Sales & Retail Management

(MBA III Semester)

KMB MK01
Unit1: Introduction to Sales: Role of selling in marketing, Personal
selling, Salesmanship & sales manager, Types of sales personnel,
Characteristics of a successful salesman, Theories of selling, Sales
management, Process of effective selling.

UNIT 2: Types of sales organizations & structure, Functions &

responsibilities of sales person, filling sales positions, Recruitment,
Selection, Training & Development, Development & Conducting Sales
training programme.
UNIT 3: Sales force motivation, Sales force compensation plans,
incentives & contests, Sales forecasting, Sales budget, Sales quota,
Sales territory, Building sales reporting mechanism & monitoring,
Sales force productivity, Sales force appraisal.
• UNIT 4: Introduction to retailing: Growing Importance of Retailing,

Factors Influencing Retailing, Strategic Retail Planning Process, Retail

Organization, Retail Models and Theory of Retail Development, Modern

retail formats in India, Retailing in rural India

• UNIT 5: Retail stores and operation management: Setting up Retail

organization, Retail location Research and Techniques, Trading Area

Analysis, Store Layout, Objectives of Good store Design, Controlling

Costs and Responsibilities of Store Manager, Store Record and

Accounting System, Coding System, Logistic & Information system,

Strategies, Retail Sales Techniques & Promotion, CRM & Brand

Management in retailing.
 PERSONAL SELLING
• Meaning: Personal selling is a different form of promotion,
involving two way face-to-face communications between the
salesmen and the prospect. Basically the essence of personal
selling is the interpretation of products and services benefits and
features to the buyer and persuading the buyer to buy these
products and services.
For Example: Medicines, where salesmen (called medical
representatives) still go from doctor to doctor or from
hospital to hospital, canvassing new medicines manufactured
by their pharmaceutical companies.
Definitions

• According to American Marketing Association, “Personal

selling is the oral presentation in a conversation with one or more

prospective purchasers for the purpose of making sale.

• According to Cundiff and Still Personal selling is basically a

method of communication. It involves not only individual but

social behaviour each of the person also in face contrast

salesman and prospect influences the other”.

Six Things Which Makes A Salesman Successful

Know the product Know the company

Know the competition Know the customer

Know the process of selling Know own self

Personal Selling

•Listen to the buyers feelings

•Share concerns without judgment

•Clarify real issue with questions

•Problem-solve present options & solutions

•Ask for ACTION to determine commitment

 METHODS OF PERSONAL SELLING
• Retail selling : Selling to ultimate consumer.
• Field Selling : Business to business selling that take
place in the prospective customer's place of business.
• Telemarketing : Using the Telephone as the primary
means of communicating with prospective customers &
Telemarketers often used computers for order taking
Features of Personal Selling

1. It is a Part of promotion mix: personal selling is part of

promotion mix, or the communication mix in the company’s
marketing program. Other elements being sales promotion,
advertising, public relations etc.

2. It is a Two-Way Communication: It is the best tool for two-

way communication. Salesman can provide necessary
information to customer about company’s offer, and also can
collect information from customer. The ultimate aim is to
persuade the customer.
3. It involves presentation & Persuasion: Salesman through his

knowledge tries to present his product to the prospective buyer

and tries to persuade the prospective buyer with the help of

various skills and techniques.

4. Flexible: Personal selling is more flexible than other promotional

tools. Salespersons see their customer’s reaction to a particular

sales approach & make adjustment according to the situation.

5. Creative tool: Personal selling is creative in nature. The

salesperson tries to create needs. Make the customer aware of

hose needs and try to persuade him to buy the product.

6. Development of long-term Relationship: Personal selling
results in the development of personal relationship between the
sales person and the possible buyer. Such a relationship has an
important place in sales.
7. Quick solution of Queries: The prospective buyer can make
inquiries regarding the product. Salesman answers these queries
quickly and removes any doubts in the mind of the buyer.
8. Customer Confidence: By systematic sales presentation, a
capable salesman can remove all doubts, quarries, &
misunderstandings, and can win customer’s confidence. It
increases customers’ faith in company & its offers.
 Objectives of Personal Selling
1. To Sell the Product: The main aim of Personal Selling is to
sell the products both to actual customer and prospective
customers. The ultimate objective of personal selling is to
increase the sales of a particular company so that maximum
revenue can be generated by the company.
2. Providing Information – When salespeople engage customers
a significant amount of the conversation focuses on product
information. It includes slide presentations, brochures, research
reports, online videos, and many other forms of informational
material.
3. Creating Interest – The personal selling involves person-to-

person communication makes it a natural method for getting

customers to experience a product for the first time. In fact,

creating interest building product awareness as sales

professionals can often accomplish both objectives during the

first encounter with a potential customer.

