Managing the sales force of a marketing firm. Managing the Sales Personnel of a Marketing Firm Strategy for Using Sales Personnel

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2. DEVELOPMENT OF A SALES SYSTEM
Sales personnel serve as a link between the company and consumers. In the minds of most buyers, a sales representative is essentially the face of the company, its materialized image. It is he who brings the company basic information about consumers. Therefore, the company needs to pay as much attention as possible to the issues of the sales system, namely the development of its goals, strategy, structure, size and remuneration.
2.1 Marketing system objectives
The company must set specific tasks for the sales department. The belief that sales personnel must “sell, sell, sell” has become widespread, so many companies set sales standards, and the better the employee performs, the higher his performance is rated. Subsequently, the concept emerged that the sales representative must be prepared to qualified solutions to consumer problems, be able to analyze them and offer the buyer a suitable solution. In recent years, many companies have insisted on the need to include sales personnel in “relationship selling.” This concept suggests that sales representatives not only try to sell a specific product or offer a solution to a specific problem, but also explain to potential consumers that a stable relationship with the company allows its partners to increase their profits. In this way, the sales representative seeks to unite the two companies into a “profit partnership.”

The main functions of the sales staff include:

Assessment of prospects - search for new promising areas for product sales.

Setting goals-distribution of time between current and potential consumers.

Communications - qualified dissemination of information about the company's products and services.

Sales - the practical implementation of the art of trading - approaching the consumer, presenting the product, satisfying the buyer's requests and completing the transaction.

Services - provision of various services to consumers - consultations on problems that have arisen, provision of technical assistance, organization of resolution of financial issues and ensuring delivery of goods.

Collection of information - participation in market research and collection of information for the needs of the company.

Distribution - decision on the procedure for consumers to receive scarce goods.
Typically, a company assigns specific tasks to its sales staff. Suppose it requires that sales employees devote 80% of their working time to working with clients, and 20% to developing promising areas;

Or 85% of the time - selling the company's main products, and 15% - new products. Otherwise, sales representatives will likely spend most of their time selling well-established products to current customers, while neglecting new products and prospects.

The set of tasks of a sales representative depends on the state of the economy. During periods of growth and high demand, sales representatives have no problems making sales, and some companies jump to the conclusion that they can make do with fewer sales staff. However, they fail to note that salespeople also perform a number of other functions: distributing products, servicing dissatisfied customers, communicating the company's plans to eliminate shortages, selling the company's products that are not in great demand.

As the battle for consumers intensifies, companies are becoming increasingly meticulous about the ability of their sales staff to satisfy consumers and ensure company profits. Sales personnel must be able to analyze sales data, measure market potential, collect market information, and develop marketing strategies and plans. Sales representatives need analytical marketing skills, which become especially important at the highest levels of sales management.

2.2 Sales strategy
Companies compete to obtain orders from consumers, so they must pay special attention to ensuring that sales personnel reach the right consumers at the right time and in the right way. There are several ways sales representatives work with consumers.

Sales representative with buyer: conversation with a potential consumer or current buyer in person or by phone.

Sales representative with a group of consumers: working with a group of potential buyers in order to attract attention to the company's products.

Trading team with a group of consumers: The sales team works closely with the buying company's purchasing team.

Holding the conference: a sales representative invites potential clients and, participating in a discussion of problems, demonstrates a solution using his company's products.

Conducting the seminar: Company employees organize an educational seminar to present and discuss new products.

Thus, modern sales representatives often act as “managers,” organizing contacts between authorized employees in the buying and selling companies. The sales process is becoming increasingly participatory as it requires the support of a diverse staff, for example senior managers are increasingly involved in the sales process; technicians provide consumers with the information and services they need before, during, and after purchasing a product; employees of the supplier company install equipment, maintain it and provide other services to customers; Company employees, including sales analysts, ordering agents and secretaries, support paperwork, etc.

Once a company selects one sales approach, it can use direct or contract sales force. Direct sales staff(company sales force) consists of full-time and part-time employees of the company. This staff consists of internal sales staff, which carries out activities without leaving the office, using the telephone and receives consumers, as well as from field sales workers, specializing in travel to meet with consumers. Contract sales personnel consists of representatives of the manufacturing company, sales agents and/or brokers, who are paid a commission for the sales they make.
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--PAGE_BREAK--2.3 Sales structure
The sales system strategy influences its structure. If a company sells one type of product to enterprises in the same industry with consumers scattered over a large area, it will prefer to use a territorial distribution system structure. If a company supplies a variety of products to different customers, it should choose a product or market structure for its distribution system. IN table 1 The most commonly used distribution system structures are presented. Companies must reconsider their distribution system structure as markets and economic conditions change.
2.4. The scope of the sales system

Once the strategy and structure of the distribution system are clarified, the company is ready to determine its scope. Sales representatives are one of the most productive and valuable assets of an enterprise. An increase in their number will lead to an increase in both the level of sales and overhead costs.

To determine the number of sales personnel, a company can use labor method. It consists of the following steps.

1. Buyers are divided into classes according to annual sales level.

2. An appropriate frequency of contact (number of telephone calls per year) is determined for each class.

3. The number of each class of buyers is multiplied by the corresponding frequency of contacts, which, after summation, gives the total labor costs for the country in telephone calls for one year.

4. The average number of calls made by one sales representative per year is determined.

5. The required number of sales representatives is calculated by dividing the total labor costs by the average number of calls per representative.
Table 1.

OPTIONS FOR SALES SYSTEM STRUCTURES

Structure Description
Territorial Each sales representative is assigned to a specific territory in which he represents the entire range of the company's products. This structure has a number of advantages. Firstly, it leads to a clear definition of the employee's responsibilities. As the only representative serving a given territory, he bears full responsibility for sales. Secondly, territorial responsibility increases the sales representative's interest in establishing local business connections. Third, Travel costs are relatively low because each sales representative moves within a small area.

Size territories. Territories can be determined in such a way as to provide either commensurate sales potential or workload of sales personnel. Territories with commensurate potential provide each sales representative with the same earning potential and enable the company to compare employee performance. Consistent differences in sales levels across territories likely reflect differences in sales force ability or effort. However, since the density of consumers varies from territory to territory, territories with equal potential can vary significantly in size. Alternatively, territories may be defined in such a way that equalize the workload of workers. Today, companies can use computer programs to develop sales territories, optimizing indicators such as compactness, proportionality of trading potential or workload of employees, and minimal travel time.

Commodity The importance of the sales representative being aware of their product range has led many companies to structure their sales systems according to commodity principle. This structure is especially useful if the products are technically complex, highly variable, or varied. For example, Kodak uses some employees to sell its photographic products, which require intensive distribution, and others to sell complex products that require technical knowledge.

Market Companies often specialize their sales force by industry or customer group. Separate trade groups can be organized for different industries and even individual consumers. The most obvious advantage of market specialization is that a salesperson can become a specialist in the special needs of the clients with whom he works. The main challenges arise when consumers are scattered across the country, requiring each salesperson to travel frequently for business.

Complex When a company sells a wide range of products to different consumers over a wide area, it often combines different principles of structuring its distribution system. Sales representatives can specialize by product territory, market territory, product market, and so on. A sales representative may report to a line or personnel manager.

