10 – Managing Sales Personnel

Introduction

The involvement and motivation of a salesperson are principally responsible for the success of a distribution plan. Their participation is vital, and the organisation must first recruit the right people, train them properly, and allocate them to diverse positions. Of course, as previously noted, we know that performance control and review are equally critical. As a result, sales management, which includes these issues, will be covered in this unit.

10.1 Selling and Sales Management

The salesforce sells directly to customers, as in the case of industrial salesmen, or to retailers, as in the case of salesmen supplying shopkeepers and persuading them to stock the items.

In both circumstances, the salesmen’s efforts increase an organization’s overall sales turnover. The advertising and sales efforts are, to some extent, intertwined. Advertising primarily aims to generate interest in a product before it is sold. The customer sees advertisements and is thus enticed to visit the store or wait for the salesperson to make his purchase. The salesman’s job is to hand over the item in return for money and to satisfy the customer. In addition, he is sometimes required to provide after-sales service. In terms of selling, a salesman’s role can be separated into different stages. They are as follows:

1. Prospecting is identifying potential consumers, referred to as prospects.

2. Pre-approach, i.e., attempting to learn more about the customers before meeting them.

3. The Approach is when the salesperson communicates with the prospect to offer the product.

4. In the actual sale, he responds to objections and closes the sale.

5. he may offer technical assistance, credit facility arrangements, and expedited deliveries.

6. Gathering information that will be valuable to the organisation.

A salesperson who follows these steps is more likely to succeed with his consumers. In contrast to selling, a sales supervisor is in charge of overseeing the sales team. This is a critical consideration. It is sometimes assumed that good salespeople can also be good sales managers. This is incorrect because a competent salesperson enjoys selling or ‘doing’ a portion of his work. When he becomes a sales supervisor and then a sales manager, the emphasis of his job shifts to that of managing’, which includes:

(1) planning and goal-setting,

(2) organising,

(3) inspiring and

(4) regulating his subordinates.

As a result, the work has shifted from “doing” to “getting things done through people.” Of course, many sales managers still execute the selling function and give appropriate support.

Let us now attempt to comprehend the topic of sales management. The terms Sales Manager and Marketing Manager are frequently used interchangeably. You’ve learned what marketing is and that the marketing manager is concerned with the four Ps of marketing. The sales manager’s role is restricted to one of the four Ps of marketing, namely promotion.

The American Marketing Association has defined sales management as follows: “The planning, direction and control of the personal selling activities of a business unit, including recruiting, selection, training, equipping, assigning routing, supervising, paying and motivating as these tasks apply to the salesforce.”

We can deduce the following functions of a sales manager from this definition:

-Choosing a sales force.

-Salesforce training

-Increasing the sales force’s motivation.

-Managing the sales force

10.2 Recruitment and Selection of Salesmen

The sales manager’s primary responsibility is to lead the salesforce. However, if he does not have the right people on his team, he will struggle to achieve the desired results. As a result, the sales manager’s initial task is to recruit and select the correct type of salesman.

A good salesman improves the company’s image since the consumer evaluates the company based on how the salesman behaves. As a result, the salesman who reports to you represents both your face and the face of your company. He is YOU and YOUR COMPANY to the individuals he meets on the street and the clients he serves. As a result, the way he conducts himself and speaks reflects on you and your firm. Furthermore, appropriate selection would result in better employer-employee relations because the salesman would be satisfied with his job. There will be less turnover, so salespeople will not depart out of disgust or inefficiency. The company will have a more effective sales staff and better client interactions.

1. The Selection Procedure

Adequate selection necessitates a methodical, step-by-step approach. You must first determine the type of people you want. Then, you’ll need to figure out where you can obtain them. Then there’s the issue of getting the man, testing him, and making your final judgement.

In practice, organisations are frequently unclear about the type of individual they require. They determine that we need ‘salesmen.’ We must be more specific. To do so, examining the work for which the salesman will be chosen is vital. Respectable businesses provide position descriptions that are detailed about the job. Even this is insufficient since we need to know the type of man who can occupy that position. This is a “man specification,” and it outlines the qualities the person who will do this job must possess.

The job analysis would reveal, for example, the following:

1. the difficulties involved in performing the duties (for example, selling high-priced products becomes difficult),

2. the essential duties and responsibilities,

3. the working conditions, and 4. the personal characteristics required to handle the job.

