MARK 454 PROJECT GUIDETINES

THE PURPOSE OF THIS PROJECT IS TO SELECT A PRODUCT OR SERVICE, IDENTIFY POTENTIAL

CUSTOMERS, MEET WITH THESE PROSPECTS, AND THEN DEVETOP A SALES PRESENTATION
SPECIFICATLY TAITORED TO THAT CUSTOMER FOR THIS PRODUCT TO BE DETIVERED IN CLASS. YOU
ARE RESPONSTBLE FOR |DENT|FYING THE PRODUCT/SERV|CE, THE PROSPECT, COLD CALLING, AND THE
NEEDS ANAIYSIS. PLEASE NOTE THAT YOU ARE NOT SELLING ANYTHING TO YOUR PROSPECTS - THE
OBJECTIVE OF THE PROJECT IS TO EARN AN APPOINTMENT WITH THE PROSPECT AND ACQUIRE
INFORMATION ABOUTTHEIR NEEDS IF THEY WERE TO CONSIDER PURCHASING YOUR PRODUCT.

THERE ARE SEVEN PROJECT STEPS:

Step 1: ldentify your product/service and submit project proposal - Week .4

Step 2: ldentify the prospects you wish to contact - Week 5

Step 3: Develop your "cold call pitch" and contact your prospects via email, social media Week 6

Step 4: Set up an appointment for a needs analysis - YOU ARE NOT SELLING ANYTHING AND THIS lS
NOT A MOCK SATES CALL - Week 7-8

Step 5: Two-page profile of your product and of prospect - Week 10

Step 6: Present your 12-minute sales pitch to the professor (who will pose as your prospect) based on
the needs analysis you conducted - Weeks 12-13

Step 7: Submit your project report - Week 13

RUTES OF THE ROAD:

1. I repeat here for emphasis - the meeting you have with your prospect is NOT to sell the prospect
anything - it is not a role play. The objective is to conduct a needs analysis and then prepare a
sales pitch based on the needs analysis. The "role play" happens in class when you make your
sales pitch. You are not legally or otherwise permitted to represent the company you choose in
any way.

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STEP 1: Project Proposal - Due Week 3 of Class

ln a one-page submission posted to Moodle, please detail the following: (single spaced with double
spaces between paragraphs)

A brief description of the tangible or service product selected including whether it is a consumer good
(e.g. men's wallets) that will be sold to resellers, a business good that will be sold to resellers, a business
good that will be sold to directly to the end user company (e.g. a commercialjuicer or espresso machine
for restaurants) or an industrial good that will be sold directly to the end user company (e.g. a piece of
major equipment or an installation). ls the product currently sold in the Canadian market?

o ldentify at least one major competitor to your product.

o The product/company must be real - you cannot make it up.
o ldentify and briefly describe the manufacturer of the product
o Specify whether your team will be acting as the manufacturer's sales representative or the
sales representative for the Canadian distributor of the product. lf it is the latter, as give a
brief profile of the distributor company
o A list of the 3 companies you will approach to request an appointment to discuss your
product

STEP 2: ldentify your Prospects - Week 5

Given the constraints we face at the present time due to COVID, you might well need to rely on virtual
prospecting through social media, email, or other methods to find the appropriate prospect. You may
certainly use your personal contacts to find prospectsl At present, many companies are using virtual
methods for sales meetings, prospecting, and following up with customers. This project will give you
some experience with this current reality.

Youwill post your prospect list (3 names) to the appropriate Moodle folder - full name, addresses, title,
email and/or telephone number, and how you found these prospects.

STEP 3: Develop Prospecting Pitch and Cold Call your Prospects - Week 5

ln this stage of the project, you will "cold call" your prospects. This is the selling part of your
assignment. Your sales task is to get an appointment with your prospect. You will need to come up
with an approach for how you will "move" the prospects to meet with you and "how you will help them
to do their jobs better". You may think because you are student, that you have little to offer in
exchange for your time. However, as a University student, you have tools at your disposal - think about
this carefully!

2.
 messaging through Facebook, Linkedln'
PLEASE NorE: when contacting prospects by phone or online
is aware that you are not actually trying to sell
or any other platform, please make sure the individual
them anything.