3.Remuneration system for sales workers
To attract high-quality sales representatives, the company should develop an attractive compensation system that includes regular salaries, bonuses for performance, and adequate compensation for experience and seniority. The goal of management is to establish control over the implementation of its conditions, achieve savings, and ensure that subordinates understand the system. Some of these goals, particularly cost savings, conflict with sales representatives' goals, such as financial stability. It is not surprising that wage systems vary not only across different manufacturing and service sectors, but also within the same industry.

Management determines the level and components of an effective employee compensation system. The level of remuneration should take into account the “current market price” for workers of a given specialty and required qualifications. For example, the average salary of a typical American sales representative is $50,000. If the “market price” for sales representatives is clearly defined, an individual firm has no choice but to follow generally accepted practice. Wages below the current level will lead to a drop in the qualifications of job applicants, and wages exceeding this level are inappropriate.

Next, the company should determine the four components of sales force compensation—fixed salary, flexible pay, overhead reimbursement, and benefits. Fixed salary salary satisfies the employee’s need for financial stability. Flexible payment in the form of commissions, bonuses or profit sharing of the company is intended to stimulate and reward additional effort on his part. Overhead reimbursement allows you to compensate sales representatives for additional expenses for travel, hotel accommodation, food and recreation. Benefits, such as paid time off, sickness and accident benefits, pensions and life insurance are designed to provide workers with security and job satisfaction.

Trading management must determine the relative importance of these components. The most common opinion is that fixed wages should make up about 70% of the employee's total income, and the remaining 30% should be distributed among the other three components. However, these are only approximate figures. Fixed wages are convenient if there are significant seasonal differences in sales volumes or the sales process depends on the work of a large number of people. Flexible payment becomes especially important in cases where the level of sales is cyclical or depends on the personal initiative of the employee.

Fixed and flexible wages give rise to three systems material incentives for employees - fixed salary, piecework wages and their combination. Only a quarter of all firms use the first two systems, with the rest using a combination of the two methods.

Fixed wages have a number of advantages. It provides a stable income for the employee, stimulates the desire to engage in non-trading activities and reduces the likelihood of excessive sales. From the company's point of view, such a remuneration system allows for ease of management and less turnover of sales personnel. The advantages of piecework wages are the attraction of more productive workers, their high motivation, less control and the ability to regulate sales costs. A combined remuneration system combines the advantages of both systems.

By using compensation systems that combine rigid and flexible systems, companies are able to link variable pay to a wide range of strategic goals. Some marketers note a new trend - a decrease in the importance of quantitative indicators when assessing the effectiveness of work activities and an increasing role of indicators related to the achievement of strategic goals - for example, increasing the profitability of individual sales territories. A recent study showed that an increasing number of companies are using efficiency divisions and/or individual teams of workers. The share of companies that reward departmental performance rose from 13% in 1991 to 22% in 1994. In addition, a growing number of companies are emphasizing customer satisfaction as part of improving performance and at the same time seeking to use this indicator in determining amount of remuneration. ^

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--PAGE_BREAK--4. SALES SERVICE MANAGEMENT
After the company has determined the goals, strategy, structure, size and compensation system for sales personnel, it must engage in the recruitment, selection, training, control, motivation and evaluation of sales representatives.

4.1 Recruitment and selection of sales representatives
The key to a successful sales system is the selection of effective sales representatives. The performance gap between average and top-performing sales reps can be dramatic. One study found that 27% of a company's sales force makes 52% of sales. The average turnover rate for sales staff is almost 20%. When a sales employee leaves, the cost of hiring and training a new employee, along with the damage from unconcluded deals, amounts to $50-75 thousand. In addition, a sales service in which newcomers predominate is unproductive.

Financial losses caused by staff turnover are only part of the total costs. If a new sales representative makes $30,000 a year, then another $30,000 goes toward additional benefits, supervision, office space, supplies, and secretarial services. The new sales rep must generate a net profit that covers at least $60,000 in sales. If the profit margin is 10%, the rep must close at least $600,000 in sales.

4.2 How to find a good sales representative?
Most consumers expect sales representatives to honesty, reliability, information and usefulness. The company focuses on these traits when selecting candidates. Another approach is to highlight the qualities that most successful salespeople share, namely:

justified risk, a developed sense of responsibility, a propensity to solve problems, care for the consumer and careful planning of business meetings. Some add to this list the requirement of energy, self-confidence, an inescapable desire for money, an understanding of the characteristics of a particular industry and a special character that makes a person perceive every objection, resistance or obstacle as a challenge to himself. Those who find this list too long can limit themselves to two main characteristics: sympathy, that is, the ability to feel the same way as the consumer; And selfish incentive that is, a strong personal need to make a sale.

When determining the specific work profile of a sales representative, it is necessary to take into account the nature of the responsibilities assigned to him: the amount of paperwork, the need for frequent business trips, the possibility of a large number of refusals from potential consumers.
4.2.1 Recruitment procedures
After management has developed criteria for selecting applicants, the stage of hiring candidates for open vacancies begins. The HR department finds job applicants in a variety of ways, including referrals from its sales representatives, recruiting agencies, posting job openings, contacting training centers, etc. Unfortunately, very few students are tempted into a career as a sales representative. Here are their arguments: “Trade is a job, but not a profession,” “Such work is unreliable and requires frequent travel.” To overcome this kind of doubt, the company needs to emphasize the high starting level of earnings, the possibility of additional income, and the fact that a quarter of all the leaders of the largest American corporations began their activities in marketing and sales.
4.2.2.Procedures for selecting job applicants
Recruitment procedures, if successful, will attract a large number of job applicants and the company will be able to select the best of the best. Selection procedures range from a simple interview to lengthy tests and interviews, not only of the job applicants themselves, but also of their spouses. If they are not prepared for the lifestyle of an "out of home" sales representative, the employee's job is unlikely to be successful.

Many companies use formal tests in selection. And although test results are one of the elements in a series of characteristics, reviews from previous jobs and interviews, they are rated quite highly by companies such as IBM
,
Prudential
,
Procter
&
Gamble And Gillette
. So, Gillette claims that the practice of testing job applicants has led to a 42% reduction in employee turnover, while the company's new sales representatives have made significant progress in the company's sales force.
4.3. Training of sales representatives
Many companies involve new employees in the sales process almost immediately after hiring. They are provided with product samples, order forms and a description of the sales territory, but most often the first steps of newcomers are not effective.

Modern buyers are demanding, work with a large number of suppliers and will not tolerate f
. incompetent sales representatives. Buyers expect in-depth knowledge of the product, suggestions for improving the consumer experience, as well as efficiency and reliability. These requirements force companies to seriously engage in training and training of sales personnel.

Modern sales representatives spend a year on various courses from several weeks to several months. The average initial training period is 28 weeks for industrial goods companies, 12 weeks for service companies and 4 weeks for consumer goods companies. The training time depends on the complexity of the sales process and the personal qualities of the employee. New sales representatives.

IBM undergo intensive initial training and spend up to 15% of their annual working time in additional training.

Sales personnel training programs are based on the fact that sales representatives are required to:

Know the history of the company and identify with it: Many companies spend the first period of training describing the history of the company, its goals and objectives, organizational structure, key executives, financial system, major products and sales volumes.

Understand the properties of the product: workers are shown how a product is produced and how it is used in various situations.

Possess the necessary information about consumers and competitors: different types of consumers, their needs, purchasing motives, habits, as well as the strategy and policies of the company and its competitors are studied.