4. To persuade the customers- The personal selling is an art of

persuasion in this salesperson persuade and insist on the customer

to buy the product. This objective plays a very perfect role for

any personal seller.

5. Build long-term Relationship: Personal selling results in the
development of personal relationship between the sales person
and the possible buyer. Such a relationship has an important
place in sales.
6. To maintain regular communication with the customers-
Personal selling involves two-way dialogues between the
buyers and sellers and a buyer can share his thoughts about a
particular purchase with the salesperson keeping in mind the
taste and preference of the consumer salesman (an offer the
product an ensure communication is maintained with the
customer throughout the lifetime of the company.
Advantages of personal selling:
1. Two-Way Communication: It is the best tool for two-way
communication. Salesman can provide necessary information to
customer about company’s offer, and also can collect information
from customer. Customer can actively involve with salesman to
solve his doubts and objections.
2. Personal Attention: Advertising and publicity are among mass
communication tools. They do not cater individual needs.
Personal selling focuses on personal problems of customers. It is
comparatively more effective and result-oriented.
3. Demonstration: Except television advertisements, demonstration is
not possible. However, television demonstration is much limited.
Salesman can provide a detail demonstration and can supervise when
customer is making the actual use of products.
4. Complementary to other Promotional Tools: Personal selling can
support advertising, sales promotion, and publicity. It removes the
drawbacks of advertising and sales promotion. Advertising increases
awareness while personal selling reinforces the advertising message.
Similarly, it make more effective by personal guidance or conviction.
5. Flexibility: Sales talks and presentation can be adjusted according to
situation to suit individual nature, motives, and problems.
6. Immediate Feedback: This is the only market promotion
technique that provides an immediate feedback. At the end of
every call/visit, a salesman can easily judge whether the
customer is interested or indented to buy.
7. Customer Confidence: By sales presentation, a salesman can
remove all doubts, & misunderstandings, & win customer’s
confidence. It increases customers’ faith in company & its
offers.
8. Improving Image: Salesmanship can remove bad image or
misunderstanding by highlighting company’s achievements. The
detailed explanation about company and its products removes all
doubts & misunderstandings.
Disadvantage
1. Management Conflict: Unluckily, there arise situations in even
the best companies where sales staff and marketing staff know they
work for the same company and for the same goals. The marketing
staff might not be able to understand the problems faced by the
sales staff, or the salespeople might be able to understand why
marketing people do things the way they do.
2. Ethical Problems: There is a lack of complete control of manager
over the messages the salespeople communicate and due to income
and advancement directly tied to sales. They may say and do things
they know are not entirely ethical or in the best interest of the firm
in order to get a sale.
3. High Cost: When cost per sales call continues to climb, the
marketer finds mass communications a more cost-effective .
4. Poor Reach: Unlike other elements personal selling fails to
reach as many members of the target audience. Even if money
were no object, the sales force has only so many hours and so
many people it can reach in a given time.
5. Inconsistent Messages: The message to be communicated is
designed by marketing staff with a particular communications.
Once this message has been determined, it is communicated to
all receivers. Hence, the marketing staffs are at the mercy of the
sales force with respect to what exactly is communicated.
1. Prospecting: Searching for prospects is prospecting. Prospecting
is the work of collecting the names & addresses or persons who are
likely to buy the firm’s products and services. Companies generate
leads in the following ways:

•Searching names by examining data sources such as newspapers,

directories, etc.

•Establishing a booth at trade shows and exhibitions

•Getting the names of the prospects from existing customers

•Referral sources from dealers, suppliers, sales reps, executives, etc.

•Using the telephone, mail and the internet to find leads.