STEP4:SetUpAppointmenttoConductYourNeedsAnalysis-Weeks7.8

ln this step, you will do the following:

oDevelopalistofgeneralinformationquestionsyouwillasktheprospect.Theseshouldbe
pre-
should find in
of a nature that ; above and beyond what a sales representative
include what the prospect 'looks'
approach secondary research. As well, the list should also
for in a sales rePresentative.
prospects for your product'
o Develop a list of questions you will use to qualify any
Develop a list of questions to gather information about the
prospect's organization,
o
problem and implication
situation and the individual you will contact. List the situation,
as well as uncover
SPIN questions that you will use to explore the situation and needs,
meeting as you are not
objections (you will not need the need payoff questions for this
conducting a sales call)'

STEP 5: Two-page Profile of your product and prospect-Week 10

Each group must create a two-page singte spaced (with spaces between paragraphs) description of your
product with its key competitors and how your product compares; a profile of the individual and a brief
description of your meeting; and the most important needs you identified in your needs analysis
meeting with the prospect. This must be posted to the appropriate Moodle folder on time to allow your
classmates to read the description in order to evaluate your presentation.

STEP 6: Make your Sales Pitch

During Weeks 12 and 13 of class, you will make your sales pitch to the class based on what you have
learned from Dixon and Adamson and Pink, as well as the material you have received in class lectures.

The purpose of your pitch is to "sell" the prospect your product. Please make sure your presentations
are convincing, clear and concise. Students are encouraged to utilize tabular/graphical displays and
other audiovisuals for emphasis. Practice makes perfect, so rehearse your presentation frequently to
achieve true professionalism.

Your professor will assume the role of the prospect and is expected to ask questions and challenge the
group. ln this way, you will benefit from learning how to handle objections from your clients. This is not
meant to be a "gotcha" exercise, but rather, one in which realistic questions and issues are raised based
on the group's presentation. Thus, each student is expected to familiarize himself/herself with each

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team's briefing so that the appropriate social style is utilized when asking questions, raising objections
and evaluating the information presented by the selling team. The professor will also ask several
questions/objections and may raise questions that are unexpected.

Decide what tools you will need to enhance your presentation (testimonials, photos,
cost/benefit analysis, demonstrations, etc.). Backup slides are required for any
questions/objections you will face. You must anticipate objections in advance so that these may
be prepared.
I lf videos are integrated into the presentation, they should be timed for no more than two (2)
minutes.
I Presentation time will be determined by the number of groups in the class and will be
announced at a later time. You may not exceed this time limit. A question period will
immediately follow each presentation (time will be determined by the number of presentations
in the class).

Attendance at all presentations is mandatory. Students will have 1% deducted from their final course
grade for each presentation missed. Please be on time for class for presentation days. lf you arrive late,
please be sure you are muted when you enter the classroom. All group members must be visible when
presenting.

Prior to the start of class, each team must post to Moodle in the appropriate folder:

o A copy of their PowerPoint presentation using the format of 3 slides per page
o A copy of all material to be used during the presentation.

Failure to submit the material on time will result in a deduction of 5%.

Dimensions for Evaluation for the Pitch

The demonstrated ability to integrate and utilize course concepts, in particular what constitutes
a good sales presentation and special considerations when presenting to groups - you should
use elements of the Challenger Sales Model (teach by providing insight and tailoring your
message) as well as Pink (how you will move the prospect). The demonstrated understanding of
the prospect's needs, desired benefits, etc., that is, understood buyer's needs early/applied
knowledge obtained through buyer - YOU MUST RECAP PROSPECT MEETING AT BEG|NNING OF
PRESENTATION TO SHOW THIS UNDERSTANDING - REMEMBER THIS IS A ROLE PIAY SO
PRESENT THIS ACCORDINGLY!
Discuss benefits that are specific to your prospect as identified in your needs analysis, not just
general features - from the buyer's and end user's perspectives
The ability to adapt to the DYNAM lX colors of the prospect buyer
The ability to answer questions (including factors such as knowledge of your company and
product, as well as those of competitors)
Objections: handled with confidence, clarified well, good response, probed, and used back up
slides when necessary to provide additional information

