Marketing Essentials Unit 5: Selling

Chapter 12: Preparing for the Sale Types of selling: Personal Selling: Any form of direct contact between a salesperson and a customer. Retail Selling: The salesperson answers customers’ questions about the product or its features.

Chapter 12: Preparing for the Sale Types of Selling Cont. Business-to-Business Selling: Take place in a manufacturer’s show room or in a customer’s place. Telemarketing: Selling over the phone.

12.1 What is Selling? Goals of Selling: help customers make buying decisions, creates profitable relationships. less expensive to keep current customers happy than to make new customers. Consultative Selling: Provides solutions to customers’ problems by finding products that meet their needs.

12.1 What is Selling? Feature Benefit Selling: Matching characteristics of a product to a customer’s needs and wants. Product Features: Physical or extended attributes of the product. Customer Benefits: personal satisfaction a customer gets from a product. Customer Buying Motives: What motivates customers to buy Hi Sarah

12.1 What is Selling? Customer Decision Making: Some customers need no help from salespeople, and others require time and effort Types of customer decision making: Extensive Decision Making: Used when there has been little or no previous experience with an item. EX: Hi Erin

12.1 What is Selling? Limited Decision Making: Used when a person buys goods and services that he or she has purchased before but not regularly. Ex:

12.1 What is Selling? Routine Decision Making: used when a person needs little information about a product. Ex:

12.2 Getting Ready to Sell Pre-Approach: preparation for face-to-face encounter with potential customers. Product Information: Find info through experience, written publications, & other people. Businesses offer discounts to employees so they can test merchandise. Labels provide info for clothing items and prepackaged goods.

12.2 Getting Ready to Sell Industry Trends: sales people read periodicals to gain insight into the industry. Prospecting: looking for new customers. Employer leads: firms employ telemarketing teams to generate leads. Directories: lists businesses that may be potential customers Newspapers: provide good leads for some salespeople.

12.2 Getting Ready to Sell Commercial Lists: salespeople buy lists of potential customers from companies specializing in categorizing people. Customer Referrals: satisfied customers give salespeople the names of other people who might buy the product. Cold canvassing: potential customers are selected at random.

12.2 Getting Ready to Sell Preparing for the Sale in Business-to-Business Selling: pre-approach depends on ifthe sales call is with a previous customer or a new one. Preparing for the sale in retail selling: Straightening, rearranging, and replenishing the stock. Adjusting price tickets before and after special sales.

12.2 Getting Ready to Sell Preparing for the sale cont. Learning where stock is located and how much is available. Arranging displays. Keeping the selling and display areas neat and clean.

12.2 Getting Ready to Sell Company Policies and Training: Training: 4-step process used by sales managers who are responsible for training new sales personnel. Compensation and Sales Quotas: salespeople are compensated by straight commission, straight salary, or salary plus commission.

12.2 Getting Ready to Sell Sales quotas: dollar or unit sales goals set to achieve in a specified period of time. Legal and Ethical Issues: sales associates may engage in hard-selling tactics, may lie to a prospective customer.

13.1 The Sales Process Selling process: matching customer needs and wants to features and benefits of a product or service. Seven Steps of the Selling Process: Approaching the customer-greeting the customer face to face. Determining needs-learning what the customer is looking for to decide what products to show and which product features to present first

13.1 The Sales Process Presenting the product- educating the customer about the product’s features and benefits. Overcoming objections-learning why the customer is reluctant to buy, providing info to remove uncertainty, and help the customer to make a satisfying buying decision.

13.1 The Sales Process Closing the sale-getting the customer’s positive agreement to buy. Suggestion selling-suggesting additional merchandise or services that will help your customer enjoy the purchase. Relationship building-maintaining contact with the customer after the sale

13.1 The Sales Process Approaching the customer 3 purposes: begin conversation establish a relationship focus on the product.

13.1 The Sales Process The Approach in Business-to Business Selling: depends on prior dealings with the customer or the pre-approach. The Approach in Retail Selling: quick approach undecided customers=encourage them to look around.

13.1 The Sales Process The Three Methods of Approach in Retail Selling Service Approach: asks the customer if he or she needs assistance. Greeting Approach: welcomes the customer to the store.

13.1 The Sales Process Merchandise Approach Method: asks questions or makes comments about a product in which the customer shows interest. Using Conversation Skills: Approaches customer and starts talking about the merchandise.

13.2 Determining Needs in sales When to Determine Needs: Example of determining wrong needs: Salesperson: “This is one of our most popular tennis rackets. It’s perfect for you- the grip is the correct size and the large sweet spot can improve your game.” Customer: “That’s very interesting; but, I’m not buying the racket for myself. It’s actually a gift for my nine-year-old daughter.”

13.2 Determining needs in sales How to Determine Needs: Three methods: Observing: look for buying motives that are communicated nonverbally. Nonverbal communication: is expressing yourself without words.

13.2 Determining needs in sales Listening: pick up clues to the customer’s needs that you can target for the product presentation. Questioning and Engaging the Customer: 1st ask general questions about the intended use of the product and any previous experience with it. Use words like: who, what, when, where, why, and how.

13.2 Determining needs in sales How to Refine Your Questioning: Open-ended questions: more than a yes or no answer. Do’s and Don’ts Guidelines: 1. Do ask open-ended questions that encourage customers to do the talking. 2. Do ask clarifying questions to make sure you understand customers’ needs.

13.2 Determining needs in sales 3. Do not ask too many questions in a row. Makes customers feel they’re being cross-examined. 4. Do not ask questions that might embarrass customers or make them defensive.