Know how to make effective sales presentations: training in the principles of sales is provided, the arguments used to sell a given product are reviewed, and an approximate sales scenario is developed.

Trading procedures and responsibilities: sales representatives learn to distribute their time between current and potential clients, keep track of costs, draw up reports and choose the best travel routes.

New teaching methods are constantly emerging: business games, sensitivity training. Audio and video equipment, educational programs and films are widely used in classes.

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--PAGE_BREAK--4.4. Monitoring the activities of sales representatives
Companies vary in how tightly they control their workers. Sales representatives who are paid primarily on a piece-rate basis are usually subject to less supervision than those who are salaried and must meet certain standards.
Development of standards for contacts with consumers. In the 1980s the number of daily personal contacts of sales workers with potential and actual customers decreased from 5 to 4.2. This trend continued into the 1990s. - increased use of telephones and faxes, automated ordering systems and other technical means has reduced the number of unproductive meetings while simultaneously increasing the total number of contacts.

Development of standards for contacts with promising clients. Companies practice setting time standards for sales personnel to find new clients. So Spector

Freight allocates 25% of sales representatives' time to "free prospecting", and is prohibited from re-contacting potential customers if the first three calls are unsuccessful.

Effective use of time. Modern research shows that sales representatives must be able to manage their time effectively. One of the most useful planning tools is contact schedule, which determines which clients or potential buyers need to be called in the current month.

Another tool is analysis of time and responsibilities, which helps sales reps evaluate how they spend their time and areas to improve productivity. For example, a sales representative's time is allocated as follows.

Preparation - the time required for an employee to obtain information and plan contacts with consumers.

Trips - in some cases, travel takes up to 50% of sales staff's time. Travel time can be reduced by making optimal use of different modes of transport, bearing in mind, of course, that this will entail an increase in overhead costs.

Meals and breaks - a certain part of the working day of sales personnel is allocated for eating and rest. It is advisable that breaks do not harm communication with clients.

Expectation - time spent by a sales representative waiting to receive customers. We recommend using it for planning or filling out reports.

Sale - This is the time allocated to talk with the buyer - in person or over the phone. It is divided into “small talk” and “business talk.” The sales representative is required to maintain a balance between the two.

Case Management

Sales assistants telemarketing,

Office sales staff frees up the time of the field “soldiers” to work with large clients, find and attract new large buyers, install electronic product ordering systems at buyer enterprises and receive more complex orders and contracts. Internal sales employees devote more working time to checking inventory levels, servicing orders, telephone contacts with small wholesale buyers, etc. The work of sales representatives “in the field” is paid, as a rule, on a progressive basis, while internal employees receive a fixed salary with a possible payment of bonuses.

Another significant breakthrough in increasing the productivity of sales personnel occurred with the development of new technologies - the advent and widespread use of laptop computers, VCRs, video disks, automatic telephones, e-mail, fax machines, and teleconferencing. Sales workers have truly gone “electronic.”
Case Management includes time spent writing reports and filing invoices, attending meetings, and talking with other company employees about production, delivery, paperwork, sales levels, and other issues. Sales representatives should schedule time to manage business early in the morning and late in the evening, when business meetings with customers are least likely.

With so many responsibilities, it’s no wonder that a sales representative spends no more than 25% of his or her time communicating with customers! Companies are constantly looking for ways to improve sales force productivity: employees are taught to use the “power of the phone”;

Reporting is simplified; The use of computers is increasing to plan contacts and develop optimal routes, as well as to obtain information about consumers and competitors.

One of the ways to improve the efficiency of sales departments is to increase the number of “stationary” employees. Internal (office) sales staff is divided into three categories. Exist technical support workers, that provide consumers with technical information and answer their questions. Sales assistants provide clerical support for the activities of field workers. They make appointments, post checks received, monitor delivery of goods, and answer customer questions when field sales personnel are unavailable. And finally, still others are engaged telemarketing, that is, they use telephone communications to find new clients and enter into sales contracts. During the day, such workers contact 50 potential consumers, while a field worker contacts at most 4-5. Telemarketing is especially effective when selling other company products along the way; revision of already concluded agreements; presentation of new company products; searching for new clients and restoring old connections; when repeatedly contacting unsuccessful contacts; in conducting and analyzing direct mail marketing activities. (We will discuss telemarketing in more detail in the next chapter.)
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In market conditions, marketing management should include the following mandatory components:

Creation of competitive goods, services, integrated offering models and service systems;

Carrying out a pricing policy that is not only profitable for the enterprise, but also acceptable for consumers, resellers and allies from strategic alliances;

Ensuring the availability of customers and business partners to the company’s products using adaptive marketing and logistics communication systems;

Establishment, support and development of formal and informal connections, which are carried out mainly by sales personnel

From the perspective of modern approaches to business technology, there should be nothing accidental or uncontrollable in the formation and maintenance of production and commercial ties between an enterprise, its consumers, various intermediaries and allies from strategic alliances. That is why, to ensure the success of the enterprise, the selection, training and stimulation of the sales person is a priority.

The development of market relations largely depends on the activities and competence of sales personnel. As justification, several illustrative examples can be given

The first is from the work experience of a famous marketer. A. Khaem: “many years ago I was invited to the Consolidated Freightways (“CF”) corporation, a huge company providing transport services and logistics to large enterprises. At the very beginning of the 80s, when the reduction in government regulation in the field of automobile and air transportation, this corporation was faced with a new level of competition and was forced to look for new opportunities. The administration of Consolidated Freightways ("CF") decided to seriously engage in marketing activities, and I was invited to help in organizing the corresponding department. drew up a marketing program, transmitted the results of the research and the latest plans to the company's branches, conducted an active advertising campaign and a series of events aimed at shaping public opinion, developed a complex telemarketing system, direct mail advertising programs, offering new products, etc.

However, I soon began to realize that all these innovations were not bringing much success. Try as we might, we have not been able to change consumers' desire to do business exclusively with sales personnel through personal contact. Customers preferred CF over other competitors for one simple reason: they liked direct communication with the corporation's sales staff. However, they largely ignored other marketing channels, and there was nothing we could do about it. For example, if a customer had a problem, then The first person he contacted was the company's sales representative, and he immediately resolved misunderstandings. Because relationships with sales personnel were so important to customers, our entire marketing program had to be built on maintaining these relationships.

The second example comes from the work experience of an equally well-known and experienced woman in the field of marketing and management. B. Sigman from the company "Advanced Systems Group", which provides its consumers with new equipment, working with a number of leasing companies. She says: “Our supplier partners have much more in common than any more or less significant differences. Therefore, the choice is often determined only by the faces. We are motivated by the qualities of the staff. You settle on those who are attentive and with whom it is simply a pleasure to do business.”

Many similar revelations from highly qualified and experienced marketers and managers from various sectors of production and commercial activity indicate that one of the decisive factors for a successful business is the nature of relationships with consumers and business partners.

The category of employees of promotion and sales services, who create a corporate marketing system, includes specialists who perform various functions in the field of organizing commercial relations and sales, and most often the following categories of enterprise employees are found: sales agents, contactors - “negotiators”, sales consultants, telemarketing operators , field representatives, marketing specialists for various career guidance programs and directly to salespeople.

The main responsibilities to which the activities of the listed categories of sales workers are reduced are as follows:

Effective management of sales personnel at an enterprise requires the phasing, consistency and complexity of the system of internal corporate connections and relationships. The sales personnel management system, regardless of the profile specialization of the enterprise, is shown schematically in Fig. 51.11.