The qualities required of a salesman may include any or all of the following:

1. General qualities,

2. Specific qualities, and

3. Technical qualities.

Technical abilities are sometimes required. If this is unnecessary, there is no reason to spend more money on a man with technical experience. Furthermore, he may not be a good salesman. As a result, we must indicate what general attributes are necessary in addition to the technical ones, if any.

Many studies have been undertaken to determine the general characteristics of a good salesman. Below are some of the general characteristics of a competent salesman.

a. Honesty and Reliability: The salesman must be trustworthy, as he will be handling money and merchandise. He must be punctual and present every day. He needs to be someone who you, his clients, and his coworkers can trust.

b. A self-starter: Salesmen, particularly travelling salesmen, are frequently alone. As a result, they must be able to work without continual monitoring.

c. Orderliness: He should have a pleasant appearance and be someone who keeps things clean and in functioning order.

d. Friendliness: Perhaps one of the most crucial qualities is friendliness. He must be social and get along well with others, or he will be unable to sell.

e. Self-control: He should be able to deal with challenging people without losing his cool or becoming irritated.

f. Good Handwriting: He should be able to write legibly, as salespeople are frequently required to create orders and fill out report forms.

The attributes listed above are only a few examples. Numerous others come from various people, such as politeness, diligence, initiative, judgement, persuasiveness, resourcefulness, etc.

We are now ready to create a blank application that includes the applicant’s questions. Based on the man’s specifications, we’ve identified the attributes we’re searching for in a salesman. Appropriate questions must now be developed so that the answers to these questions reflect the appropriateness of the applicant, who will be considered later.

How are we prepared to get folks to apply for the position since we know what we want and the application blank is available? The issue of locating a suitable person now emerges. The following are some of the possible sources of recruitment:

a. Internal, i.e., from within your employees and referrals from existing salespeople or customers.

b. External, such as (a) advertisements, (b) job exchanges, (c) educational institutions, (d) competitors’ employees, and (e) placement services.

Advertising is the most prevalent source of recruits. However, the advertisement should be detailed enough to prevent inundation with unsuitable or inappropriate applications.

Even when the advertisement mentions that “Chartered Accountants only need to apply,” it is well known in India that B.Com. Students apply because they believe they know accountancy. As a result, you can imagine how many more improper applications would have been received if such a criterion had not been listed.

Now that we have a lot of applications, we must sort through them and eliminate those that are unattractive or inappropriate for our needs. Then comes the crucial phase in which you, as a manager, will most likely be concerned, namely the personal interview. In this interview, you will see the candidate face-to-face and judge his suitability for the job. You may conduct as many or as few interviews as you feel necessary.

The most significant advantage of the interview is that you can now observe how he appears and whether he has any unfavourable expressions. We’ve already mentioned that specific characteristics are essential. By asking suitable questions, you can determine whether he possesses such attributes based on his responses throughout the interview.

Several organisations use psychological and personality tests. However, developing a proper psychological test that can accurately predict a competent salesman is challenging, so it is not given much weight.

Now that we have virtually reached a final decision, we must check the references he provided regarding his character, educational background, and previous experience. This is a critical stage that should not be overlooked.

Medical or physical examinations are not usually required and should be avoided unless certain job-related qualities are needed. For example, if we want a salesman who can distinguish between colours, a medical examination to determine whether he is colourblind would be acceptable. Similarly, if he has to travel frequently, his health becomes an issue.

The moment has come to make a final determination about his suitability. Everything that has been done thus far must be examined. We need to find out if he is a willing worker. He should not be a “rolling stone,” which is easily discernible if he has had several past positions. Even if he has past positions, the job trend—whether progressive or not—will demonstrate his desirability for recruiting. As a result, a definitive choice must be made right now.

10.3 Training of Sales Personnel

Now that we’ve chosen the candidate, we must provide enough training to ensure that he or she is truly qualified for the job. People used to believe that “salespeople were born, not made.” However, research shows that a person can be trained to become a good salesman.

According to studies, the following are some of the factors that are present in the case of a good salesman, i.e., a salesman who has been properly trained, as opposed to a salesman who has not been properly trained:

1. He gives a more animated presentation.

2. He can seal the deal.

3. He is more knowledgeable about the product.

4. He gives more attention to ensuring that services are provided to customers.

5. He has excellent territory management.

6. He responds to objections more effectively.

7. He can conduct additional customer interviews.

The goals of training are to provide salespeople with the following types of information:

1. Understanding of the company’s background and history. This will show him how he fits into the company’s organisational structure.

