CHAPTER 4

SELF
MANAGEMENT

Prepared by Ladvia Anak Ajiu_Sesi Dec 2017

 INTRODUCTION TO TIME
MANAGEMENT
• Time management is important to salespersons because the hours available
for selling face-to-face with customers are limited. The salesperson wants
to accomplish as much as possible in the limited time and avoid wasting it
in inefficient routing and travel, traffic jams, writing reports, waiting for
prospective customers and other non-selling activities.
• Planning is the key to a successful time management.
• The objective of time management is to allocate a limited resource, time, in
the most efficient manner to maximize productivity

Prepared by Ladvia Anak Ajiu_Sesi Dec 2017

 INTRODUCTION OF TIME
SCHEDULE
• A salesperson may keep a detailed log of his daily activities. He
can then analyse each segment time and identify how much time
he spends on each segment. By scheduling his time, the
salesperson may be able to manage his time effectively

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 IMPORTANCE OF TIME SCHEDULE

• Waiting time can be reduced by making appointments in advance.

Calling just before the visit should be made to confirm that the
customer is free and is expecting the salesperson. Some customers’
time for sales call may be restricted to certain hours
• Managing time well increases productivity of an individual and also
avoids forgetting important things.
• Time management ensures the completion of tasks at a much faster
rate and more effectively.

Prepared by Ladvia Anak Ajiu_Sesi Dec 2017

 IMPORTANCE OF TIME SCHEDULE

• Plan your day well in advance. List out things that are important and need to
be done on a priority basis.
• Prepare a task plan or a TO DO list. Jot down important things against the
time assigned for each activity. Try to finish the work within the stipulated
time frame. Tick the activities already done and concentrate on the
remaining.
• Develop the habit of using a planner, organizer or desk calendar to avoid
forgetting important tasks.
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 IMPORTANCE OF TIME SCHEDULE

• One of the best ways to manage time is to be organized. The more you are
organized, the more quickly you finish off tasks.
• Avoid keeping stacks of files and heaps of paper at your workstation. Keep
your desk clean and organized. Throw away what you don’t need.
• A cluttered desk leads to negativity all around and one tends to waste his
maximum time in searching documents and files. Put a label on top of each
file. Keep the important documents handy.

Prepared by Ladvia Anak Ajiu_Sesi Dec 2017

 IMPORTANCE OF TIME SCHEDULE
• One must not do any work half-heartedly. Make sure you put your heart and soul in
work to avoid delays.
• Human beings are not machines who can work at a stretch. Everyone needs time to
rejuvenate. Do take a break for half an hour anytime during the day. Surf internet,
logon to facebook, chat with your friends or do anything you like. Don’t think about
work during this time. This would help you to concentrate better on work and
eventually complete assignments on time. Avoid distractions while working. Don’t
interfere in your colleague’s work or roam around at the workplace.
• Review your own performance regularly. Evaluate whether you have finished your
work on time or not?
• Sales professionals should never be late to meetings. Don’t make the customers
waiting. It is always better to start a little early to reach the venue on or before time.
Make sure you are there at the venue before the customer reaches.

Prepared by Ladvia Anak Ajiu_Sesi Dec 2017

 IMPORTANCE OF TIME SCHEDULE
• Prepare an action plan as to how a particular task can be accomplished. Adopt
a step by step approach. It is important to first finish one task before starting
the next.
• Sales professionals must discuss various options and ideas amongst
themselves and devise strategies and techniques to accomplish tasks in the
best possible way. Do keep in mind the budgets allocated to each task.
• Analyse the results and outcomes of previous year’s activities and prepare a
business plan. Make sure the business plan is concrete and reflects every
individual’s future course of action.
• Sales representatives can focus more and concentrate better as a result of
effective planning. Planning in most cases makes the future secure.

Prepared by Ladvia Anak Ajiu_Sesi Dec 2017

 TIME MANAGEMENT METHODS
1. Develop personal and business goal
- Sales people need to set his/her personal objective based
on the business goal set by the company
- Breakdown his/her goals into smaller task with
manageable steps

2. Prepare to do list
- Sales people should prepare a daily list of what to do
- The list should be done based on the priorities
- Never think about unnecessary things and never interfere
in others matters
Prepared by Ladvia Anak Ajiu_Sesi Dec 2017
 TIME MANAGEMENT METHODS
3. Maintain planning calendar
- Use a calendar or get organized
- Sales people should record daily appointment such as important task and
deadlines
- Doing things with concentration, dedication conflicts and commitment and
not in a careless manner.