2. Pre-approach: Pre-approach is to get more detailed facts about a
specific individual to have effective sales appeals on him or her. It is
a record round effort to get details such as his ability, need, authority,
convenience to buy; it is a closer look of prospects, likes & dislikes,
tastes, habits, financial status, & family background.

•The objectives of pre-approach are to providing additional

information; to design an effective approach strategy; to better the
planning information; to avoid serious errors & build-up confidence.

•The sources are salesmen, customers, local newspapers, sales office,

directories, observation and the prospect.
3. Approach: Approach means the meeting of the prospect in person
by the salesman where he makes face to face contact with prospects
to understand them better. Approach is critical stage of the sales
process that the sales are either won or lost. Success follows the
salesman who possesses courage, courtesy and confidence.

The objectives of approach are:

• To help the salesman to make a favourable impression;
• To enlarge the detailed information obtained by the salesman at
pre-approach level;
• To convert the favourable attention of the prospect easily and
smoothly into the sales proposition.
4. Presentation and demonstration: Presentation implies an collection
and decoration of articles in the shop. It is the heart of selling process.
Effective presentation has the capacity to encourage the customer of
his sales proposition. It creates and holds the interest of customers
towards the products. It would be wrong to assume that all those who
enter the shop do buy the products.

• Demonstration is a part of presentation because, more description is

not enough. Demonstration is the crucial task of providing the proofs
and providing the statements about quality, utility, performance and
service of a product by evidences of experiment, operation or a test.
5. Overcoming objections: For a creative and persuasive salesman, the
process of selling really starts when the prospect raises objections. For
every action of salesman there is prospect’s pro-action or reaction that is,
approval or disapproval.
• Each salesman should understand the reasons as to why prospects raise
objections because; each objection has its roots in the buying decision.
An objection is the expression of disapproval of an action taken by
salesman; it is an adverse reason or an argument indicating clearly that
the prospect is not yet ready to buy.
• These objections may be genuine or mere excuses. Overcoming
objections is really a delicate stage that makes or mars the unbroken
chain of selling process.
6. Closing: Earlier stages of sales talk namely, prospecting, pre-approach;
approach, presentation & handling the objections have been designed to
induce the prospect to make decision to buy so that a sale can be concluded.
The success in earlier stages will lead to the last stage of closing the sale.
Here, ‘close’ means the act of actually getting the prospect’s assent to the
sales proposal or he gets an order.

7. Follow-up and maintenance: Immediately after closing the sale, the

salesperson should take some follow up measures. He may give details about
delivery time, purchase terms and mode of payment of price, etc. The
salesperson can ensure customer satisfaction by properly attending matters
which are important to the customers. Thus, follow up is necessary if the
salesperson wants to ensure repeat purchase.
 THEORIES OF PERSONAL SELLING

SELLER ORIENTED BUYER ORIENTED

• The ‘AIDAS’ theory and the ‘right set of circumstances’ theory,

are seller oriented.
• The ‘Buying Formula’ & ‘Behavioural Equation’ theory, are buyer
oriented.
 AIDAS THEORY

This theory is based on the premise that during a sales

presentation, the prospect consciously goes through five
different stages. These are ATTENTION, INTEREST, DESIRE,
ACTION & SATISFACTION. In fact the name of this theory has
been derived from the initial letters of these five words.
• Awareness/Attention: The aim of a salesperson is to generate the
attention of the prospect before giving further details of the
product. First few minutes are very important for getting the
attention of the prospects. For this, the salesperson needs to take
care of the following things:
• Get the appointment with the consumer
• Create the first impression by a proper and suitable dress up.

• Always start with a smile.

• Be honest and professional.
• Do not let pressure spoil the situation.
• Gaining Interest: This deals with the evolvement of the strong
interest of the consumer in the product, to develop a
communicable interest for the product and to give facts and
figures about the product. There should be a strong selling appeal
to make their interest in the product. There should be a strong
selling appeal to make their interest in the product very effective.
Also the attitudes and the feelings toward the product should be
clarified.
• The sales person should be aware of the interest, likes, dislikes,
attitude and motivation of the prospect and should proceed with
the presentation, keeping in view all these factors.
• Desire: Here the interest of the consumer is to be converted into

the desire for buying the product. The ways should be found to

face and dispose of the sales obstacles, the consumer objections,

external interruptions, remarks, etc. The consumer should be

satisfied in all respects and his doubts should be cleared.

