Name of Student:- Nial A.

Lande

Roll No:-TM2019117

Reg. No:- 31-1582

Specialization:- Marketing Management

Batch:- 2020-22

Institute:- Balaji institute of Telecom and Management

Semester:-1

Subject Name:- Sales & Distribution

Assignment No:- 2

Submission Date:-11-01-2021

Total No. of pages written:-12

Q1. What is Sales Planning and what are the steps involved in Sales Planning?

Ans)
Sales Planning is a key function in the procedure of sales management process. Sales
planning is an effective method that involves sales forecasting, demand management,
setting profit-based sales targets, and the written execution steps of a sales plan.
Sales Planning is the process of organizing activities that are mandatory to achieve business
goals. A sales plan contains a strategic document that figures out your business targets and
several resources. These can be used for some activities which you perform to reach your
desired goal.
Sales Planning involves two steps, i.e. formation and maintenance of a particular plan, in
which a salesperson is expected to use his conceptual skills to meet his objective. As such,
planning is an elementary quality of intelligent behaviour.
Before launching a new product in the market and proceeding with the set of activities, which
generally follow the launch of a product, we have to create a strategic plan for that. Sales
Planning is an essential element in the management process.
Various Sales Plan techniques are often used in several organizations according to their
requirements, whether they need to plan quarterly, half yearly or annually. If your sales staff
is good, then you would not need to do research from the beginning to get more sales in the
market.
With careful planning, you’ll have a much clearer vision of what you need to accomplish and
a roadmap for how to get there. Unfortunately, many sales professionals have never been
taught to create a comprehensive sales plan. The good news is that the process is relatively
simple. Here are seven steps you can take to create an effective sales plan:
1. Define your objective. Clearly outlining your goal should always be your first step in
planning a sales call – or any other business endeavor. Is your purpose to establish yourself as
a trusted advisor? Close a specific deal? When you define your key objective, you can plan
later steps around achieving it.
2. Evaluate the current situation. Next on the list is an honest assessment of the situation,
and it will relate to the goal you set in the first step. If your objective is to expand your
relationship with a customer, an evaluation of the current situation would consist of defining
your present relationship.
3. List barriers to success. This step can be one of the most critical to achieving your goals:
Create a detailed account of obstacles to your success. Knowing exactly what you’re up
against can be incredibly inspirational, sparking new ideas about how you can overcome
barriers.
4. Assess your strengths and assets. Take an honest look at your resources and think about
how you can apply them to achieve your objective. Strengths and assets can include things
like personal relationships, sales kits, competitive advantages like new products and much
more.
5. Create your sales call strategy. Using the information you’ve compiled in steps one
through four, develop your sales plan by outlining how you’ll reach your goal. Depending on
the situation, your plan might include the sale of a specific product and the steps you’ll use to
persuade your prospect.
6. Identify your needs. Once you have your basic strategy in place, now is the time to
outline what you’ll need to get the job done. Your needs may include items like a sales deck
or demo program. Requirements could also include a list of accounts. The important thing is
to identify needs upfront.
7. Outline an action plan. The action plan is a companion piece to the sales call strategy
described in step five: It is a to-do list of tactical steps you’ll need to accomplish the strategy.
The action plan might include items such as finalizing pricing with your company before you
make the sale.
Sales professionals, perhaps especially those who have been in the business for awhile, often
neglect to thoroughly plan sales calls, counting on their experience and confidence in their
ability to think on their feet to carry them through. And while that strategy may generate
adequate results, it doesn’t prepare the sales professional for every contingency and may
produce less than stellar returns.
In just about every other facet of life, accomplishing an important task requires careful
planning, be it hosting an event, winning a baseball game or putting together a vacation
itinerary. The same is true of sales: No matter how experienced you are, having a solid game
plan will give you that much more confidence and free you to focus on every new
opportunity.
By following these seven steps, you can create a comprehensive sales plan that will allow you
to understand your challenges and use your assets to their best advantage. With upfront
planning, you can gain the confidence you need to pursue new sales opportunities and win.

Q2. Why establishing Sales Territories is required? What are the steps in determining
Sales Territories for a firm?