4. Organize your selling tools

- Sales people prepare his/her selling tools in advance to avoid misplace
things and
- For example: insurance agent prepare his selling tools such as catalogue,
brochure, forms, laptops and slide before meeting with his/her client

Prepared by Ladvia Anak Ajiu_Sesi Dec 2017

 TIME MANAGEMENT METHODS
5. Use technology
- Sales people use technology as supporting tools in
sales proses
- To speed up his/her task, sales people can use
telephone, scanner, laptop or email when dealing
with their clients

Prepared by Ladvia Anak Ajiu_Sesi Dec 2017

 Tips for Successful Time Management:
1. Doing things with concentration, dedication conflicts and
commitment and not in a careless manner.
2. Trust others and distribute works to others
3. Never think about unnecessary things and never interfere in others
matters
4. Postponement of planned events is an avoidable bad habit
5. Breakdown your goals into smaller task with manageable steps
6. Be punctual
7. Hurrying up is to always the best way of doing a thing faster
8. Don’t forget or misplace things
9. Use a calendar/ Get organized

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 FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT ISSUE

• The expenses incurred in making a sale, are a substantial part of a

firm’s total direct sales cost.
• The expenses of making a sale range from one fourth to one
third of the total compensation of field representatives and these
costs rise annually.
• Any measure that can help to reduce these expenses or rather to
slow down the rate of increase without affecting salespeople or
giving customers a bad impression, is desired and worth
investigating.
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 TYPES OF EXPENSES IN CONDUCTING
SALES
1. Transportation - The expenses occurred when sales people use transportation
for meeting customer. For example, a salespeople generally incur a transportation
cost if they needs to meet customer for presentation and meeting.
2. Cost of living – refers to cost occurred when salespeople trying to making a
sales such as meals, taxis, laundry costs, postage and telephone costs .
3. Entertainment – the expenses occurred when salespeople trying to entertain
their customers (karaoke bill, greeting cards etc.)
4. Other expenses – the miscellaneous expenses occurred during sales. For
example, damage products cause salespeople to buy another product as
replacement
5. Travel expenses - refers to cost occurred when salespeople meeting their
customer outside their territory

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 TYPES OF REIMBURSEMENT PLANS
Definition: A generic term of several types of plans that reimburse employees for various types of
work related expenses.
Types of reimbursement plans:
1. Direct reimbursement plans
• Involves direct and unlimited reimbursement of all ‘allowable and reasonable’ expenses.
• The advantages is that direct reimbursement plans give the sales manager some control over both
the total magnitude of sales expense and the kinds of activities in which salespeople will be
motivated to engage.
• if a particular activity, such as entertaining potential new accounts, is thought to be an important
ingredient of the firm’s account management policies, salespeople can be encouraged to engage in
that activity by being informed that all related expenses will be reimbursed.
• On the other hand, managers can discourage their subordinated from spending time on
unimportant tasks by refusing to reimburse expenditures for such activities.

Prepared by Ladvia Anak Ajiu_Sesi Dec 2017

 TYPES OF REIMBURSEMENT PLANS
2. Limited reimbursement plans
• Some firms limit the total amount of expense reimbursement, either by setting
maximum limits for each expense item (such as a policy that limits reimbursement
for restaurant meals to RM40 per person) or by providing each salesperson with a
predetermined lump sum payment to cover total expenses.
• This approach keeps total selling expenses within planned limits – limits that are
often determined by the sales expense budget set at the beginning of the year.
• Limited reimbursement plans can hurt motivation and sales performance.
Individual salespeople may believe their ability to do a good job is constrained by
tight-fisted company expense reimbursement policies. Rather than pay for
necessary activities out of their own pockets, salespeople are likely to avoid or cut
back on certain expense activities to keep their costs within their budgets.
Prepared by Ladvia Anak Ajiu_Sesi Dec 2017
 TYPES OF REIMBURSEMENT PLANS
3. No Reimbursement plans
• Some firms require salespeople to cover all of their expenses. Such plans usually involve
paying the salespeople a relatively higher total financial compensation to help cover
necessary expenses.
• Such plans are most commonly associated with straight commission compensation plans
involving high-percentage commissions. The rationale is that salespeople will be motivated
to spend both the effort and money necessary to increase sales volume so long as the
resulting financial rewards are big enough to be worthwhile.
• These approaches help the firm limit sales expenses. However, they also sacrifice
management control over the motivation and types of activities engaged in by members of
the sales force.

