you tell me more?" "so, if I
understand correctly, _______. Is that right?

2. Evaluative Questions

• use open and closed end questions to confirm and

uncover attitudes, opinions, and preferences the prospect holds

• Ex) how do you feel about ____?

3. Tactical Questions

• used to shift or redirect the topic of discussion when the discussion gets off
course or when a line of questioning process to be of little interest or value

4. Reactive Questions

• questions that refer to or directly result from information the other

party previously provided.

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Document Outline
Salesperson
Provides
Stimuli
Buyer
Responses
Sought
Continue Process until Purchase Decision
Uncover and Confirm Buyer Needs
Present Offering to Satisfy Buyer Needs
Continue Selling until Purchase Decision
Define
Problem
Generate
Alternative
Solutions
Evaluate
Alternative
Solutions
Continue
Selling
until
Purchase
Decision