Ans)
A sales territory refers to a geographical area assigned to a salesman for the purpose of
marketing the products of his concern. Generally, a firm divides the markets into specific
geographical zones or areas and assigns each salesman a specific zone in which he has to
carry out his selling operations. The specific geographical zone or area assigned to a
salesman becomes his sales territory. Each of the territory is served by one or more salesmen.

Lets look at the reason why sales territories is required-

1. Targeting:
The business of sales run successfully the only on proper targeting of the customers. The
targeting should be done according to the potential of the customer’s nature of the business
and the seasonal factors. Assist person can have a proper target rest only if he has a proper
defined sales territory.
If the salesperson does not have a predefined sales territory, then the  Salesperson will keep
on moving and finding the sales targets and would never be able to reach all of the customers.
Targeting is not only passive but also active that is sometimes regular visitor by the
salesperson also converts a prospect into a target which is why the salesperson should have a
predefined territory and should be able to form a relationship to convert it in the form of
business.
A deceased person can only achieve proper targeting has proper and predefined sales
territory.

2. Customer reach:
A sales job requires the salesperson to reach the customers in short notice constantly. The
Salesperson cannot be on the move every time, and he will have his home located at one
place, which will be his headquarters and the territory apart from his home will be ex-
headquarter.
Whenever the Salesperson has to reach a customer, he should be within a defined reach and
time, depending on the product.
Customer’s demand for a better service and excellent after sales service and if there is a
breakdown call or a technical difficulty the salesperson has to reach the customer within the
given time which is more often than not very short. This is why salesperson should have a
predefined territory. Customer reach and customer service are crucial in case of after-sales
service.

3. Measurability:
Having a predefined sales territory for a specific salesperson will help the organization to
measure the output per sales employee. This will help the organization to understand which
salesperson is performing better and which salesperson is not performing.
The measurability also helps the organization to take certain steps to adjust the area as if
required.
For example a salesperson working in territory a is 200% productive while the salesperson
working in territory b is only 50% productive then the organization will come to a conclusion
to divide the areas of a and b in such a way that half of the territory is given to b and half of
territory b is given to a so that each salesperson has half of their old area and half of new so
that they can work on it and make it more productive.
Having such a division of sales territory, two specific salesperson helps the organization to
measure the productivity in each area.

4. Relationships:
When the salesperson has a proper defined sales territory, it is assumed that he must work in
that particular territory and meet the customers regularly to get business.
This is not a one-time meeting which will include materials into a long term relationship, but
the salesperson has to keep up continuously with the customer and meet him regularly so that
a long term relationship is developed and this will happen only if the salesperson has a proper
and defined sales territory.
Repeat visits help the salesperson to develop and establish long-term relationships with the
customer, which helps to get him regular business. It is essential that the customers of the
salesperson are met regularly to develop trust, and this trust then converts into a relationship
which can be leveraged into the business.
Once a relationship is established with the customer, the salesperson should maintain that
relation and get business as much as possible.

5. Competitor activities:
The other importance of having a defined sales territory is that the Salesperson comes to
know about the competitor activities from his regular and repeat visits to the existing
customers.
The nature of competitor activities may vary from trade to territory and customer to customer
which is my every salesperson has to know what is going on about computer activities in his
area and this is only possible if the salesperson has a predefined sales territory.
Competitor activities should also help the company to understand the nature of the competitor
activity and the business models of the computer organization and help them prepare
accordingly. The territory division helps the higher management to understand if the
competition has different activities for different areas and plan their sales accordingly.

6. Workload management:
The sales territory division also helps the organization to distribute the workload, and the sea
is potential equity amongst all the employees and then measures their success. The goal of the
organization is to divide the workload and potentially equally amongst all the employees and
then assess the individual potential of the salesperson.
Workload management also helps the sales teams to perform with healthy competition
against each other and helps them to achieve targets.

Here are 5 steps for designing your territories-

 
 Step 1: Segment customer base and analyze market potential
Organizations that have conducted analysis of their territories first segmented their customer
base to understand the market. To do so, they relied on 4 pieces of data:
 
1. Customer Master Database – You need to know the current accounts, where they are
and what they are spending.
2. Complete set of Opportunity records – What opportunities are in the pipeline and
what is the total potential?
3. Complete set of Lead records  – What is at the top of the pipeline?
4. Third party suspect database – How large is the market for your product or service? 
What is the potential for organizations that have been touched?
 