Prepared by Ladvia Anak Ajiu_Sesi Dec 2017

 SALES REPORT
DEFINITION: A record of calls made and products sold during a particular
time frame kept by a salesperson or their management
Types of Sales Report
• The reports most widely required of salespeople are sales call or activity
reports and expense reports. Some firms require periodic reports on territorial
business conditions and competitive activities. Other reports also used are lost
sale reports, reports on customer complaints and /or adjustments, and reports
on new or potential new business.

Prepared by Ladvia Anak Ajiu_Sesi Dec 2017

 COMMON RECORDS KEPT BY
SALESPEOPLE

1. Customer & prospect card files

2. Call reports
3. Expense records
4. Sales records
Prepared by Ladvia Anak Ajiu_Sesi Dec 2017
 COMMON RECORDS KEPT BY
SALESPEOPLE
1. Customer and prospect card files
• This type of report provides customer data or information.
Such as, address, occupation, total of purchase, income and so
on.
• A salesperson can use prospect card to alert prospective
customers to product and service in which they have previously
displayed interest.

Prepared by Ladvia Anak Ajiu_Sesi Dec 2017

 COMMON RECORDS KEPT BY
SALESPEOPLE
2. Call or Activity Report
• This type of report provides information on each call made to a customer.
The required information or data will vary with firms and with the nature
of the selling or servicing situation.
• However, generally the reports contain the following information: Customer
name, Objective of visit, Time spent, Type of call – selling, servicing, routine or
prospecting , Results of visit – sales made, promises etc., Miscellaneous, such as
customer comments regarding compensation, complaints, servicing requirements
• Call reports are made daily, or more commonly they are summarized in
weekly activity reports. It gives data for a number of quantitative bases by
which sales performance can be evaluated. A value added tools predicting
future sales and goals for any business associated with sales or marketing
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 COMMON RECORDS KEPT BY
SALESPEOPLE
3. Expenses records
 A written record of money spent in selling. A document that can
serve as legal evidence of a transaction.
Expense reports are necessary for the company to maintain some
control over expenses and also because the record must be kept for
tax purposes.
An analysis of expenses can enable the sales manager to uncover
inefficiencies perhaps in routing or in entertaining clients that can
be improved to do a more effective selling job also to keep the sales
cost within a more desirable range.
Prepared by Ladvia Anak Ajiu_Sesi Dec 2017
 COMMON RECORDS KEPT BY
SALESPEOPLE
4. Sales records
• to prove your most valuable marketing information source.
• Files of customer purchases with addresses, amounts, dates,
products, payment methods, returns and other information
constitute a rich trove of marketing data.
• You can analyze this information to find out who your best
customers are, what they like the most, and what kinds of
marketing approaches appeal to them most powerfully.
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 Current Issues and Development in Sales
Management
1. International / global selling
2. Diversity of salespeople and customers
3. Customer partnerships
4. E-selling: Technology used by salespeople
5. Personal skills: Communication, personality

Prepared by Ladvia Anak Ajiu_Sesi Dec 2017

 INTERNATIONAL / GLOBAL
SELLING
• Globalisation involves marketing products and services worldwide. Global companies deem the world as their market,
offering one brand for one market – and there are no barriers to marketing their products. Globalisation also allows the
salesperson to expand to new markets as there are no barriers in marketing products. However, internet development is the
prime factor in the success of business in the era of globalisation.
The challenges of globalization may be summarised as below.
– Companies must first establish a brand name and image that is consistent worldwide to gain trust in customers.
– Salespersons need to understand the cultures of various markets for example ways of conducting business or purchase
transactions through the internet.
– Scepticism of consumers towards on-line transactions – their trusts on the system (security and reliability) and quality of
products offered through internet can affect efficiency of e-commerce.
– Companies are able to penetrate markets that have access to internet.
– The salespersons need to have the skills and knowledge in using the system.
– The company also needs to develop not only creative Websites but sales presentations that are available to the consumers on-
line.
– The Web sites developed should not only be creative enough to attract customers but also ones that customers can
understand. Usage of appropriate language, colours and designs that are acceptable by the customers are important.