2. Knowledge of the company’s products, particularly the selling points or advantages he might highlight to complete the deal.

3. Customer knowledge, i.e., specifics about the different types of customers and how they should be treated.

4. Knowledge of sales and other mandated procedures, such as how to obtain orders, what forms to fill out, the requisite sales reports, and so on.

5. Instruction in the art of selling, also known as salesmanship.

Customers today want solutions, and businesses are reshaping their sales personnel to meet their needs. Nonetheless, total quality objectives and sales quotas continue to collide. This is the central theme of the future’s enlightened sales force. Previously, salespeople would boast that their sole goal was to push metal (IBM) or bang boxes (Xerox). Today, the sales force measures performance based on customer happiness as much as unit sales. Generally, the former is a far more stringent standard than the latter. Companies are discovering that if you predict what your customers need and exceed their expectations, the order flow will take care of itself.

As more executives recognise the opportunity, outdated preconceptions vanish faster than Willy Loman’s smile and shoeshine. Forget the fabled lone wolf salesperson; today’s trend-setting salespeople prefer to operate in groups. Spreadsheets are more likely to be found in typical sample cases than widgets. Today’s top salesmen regard themselves as problem solvers rather than vendors. They measure success not only in terms of sales volume but also in terms of customer satisfaction. They do not “sell,” but instead “collaborate” with the customer.

Companies that disregard new, more collaborative sales approaches as a fad will undoubtedly fall behind. Buyers nowadays are losing patience with product pushers, whether in a new car showroom, on the floor of a department shop, or in a corporate conference room. They will tell you they do not want to interact with anyone selling anything unless they demonstrate how it would benefit their company.

10.4 Developing a New Attitude in Selling

If there was ever a business that shouted out for a fresh manner of marketing, it was moving vehicles from the showroom floor to America’s driveways. The well-known but highly loathed old system is known among automobile historians as the Hull-Dobbs method, named for Memphis dealers Horace Hull and James Dobbs, who allegedly invented it after WWII. Customers exist in the old Hull-Dobbs drill to be manipulated, first by the salesman, who negotiates the ostensibly final price, then by the sales manager and finance manager, who each try to boost you up to a higher price.

Buyers of automobiles are fed up. Only 35% of respondents felt that their dealers handled them properly, down from 40% a decade earlier, according to a recent J. D. Power & Associates survey. In 1983, 26% of buyers regarded their dealers’ integrity as outstanding; by 2001, that proportion had decreased to less than 20%. The owner of 13 import and domestic franchises in the suburbs of Washington, D.C., claims that the process has “beaten people up.” “Until you walk out the door, you think you got a good deal. The salesmen are inside high-fiving each other while the customer lies on the street.”

This is where Saturn entered the vehicle game a few years ago, introducing its original, no-doubt sticker system. The sticker price for a Saturn is the price you pay (between $9,995 and $18,675, depending on model and options). That is, however, only a portion of the picture. When you purchase a Saturn, you buy the company’s dedication to your satisfaction. Their interactions with and to customers may sound corny. Yet, Saturn finished third in a J. D. Power customer satisfaction survey last year, only behind Lexus and Infiniti, which cost up to five times as much. It may be corny, but it works. The new breed of vehicle dealers, such as those at Saturn, have a philosophy of exceeding customer expectations.

Saturn altered its sales practices to capitalise on an evident market opportunity, and the reformed IBM sales team is only half the size it was in 1990. Those who survived are part of a new organisation combining consulting and traditional sales firms. Big Blue now encourages shoppers to look for salespeople before looking for products.

Consultants require a more complex set of abilities than metal pushers, and IBM’s sales teams do not always suggest Big Blue’s wares in their new role as purveyors of solutions rather than products. DEC and other competitors manufacture roughly one-third of the equipment IBM deploys.

One part of managing a sales force that hasn’t altered much is how you inspire actual salespeople. The peculiar bleed of financial incentive, inspiration, and cajolery continues. As sales professionals often say, “There is nothing mystical about selling. You want to be honest and tell a convincing story so that people will want to do business with you now and in the future. To sell well, you must offer the facts, list your supporting arguments, and learn your customer’s nonverbal cues while presenting.”

