Lesson 7.1 – Understanding Sales

LESSON 7.1 Intro to Promotion & Sales Sales Action Sales: The process of determining customer needs and wants through planned, personalized communication intended to influence purchase decisions and ensure satisfaction It is the exchange of goods and services from producers to consumers for a price

LESSON 7.1 Intro to Promotion & Sales Sales Examples in SEM a) Selling group tickets to a play b) Negotiating an event contract with a facility or venue c) A college athletic department soliciting donations from d) alumni to fund scholarship opportunities e) Selling an event sponsorship package Sales

1. Selling is the revenue-producing element of the marketing process 2. Sales is the only revenue-producing function for an organization 3. Selling helps customers make informed buying decisions a) Results in customer satisfaction and repeat business Why is selling important? LESSON 7.1 Intro to Promotion & Sales Sales

LESSON 7.1 Intro to Promotion & Sales Sales Action 1. Personal Selling: Any person-to- person communication in which the seller has an opportunity to influence the consumer’s buying decisions a)The process is a two- way communication between a representative of the company and the customer b)Personal selling is the only form of sales that involves direct contact between the sales professional and potential customer

LESSON 7.1 Intro to Promotion & Sales Personal Selling In a non-traditional example of personal selling, members of the Western Kentucky University football team go door-to-door selling football tickets. In that season, players sold 300 season tickets and the Hilltoppers enjoyed the second-highest average attendance figures in school history. Student attendance has increased more than 80 percent from 2006 to 2008.

LESSON 7.1 Intro to Promotion & Sales a) The Sales Person can immediately tailor the sales message based on the prospective customer’s response, feedback and buying signals b)Allows for the communication of specific information relating the customer needs than any other form of promotion c) Complex information can be explained Benefits To Personal Selling

LESSON 7.1 Intro to Promotion & Sales d) The likelihood of the customer paying attention to the information being shared is greatly increased because of the face-face communication e) Provides the best opportunity to establish solid working relationships, enhancing the probability of developing long term relationships with consumers Key Advantages To Personal Selling

LESSON 7.1 Intro to Promotion & Sales a)Inside sales I.professionals sell company products and services over the phone, Internet, or other means of communication from inside the company’s office Personal Selling Categories Sales

LESSON 7.1 Intro to Promotion & Sales Inside Sales II.Inside sales professionals make outgoing calls to prospective customers or receive incoming orders or phone calls pertaining to company products or services a)According to a report from two Illinois State University researchers, the most successful collegiate athletic departments are making as many as 3,500 outgoing phone calls each week to try to sell more tickets, an effort that their research suggests can generate $1 million or more in additional revenue for the school’s athletics program

II.Often utilized for products and services that require minimal investment levels, such as smaller ticket packages II.In most instances, an inside sales staff consists primarily of telemarketers a)Telemarketers: Sales professionals that make outbound telephone calls to prospective customers in order to sell company products and services Inside Sales

LESSON 7.1 Intro to Promotion & Sales Outside sales professionals typically communicate with customers in person Personal Selling Categories Sales

LESSON 7.1 Intro to Promotion & Sales Many ticket sales and most sponsorship sales opportunities are most effective as outside sales calls Also referred to as “field sales” or “external sales” Outside Sales

LESSON 7.1 Intro to Promotion & Sales Personal Selling Categories Sales Box office sales professionals are located on site at a venue or facility who sell to customers in person at the event or to future events

Box Office Sales LESSON 7.1 Intro to Promotion & Sales Movie theaters sell nearly all tickets through box office sales, although more and more consumers are buying movie tickets in advance online through services like Fandango

LESSON 7.1 Intro to Promotion & Sales Sales Methods  Feature-Benefit Selling  Full-Menu Marketing  E-Commerce  Direct Mail Sales

LESSON 7.1 Intro to Promotion & Sales Sales Action Product attributes (features): The basic, physical, and extended characteristics of an item For example, many professional sports teams sell tickets in club seating levels The seats often have distinct product features that set them apart from general seating, such as wider seats or video screens on the seats in front of them

LESSON 7.1 Intro to Promotion & Sales Sales Action Customer Benefits: The advantages or personal satisfaction a customer will get from a good or service Comfort, convenience, and space are benefits of club seating

LESSON 7.1 Intro to Promotion & Sales Sales Action Feature-Benefit Selling: The process involves matching specific product attributes to a customer’s needs and wants A company may have purchased club seats to entertain clients and would want to reward them for their business by allowing them to sit in the most comfortable seats possible at the game or event

Full Menu Marketing LESSON 7.1 Intro to Promotion & Sales A sales professional working for a minor league sports team may meet with a company and have the ability to offer a small sponsorship, a major sponsorship featuring exclusivity benefits, season tickets, group tickets, VIP tickets, parking or a combination of those options

LESSON 7.1 Intro to Promotion & Sales Sales Action E-Commerce: Internet selling is a form of e-commerce and is executed using the Internet Any consumer who is a fan of Disney may go online and purchase DVDs, plush toys, action figures, watches, ornaments or many other products

LESSON 7.1 Intro to Promotion & Sales Sales Action Direct Mail: A sales effort conducted exclusively by mail Characteristically sent to large numbers of prospective customers soliciting orders for company products and services

 Targeted  Personal  Measurable  Testable  Flexible To be effective, a direct mail approach must be: LESSON 7.1 Intro to Promotion & Sales Sales

 Ticket brochures  Pocket schedules and posters  Fliers & other print media  Solicitation letters  Alternative Direct mail examples could include: LESSON 7.1 Intro to Promotion & Sales Sales

Direct Mail LESSON 7.1 Intro to Promotion & Sales To increase ticket and pay-per-view purchases, World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) distributed a direct mail piece to 700,000 consumers promoting its annual “SummerSlam” event Said Eddie Hill, SVP of marketing at the WWE, “Direct mail is one of our best targeted tactics”

Direct Mail LESSON 7.1 Intro to Promotion & Sales In an effort to leverage the team’s accomplishment of earning their first NHL Playoffs berth since 2007, the Tampa Bay Lightning utilized a direct mail strategy in 2012 to boost ticket sales by sending 30,000 specially designed postcards to area businesses (the postcards featured each recipient's company name on the name plate above a player's locker in the Lightning locker room)

Direct Mail LESSON 7.1 Intro to Promotion & Sales

Introduction to Promotion & Sales LESSON 7.1 REVIEW (ANSWERS) 1)Define and provide examples of sales Sales is the process of determining customer needs and wants through planned, personalized communication intended to influence purchase decisions and ensure satisfaction. Sales could include selling group tickets to a play, negotiating an event contract with a facility or venue, a college athletic department soliciting donations from alumni to fund scholarship opportunities, selling an event sponsorship package or fulfilling all components of a sponsorship agreement.

Introduction to Promotion & Sales LESSON 7.1 REVIEW (ANSWERS) 2)Identify three personal selling categories Three primary categories of personal selling in sports and entertainment include inside sales, outside sales and box office sales. 3) Identify four sales methods Four common sales methods in SEM include feature-benefit selling, full menu marketing, e-commerce and direct mail.