Needless to say, the more accurate your Sales Force Automation data the better. 
 
Step 2: Rank your talent
With these 4 inputs you can assess the true potential of your market.  The next step is to look
at your sales reps.  Ask the following questions:
 
 What was revenue attainment per rep last year?
 How much potential is in their territory patch?
 How many current customers and opportunities are in their patch?
 How many ideal company prospects are located in their territory?
 
Stack rank the reps based on these criteria.  You will need this data later to ensure the top
reps are in the best territories.
 
Step 3: Map customers and prospects
Determine where each prospect and customer is located.  Choose locations where the buying
center would be located (typically HQ).  Determine what each account is currently spending
and the workload required to service the account.  This is also the time to consider your sales
org structure.  How many of those accounts are Enterprise, Key Accounts and SMBs?  What
types of reps will be calling on each account?
 
Step 4:  Create territories
You can now create territories and assign relative quotas and compensation packages based
upon realistic potential.  Consider the number of customer accounts and their potential
spend.  Do the same for prospect accounts.  Finally, think about the workload required in
each territory.  
 
Step 5: Review territory map
Take the sales rep stack ranking you created in Step 2.  Are the top reps managing the
territories with the top potential?  You may need to move reps into new territories.  You need
to ensure the best people are managing the best territories.  You may also need to add and
subtract accounts based on analysis. 

Q3. Sales budget is the blueprint for sales. “Elucidate.

Ans)
The sales budget is a blueprint for making profitable sales. It details who is going to sell how
much of what during the operating period, and to which customers or classes of trade. Simply
defined, a sales budget consists of estimates of an operating period's probable rupee and unit
sales and the likely selling expenses. These two estimates are related to predict net profit on
selling operations. The sales budget, then, is a projection of what a given sales program
means in terms of sales volume, selling expenses, and net profits. The following figure shows
how sales budgets fit into the personal-selling effort.
Both the sales volume and selling expense portions of the sales budget have their roots in the
personal-selling objectives, which trigger two key decisions on personal-selling strategy: (1)
the kind of sales personnel and (2) sales force size.
The sales forecast is the source for the sales volume portion of the sales budget. The sales
volume objective derived from the sales forecast is broken down into the quantities of
products that are to be sold, the sales personnel or sales districts that are to sell them, the
customers or classes of trade that are to buy them, and the quantities that are to be sold during
different time segments in the operating period. Making these breakdowns requires complex
sequences of planning decisions. After these breakdowns are made, the selling expenses that
will be incurred in implementing this sales program are estimated.
The sales budget, then, starts with the sales volume objective as a point of departure and, as
we have noted, that objective traces to the sales forecast. Consequently, the extent of
involvement of the top sales executive in the early phases of budgeting (for the entire
company) depends upon the degree to which this executive participates in forecasting. In
some companies, top sales executives play leading roles in sales forecasting, while in other
companies, they have passive roles.

Purposes of the Sales Budget

Mechanism of Control
Control is the primary orientation in sales budgeting. The completed budget, which is a
composite of sales, expense, and profit goals for various sales units, serves as a yardstick
against which progress is measured. Comparison of accomplishments with relevant
breakdowns of the budget measures the quality of performance of individual sales personnel,
sales regions, products, marketing channels, and customers. These evaluations identify
specific weaknesses in operating plans, enabling sales management to make revisions to
improve performance. The sales budget itself, being a master standard against which diverse
aspects of performance are measured, serves as an instrument for controlling sales volume,
selling expenses, and net profits.
Computerized information processing has enormously increased the effectiveness of control
through the sales budget. Management is provided daily with details of actual performance
compared with budgeted performance. With current and complete information on sales
volume and selling expenses, the sales manager spots variations from the budget and takes
corrective action before they get farther out of line.
Instrument of Planning
The budgeting process requires complex sequences of planning decisions. The sales forecast
shows where it is possible for the business to go, and during the budgeting process planners
determine ways and means for the business to get from where it is to where it wants to go.
The sales forecast reveals data on sales potentials, and the budget planners calculate the
expenses of converting forecasted sales into actual sales.
The sales budget planners formulate the sales plan so that both sales volume and net profit
objectives are reached. Showing how to achieve the targeted sales volume is not enough. The
planners show how the targeted volume can be reached, while keeping selling expenses at a
level that permits attainment of the targeted profit. A sale budgeting requires the drafting of
alternative sales plans and selection of the one most appropriate for serving the company's
sales volume and net profit objectives.