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 ' Did not cut off, interrupt or "steamroll" the prospect when
asking questions
. Nonverbal: eye contact, gestures, nervous, posture, appearance
' visual aids: appropriate, professional, easily seen and understood
by all- your slides should
reinforce what you are saying in your presentation!
' correct speech: fast/srow, loud/soft, monotone, verbar pauses,
choice of words
' obtaining commitment: timely, appropriate, "post close"
communication - failure to close will
result in an automatic grade deduction
' Timing of presentation. (overall, did the team allocate
their time well in presenting the major
points & recommendations of the project?
was the presentation, completed within the allotted
time?)
r Effectiveness of presentation
' Professionalism: honesty, well-prepared, respectful,
teamwork and appropriate attire and
behavior

STEP 7: Project Report - Due Week 13 at the beginning of ctass

Please follow this format exactly as written
- use headings as indicated. Deviation from the format will
result in grade reduction' Maximum of 15 pages,
double-spaced, typed and submitted as a pDF
word document' Do not exceed the page limit. or as a
Use appendices and exhibits, if you need
to include
other information' Refer to General Housekeeping
for font, margin and other requirements.

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3.
 Structure your report as follows:

Note: Exhibits,appendices,chartsandtablesarenotpartofthelS-pagemaximum. Eachmustbe

appropriately numbered and titled. The significance of the information placed in these must be
discussed within the main body of the report and appropriately referenced.

1. Executive Summary (maximum 1 page)

The executive summary must function an as independent document that can be read in lieu of
reading the main report. As such, it must contain a summary of all key information from each area
of the report. The executive summary and the table of contents are not included as part of the L5-
page limit.

2. Toble of Contents (not included in poge count)

3. The lndustry f 1 to 2 pages)

Provide a description of the industry and product category you have selected - including size of the
Canadian market, growth rate, major competing manufacturers (direct or indirect) and key
prospects, as well as any other information you consider important. Competitors may be direct,
that is manufacturing the same type of product, or indirect, that is, manufacturing a substitute
product that fulfills the same need. At least 3 competitors must be identified and profiled.

lndustry data may be shown in tables and exhibits (not part of the page maximum), but the
significanceoftheinformationmustbediscussedinthebodyofthemainreport, placeacopyofall
material used for reference in a separate numbered appendix, including web pages, articles from
trade magazines, the popular press, and printouts of reports from databases. Depending on the
product category and the industry, students may find PMB, Datamonitor and Hoover's useful for
this
section' Should you encounter difficulty in either finding data or manipulating databases to extract
reports, the reference librarians at Webster Library may be of assistance (the Marketing Librarian is
Olivier Charbonneau).

4. Company Profile (- L page)

Briefly describe the company you are representing and its role in the supply chain. Give an
indication of its size, importance to industry (that is, its position in the marketplace -
L player), growth potential, size of its sales force and its product
assortment, including
major or minor
the

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product/product line you are representing and any other information you consider important. Note:
Theproductassortment/productlinecanbelistedinanexhibit(notpartofthe15pages). Place
copies of all documents used for reference in a separate appendix.

5. The Product (2-page maximum).

Provide a detailed description of the product you will sellto the prospect's company. You may
include any relevant material you receive from the supplier/manufacturer (product information
sheets, price sheets, etc.) and attach them as an appendix (not to count towards 15 pages) if it is
important.

MANDATORY: Provide a table that details the features and benefits of the product compared to
those of competitors for the seneral end user. ln the main body of your report, analyze areas where
your product is equal, superior or inferior to those of competitors'. This type of analysis is important
in order to be able to anticipate objections.

MANDATORY: Provide a table that outlines the features and benefits that are specifically targeted
to your prospect that you have chosen for your class presentation. Depending on the product and
role of the prospect in the supply chain, these may differ significantly from the general features and
benefits chart. This will form the basis for your oral presentation in class. Please be thorough and
detailed !