Fig. 511. Generalized diagram of the sales personnel management system at enterprises

It is appropriate to note that in practice there is an interesting pattern: on average, 80% of the total business of producers of goods and services comes from, as a rule, 20% of consumers in their target markets. Yes, aka circumstance, in fact, is one of the manifestations of the “law. Pareto” in entrepreneurship.

This circumstance is of great importance due to the fact that in many enterprises it helps to specify the strategic objectives of the sales staff in general and each employee, in particular those that determine the nature of functional activities.

For example, in some firms and companies, sales department employees are recommended to devote approximately 80% of their time to existing (active and passive) consumers, and 20% to searching for and establishing contact in the target market with new customers, or to devote about 80% of their time to promotion and sales. products mastered by the enterprise, and 20% - searching for and working with new products (another expression of the "law. Pa reto".

The specificity of various types of products and markets (especially of a consumer nature) leads to the fact that in addition to the technical and commercial training of personnel necessary for the promotion and sale of enterprise products, in the process of activity, great importance is attached to issues of interpersonal relationships and psychology. This is one of the key features of marketing as a concept and management as a branch of professional activity.

Some enterprises unprofessionally ignore the “human factor.” For this reason, their successes are much “moderate” than they could be. The professional approach is that everyone in the enterprise - from the top marketing executives to the ordinary employee of the marketing departments - must understand the critical role of interpersonal communication.

It is known that sales workers and pre- and post-sales service professionals who provide buyers with information, advise consumers, demonstrate products, provide after-sales service, etc., often function not only as salespeople and service providers, but also as a kind of , consumer trustees. Buyers are more frank with them, they are the first to respond to consumer complaints and can not officially, but “humanly” advise something. Often, representatives of an enterprise are the only contactors who connect the consumer with the manufacturer of goods or services. Therefore, it is on them that the buyer’s perception of the company’s image and its attitude towards consumers depends.

The peculiarity of the activities of employees of marketing departments is that each employee who belongs to the sales and service personnel is at the same time a generalist marketer for his enterprise.

Renowned marketer P. Crandell claims that a company's employees are its best agents and its best advertising. He refers to the rating data of the decisive factors influencing the choice of seller in the event of a need for a particular product. Here is the content of this rating:

I know a person who works there (worked) -. ZO%;

I use (used) their products or services - 12%;

I often see their sign on buildings or cars - 7%;

Have you heard or read about their activities? Media - 5%;

In most cases, the enterprise is almost completely dependent on those individuals who are involved in the promotion and sale of products on the market.

Sales and service personnel must be prepared to interact with consumers in the most extreme situations. The processes of promotion, sales and customer service require more personal involvement than is necessary in other activities. Very often, employees of the marketing and service departments of an enterprise act, figuratively speaking, as doctors who are turned to for help in solving problems that have arisen.

Sales employees must be able to achieve customer satisfaction and at the same time ensure profit for their company. Good employees specializing in sales organization, in addition to their immediate professional responsibilities, should be able to:

Analyze general and local statistical data;

Identify the potential of the target market in industry and territorial terms;

Correctly assess the current situation;

Monitor market dynamics;

Determine the prospects for production and commercial activities in the established market;

Collect market information;

Develop effective approaches and select marketing tools for the implementation of operational plans and programs;

Look for effective ways and methods of promoting and selling the company’s products

All of the above qualities cannot be realized without mastering the skills of marketing analysis. These skills are especially necessary for senior managers of sales management. Practice shows that when it comes to achieving final results, a sales apparatus focused on the needs of the market, and not on a simple increase in sales, turns out to be effective.

Despite the fact that the actions of individual sellers are individual and dictated by specific circumstances, at the same time, organizing sales often requires teamwork, which is impossible without the support of employees in related departments of enterprises.

From the point of view of consumers, the seller is the one who directly carries out the purchase and sale transaction. From the position of manufacturers, there is a complex approach to the interpretation of the concept of “seller”

Salespeople can perform various roles in the process of promoting and selling a company's products. The combination of these roles largely depends on the specialization of the enterprise, its size, the type of organizational structure, the characteristics of supply models, the specifics of buyers, the competitive environment and other factors. But even if in a particular case a certain employee of the enterprise’s sales system is not directly involved in the acts of purchase and sale of goods or services to consumers, he is still considered one of the sellers, since he is involved in organizing more comprehensive processes associated with the promotion of products to the market enterprises and preparation of activities aimed at sales.

Sellers can be not only sales employees, but also support staff, workers associated with various forms of customer service (consumers).

Generally speaking, all employees involved in the enterprise’s receipt of orders for goods or services, that is, those who to one degree or another can be classified as sellers, are divided into six types. This distribution is determined by functional specialization in the commercial process:

1 "Applicants" for orders. These are sellers who are responsible for receiving orders at the initiative of the enterprise. They can achieve an increase in sales to active customers, restore relationships and enter into agreements with passive consumers, and attract new customers. This type of seller requires more creativity and rare entrepreneurial spirit than others.

2. Order takers. These are employees involved in receiving, processing and recording orders for the sale of goods or services. Orders can come both at the initiative of buyers and at the initiative of manufacturers. Receivers of orders belong to the category of “sellers” due to the fact that in the process of processing and detailing orders received, they skillfully “advise” and contribute to an increase in primary volumes or expansion of the structure of these orders due to additional, related products and after-services.

3. Order executors. These are workers who perform work and operations directly related to the purchase and sale processes (packaging of products, loading, delivery to destination, unloading, installation, commissioning, etc.). Very often, in addition to specific responsibilities, they simultaneously perform the role of sellers, since during the execution of orders they help to identify and illuminate in the light necessary for the seller enterprise nuances that are not known to the buyer or to which he had not previously paid attention. These nuances can lead, as in the previous case, to an increase in volumes and expansion of the purchase structure through the acquisition of additional and related products and / or after-services.

4. Service personnel. Practice shows that service employees of the selling enterprise play a huge role in stimulating demand and intensifying sales. The importance of service workers is manifested in several aspects.

Firstly, thanks to them, in many cases, buyers have a feeling of satisfaction or dissatisfaction with the purchase. Satisfied customers are the best advertising, and dissatisfied customers are anti-advertising; they cannot be suspected of being biased towards the selling company. Satisfied customers, according to the data. F. Kotler, will share their impressions with an average of 11 potential clients, and dissatisfied ones with 3 (according to other sources - with 7). Thus, good pre-sales and after-sales service can significantly increase the volume of sales of goods and services of the manufacturer.

Secondly, a well-established service often contributes to repeat purchases from the same seller. According to research, each repeat purchase from the standpoint of promoting products on the market costs the selling company 10 to 25 times less than attracting a new buyer. In addition, the frequency of purchases doubles on average.

Thirdly, in the process of after-sales service in relation to, for example, technical equipment, buildings and structures, furniture, etc., a number of works can be performed such as diagnostics, repairs, adjustments, storage of spare parts, restoration, operational operations, etc. During During these operations, service employees provide users with specific and stimulating information that can prompt a number of purchases - new products, services, spare parts. As a result, as observations in practice show, high-quality after-sales service contributes to the emergence of appropriate demand, which ensures an increase in sales to the selling company by an average of 50% to 30,000%.

