Selling and Negotiation Skills Session S-15 Selling and Sales Careers

Agenda Defining Selling and Sales Attributes of a Sales Person Pursuing a Sales Career Salesmen Categories Selling skills

What is Selling? Selling is the art of communicating effectively in order to persuade a customer to buy a product, a service or an experience. Sale: A activity involving exchange of products and services for money, with customers, thereby generating revenues and profits for the company

Buying An activity in which a person pays money in return for some product or service from another. Selling and Buying are two faces of the same coin called as exchange

What does the Sales Person do? Identifies a potential buyer Listens to the Buyer’s problem Explains and suggests a solution Convinces and assists the buyer to make a decision Finally, collects money for providing the product or service

Essential Attributes of a successful Sales Person Persistence Empathy Integrity Product Knowledge

Attributes of a successful Sales Person 1. Persistence: An attitude that does not take a no for an answer Important Because of: -Frequent rejections -Failure being more common

Essential Attributes of a successful Sales Person 2. Empathy: The ability to put yourself in other’s shoes ( the buyer’s shoes) 3. Integrity: The ability to distinguish between right and wrong in a situation. Pursuing ethical behavior

Essential Attributes of a successful Sales Person 4. Product Knowledge About one’s own products and competitors products. Question: Make a list of all important parts of the product knowledge that helps the sales person to make the sale.

Personal Attributes Self Motivation: For controlling your own effort Imagination: Think creatively for communicating benefits Patience: Keeping emotions out of the selling activity

Personal Attributes A positive attitude: The attitude that you learn from your mistakes Good Health: Essential for undertaking long working hours and travels, and staying alert Love for meeting people and enjoying life!!

Difference between Sales and Marketing – Class Task Item categorySellingMarketing Aim Planning horizon Planning Focus Activity focus Company’s perception Result Focus

Table: 12.1 Difference between Sales and Marketing Item categorySellingMarketing AimTo earn revenueTo generate profits Planning horizonShort generally one yearLong, over the life of the product Planning FocusRevenues and CashProfits and Investments Activity focusThe CompanyThe Customer Company’s perceptionGrowth of Sales VolumeEnsure customer satisfaction Result FocusAchieve Sales Targets of Volumes and Selling costs Create and build brand in the market

Careers in Sales

Sales Careers Manufacturer’s Sales Representative Sales Organization Major Account Sales Institutional Sales Channel Sales Market Development Sales Speciality Sales

Sales Careers Distributor Sales Organization Sales Organization Major Account Sales Institutional Sales Retail Sales Market Development Sales Speciality Sales New Product Sales

Sales Careers Retail Selling Career Financial Services Selling Career Banking, Insurance Financial Investment Selling Industrial( B2B) Selling Services Sector: Telecom, Entertainment, Internet, Education & Training Tele Sales in BPO, KPO and other ITES sector

Sales Careers- In short Opportunities are very vast No Sales person remains unemployed Very little entry barriers Rewarding Careers Stepping stone to a career in marketing

Some Career paths Sales Executives Regional Sales Manager Territory Sales Mgr Area Sales Manager Product Specialist Market Specialist Product Manager Distribution manager Sales Administrator Sales logistics Mgr Head of Sales Customer Care Administrator Lead generation Sales Activity Planning and Monitoring

Salesmen Categories

Salesperson Categories 1Order Takers Inside order taker: A sales person who works indoors collects payment and delivers the product to the customer Eg. Shop sales persons, Retail sales persons in a mall. Outside Order Takers: Respond to customers, visit them and book orders. They do not deliver the product but collect payments either in advance or on delivery. Eg: Eureka Forbes Direct Sales person

Salesmen Categories 1.Order Takers: Delivery Sales persons: These people deliver the product and collect payments. They ensure regular sales through regular delivery Eg: Milk delivery boys, Newspaper delivery boys.

Salesmen Categories 2. Order Creators: These people are also called Missionary Sales persons. They seek to persuade the customer to buy from the Seller organization and Sellers Brand. Don’t book orders

Salesmen Categories 3. Order Getter: Also called as frontline Sales persons. They effect orders and transactions with Customers -Manufacturers Sales person; Sell to Customer Organizations Sell to Channels: Distributors, Retailers Sell to individuals thru the Company’s own outlets

Salesmen Categories 3. Order Getter: -Merchandise Sales person: These persons help the channels to increase their sales.They work with wholesalers and Manufacturers -Consumer Sales persons sell to Consumers on door to door basis They mostly work with Retailers

Salesmen Categories 4. Speciality Sales persons: These are specialists The Product specialist: He uses his specialist product knowledge to create solutions around the product also called as Technical Specialist He maximizes his sale with product attachments The Market specialist: He has in depth knowledge of the market and the customers and their buying behavior. He maximizes his sales with multiple products