6. Prospecting Methods

ldentify 3 appropriate prospecting methods that can be used to develop sales leads for your
particular product from those presented in class discussions. For each method selected briefly
explain how you would use it, justify why it is a suitable approach given the company you are
representing, and why it is superior to the methods you rejected.

Also, illustrate with examples, how you would specifically apply each method? For example, if you
are recommending a list, research lists and attach a sample of the listing from a list broker (please
do not purchase the list!), or if you are recommending a blog, attach a page that demonstrates how
that specific blog is relevant, and so on. Place your sample pages in a separate appendix.

7.
 7. Quatifying and lnformotion Gothering Approoch

As part of your introduction and during the call, you should

provide a brief explanation of the
with
project and your role. you are seeking the following information: 1) ls the prospect familiar
does the
your product and what impression does your prospect have about it? 2) what needs
product profile that the
prospect have that this product might address? 3) What is missing from the
prospect would like to see? 4) ls the prospect familiar with competitive products and
what is their
this product if you
impression of these? 5) Under what conditions would the prospect agree to buy
probing -
were really the salesperson? Getting the answers to these questions will require in-depth
do not waste your time or effort trying to "sell" the product - you will not get the information you
need to complete Your sales Pitch.

ln this section, teams will plan the sales call

o Develop a list of general information questions you will ask the prospect. These should be
of a nature that is above and beyond what a sales representative should find in pre-
approach secondary research. As well, the list should also include what the prospect 'looks'
for in a sales representative.
o Develop a list of questions you will use to qualify any prospects for your product.
o Develop a list of questions to gather information about the prospect's organization,
situation and the individual you will contact. List the situation, problem and implication
SPIN questions that you will use to explore the situation and needs, as well as uncover
objections (you will not need the need payoff questions for this meeting as you are not
conducting a sales call).

Questions may be listed in exhibits (not part of the page maximum), butthe main report must detail
the rationale as to why the assortment of questions within each list was chosen. A brief summary of
the answers to these questions should be provided in the appendix as well.

8. Prospect Companies (2 poges maximum)

Profile the three (3) companies you identified to approach for your project. Give an indication of
each company's size, role in the supply chain, its importance to industry (that is, its position in the
marketplace - major or minor player). Does each already purchase a competing product? Provide a
rationale for selecting each of these companies. Eventually, you will choose one for the focus of
your presentation. I strongly suggest you start with people you know and may have easy access to
for this project, given we are in a virtual environment for the time being. lf you cannot find anyone
through your personal contacts, then you may begin to search for prospects through Facebook,
Linkedln, or other appropriate social media sites.

L ls your firm already a supplier to your prospect companies? lf so, what is their relationship?

c.
9. The lndividuals (2 poges maximum)

Describe how you obtained the names of each of your prospects within each of the three (3)
companies. Provide details about the prospecting methods you used for each company. Note: the
methods used do not necessarily have to be the same as those described in Section 4.6. List the
names, titles, and company affiliations for your prospects. You are not expected or required to
meet with all 3 companies - choose the one you think will be the best for your project, and make
sure to follow up with those who agreed to meet with you to thank them for their time.

70. Description of the lnitial Experience with Each Prospect

This section will consist of a description of your complete experience with each of the prospects,
from getting the appointment to gaining the information you needed to effectively develop your
oral presentation.

Describe your pre-approach strategy: how did you attempt to reach the prospect? Describe the
ease of access - were they easy to reach? Why or why not?

Recount the experience of phoning, emailing or contacting prospects through social media for
appointments. Were appointments made directly with the individual, or did you go through the
assistant/secretary/receptionist? Be thorough in your description. Did a gatekeeper try to block
your access; if so, how? What steps did you take to navigate the gatekeeper and were they
successful?

Describe the response(s) you received from your prospects. Was it what you expected? Why or
why not?

Didyougetanappointment? lfyes,describehowthishappened. lfyouwereunabletogetan

appointment, provide an explanation as to why you think this happened. What would you
differently next time? Was this experience different from what was described in your readings or
during class lectures? How and why? You are not limited to these questions in this section.

lf you had to call more than 3 companies to get an appointment with someone, describe what
happened and evaluate your experience. Did you get better with practice? Did you try to contact
the same the prospect multiple times after being rejected? Did the prospect seem more willing
after repeated efforts? Analyze your experience thoroughly.