Based on the above, service personnel are rated as one of the most categories of “sellers”

5. Sales support staff. These are employees who are usually not directly involved in selling the manufacturer's products, but facilitate efforts to promote and sell them. In addition, to attract customers, their responsibilities include providing potential customers with certain services that help them make purchasing decisions. They are directly related to stimulating demand and organizing sales, but indirectly to the purchase and sale processes themselves. The range of activities of this type of worker is very wide. This is the study of the demand and needs of customers, the provision of comprehensive information to potential and actual consumers, advertising, the formation of the image of the manufacturer and its products.

5 missionary sales agents. This group of sellers is distinguished from others due to the specificity of their responsibilities. Formally, their functions do not include concluding a deal; their purpose is another kind - to convince buyers to recommend the goods or services of this enterprise to their friends, clients, and business partners. For example, architects who act as developers of various projects can recommend a reliable construction company to their clients. In turn, employees of a construction company can recommend a good insurance company to their customers, and employees of an insurance company can assign their client, if necessary, the necessary expert organization, etc.

The chain of recommendations that generate consumers can be long. Tracking such chains, creating new ones and ensuring their effectiveness is not an easy task for missionary agents. Very often, missionary agents from them in industry areas, supporting each other, act together, forming a certain informal community, the functioning mechanism of which is known only to them.

It should be noted that each of the presented types of sellers includes many varieties. At the same time, there are no clear boundaries between them within the type, since the variability of the market environment, the specifics of the product and the production and commercial policy of the producer determine the role dynamics depending on the situation.

Omitting a detailed analysis of the types and types of sellers who create the sales staff of enterprises, we will still dwell on the characteristics of “applicants” for orders. This type of seller is active

The most popular in practice are two approaches that characterize the method of action of “applicants” for orders: “hunting” and “farming”

The sellers are called "hunters" and "farmers" respectively.

“Hunting” refers to attracting new customers, while “farming” involves increasing sales through the development of relationships with consumers who have already become customers of the manufacturer of goods or services. The skills required for the first and second approaches are different. Therefore, when selecting sales personnel, this circumstance must be taken into account. At a minimum, this means that it is necessary to determine in advance what qualities employees of profiling approaches should have and what their ratio is in the overall structure of “applicants” for orders.

"Hunters" must have persistence and the ability to be prepared for losses. The nature of their work forces them to come into contact with strangers who may not know or be fully aware of their needs. Sometimes these people get nervous when a pushy salesperson calls them on the phone or comes to their office.

Since "hunters" often have little time to spare, they have to work quickly. At the stage of completing negotiations (communication with a potential buyer), if complications arise with the sale of products or the decision-making process is delayed, they experience dissatisfaction, which is not always possible to hide. This situation arises because they are very good advertisers and in the process of negotiating they are able to skillfully “handle” the client. Feeling this, before taking the last step towards concluding an agreement, a potential buyer may begin to doubt and therefore wants to make sure once again whether he really likes the goods (services) offered and how much they will be justified by the seller’s promises.

There is an opinion that it is “hunters” who sometimes contribute to the creation of a disappointing reputation in relation to sales agents (“field” sellers). This is partly true, but it must be taken into account that the “hunters” are essentially pioneers. They create the conditions and launch campaigns to implement innovations. “Hunters” get great pleasure from their work, especially when receiving the first order from a new client. Then they feel like winners, they want to continue their “victorious” move, but at the same time they regret that not everyone knows about their successes.

"Farmers" are inclined to different tactics. They avoid selling innovations and prefer to work with well-developed products. Typically, “farmers” act slowly and do not show pressure or fuss to receive orders; their professionalism is manifested in another way - in preparing a base for a long period. They play a particularly important role in industrial marketing, since they have the art of forming long-term relationships between the producer and the buyer of goods (services). Their advantage lies in the fact that they strive to deeply study the type of consumers, sometimes creating for themselves such a database, which The buyer himself would be surprised. The benefits of "farmers" are manifold. Firstly, the order entering the enterprise is stipulated. Secondly, they know their market well and have competitive information. In addition, they know how to maintain formal and informal relationships with customers and “tie” them to the manufacturer for a long time. At the same time, there are also negative aspects in “farmers” who work for a long time at the same enterprise (in the same territory assigned to them, in the same market segment), sometimes a problem arises, its essence The problem is that such sellers begin to rely only on old and trusted customers, while avoiding active attempts to find new ones. They get used to acting, as they say in marketing, in their “comfort zone,” calling familiar numbers, sending mail to familiar addresses and visiting only well-known customers. The problem worsens when “fixated farmers” stop making any effort to find and attract promising consumer partners.

The commercial success of an enterprise often depends on the structural association of “hunters” and “farmers”. If the ratio is correctly found, then a balance is formed, which is crucial for the promotion and sale of goods (services) to the target market, as well as a balance between the desire to quickly get things done and move forward and the desire to secure the rear, following the rule: “old friend ( buyer) is better than the new two."

The principles for constructing the organizational structure of sales personnel may differ depending on the product principle, on the territorial principle, on the buyers (consumers), and sometimes on the phases of the sales process. To choose the most effective approach, the enterprise must take into account a number of important diverse factors of market conditions.

Particular attention should be paid to the so-called “field” sellers, that is, those categories of marketers who sell products through personal selling, telemarketing, direct mail

A simple and common form of organizational structure for “field” sales personnel is the sales structure, which operates on a territorial principle. It enables the enterprise to do better. VVI is responsible for monitoring the activities of sellers at minimal costs.

The number of "field" sellers does not have to be equal to the number of territories. The territory is a conventional unit of control. For each of the units (territories), objectives are set for the promotion and sale of the enterprise's products. Then, for each of them, the results are assessed separately. Marketing managers can combine the work of several salespeople in one territory.

The decision to “redistribute territories” may be caused by various factors. For example:

Creation of a new company, a new representative office or a new structural unit;

Mastering new offering models, resulting in increased workload for existing sales staff;

Reorganization of the sales service due to serious changes that occur or are expected in the market environment, etc.

Table 51 presents the technology for determining territories for the promotion and sale of industrial goods and business services of a conditional manufacturer

The procedure for determining territories begins with an analysis of the types and number of actual and potential buyers (consumers) in the target market

At the first stage, customers are divided into categories according to the degree of their importance for the enterprise and a priority code is assigned. AA, then there are lower rated ones. A,. IN,. WITH,. D. We emphasize that the criteria for its classification of buyers and their status are determined by the goals and objectives of the enterprise.

At the same time, customers who make up the majority of the producer’s business can be dealt with by those specially created for this group, and especially important clients for the company - directly by senior managers. Lanc.

This table provides an example of a set of criteria that can be used to classify buyers. In this case, the company is faced with the task of increasing the number and volume of sales

Table 51

DETERMINING the workload in the service area. CONDITIONAL. MANUFACTURER

Guided by this, the most important clients (code AA) will be those who have good development prospects for enterprise-consumers - growth in production and commercial activities, which means a rapid and significant increase in needs for goods or services, for physical consumers - improvement in well-being. Particular attention is paid to large customers.

At the second stage, the number of each type of customer in the target market is estimated. As a rule, the producer has a small number of category customers. AA (maybe even one or two). A. A and. B. Collectively they account for approximately 20%. The rest of the customers belonging to the categories. S i. D, makes up the majority; their numbers fluctuate at about 80% (“Pareto’s law”).