Many firms believe they can improve on tradition in one aspect of sales motivation: how they compensate their salespeople. IBM, for example, is part of a growing trend in which compensation is based partly on customer happiness. For some new-wave salesmen, 45% of a paycheck’s variable component is determined by how consumers rank the salesperson. Additionally, how well the salesperson assisted the customer in achieving their business objectives typically determines this. As a result, the salesperson can earn significantly more or very little.

We’re all salespeople, whether we like it or not.

What qualities does it take to be a genuinely exceptional salesperson? As is always the case, there are no easy answers. Furthermore, gaining perfection in one type of sales activity, such as selling personal insurance, will necessitate slightly different aptitudes and talents than achieving excellence in selling sophisticated information systems to corporate purchasers.

Some general attitudes toward the profession and how they conduct business set high-performing salespeople apart from other salespeople. High-performing salespeople:

1. Represent their firms’ and clients’ interests simultaneously to achieve two-way advocacy.

2. Demonstrate professionalism in their sales performance.

3. They are committed to selling and the sales process because they believe it is in the consumer’s best interests.

4. Actively plan and implement strategies that will lead to customer-benefiting programmes.

10.5 Online Marketing Today: Siebel Systems

As previously stated in this article, Siebel Systems uses its sales-management software to monitor the actions of its sales representatives, manage the sales process, and analyse client satisfaction. Previously, Siebel collaborated with 20 resellers that sold the company’s software and 760 other “Siebel Partners” who provided installation, customisation, updating, and other services. However, the corporation has since phased out indirect sales in favour of a direct sales staff. “When we reviewed customer feedback from the reseller channel, the findings did not meet our expectations,” reveals Siebel’s vice president and general manager for alliances. “The clients effectively told us that they preferred Siebel to be involved in the transaction.” Customers spend at least $7 on installation, training, hardware, and other products for every $1 spent on Siebel software, thus partners still have the potential to increase sales and profitability.

Visit Siebel’s website (www.siebel.com) and browse the products, events, and customised views on the home page. Then, follow the link to information for sales professionals (or, if that is not available, find information on Siebel’s sales management software).

-What are the advantages of Siebel’s sales management solutions?

-Why are these advantages valuable to corporate customers?

-How do Siebel’s online product demonstrations benefit the company and its prospects?

-As a result of attending the company’s product seminars?

Answer

The ability to monitor sales activity to enhance sales and profits predictably, improve sales forecasting, connect sales remuneration with sales goals, improve sales productivity, and effectively manage sales territory are among the benefits touted on the Siebel website. These advantages benefit corporate clients by allowing organisations to manage their resources better, monitor sales activities, and analyse and reward sales efforts. Siebel’s online product demonstrations reduce the time a Siebel salesperson must spend on prospect presentations while also allowing prospects to sample and assess Siebel products without commitment and on their own time. Prospects benefit from attending Siebel product seminars because they learn how to make the most of Siebel products and can ask questions and share their experiences with others. Siebel benefits from the ability to reach many prospects at once and produce qualified leads based on attendance and questions.

10.6 Sonic PDA Marketing Plan: You’re the Marketer

Many marketers must include sales force management in their marketing strategies. However, due to the expensive expense of keeping a direct sales team, several businesses are replacing internet, mail, and phone sales for some of their personal sales calls.

Your marketing job at Sonic entails developing a sales strategy for the company’s new personal digital assistant (PDA). Answer the following questions concerning Sonic’s use of personal selling after reading the data you previously acquired and the decisions you made about other marketing-mix activities:

1. Is Sonic required to have a direct sales force, or can it sell through agents and other outside representatives?

2. To whom should Sonic’s sales efforts be directed? How can the company’s sales operations assist the remainder of the marketing plan and the established goals?

3. What kind of sales goals should Sonic set for its salespeople?

4. What training would salespeople require to promote the new Sonic PDA?

After you’ve answered these questions and considered how your sales management ideas will fit Sonic’s goals and objectives, you can either summarise your programmes in a written marketing plan or type them into the Marketing Mix, Marketing Organization, and Sales Forecast sections of the Marketing Plan Pro software.