Determine Sales Goals: Sales budget sets a target for the sales team which they have to
achieve. The expected sales volume for a particular period is determined, and the efforts of
the sales department are directed accordingly.

Cash Flow Management: The company can estimate its future cash inflow and outflow
through sales budgeting. This helps in determining the potential liquid cash and prepares for
unfavourable market conditions.

Estimate Overhead Costs: It also estimates the various administrative and sales expenses
which the company has to bear other than the manufacturing cost. Thus, determining the
potential profit margin.

Develop Core Strategies: A sales budget provides a base for action to the managers. The
managers frame their strategies and utilize the resources to attain the desired sales goals.

Streamlines Business Process: All the business activities, i.e. production of goods or

services, financing the operations, engaging the human resource and marketing activities, are
based on the prepared sales estimate.

Conclusion
Preparation of the sales budget requires a lot of research, experience and expertise. It is the
initial stage of drafting the company’s financial budget.
A vague sales forecast can lead to a weak sales budgeting which can prove to be disastrous
for the business. Thus, effective sales management is required for organizational growth or
success.

Q4. Salesmanship is persuasion, communication and service ’. Explain.

Ans) Personal selling is a promotional tool and an element of promotional mix which
occupies a pivotal role in the distribution of goods and services to the existing and
prospective buyer. A salesman is a friend and a guide to the consumer, and a supporter and an
aid to the producer.
Salesmanship is one of the skills used in personal selling, as defined by Stroh, “it is a direct,
face-to-face, seller-to-buyer influence which can communicate the facts necessary for
marketing a buying decision; or it can utilize the psychology of persuasion to encourage the
formation of a buying decision”.

SALESMANSHIP AS PERSUASION

Salesmanship is seller-initiated effort that provides prospective buyers with information and
motivates or persuades them to make favorable buying decisions concerning the seller’s
products or service. The salesman of today has to react and interact in any different ways to
many different people.

Apart from the knowledge of the product, a salesperson has to be a psychologist with one
prospect, a human computer with another, an adviser with another, and at the same time a
friend with some buyers. Salespersons must adjust their personalities on every call.
Salesmanship may be implemented not only through personal selling but through advertising.
Thus, advertising has been described as “salesmanship in print.”

Some definitions emphasize that salesmanship is the art of influencing or persuading people
to do what sales representative wants them to do. For instance, contractors, teachers,
ministers, authors, politicians, industrial engineers etc., practice the art of influencing others
to do what they want them to do. Every man is a salesman in his own walks of life.

FOR EFFECTIVE COMMMUNICATION

 Prospecting: Initially of all, a salesman prepares an inventory of consumers to be

approaches both by title or the particular area. Potential prospects could also be
recognized by way of private contacts, enterprise publications, dealers, inquiry, space
etc. the salesperson ought to give consideration to think about accessibility, needs,
preferences, shopping for capacity, conduct etc., of the consumers.

 Pre-sale preparation: A salesman ought to purchase the mandatory data and

Information concerning the product, the company, the market, the rivals and the
setting of the business.

 Gross sales presentation: The following step is to achieve the eye of the consumers.
The salesperson demonstrates the product and describes its options and tips on how to
use them. He must be affected person and pleasant in his approach. His discuss needs
to be vigorous and he ought to attempt to arouse the curiosity of the customers and
create the will to buy.

 Convincing the consumer: as soon as the curiosity and the need is created, the client
will recommend questions and doubts. For this, he may hand over the booklet of
commonly asked questions or exhibit the product in order to clear all his doubts and
objections without moving into any controversy.
  Closing the sale: as soon as the client is convinced, the salesperson helps in choosing
probably the most appropriate selection as per his tastes and needs. He accepts the
cost from the customer packs he product suitably and delivers it efficiently. The
salesperson ought to shut the gross sales in a polite manner. He ought to not pressure
the deal but let the client really feel that he has made the ultimate resolution and the
appropriate choice.

