Basic Marketing: A Global Managerial Approach

Perreault−McCarthy: Basic
Marketing: A
Global−Managerial
Approach, 14/e

15. Personal Selling Text © The McGraw−Hill
    Companies, 2002

Personal Selling 441

Personal Selling Techniques—Prospecting and Presenting

When we discussed the need for sales training programs, we stressed the impor-

tance of training in selling techniques. Now let’s discuss these ideas in more detail

so you understand the basic steps each salesperson should follow—including

prospecting and selecting target customers, planning sales presentations, making

sales presentations, and following up after the sale. Exhibit 15-4 shows the steps

we’ll consider. You can see that the salesperson is just carrying out a planned com-

munication process—as we discussed in Chapter 14.^20

Narrowing the personal selling effort down to the right target requires constant,

detailed analysis of markets and much prospecting. Basically, prospectinginvolves

following all the leads in the target market to identify potential customers.

Finding live prospects who will help make the buying decision isn’t as easy as it

sounds. In business markets, for example, the salesperson may need to do some hard

detective work to find the real purchase decision makers. Multiple buying influence

is common, and companies regularly rearrange their organization structures and buy-

ing responsibilities.

Most salespeople use the telephone for much of their detective work. A phone

call often saves the wasted expense of personal visits to prospects who are not

Prospecting—narrowing

down to the right target

Feedback

Preplan sales call and presentation(s)

Prepared presentation

Consultative selling approach

Selling formula approach

Select target customer

Identify who influences purchase decision

and/or who is involved in buyer–seller relationship

Make sales presentation

Create interest

Overcome problems/objections

Arouse desire

Close sale

(get action)

Follow up after

the sales call to

establish relationship

(customer acquisition)

Follow up after the

purchase to maintain

and enhance

relationship

(customer retention)

Prospect for

new customers

Evaluate needs of established

customers and business opportunity

Set effort

priorities

Exhibit 15-4

Key Steps in the Personal

Selling Process