Unit 1.

Personal Selling: Preparation and

Process

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 Learning Objectives

• To understand psychology in selling, buying decision

process and buying situations
• To learn communication skills, sales knowledge, and
sales related marketing policies
• To understand personal selling process
• To learn about negotiation

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 Psychology in Selling

Stimulus Buyer’s decision Response

(Sales Presentation) making process (buy or no buy)

• If a sales person makes a presentation, the prospect

may or may not buy
• The above “buyer behaviour model” does not tell us
the reasons of buying or not buying
• To understand the psychological aspects of selling or
buying, salespeople should study consumer or buyer
behaviour, including buying process and situations

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 Buying Process of Consumers and Business Buyers

Five – stage model for household Eight – stage model for business
customers buyers
1. Problem / need recognition 1. Problem / need recognition
2. Characteristics and quantity
determination
3. Specification development
2. Information search / collection 4. Supplier search and qualification
5. Obtain and analyze supplier
proposals
3. Evaluate alternatives 6. Evaluation and selection of
suppliers
4. Purchase decision 7. Selection of purchase order routine
5. Post – purchase behaviour 8. Performance feedback and post-
purchase evaluation
 Buying Situations Faced By
Household customers Business Buyers
• Routine decision-making • New task / New purchase [less
information about product]
• Limited decision-making [not • Modified rebuy / change in
much aware of each brand’s supplier, need cost reduction
benefits, visit retail outlets]

• Extensive decision-making • Repeat purchase [rebuy]

• Buying process and situations differ for household
consumers and business buyers.
• Consumers / Buyers may skip or reverse some stages in
buying process e.g. A consumer buying toothpaste
 Knowledge of Sales and Sales-related Marketing
Policies
Sales Knowledge Marketing Policies
• Company knowledge • Pricing and Payment policies
[discounts, credit policy]
• Product knowledge • Product policies [product mix,
service policy]
• Customer knowledge • Distribution policies [conflicts of
using more than one channel]
• Competitor knowledge • Promotional policies [advertising,
PR, sales promotion (free
samples, coupons, POP), personal
selling, direct marketing (tele
marketing, e-mails]]
 Knowledge of Sales and Sales-related Marketing
Policies

Major reasons for giving above information / knowledge

through training programmes to salespeople are:

• increase their self-confidence

• Meet customers’ expectations

• Increase sales

• Overcome competition
 The Sales Process
As a part of selling activities, if salespeople follow the steps or
phases shown below, their chances of success are far better.

Prospecting & Preapproach / Presentation &

Qualifying Approach
Precall planning Demonstration

Follow-up & Trail close / Overcoming

Service Closing the sale Objections

• The sequence of above steps may change to meet the

sales situation in hand.
• Some of the above steps may not be applicable for selling
to the trade

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 Prospecting

•It is identifying or finding prospects i.e. prospective or potential

customers.

Methods of prospecting or sales lead generation :

• referrals from existing customers
• company sources (website, ads., tradeshow, tele-prospecting),
• external sources (suppliers, intermediaries, trade associations),
• salespersons’ networking
• industrial directories
• cold canvassing
• standard industrial classification (SIC) system.

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 Qualifying

•Companies qualify sales leads by contacting them by mail or

phone to find their interests (or needs) and financial capacity.

• Leads are categorized as:

Hot – good requirement, financially strong [salesperson]

Warm – medium requirement , financially strong [tele-mktg]

Cool – low requirement and financially not strong [distributor]

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 Preapproach
• Information gathering about the prospect.
Sources of information: the Internet, industrial
directories, government publications, intermediaries,
etc.

• Pre-call planning
• Setting call objectives
• Tentative planning of sales strategy: which
products, features and benefits may meet the
customer needs

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 Approach
• Make an appointment to meet the prospect
• Make favourable first impression
• Select an approach technique:
• Introductory
• Customer benefit
• Product
• Question
• Praise
• The approach takes a few minutes of a call, but it
can make or break a sale
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 Presentation and Demonstration

There are four components:

• Understanding the buyer’s needs
• Knowing sales presentation methods / strategies
• Developing an effective presentation
• Using demonstration as a tool for selling

We will examine each of the above points

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 Understanding the buyer’s needs

• Firms and consumers buy products / services to satisfy

needs
• To understand buyer’s needs, ask questions and listen
• In business situations, problem identification and
impact questions are important

e.g.
• Have you experienced any problems on quality and
delivery from the existing suppliers?
• What impact the quality and delivery problems will
have on your costs and customer satisfaction?
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 Sales Presentation Methods (Continued)

• Need – satisfaction method

• Interactive sales presentation
• First find prospect’s needs, by asking questions and
listening
• Use FAB approach: Features, Advantages, Benefits
• Effective method, as it focuses on customers
• Consultative selling method / Problem-solving
approach
• Salespeople use cross-functional expertise
• Firms adopt team selling approach
• It is used by software / consulting firms

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 Using Demonstration
• Sales presentation can be improved by
demonstration
• Demonstration is one of the important selling tools
e.g: Test drive of cars; demonstration of industrial
products in use
• Benefits of using demonstration for selling are:
• Buyers’ objections are cleared
• Improves the buyer’s purchasing interest
• Helps to find specific benefits of the prospect
• The prospect can experience the benefit

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 Overcoming Sales Objections / Resistances
• Objections take place during presentations / when the
order is asked
• Two types of sales objections:
• Psychological / hidden
• Logical (real or practical)
• Methods for handling and overcoming objections:
(i) For Psychological objections: ask questions.
(ii) For logical objections: (a) ask questions, (b) turn an
objection into a benefit, (c) deny objections tactfully,
(d) third-party certificate, (e) compensation /benefit

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 Trial close and Closing the sale
• Trial close checks the attitude or opinion of the
prospect, before closing the sale (or asking for the
order)
• If the response to trial close question is favourable,
then the salesperson should close the sale
• Some of the techniques used for closing the sale are:
(a) alternative-choice, (b) minor points, (c)
assumptive close (d) summary-of-benefits, (e) T-
account, (f) special-offer, (g) probability, and (h)
negotiation

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 Follow-up and Service

• Necessary for customer satisfaction

• Successful salespeople follow-up in different ways:
For example,
• Check order details
• Follow through delivery schedule
• Visit when the product is delivered
• Build long-term relationship
• Arrange warranty service

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 Negotiation
• Salespeople, particularly in business to business selling, need
negotiating skills
• When to negotiate?
(a) When the buyer puts certain conditions for buying to the
seller, (b) When agreement between the buyer and the seller
is needed on several factors, (c) When the product is
customised, (d) When the final price is to be decided
• How to prepare for negotiation?
(a) planning, (b) building relationship, (c) purpose
• Styles of negotiation
(a) I win, you lose, (b) Both of us win (or win-win style), (c) You
win, I lose, and (d) Both of us lose

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