Discuss the role, relevance and responsibilities of sales personnel ...

Discuss the role, relevance and responsibilities of sales personnel in the following situation.
i) Salesmen selling medical equipments (capital goods)
ii) Salesmen selling space (publications)

ROLE OF PERSONAL SELLING:-
Personal selling, as the name implies, is an individual to individual selling. It therefore, caries the distracter advantage of deniability in terms of tailoring the sales presentation to the needs of the buyer - Another unique advantage comes from it 2 - way communication, and human interaction thereby providing instant feedback. These 2 unique advantages makes personal- selling the most result - oriented promotion method.
The nature or goods marketed; as well as the distribution system adopted; determine the role of personal selling in a firm. Therefore; personal selling is used entirely in the case of Industrial Goods; where the sales person performs functions such as assisting the customer in designing the product specification, product installation; product commissioning; solving technical problems through providing service after sales & helping customers to have optimal product utilisation. In the case of consumer goods; the role of personal selling gets restricted to the dealer level.
The scope of the tasks performed include obtaining periodic orders ensuring supplies; offering types to dealers on the product display &; attaining desired levels of stick movement. Similarly, the role played by personal selling is more is a firm, which uses door-to-door-selling method through its sales force than is the form which sells through large stockiest, distribution or sale-selling agents.
Not without ending, the varying role of personal selling is the strategies followed by different companies, the nature of the selling function, requires that the following tasks be performed:
(1) Sales generation •
(2) Feedback & market information collection
(3) Provision of customer service coming aspects such as delievery of goods. Warranty administration, timely availability of repair to spares
(4) Performances of sales support activities such as monitoring distribution function credit collection, improving dealer relations, implementing promotional programmes. Thus personal selling makes use of direct personal communication to influence the target customers.
Now before discussing the selling styles one point should be noted that only well developed and established companies have reached to consultant stage level, every discussed here are used in Indian companies. Table shows the activities relevant to the use of each strategy.

The Changing Roles of the Sales Representative



Strategies for Selling
Activities




Business Management

• Manage accounts and Territory strategies as a strategic business units
• Invest time and expenses in the most profitable opportunities
• Sell to meet the clients total system and long term needs. Be a consultant


Client Profit-Planning Strategies
• Become part of the clients' plan ' Expand to other department ' Find new uses for your product
• Services are an important part of"the offer at this point
• The customer become a client
' Perceive, classify and serve the customer's needs


Negotiation Strategics
Persuasion Strategies
Communication Strategies
' The product is adjusted to meet the customer's need
• The representative understands the immediate and narrow needs of the customers
• The representative tries to fit the customers into the existing product mix by skillfully overcoming objections.
' The representative is a personal communication, providing product and service information close to the point of the buying decision


Communication Strategies: At the lowest level of personal selling, the sales representative is an alternate medium for communicating information about the product or service offered by company. The only strategy appropriate for increasing sales at this level is walking more and talking more. There is little reason to use representatives as a communication medium when there are alternative mass communication media like press, radio, and television available.
Persuasion Strategies: The persuasion level requires the sales representatives to go beyond the role of a mere communicator to the role understanding at the immediate and narrow needs of the customers. At this stage, the sales representative tries to fit the customer into the existing product or service mix by skillfully anticipating and overcoming objection. This is what Indian market is experiencing.
Negotiation Strategies : During negotiation, the product and commercial terms are adjusted to meet the customer's needs rather than just attempting to skillfully overcoming objections as practiced in previous stages. The critical skill at this stage of selling is analysing and understanding the customer needs and determining how the company's products and services can meet these needs. At this point, the customer becomes a client and the process of consultative selling begin.
Client Profit-planning Strategies : In India , client profit -planning strategy is applicable in industrial product selling . The representative is put to work with clients team to learn about profit-planning system, product, finance, marketing, research and development and future plans etc. So that the product meeting the client's needs could be developed.
Business Management Strategies : At this stage professional representative is responsible for managing territory as a strategic business unit-investing time and expenses in most profitable manner. Few Indian Companies are using a system of national account management (like Modi Xerox) in which manager is responsible for all sales to few key accounts. Territory representatives along with sales managers and accounts managers develop business strategies and bottom line responsibility to meet objectives of the organisation.
A salesman following these steps will have a higher chance of being successful with his customers. In sharp contrast to selling activity, a sales supervisor performs the function of managing the sales staff. This is a very important aspect. It is at times thought that good salesman can make good sales manager. This job changes in emphasis to that of managing, which consists of (i) planning and goal setting, (2) organizing, (3) motivating, and (4) controlling his subordinates. Thus the job has changed from 'doing' to "getting things done through people". Of course, it is true that many sales managers continue to perform he selling function and provide necessary support