• Action: The perfect presentation results in the readiness of the

consumer to buy the product. All this requires experience of the

sales personnel as the buying is not automatic and it should not be

closed until the sales persons are positive that the right time has

come.
• Satisfaction: Once the prospect has placed an order, the sales
person should ensure that the prospect carries the impressions of
having taken the right decision. He should always thank the
prospect and even go to the extent of saying, “I appreciate your
choice sir, you have taken an excellent decision”.

• The sales person should also ensure that the delivery of the order
takes place within the time frame and all other promises are kept,
regarding installation, free servicing, etc. Moreover, the sales
person should try to keep in touch with his prospects and should
keep enquiring about the efficient performance of his purchase.
 Example of AIDAS Theory

• Attention: Telling about RO Water Purifier & its quality to

purify water.

• Interest: by showing flipcharts, presentations & brochures and

also focusing on purity and health of family members.

• Desire: to make them use the RO water purifier for their use.

• Action: Consumer purchase the product due to its effectiveness

in providing pure and free germ water.

• Satisfaction: appreciate the customer by saying that he has made

the good purchase by relating its health factor.
 Right set of circumstances” Theory of Selling:
• It is also called the “situation-response” theory.

• It has its psychological origin in experiments with animals.

• The major emphasis of the theory is that a particular circumstance
prevailing in a given selling situation will cause the prospect to
respond in a predictable way.
• The set of circumstances can be both internal and external to the
prospect.
• This is essentially a seller-oriented theory and it stresses that the
salesman must control the situation in such a way as to produce a
sale ultimately.
 Buying Formula” Theory of Selling:
• The buyer’s needs or problems receive major attention, and the
salesperson’s role is to help the buyer to find solutions.
• This theory purports to answer the question:
• What thinking process goes on in the prospects' mind that causes
the decision to buy or not to buy?
• The name “buying formula” was given to this theory by strong.
 Whenever an individual feels a need, he is said to be conscious of a
deficiency of satisfaction. The solution will always be a product or service
or both and they may belong to a producer or seller. The buyer develops
interest in buying a solution.

In purchasing, the “solution” involves two parts:

1. Product or service or both,
2. The brand name, manufacturer or the salesperson of the particular brand name:
 Behavioural Equation Theory of Selling:
• This theory is a complicated version of the “right set of
circumstances” and this theory was proposed by Howard,
using a stimulus response model and using large number of
findings from behavioral research.
• This theory explains buying behavior in terms of purchasing
decision process, viewed as a phase of the learning process,
four essential elements of learning processes included in the
stimulus response model are drive, cues, response and
reinforcement, which are given below, in brief:
Drives : are strong internal stimuli that impel the buyer’s response are:

Innate drives: the physiological needs, such as hunger, thirst, pain, & cold.

Learned drives: such as determined for status or social approval, are

acquired when paired with satisfying of innate drives, in marketing the

learned drives are dominant in economically advanced societies.

Cues: are weak stimuli that determine when the buyer will respond.

Triggering cues: activate the decision process for any given purchase.

Non-triggering cues: influence the decision process but do not activate it,

and may operate at any time even though the buyer is not contemplating a

purchase.
Response : is what buyer does.

A Reinforcement is any event that strengthens the buyer’s tendency to

arrive at a particular response.

Howard incorporated these four elements into an equation:

B=PxDxKxV

Where, B = Response of the buyer

P = Predisposition or force of habit

D = Drive level of the buyer or motivation to buy

K = “ Incentive potential” , that is the value of the product or its potential

satisfaction to the buyer.

V = Intensity of all cues : triggering, product or informational

 ASSIGNMENT

1. What do you mean by Sales? Differentiate it from Marketing.

2. What are the Qualities of Successful Salesman?

3. Define the sales management. What are the characteristics and

objectives of sales management?

4. Discuss the process and importance of sales management.

5. What do you understand by Personal Selling? Discuss the features

and objectives of personal selling.

6. Explain the process of personal selling with the help of an example.

7. Explain the Buyer oriented and seller oriented theories of personal
selling.