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 CUSTOMER PARTNERSHIP
• "Customer partnership is a shared journey to create a future for both parties that is better
than either could have developed alone."
• Customer partnership is more than "putting customers first", or finding mutually
satisfactory solutions to shared problems, or a dedication to excellence in every sale or
service encounter. It also requires commitment to forging long-term relationships that
create synergies of knowledge, security, and adaptability for both parties.
Why Customer Partnership?
• Fierce competition today forces companies to become much more creative and flexible in
their dealings with customers to give them exactly what they want.
• Creating a partnership with customers will help your organizations maintain the focus you
need to make good decisions and harness the power and commitment you need to weather
volatile times.

Prepared by Ladvia Anak Ajiu_Sesi Dec 2017

 E-SELLING
• Online marketing involves educating the customers – from promoting products to pulling
people into the company’s website through communities and value added information.
Marketers draw prospects with educational offers, then use internet to electronically
mature that lead. As the prospects arrive, new technologies enable marketers and
salespersons to follow them through the educational process to a sales process.
• Marketers are now involved from the point of the first customer contact to the time when
customers are ready to make a purchase. Marketers are now building a one-to-one
communicative relationship which traditionally was a sales function. The prospects’
objectives become the marketers’ objectives. By fulfilling the prospects needs for
information and education, the marketer can guide them through the sales process.
• Making a guided selling strategy work requires more than a clever Web site or a database. A
successful guided selling approach means a different relationship between marketing and
sales to view themselves more as a team.
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 PERSONAL SKILLS

• To be a successful salesperson, he should pay special

attention to the following attributes:
1. – personality
2. – knowledge
3. – judgement
4. – power of persuasion

Prepared by Ladvia Anak Ajiu_Sesi Dec 2017

 PERSONAL SKILLS
1. Personality
The personality characteristics which are most likely to help in building
success as a salesperson are as follows:
a. Enthusiasm generates energy, whether mental or physical and it
vitalizes a sales presentation.
b. Integrity - A salesman needs to have a genuine interest in people, be
sincere and honest in their dealings with customers, and have a high
standard of integrity to gain customers’ trust and confidence.
c. Intelligence -A salesperson has to react to a customer, make immediate
decision on the course of action and to carry out the action. He needs to
have a quick understanding to be able to handle customers immediately

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 PERSONAL SKILLS
d.Courage -The salesperson needs to have courage to face unpleasant
situations.
e. Initiative -A salesperson works alone and without close direction.
Therefore he needs to have initiative to be effective.
f. Reliability -A buyer has a choice of suppliers to choose from. One
of the deciding factors is the reliability of the salesperson in delivering
his promise.
g. Self Control -Good self controls help the salesperson to accept
the elations and disappointments which occur in his day to day work.
Loss of self control may lead to loss of goodwill and loss of a
customer. This quality tends to bring an emotional balance and calm
judgment.
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 PERSONAL SKILLS
2. Knowledge -
Salesperson should have:
• A knowledge about the history and development of the
company
• A knowledge about the products or services that he/she
selling such as the raw material used, the product
processing process, product characteristics and the
products benefits
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 PERSONAL SKILLS
3. Judgement
Sales people judgement cover:
• The kind of sales argument likely to appeal to individual
buyers, the method of presenting different sales
arguments
• The moment which it is appropriate to ask for an order.
The salesman must consciously form judgement on the
buyers’ mood and their main buying interests or motives
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 PERSONAL SKILLS
4. Power of persuasion
• Persuasion refer to the art of convincing people that the
offer of goods or services which it is made meets their
individual requirement satisfactorily.
• Persuasion to be successful, it is essential to establish the
true needs of the buyer and to be convinced oneself
that the goods or services on offer will meet those needs
satisfactorily.
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 SELF-TEST

1. Explain how salespeople can improve their skills

and efficiently in facing the ever-changing
marketing environment.

Prepared by Ladvia Anak Ajiu_Sesi Dec 2017

 END OF CHAPTER 4

Prepared by Ladvia Anak Ajiu_Sesi Dec 2017