Students who argue that Sonic requires a direct sales force may say that doing so allows the company to hire, train, and motivate the right kind of reps to sell only the Sonic PDA to major business accounts and intermediaries. Those who oppose a direct sales force may argue that, as a start-up, Sonic should not invest in a direct sales force and instead rely on agents and other outside representatives until the first product is established.

Sonic’s sales efforts should focus on

(1) channel members and, to a lesser extent,

(2) major business accounts.

These sales operations will assist Sonic in obtaining the channel representation it requires for its debut PDA and encourage enterprises to purchase in bulk for corporate use. As a result, such sales will help Sonic meet its sales targets. Sales staff should pursue sales objectives based on volume levels required to achieve market penetration by territory or another acceptable metric. To do so, the reps must be trained on Sonic as a company and its aims, the initial PDA product and its features and benefits, the characteristics of customers and competitors, sales presentation tactics, and sales procedures and responsibilities.

10.7 Oracle Marketing Spotlight

In 1977, Larry Ellison and three partners started System Development Laboratories, a database management software company. The company’s name was changed to Oracle in 1982, following the name of its initial product. By 1988, Oracle controlled 36% of the US government’s PC database market. In 1989, the company began providing advisory services to its customers.

On the other hand, Oracle’s adaptation to this rapid growth was not seamless. The company has a reputation as a pioneer in “vaporware,” or publicly advertised items that are still in development and thus unavailable. Its software was frequently riddled with flaws or lacked promised functionality. In 1990, the corporation was mired in an accounting scandal due to sales reps’ widespread habit of registering sales a quarter early to raise earnings during weak quarters. Oracle was compelled to restate earnings, pay a punishment to the Securities and Exchange Commission, and spend millions of dollars settling shareholder litigation. As a result of these occurrences, the company’s stock price collapsed.

Beginning in 1991, Ellison implemented a plan that brought Oracle back from the brink of bankruptcy. He obtained $80 million in finance from Nippon Steel, appointed seasoned Booz Allen management Ray Lane as COO and president, decreased employment by 10%, and implemented harsher sales force standards. Ellison took a hands-on approach to building his company’s sales protocol. He updated his sales contracts and implemented a consistent price policy that avoided haggling. He also changed the compensation scheme so managers were rewarded for meeting profit-margin targets rather than meeting sales volume quotas at any cost.

Combined with the release of the next-generation Oracle 7 database in 1993, these actions enabled the company to complete its turnaround. By 1994, the business had become the world’s leading manufacturer of database management software, with revenues topping $2 billion that year. Oracle’s revenues tripled between 1995 and 1999, while the company’s sales staff doubled. The company divided its sales force into two teams in 1998. One team was tasked with selling Oracle’s data-processing applications, while the other was tasked with selling the company’s core product, database software. Above all, Oracle’s sales staff could handle the tremendous workload because the corporation embraced the Internet. In 1999, online sales accounted for 25% of the company’s software sales.

As business continued to pour in, Oracle attempted to shift more of its operations to the Web. It invested in a new e-commerce site called OracleSalesOnline.com, which was eventually renamed Sales.Oracle.com, allowing customers to place online orders. Customers can also purchase upgrades and add people to their licenses through the website. Oracle has created another site for sales representatives to utilise during phone discussions with consumers, who are then prompted to order online. Furthermore, sales representatives were forced to submit extensive customer data to a central system other salespeople or executives could access. In 2001, the business combined online customer service and support with the Sales.Oracle.com offering, naming the new site Support.Oracle.com. In addition, the company licenced its sales and support apps to over 10,000 businesses worldwide.

Oracle’s information network and robust software assisted in significantly lowering costs. In an aggressive advertising campaign, the company claimed that running its e-business software saved $1 billion in 2000. In one case, a manager discovered that U.S. sales predictions had decreased by $3.5 million one day. The manager used the network to determine which company had changed its purchase and contacted the sales rep assigned to the account, who renegotiated the deal in less than 24 hours. Another example of cost-cutting was the company’s decision to relocate customer sales and training sessions from hotels and conference facilities to the Web. The cost of these Web conferences was cut from $325 per participant to $2 per person.

Competitors quickly criticise Oracle’s aggressive sales methods. “They take the P.T. Barnum approach to business: There’s a sucker born every minute,” an IBM executive said of Oracle’s overpromising technique. Oracle’s customer retention percentage of 85%, which is greater than either Microsoft’s or IBM’s, demonstrates that many customers are pleased with the company’s products and services.