Sales Seminar Assignment #2 (CH 2)
Group Members Names Group Members ID
Monika Dandriyal 10333346
Rachel Dias 10331106
Nandini Sharma 10332594
Madhuri Naidu 10331976
1. What’s the difference between manipulation and persuasion? Give two examples of what would be
considered manipulation and alternatives of acceptable persuasion. Then describe how your
examples of manipulation might fall into the realm of illegal activity.
2. There are many stories in the news where “officials” are granted gifts from a “client or customer”
such as luxury vacations, tickets to premier sporting events, living accommodations, financial
assistance for educational purposes, or even cash for preferential treatment or the awarding of
contracts. What might the ethical issues be with accepting a gift from a customer? How would you
respond if offered a gift?
Team Answer: As per our understanding, there are various ethical issues associated with accepting gifts
and kinds from a client or customer such as it can tarnish an organization’s reputation and can leave it
vulnerable to being unfair to others. Moreover, in some cases when you are giving or accepting gifts the
client or customer would nurture out of the box expectations. Furthermore, it may lead to backdoor
selling too. Also, a situation of Violation of policies may arise at an organization that may have some
adverse after-effects in case of gifts acceptance from a clients or customers.
In case of a gift, the following procedure might be followed: fist and foremost, express gratitude; where
you can thank the person for their offerings, however, one must also run a quick check with the
company’s policies. Also, you must decline if the gift is extravagant. If you’re still unsure, its better to
have a word with your manager regarding accepting of gifts. If the client or customer insists, you can
politely decline and suggest alternatives to material gifts such as positive feedbacks, testimonials or
referrals.
3. A salesperson copies all the customer contact information from the customer information software
onto a thumb drive, then quits his job. He then joins a company that sells to the same market, using
the customer information on the thumb drive to begin making calls. Is this ethical? Please support
your answer by reviewing the textbook.
Team Answer: We don’t think that this is the right or ethical thing to do as a salesperson, because this is
a pure case of violation of privacy, and breach of confidentiality as far as the former organization is
concerned. This practice may even leave room for legal implications, and one may have to bear the legal
repercussions. Furthermore, this can tarnish your reputation as a salesperson and would be bitter for the
new organization as well. There is no point of risking your career for something that the new company’s
data and analytics or the R&D team could do for you. It’s purely unethical and too big a risk.
Sales Seminar Assignment #2 (CH 2)
4. A customer asks if you can remove a safety feature because it slows down the operators of the
equipment. What Ethical issues and concerns does this raise?
Team Answer: The Ethical and legal concerns that this situation will raise are:
1. Employee Safety: The most important thing is the client's safety and well-being. The safety features
are designed to keep all the dangers at par and reduce the risk of exposing them to unnecessary
risks and hazards.
2. Legal Compliance: The company's policy is very clear on the concerns of safety. Hence, it will be illegal
to do so.
3. Professional Integrity: In this situation, the salesperson should politely refuse to remove the safety
feature and could also deny the customer’s request.
4.Corporate Social Responsibility: Making choices that jeopardize safety in the name of operational
effectiveness can harm a company's reputation and call into question its dedication to moral business
conduct.
5. Long-Term Consequences: While removing a safety feature without any notice, it can lead to long-run
consequences. It can lead to accidents, or insurance cost that may have to be covered by the company.
5. A customer puts out a request for bids, saying that the lowest bid that meets the specifications will
be awarded the job. The purchasing agent calls you when the bids are opened and says if you lower
your price 8 percent, you can get the job. You ask who the lowest qualified bidder was and the buyer
says it wasn’t you. Is this ethical by your customer? What should your concerns be with their
request? How do you think can affect future negotiations with the customer? How would you
respond to your customer and why?
Team Answer: The team thinks that this is not a Fair Competition as the customer is interested in a
lower price after the bids have been uncovered. Furthermore, it also leads to integrity compromise and
raises discrepancy questions.
Moreover, as far as the company is concerned, it may affect the trust between the supplier and the
customer and may have impact on future negotiations.