At the third stage, standards are established for the manufacturer’s sales personnel on the average frequency of contact with each type of customer (per year)

Then standards are determined for the average duration of contact for each type of buyer. It should be noted that for customers of the categories. AA,. A and. It is recommended to spend more time. For example, buyers kate. Yegoria. AA - on average about 1.5 hours per week for each category customer. A - 1 hour per week for each, and for category customers. B - 0.5 hours per week. However, the flexible categories should not be ignored. S i. D. Very often in their midst there are subjects for whom good prospects open up. It is very important not to miss such purchases.

At the fourth stage, the total time required to contact all potential customers throughout the year is calculated. Calculations are carried out using the direct counting method. The number of customers of each type is multiplied by the length of time allocated for each category and by each potential buyer. Then the results are summed up. As a result, the total time required to fulfill the tasks assigned to the sales service of the enterprise is determined.

At the fifth stage, the required number of “field” sellers appears. To do this, the total time required for contacts with all potential consumers of the target market is divided by the time of work with personal selling available (on average) to one seller. Let us add that in practice, “field” sellers spend about 50% of their working time directly on sales.

The manufacturer has a total of 500 consumers (of all types). The total time required for contact with them is 10,000 hours per year (see stages 2, 3). Each "field" sales employee of the company devotes about 22 hours a week of pure time to direct sales. Multiplied by an average of 48 weeks (minus vacation, sick leave, holidays, etc.), the result is 1,056 hours of total sales time per year per salesperson. Next, dividing 10,000 hours by 1056 hours, we get 9.46. Anticipating a possible increase in sales, and therefore an increase in the pressure on sellers, we can assume that 10 “field” sellers will be needed to cover this market.

The solution to the problem of assigning territories to specific sellers should be based on the needs of the territories and the abilities of the “field” sellers. It is clear that they do not all have the same experience, abilities, ki connections, advantages or education. It is advisable to select territories for them in such a way as to ensure maximum use of their qualifications and individual abilities, as well as the optimal level of interaction with potential buyers.

In the field of sales personnel management, management's constant concern for increasing the efficiency of the field salesperson is of great importance. The main limiting factor in increasing this type of efficiency is the intervals between visits to consumers. If potential customers are located close, the seller can make several visits per day. Otherwise, the productive time of the “field” salesperson is reduced.

Most manufacturers in the capital goods market and many producers of consumer goods and services have their own generally accepted territories for the sale of services; their value depends on the type of product, the concentration of customers sold, their characteristics, transport network, etc. In recent years, in developed countries there has been a large Computer programs are popular that help determine optimal areas to minimize travel, balance workloads, and maximize profits.

A change in the size of the territories assigned to individual “field” sellers is a serious event because it violates

established relationships between sales staff and customers and may have a negative impact in other territories. At the same time, market circumstances often require corrective measures in relation to sales territories

Due to the fact that the market is far from saturated among many types and types of goods and services, fast-growing firms are considered normal. Therefore, it is worth dwelling on some of the problems that may arise. Whips in their activities of managing the "field" sales force and sales. Rapidly growing industrial and intermediary firms have to constantly redraw territorial boundaries due to increasing sales volumes. Under such circumstances, they must be extremely careful both regarding the internal policies of sales management and the external policies of sales management.

Before changing the territorial contours, you need to weigh everything so as not to spoil the relationship with your experienced sales staff, who have put a lot of time and effort into developing a consumer environment - creating formal and informal relationships with their wards.

It should be noted that in practice, a different course of events occurs. Parallel sales services of the selling company, organized on a territorial principle, can not only act on the market independently, but also become more active in the sphere of competition with each other until they mutually absorb each other or merge. We are talking about seizing territory, poaching consumers from each other and sales personnel; there may be manifestations of fierce internal corporate competition between several divisions. As in “big” (intercompany) competition, the strongest and best in terms of commercial results also win here. Such confrontation not only suits the management of some companies, but is also encouraged by them. The degree of independence of parallel sales services and the prospects for their solution are determined by the organizational policy pursued by the management of the enterprise. Not wanting to take risks, the administration can allow parallel sales services to function until it becomes clear that acquisitions or mergers are ripe, and further separation of functional activities becomes economically unjustified.

It is also possible that as a result of the absorption of clientele, territory, poaching of specialists and other actions of the enterprise, it will gain a stronger foothold in the established market than a rival structure. Having achieved a certain level of stability and occupying a certain division, the management of the enterprise can “perform” a not entirely ethical operation - offer its potential competitor, who is attracted by the corresponding market segment, part of its business and sell it a division - a “doll”. With such a maneuver, the enterprise can achieve several goals. Firstly, it’s good to make money on structural “waste” - a spent organizational resource. Secondly, it is beneficial to get rid of the “agonizing” division, the loser in the internal corporate struggle, by presenting it as a unique product in the form of an independent, “well-organized”, “promising” economic entity. Thirdly, it will create big problems for a competitor, who, in addition to the costs incurred for the acquisition of an unprofitable structure, must incur additional costs for its recovery. In this regard, the competitive activity of a rival can be suspended for a sufficiently long period, during which the enterprise can further strengthen its position in the specified segment. As a result of the acquisition of a competitor, it may result in the loss of the desired market sector.

It should be noted that in a market that is characterized as such, growing producers for various reasons, sometimes beyond their control, are often unable to determine the number and specificity of all their potential consumers. In such a situation, producers often resort to aggressive sales and sales personnel management policies. The essence of an aggressive policy is to increase the number of sellers until the profits they bring no longer justify their existence. In this way, the real potential of the market and the boundaries of territorial coverage are tested in practice.

The construction of the organizational structure of the sales personnel of an enterprise on a product principle requires good knowledge of the products by sales employees. This approach is used in the following cases:

Thus, the goals and nature of the production and commercial activities of manufacturers, the characteristics of the market, the specifics of products and the product range structure of proposals often force enterprises to create branches, representative offices and separate sales divisions. In this regard, in marketing, in relation to the creation of partially separate trade and sales divisions, they are treated as a normal phenomenon.

At the same time, an insufficiently thought-out and well-functioning management system can lead to duplication of work. For example, on the same day, the same consumer may be disturbed by several food sellers who offer, although different goods (services), but from the same enterprise. This irritates potential buyers and negatively affects their attitude towards the enterprise and its products, which, in turn, harms the company’s image. In addition, unjustified confrontation is flaring up between the personnel of various trade and sales divisions of the enterprise in the same territory. Ultimately, it turns out that the company incurs additional costs for organizing sales, but the effect can be exactly the opposite. Therefore, when resorting to managing sales personnel and selling on a commodity basis, it is important to carefully consider all organizational, functional and psychological aspects.

The formation of the organizational structure of sales personnel based on the principle of distribution by consumer, as a rule, is carried out at enterprises producing industrial goods or business services. The creation of this kind of trade and sales structures involves a number of approaches. For example, you can divide consumers according to the following criteria:

By industry;

By size of purchases (large, medium, small);

By priority (especially important, important, permanent, non-permanent, etc.);

For real and potential (new), etc.

The main advantage of the specialization of sales personnel behind consumers is that each seller or a separate group of them can study the specific needs and behavior of their customers much more deeply, establish close contacts with them, and respond more quickly to changes in all factors involved.

The disadvantage of this approach is that the group of wards of a particular seller may include the consumers themselves, and this, accordingly, requires wide creative diversity in the activities of this “field” worker. Another negative point appears in cases where customers who are part of a designated group are located over a large territory. This causes seller-curators to worry a lot.

