Ch 1: Overview Of Personal Selling Flashcards
Define personal selling
most important part of marketing communications, focuses on interpersonal interactions between buyers and sellers to initiate, develop, and enhance customer relationships.
Trust-based relationship selling requires what key principles
- a form of personal selling that requires sales people to earn consumer trust, and that their selling strategy meets customer needs
- contribution to the creation, communication, and delivery of customer value
- solving customer problems, providing opportunities, and adding value to the customer’s business over an extended period
Differentiate between transaction-focused traditional selling and trust-based relationship selling
Differentiate through:
- typical skills required (selling skills vs information gathering, listening and questioning)
- primary focus (the salesperson and the selling firm vs the customer and the customers’ customers)
- desired outcomes (closed sales and order volume vs trust, joint planning & mutual benefits)
- role of sales person (make calls and close sales vs business consultant and long-term ally)
- nature of communications with customers (one way vs two way and collaborative, strive for dialogue)
- degree of sales persons involvement in customers decision-making process (isolated from customers decision-making process vs actively involved)
- knowledge required (product knowledge, competitive knowledge, identifying opportunities, account strategies vs costs, selling company resources & customers products, competition and customers)
- post sale follow up (little or none vs continued follow through to ensure customer satisfaction and manage opportunities)
*What is customer value
The customer’s perception of what they get for what they have to give up
*Customer value is determined by addressing questions such as:
- does the salesperson do a good job in helping me make or save money?
- is this salesperson dependable?
- does the salesperson help me achieve my strategic priorities?
- is the salesperson’s company easy to work with?
- does the salesperson enlist others in their organization when needed to create value for me?
- does the sales representative understand my business and my industry?
What is sales dialogue
Series of conversations between buyers and sellers where sales people attempt to initiate, develop and enhance customer relationships
What is the purpose of the sales dialogue
- determine if a prospective customer should be targeted for further sales attention
- clarify the prospective customer’s situation and buying processes
- discover the prospective customer’s unique needs and requirements
- determine the prospective customer’s strategic priorities
- communicate how the sales organization can create and deliver customer value
- negotiate a business deal and earn a commitment from the customer
- make the customer aware of additional opportunities to increase the value received
- assess sales organization and salesperson performance so that customer value is continuously improved
Define sales professionalism
Uses truthful, nonmanipulative tactics to satisfy long-term needs of the customer and the customers customer
What are the two basic ways sales people contribute to economic growth
- they stimulate economic transactions: something that’s stimulates or incites activity in the economy
- and further the diffusion of innovation: the process whereby new products, services and ideas are distributed to the members of society
In what way do sales people contribute value to their employers
- revenue producers: a role fulfilled by sales people that brings in revenue or income to a firm
- conducting market research, and providing feedback to the selling firm
- positioning themselves as good candidates for future managerial jobs
When building trust with customers and establishing and maintaining long-term relationships, it is important that sales people must:
- be honest and candid with customers
- be able to demonstrate knowledge of their products and services
- be knowledgeable about market opportunities and relevant business trends
- coordinate activities within the selling firm to deliver maximum value to the customer
- contribute to the success of the buyer’s firm
What are the alternative personal selling approaches
> **Need satisfaction selling: assumes that the customer is buying to satisfy a particular need or set of needs
> **Problem-solving selling: is an extension of need satisfaction selling
> **Consultative selling: involves helping customers attain strategic goals by using the products, services, and expertise of the sales organization
> Stimulus response selling: various stimuli can elicit predictable responses from customers
> Continued affirmation: series of questions arranged to make the customer say yes to them, until the customer says yes to the entire sales proposition
> Mental states selling: (the formula approach) assumes that the buyers can be led through a series of mental states in the buying process. mental states are referred to as AIDA
*Futher explain need satisfaction selling
- involves the salesperson using a probing tactic to uncover important buyer needs.
- the salesperson attempts to (1 - uncover and confirm the buyers needs) that are related to the product or service. This may require extensive questioning in the early stages after confirming the buyers needs the salesperson proceeds with the presentation (2 - present offering to satisfy buyer needs) on how the offering can meet those needs (3 - continue selling until purchase decision)
*Further explain problem-solving selling
- goes beyond identifying needs, it develops alternative solutions for satisfying those needs.
- the salesperson (1 - defines a problem) that may be solved by various alternatives (2 - generate alternative solutions). Then an offering is made that represents at least one of these alternatives. All (3 - alternatives are carefully evaluated) before a purchase is made (4 - continue until purchase decision).
*Further explain consultative selling
Three primary roles:
Strategic orchestrator - the salesperson arranges the use of the organizations resources in an effort to satisfy the customer
Business consultant - the salesperson uses the internal and external sources to become an expert on the customers business
Long-term ally - the salesperson supports the customer even when an immediate sale is not expected
