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 analyse 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

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Buying Situations Faced By

Household customers Business Buyers

• Routine decision-making • New task / New purchase

• Limited decision-making • Modified rebuy / change in

supplier
• Extensive decision-making • Straight rebuy / Repeat purchase

• 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

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Knowledge of Sales and Sales-related
Marketing Policies
Sales Knowledge Marketing Policies
• Company knowledge • Pricing and Payment policies
• Product knowledge • Product policies
• Customer knowledge • Distribution policies
• Competitor knowledge • Promotional 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

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 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 & Trial 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
• We now discuss application of above steps to industrial
selling
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Prospecting
• It is identifying or finding prospects i.e. prospective or
potential customers.
• Methods of prospecting or sales lead generation are:
(1) referrals from existing customers, (2) company sources
(website, ads., tradeshow, teleprospecting), (3) external
sources (suppliers, intermediaries, trade associations), (4)
salespersons’ networking, (5) industrial directories, (6) cold
canvassing

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, Warm, and Cool

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 Preapproach
• Information gathering about the prospect.
Sources of information: the Internet, industrial
directories, government publications,
intermediaries, etc.
• Precall 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 supplies?
• What impact the quality and delivery problems
will have on your costs and customer satisfaction?

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 Knowing Sales Presentation Methods/Strategies
Firms have developed different methods / styles / strategies of
sales presentation
• Stimulus response method / canned approach.
• It is a memorised sales talk or a prepared sales presentation.
• The sales person talks without knowing the prospect’s needs.
E.G. Used by tele-marketing people
• Formula method / formulated approach.
• It is also based on stimulus response thinking that all
prospects are similar.
• The salesperson uses a standard formula – AIDA (attention,
interest, desire, and action).
• It is used if time is short and prospects are similar.
• Shortcomings are: prospects’ needs are not uncovered and
uses same standard formula for different prospects.

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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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 Developing an Effective Presentation
Some of the guidelines are:
• Plan the sales call
• Adopt presentation to the situation and person
• Communicate the benefits of the purchase
• Present relevant and limited information at a
time
• Use the prospect’s language
• Make the presentation convincing – give
evidence
• Use technology like multi-media presentation

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 Using Demonstration

• Sales presentation can be improved by

demonstration
• Demonstration is one of the important selling
tools EGs: 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: (a) ask questions, (b) turn an
objection into a benefit, (c) deny objections
tactfully, (d) third-party certificate, (e)
compensation

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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, (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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 Key Learnings
• For understanding psychology in selling, study
consumer or buyer behaviour, buying process and
situations
• Salespeople are given knowledge of sales and relevant
marketing policies in order to increase their self-
confidence and sales, and meet customers’
expectations
• Typical steps in the sales process include prospecting
and qualifying, preapproach, approach, presentation
and demonstration, overcoming objections, trial close /
closing the sale, follow-up and service
• Salespeople should know when to negotiate, how to
prepare for negotiation and which style of negotiation to
use
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