CHAPTER 2:

STRATEGIC SELLING & SALES FORCE MANAGEMENT

Learning Objectives:
After studying this chapter, students should be able to:

•Describe and interpret the how selling relates to strategic planning

and management.

•Outline the interaction between the marketing system and macro

environment.

•Discuss internet and IT applications and other strategic trends in

selling and sales management.

•Discuss sales management strategic functions.

STRATEGIC PLANNING
•Involves making decisions about the firm’s
long-term goals and strategies.

•Borders on resource configuration to achieve

these long-term goals and plans.

•Strategic goals are major targets or end results

that relate to the long-term survival, value, and
growth of the organization.
SALES ENVIRONMENT
• Also referred to as the marketing/business
environment.
• Individuals/groups, organisations, and other market
forces that impinge on the marketing management’s
ability to develop and maintain (successful)
exchanges with customers.
• Affect a firm’s relationship with its stakeholders.
• Could bring opportunities or threats.
• Firms must be aware of these changes and how they
influence or affect their businesses.
• Can be put into three broad categories; the internal
environment, market/performance (micro-) and the
external (macro-) environment.
INTERNAL ENVIRONMENT
• Concerned with understanding and evaluating the capabilities
and potential of the internal resources (products, employees,
processes/systems, equipment, marketing, financial resources
and other business functions).
• Also include the company mission, vision, culture and structure.
• Organisation have direct control, hence can influence it easily
through strategies.
• Organisation’s strengths and weaknesses lies in these factors.
• Internal factors should not be viewed in segments, rather they
should be assess on their strategic impetus.
• Salespeople must be quite conversant with the firm’s internal
environment so as to take advantage of opportunities, minimise
the impact of weaknesses, and reflect the firm’s purpose of
existence.
• Tools that can be used include; BCG Matrix, PLC, Issues Matrix
MARKET/PERFORMANCE
ENVIRONMENT
• Also referred to as the micro-environment.
• Consists of factors or elements within an organisation’s immediate area of
operations and have influence on its decision-making and performance.
• Consists of the customers (both current and potential), distribution channels,
suppliers, competitors, govt agencies and the general public.
• No direct control but can influence through the supply chain using either the pull or
push strategy.
• Important for a firm to understand its performance arena as it allows it to decide on
how and where to compete, given limited resources.
• Adopt better positions than those of competitors in creating customer value and
satisfaction.
• Knowledge helps firm develop strategies to survive and grow in turbulent markets.
• Salespeople vital for market intelligence.
• Porter’s 5 forces model.
MACRO ENVIRONMENT
•Uncontrollable, hence firm have to adapt.
•Alters the nature of both micro-level and
internal relationships of a firm.
•Uses tools such the famous PEST Analysis
(lately extended to SLEPT, PESTLE,
STEEPLE, PESTEG).
Cont….
Political Environment
•Governance and policy issues
•This environment is very
unpredictable and has a greater
influence to others environments
as it sets the interplay scene.
•Due to globalisation and
regionalisation, firms are affect by
their host countries’ political
positions and stability.
•Politicians have the greatest
influence, hence firms have to
engage them through lobbying.
Economic Environment
•State of the economy affects
consumption of products.
•Marketers to monitor GDPs,
govt expenditure, inflation rates,
disposable income, saving
ratios, perceived wealth,
taxation, financing, business
cycles, market
competitiveness/attractiveness,
etc.
Cont…..
Socio-cultural Environment Technological Environment
•This aspect has great influence •‘If you fail to change, you will left
on consumer and buyer running fast in the past”
behaviour, hence shapes
•Same is with technology, a force to
consumer needs.
reckon.
•Informs how a firm relates with
its stakeholders. •Affects how goods and services are
produced and how firms engage in
•Determines a firm’s marketing
exchange relationships with
mix/market offering.
customers.
Marketers to watch issues such
as; geo-demographics, •Improved efficiency and effectiveness.
psychographics, and culture
•Examples; EDI, Social networks,
Cont…..
Legal Environment
•Every land have its own rules
and regulations that relate its
citizens.
•Spells out rules of engagement
for firms.
•Set by govt arms, the
executive, parliament and the
judiciary.
•Can either present an
opportunity or pose a threat.
Ecological Environment
•Talks to the need for co-
existence (interdependence).
•Therefore, there is great need
to nurture all elements of the
ecosystem.
•Marketers responds to this
environment through societal
marketing.
For further reading on tech trends,
see:
http://www.volarisgroup.com/blog/article/8-disruptive-technology
-trends-to-consider-before-selling-your-software-com

http://www.softwareadvice.com/resources/buyer-centric-sales-te
chnology-trends/

https://www.mautic.org/blog/marketer/5-technology-trends-in-th
e-marketing-industry/

https://hbr.org/2015/05/the-technology-trends-that-matter-to-sal
es-teams