An important role in the organization and management of sales personnel is played by the system of internal company relationships, as well as the policy of attracting the required number of sellers, in particular additional, additional, freelance employees and their incentives.

It is quite obvious that in this regard, the enterprise must develop an appropriate remuneration system. Moreover, the level of remuneration must be linked to current market prices for certain goods (services) and for specialists with appropriate qualifications.

Considering that these issues can be agreed upon and resolved in a certain way, we focus on other circumstances. In marketing management, the following are of great importance:

Formation of an effective flexible system for attracting, selecting and training sales employees;

Development of effective ways to monitor the work of sales personnel;

Application of adequate methods for assessing the performance of sales employees, especially those who belong to the “field” category

The basis for the effective work of the company's sales staff is the careful selection of capable, promising employees. Hiring unpromising salespeople results in costs for a business enterprise in three main areas: loss of time, effort and money to train such an employee; losses incurred by the enterprise as a result of lost sales, which could have occurred in the event of the employee’s superior competence; The direct losses incurred by the enterprise due to an incapable employee do not justify the costs of retaining him.

The problem of personnel selection would not be so pressing if it had a simple solution. Psychologists and personnel specialists in many countries spend enormous amounts of money to develop ways to identify good and bad, promising and unpromising, capable and incapable candidates.

In this case, qualifications play an important, but not a determining role; after all, a newcomer can be taught and helped to reveal his potential. The stumbling block is that those involved in the selection process do not always know or are not fully aware of what traits and their combinations should be looked for in candidates. Many managers only intuitively imagine what qualities a good salesman should have. It would seem that when selecting candidates, preference should be given to those who have communication skills, aggressiveness, energy, etc. At the same time, practice shows that many sales agents achieve good results by being shy, polite and not particularly energetic. Among successful sellers there are men and women, old and young, tall and short, beautiful and so-so, who can or cannot speak properly, neat or sloppy. The manager's task is to find such a specific combination of characteristics that would indicate ability and x. Orosh the candidate's prospects to master the art of promoting and selling goods and services of enterprises.

A number of studies have shown that men and women have different attitudes towards the commercial activities of most women businessmen; consumers turn out to be the main source of a sense of satisfaction with their work. Men more often say that consumers are the main source of disappointment in their activities! and the growing number of women in the sales force of many companies. This trend is especially noticeable in the service sector.

It is clear that there are different consumers and different situations that can cause different reactions from different sellers. Therefore, in conditions of diversity and uncertainty of commercial activity, any retail and trading enterprise of both a consumer and business nature is interested in having a sales staff whose employees do not consider it a burden, but would find pleasure in their work and incentives for creative manifestations in communication with consumers.

The search for promising employees for the marketing system of the enterprise in general and directly for the sales divisions in particular is carried out on the basis of certain criteria that are previously developed by management. In the process of searching for applicants, various methods are used.

For example:

Collection of data among our own employees;

Attracting specialized firms from employment;

Placing advertisements in the press;

Establishing contacts with graduates of educational institutions, etc.

The selection technology itself may also be different.

For example:

Formal and informal conversations;

Testing;

Short term or long term testing;

Conducting business games, etc.

Nowadays business games are becoming increasingly popular. This method in many enterprises is considered as a universal approach when recruiting personnel for sales personnel

Example. The Donetsk company "New Technologies. Plus" is constantly searching for capable sales workers, sales agents and commercial consultants who could not only attract new consumers to, but also correspond to the corporate culture and philosophy formed at the company. After preliminary selections carried out on the basis conversations and tests on professional aptitude, applicants who still pass the main test are asked to give an hour-long presentation to company employees. The specificity is that, firstly, the presentation must reflect modern market, social and cultural trends, and secondly. , as thematic tasks are chosen that are not related to computers and software for them, in the implementation of which the company specializes.

The purpose of such tests is not to assess the special knowledge of applicants, but the skills they have acquired and the degree of development of their ability to conduct presentations, as well as other social and commercial events. But rehearsals and trainings are multifunctional in nature. On the one hand, company employees feel involved in the formation of their team, and on the other hand, those who are examined get an idea of ​​the character, requirements and interests of their future colleagues. Game presentations sometimes turn into real shows that turn work into leisure. In addition, they turn out to be useful even for experienced sales workers, since they help them learn something new for themselves, discover unexpected arguments that can be used in their work, and identify original approaches to the processes of promoting and selling goods and services on the market.

Regarding interviews, it can be noted that they perform several functions. First of all, a number of issues related to a specific applicant that are of interest to the employer are first clarified. But at the same time, in parallel with the collection of formal information during the conversation, they often look closely at the person, whether she smiles and how exactly she smiles. Many enterprises adhere to specific requirements, the essence of which is of a professional commercial nature. It lies in the fact that, despite all the other positive qualities of the applicant, he is rejected without regret if during the communication he does not smile or the candidate has an unattractive smile. The fact is that in the marketing environment, especially in the field of trade and sales, they prefer to work with those who are initially quite happy, well-disposed people. “Natural” cordiality is very important in any activity, but especially in the field of commerce, in which volumes operations can amount to a million amions.

In practice, unfortunately, there is a fairly widespread opinion among employers that for applicants being hired as future salespeople, the main issues are those related to forms of material remuneration and. This point of view is refuted by numerous studies. Data obtained through research and analysis of the most attractive features of the sales profession indicate that the methods of work of the salesperson and yogis in independence attract people much more than the possible earnings. At the same time, the independence of employees involved in sales is one of the valuable criteria for people choosing the appropriate profession. Research on this topic contains a number of practical and psychological justifications. They confirm the importance of the fact that marketing managers and sales managers must carefully identify the reasons that motivate people to connect their work activities with sales-oriented professions, taking into account the specifics of the industry and the characteristics of the one being implemented. Managers who are involved in staffing, marketing management and sales organization at the enterprise need to develop recruitment strategies that would reflect the specified desires of applicants.

Applicants selected for work in marketing departments, especially those who begin their activities in the field of commerce in sales services, are entitled to undergo an appropriate training course before taking up their duties. Some enterprises, citing the turnover of sales personnel, consider training costs as redundancy and even as losses. However, training is not healthy, then the qualifications of employees will remain at a low level or increase very slowly. Initially, conditions are created for low efficiency in the daily work of salespeople. At the same time, management has no moral right to demand increased returns from their functional activities and commercial contacts. As practice shows, staff turnover is growing even more.

If the managers of an enterprise hire a specific person as a seller and set him the task: to find profitable buyers (consumers) of certain products, establish productive contacts with them, and receive appropriate orders; establish good relationships, etc., then they must be consistent and provide the sales employee with appropriate training, which, firstly, meets the requirements for him, and, secondly, after which he will be able to do the job, if not brilliantly, then , at least, normal. It often happens that well-organized training with testing of skills in practical conditions can be an important factor in successful work than the presence of certain personal qualities. In the field of management and implementation of marketing, of course, it is more profitable to bear the costs of organizing training for sales and sales personnel than to search for and attract sellers of nuggets.