 Submit gross sales activity: An excellent salesman may illustrate and recommend
associated merchandise both for present promoting or future transaction. For example,
he may cajole the customer who buys a shirt to buy socks, vests, ties etc.

FOR EFFECTIVE SERVICE

These are the qualities of an idle salesman.

Bodily qualities: A felicitous salesman should a sound wellbeing and pleasing personality.
His job is arduous and his physique should be strong, sturdy, and free from illness and
incapacity of any type. Good character consists of varied qualities corresponding to neat
appearance, refined tastes, good habits, clear voice etc. A satisfying and charming persona
boosts confidence and morale. solely a well-groomed and cheerful salesman can create an
excellent impression on the consumers. The Chinese language proverb one who runs the shop
should a smiling face signifies the importance of character for an excellent salesman.

Psychological attributes: A great salesman should I a elevated amount of intelligence,

initiative, flexibility and imagination. He must be clever and imaginative sufficient to know
the client rapidly and to learn his thoughts accurately. Balanced judgment, self-confidence,
tactfulness, poise and endurance are wanted to deal with the shopper in keeping with
necessities of the situation.

Social attributes: A salesman has to take care of various kinds of prospects and will
therefore, own the power to get together with every kind of people. Sociability implies good
manners, a liking for people, humorousness and conversational ability. He should shy and
reserves but an extrovert and A great listener. He must be a person of sound character,
honest, courageous, ambitious, mature and loyal. He needs to be co-operative and useful
sufficient to help the customers in the right collection of the goods.

Vocational or skilled attributes: Salesmanship is very vocational job that requires ambition,
aptitude and enthusiasm. A very good salesman must possess inventive ability, management
qualities, recommend for excellence, optimism etc. Success in salesmanship requires sound
education, vast Information and specialized training. A very good salesman should be
acquainted along with his firm, the product that he's selling, aggressive companies and their
products, market condition, the mentality of the consumers, and promoting techniques.
Q5. Sales quota become the basis for planning production, work force size and financial
Management.” Comment.

Ans) It is an expected performance objective. Quotas are routinely assigned to the sales units,
such as departments, divisions, and individuals, and they proceed to reach at these quotas in
their respective domain. They are sales assignments or goals, which are to be achieved in a
specific period of time.

Sales quotas are the sum of the total sales of a future period and duties to achieve the
component of total sales by each salesperson are handed down to them at the beginning of the
period. According to Philip Kotler, ‘A sales quota is the sales goal set for a product line,
company division, or sales representative. It is primarily a managerial device for defining and
stimulating sales effort.’

They are sales assignments, or goals and expectation of the top management expressed in
volume or in rupee sales for a specific future period. It is a part of the company’s total
expected market share that is assigned to the salespeople in each territory, a branch, a
distributor, a selling agent, a dealer, or any other selling unit as a target to be achieved in a
specific future period of time.

It is a quantitative goal assigned to a specific marketing unit such as a salesperson or a

territory for a time period. So, sales quota is a standardized method of evaluating the
effectiveness and performance of salespeople. Quotas are based on sales but there is a
difference between sales potential and quota. A sales forecast is an estimate of what a firm
expects to sell during a time period using a particular marketing plan.

Sales quotas may be set equal to, above, or below the sales forecast. Sales potential is the
maximum share of the market demand that a firm can obtain under the legal environment.
Sales potentials help the firms for long-term and strategic planning, but sales quotas are used
for different reasons.

Sales Quota – 7 Main Characteristics

1. It is the sales goals set for a product as well as of a salesman.

2. There is a time-dimension of a sales quota.

3. Sales quotas are assigned to salesmen, middlemen, or a branch.

4. It requires a desired level of performance.

5. It is a managerial tool of direction and control of sales activities.

6. Sales quotas are determined on the basis of sales forecasting, sales potential, estimates of
costs, and other market studies.