Was it necessary to adapt the list of questions you had planned to ask, if so why and how?

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 71. Experience at the Prospect's Meeting

From the prospects that agreed to meet with you, choose the one you are using for your class
presentation and describe your experience with this prospect in detail.

Provide evidence from what you (i.e., demeanor of individual, dress, conversation style, visible body
language, etc). Did you have to make adjustments to accommodate the prospect's style? lf you
were meeting on the telephone, use tone of voice and attitude to discern the color of the prospect.
Describe this briefly.

Describe how you introduced yourselves to the prospect. Did you follow the guidelines
recommended in your readings? How did you develop rapport? How is this type of distance
meeting different from an in-person meeting? Are there any advantages to distance meeting?
Disadvantages?

Did you get the answers you needed? Did you think of other questions during the meeting? Did your
prospect volunteer additional information you were not expecting? Please include the final list of
questions you asked this particular prospect and answers to the questions in an appendix within
your paper.

72. Overoll Project Experience

Provide an overall evaluation of your experience with this project. Provide an honest assessment of
how the process went from beginning to end: both the positives and negatives. You will learn from
both and I am very interested in hearing your thoughts, What did you do well? What would you do
differently next time? Did you choose the right prospect group or industry? You may include
anything of interest/importance that happened during the meetings that were not addressed in
other sections because they may not have "fit" that topic. You should integrate the ideas from your
class readings into this section and compare and contrast what you read with what you actually
experienced. Please be sure to develop some concrete thoughts in this section that tie up the entire
experience of the project. This section is not a conclusion - it is an analysis of your experience.

Note: Sections 10, 11 and L2 are the MOST important sections of the paper and the majority of
your grade will be based on these. You should put significant effort into these sections. I will
evaluate the paper not just on the analysis of your experiences, but also, on the degree to which
you integrate the class materials into your actual experience. You may use material from my
lecture notes, readings from the Pink and Dixon/Adamson books as reference points for your
observations and ideas. You may also integrate learnings from class interactive exercises. Did
L what you learned help you prepare for this project? Why or why not?

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 References

Tables, Chorts and Exhibits

Appendices

Key Evaluation Dimensions for the Written Project

. Quality, comprehensiveness, integration, and relevance of the analysis in each of the major stages
of the project and their integration with personal selling concepts covered throughout the course

.The support of conclusions and decisions in all stages, including the quality of the evidence
provided

. The cohesiveness of all decisions and consistency between sections

. The effective use and clarity of graphical/ tabular displays

L . References and appendices

. Overall performance and professionalism includes: clarity and conciseness of writing, appropriate
use of headings, sub-headings, grammar, and spelling, the absence of typographical errors, and the
appropriate documentation and overall presentation of the project, as well as compliance with
General Housekeeping requirements. Excessive errors, disorganized presentation style and poor
writing will result in grade reductions.

All work is due on the assigned date at the beginning of the class, and no exceptions will be made. I"ATE
SUBMISSIONS WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED NOR WILLTHEY BE GIVEN CREDIT.

Reports must include some form of tab or separator identification for exhibits and appendices that are
located at the back of the report. This facilitates reading and verification.

General Housekeeping for ALI Written Submissions

I All submissions must be printed and double-spaced. A minimum font size of 11 Times New
Roman or Arial must be used. Condensed typefaces (e.g. narrow) are not allowed.
Violations will incur a deduction of 5% from the final course grade.
I Minimum of 1-inch margins on all sides. Violations will incur a deduction of 5% from the
final course grade.
I Pages must be numbered.

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 I Written work which does not abide by the report specifications or General Housekeeping
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Rules for font, margin, length, etc. will incur 5% grade deductions.
Each exhibit must be appropriately titled, numbered, referenced within the body of the
report, and tied to the content presented in the report. lts significance must be discussed
within the main body of the report.
I All submissions must be properly documented using APA format for references, footnotes
and bibliography. You may also use end notes if you prefer.

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