7. The success of sales quotas system will depends on accuracy of data and information used
for forecasting.
Sales Quota – A Brief Detail of Objectives in Setting Sales Quotas

The general objective that sales management has in mind is to control the sales effort. Sales
control is facilitated to use appraising performances of sales organizational units, such a sales
units or an individual sales force. The management also uses quotas to motivate personnel to
achieve desired performance levels.

A brief detail of objectives in setting quotas are as follows:

 For determining the goals of salesman, sales territory, sales department, or branch
office.
 For evaluating the market territories in respect of prospects of sales and marketing
situations.
 For balanced growth of market territories. The territories where the sales are
comparatively lower, efforts can be made for increasing the sales.
 To motivate the salesman towards achievements of the prescribed quota within the
prescribed time.
 For facilitating the sales manager to evaluate the salesman’s productivity. In case of
failure to achieve the set quota, the reasons for which can be analyzed.
 For the development of effective remunerative plans for the salesman. Those who
achieve more than the prescribed quota are provided with commission or bonus.
 To control the activities of salesman and to encourage them to achieve the prescribed
quota within the prescribed time limit.
 For controlling of sales expenses by fixing a limit on every sales quota allotted.
 For facilitating to evaluate the results of sales contests. Certain minimum sales quota
is fixed for each salesman to be achieved, to ensure his participation in sales contests.
 Sales quotas serve as the basis for preparing the budget for advertising and sales
promotion.
 It is the basis to define the rights and duties of every salesman, sales department or a
branch.
 It is the basis to avoid the duplication of activities as the rights and duties of every
salesman, sales department or branch office are clearly defined in advance.
 It determines uniformity in workloads between each salesman and sales territories.
 For estimating the future needs of every salesman, territory, branch or middlemen
and also to estimate future requirements of sales-force, office employees and other
requirements if any, in advance.
 To establish coordination with other departments, such as production, purchase,
warehousing, finance etc. These departments will be able to undertake their
respective functions in accordance with the sales quotas allotted to each territory.

Importance of Sales Quota-

There are essentially three reasons for the use of sales quota. The sales managers use the sales
quota for motivating salespeople. People with a mind to achieve higher things like the
concept of sales quota due to its objectivity in measurement and subsequent linking with the
reward system.

They also get a feedback on their performance through the achievement of quota in the
organization. In a multi-product situation, the salespeople are directed to put their efforts in
specific product categories that enable them to know where to concentrate for achieving the
organizational goal.

Quotas always lead organizations towards management by exception. This means that the
management focuses attention on the people who are highly performance oriented, and takes
care of their interests in the organizational policies. Similarly, managers can devote more
time to people who are poor performers, and attention can be given to their knowledge and
skill building to improve their efficiency.

The management can also spend more time on high-performance individuals to learn the
basic elements for which they outperform others and try to bring the same elements within
others for improving their sales performance.

Sales quota also helps in giving directions to the salespeople’s efforts and resources for
specific ends, and targets the organization sets as important. It is seen in organizations that
attainment of sales quotas is tied to the incentives and financial rewards of the organization.
This rewards the desired type and level of corporate behaviour to reach at the organizational
goals.

These represent the manager’s expectations about the activities to be accomplished and the
level of accomplishment targeted for the time being. Quotas help in providing a means for
measuring performance through the measure of individual activity in the organization.
Management compares the achievement of individuals with their targets and thus, quotas
become the primary basis for evaluating performance.

Quotas serve as guidelines and direct the behaviour of salespeople because it also assigns
authority as a formal right to exercise control. It gives the power to augment accountability
and punish for noncompliance. The salesperson’s acceptance of this provides the organization
a control mechanism for smooth management.

This kind of control also serves as a self-supervisory mechanism in the organization where
the salesperson can always measure his performance with the quota as they are set on sales
volume, individual product line’s sales volume, number of new accounts, and also expenses.
Therefore, the salesperson confines his activities only to these measurable activities.

Quotas provide performance targets, standardizes performance, and controls the individual’s
performance, thereby directly influencing the level of motivation within the salespeople.
Fixing a believable quota for the sales staff, linking it with the reward system, and then
allowing people to perform towards achieving the quota within the specific time period
constitute an effective process of performance management.