The learning objectives are:

1. Introducing a new sales employee. Contact. This is the first part of the training course. It can be devoted to the study of the history of the enterprise, corporate philosophy, culture, politics and its goals, objectives, organizational structure and the management system adopted by it. Its leaders, financial system, structure of production capacities and their potential, products - assortment, main goods or services, composition and principles of modulation of complex offers, etc. are also described. Part of the information on the dynamics of sales volumes and the main factors that influence this are also revealed. pour out

2. Getting to know the product range

3. Study of the production technology of the enterprise's products. The strengths and weaknesses of the company’s products and its competitors are reviewed and discussed.

4. Gaining knowledge about the characteristics of the consumer and competitive environment. Characteristics of various types of customers for the company's products are given. Their needs, purchasing motives, consumption expectations and the degree of their validity, forms of behavior and decision-making mechanisms are considered. The conceptual guidelines of the enterprise, its strategies in the industry, territorial and target markets regarding products, prices, quality, as well as in relation to consumers and competitors are explained. Examples of tactical actions depending on developing situations are given. Existing and possible competitors are studied in order to combat them, obtain necessary information about them and carry out misinformation of rivals.

5. Training sales personnel in the art of promoting and selling the company’s goods and services, and the ability to maintain relationships with consumers. Provides knowledge on developing and delivering effective sales presentations. Technologies for preparing and conducting negotiations are mastered. Business games are conducted to find convincing arguments in favor of each type of product, service, and individual elements of complex proposal models. Skills are being developed to overcome objections from consumers. Methods for finding compromises and optimizing decisions are covered.

6. Familiarization of sales department employees with the features of their work and related responsibilities. Considered, for example, is the question of how to effectively distribute time and effort to work with active and passive consumers, how to use office supplies, equipment, sums of money that are allocated, how to draw up reports, develop rational routes for the movement of sales agents and distribution channels etc.

During the learning process, the most “exotic” problems can be solved. For example, a French marketer. J. Croman believes that one of the first lessons in a sales personnel training program should be teaching the handshake technique. Referring to his experience, he assures that both the energy and the mood that the seller conveys to a potential buyer when shaking hands can play a decisive role. The rules of business etiquette are indeed very important; they need to be known, especially for those who negotiate with foreign partners. The fact is that traditions and norms of behavior among entrepreneurs in the Far Eastern countries and the Arab world. Europe,. Northern and. South. America is significantly different. Often, without knowing it, you can offend the buyer with some gesture or word and thereby ruin what is quite beneficial for both. Parties to the operation.

The traditions of the enterprise are of considerable importance, obliging employees of sales departments to help each other. In practice, such a form of mutual assistance as mentoring and teaching has proven itself well. It is very good when a new employee works in tandem with an experienced professional. They can jointly develop action plans, discuss emerging situations, visit consumers, and negotiate. A salesperson who is starting his career gets the opportunity to observe a “pro” who will help with advice, show “how it’s done”, explain “what is good and what is bad.” Partners often communicate with each other and continue to communicate informal setting. It is worth noting that the mentoring program within the framework of sales personnel management helps to solve the classic problem of internal corporate relations: the problem of relationships between old and young employees.

The mentoring program, combining the pros and cons of both sides, allows you to get a good result. It forces partners to view each other as interesting individuals and capable employees. The mentor has experience, he has a lot to learn from, and the trainee can bring enthusiasm, a fresh, unexpected look at the situation, and original thoughts to the team. In addition, young people are more familiar with electronic equipment and computer technology, so they can provide their mentors with assistance in mastering technical innovations. The older partner can not only teach the younger one the wisdom of sales, but also, with the help of a kind of corporate folklore, which consists of various stories, examples and legends, awaken respect for his enterprise and its activities, convey the spirit of collectivism, and create a kind and cheerful atmosphere. This psychological aspect is important in entrepreneurship.

Far-sighted managers rightly believe that the attitude of consumers towards the enterprise largely depends on the mood of the sales staff. Therefore, in enterprises where iqamas value their employees, as part of internal marketing, they develop systems of support and incentives for sales and support personnel for high productivity and good quality of work. Managers periodically check the degree of employee satisfaction with their functional activities and internal corporate relationships.

For example, the telemarketing services agency "RMH" is well known in. SELA uses film and theater themes to stimulate the creativity and optimism of its staff. The best are awarded their own Oscar, plays of their own composition are staged, and shows are organized. According to the company's management, such a fun and unusual corporate identity helps keep employees in shape and attracts additional interest from consumers. These words are convincingly confirmed by very high indicators. According to company reports, such a program pays off annually with a 50% increase in business assets.

The professional performance of employees and the degree of satisfaction with relationships within the company increases significantly if the company provides them with assistance not only in creative development, but also in solving life problems. One way to combine production and personal interests is to develop and organize activities based on flexible work schedules. Another way to provide professional and human attention is to send some managers to the site together with sales workers, but not with the goal of monitoring their activities, but to help them complete assigned tasks. Employees, seeing such concern, will most likely try to make every effort to fulfill their duties in the form that the enterprise needs.

Some enterprises believe that the best way to stimulate employees is to create conditions for them to earn extra money (if such a possibility exists)

Thus, some transport companies allow drivers to carry out personal service while fulfilling their corporate duties. When setting out on a route, many drivers receive a special document (identification, business card), which gives them the authority to independently accept orders. This brings additional income to drivers.

It is generally accepted that the “golden key” to achieving goals and completing tasks is organizing a reward system, supporting individual efforts and issuing monetary rewards. Sales staff. It is necessary to encourage (morally) and stimulate (materially), encouraging them to act in the name of certain collective achievements, otherwise the processes of recruitment, selection and training of workers are meaningless.

The management of the organization needs to define a system of goals and objectives for each employee, department and the enterprise as a whole, the degree of achievement and quality of solution of which should be used in the form of criteria for additional (above salary) incentives.

Example "Banc One", one of the ten largest companies. USA and specializes in providing financial services, has identified the level of customer service as a key indicator for evaluating the work of its employees. In order to increase the responsibility of staff for their work and manage their professional interest, the bank sets the amount of payments (salary, bonus rate, incentives, rewards) depending on how clients evaluate the work of branches. For this purpose, a rating system has been introduced. The higher the rating of a branch, a unit in contact with clients, the more pay its employees receive. The head of your Banc One abandoned the “equal pay for equal” scheme, considering another scheme - “equal pay for equal results” – to be effective, and he was not mistaken. He managed to focus the attention of all their branches, employees and divisions of the financial structure on the complete satisfaction of customer wishes. Moreover, we managed to create an atmosphere of competition. Employees strive not only to improve the level of service and satisfy the desires of customers, but even to anticipate these desires.

Quite an interesting experience of rewards from the IBM company. In this company, customer satisfaction is considered as a mirror of the work of the service department, since the client is the only one who can evaluate it objectively. Thus, the need for systematic customer surveys is recognized, for which a variety of communication channels are used to ensure that customers have prompt contact with the company's service department. To ensure that the appropriate contacts are available, IBM checks monthly to ensure that customer needs are being met, both internally and externally. Based on the results of these checks, portions of incentive payments are determined not only for personnel, but also for middle and senior managers. Every 90 days, the attitude of employees is re-evaluated; A record is kept of the opinions expressed by company employees about how customer service is provided, and a number of other improvements are carried out.

It must be emphasized that when using a system of incentives and rewards, it is very important to be honest about the intended individual plans and actual results. Otherwise, the opposite reaction may occur - distrust of management, ignoring the proclaimed principles of corporate culture, etc. Each employee must understand what his monetary rewards depend on and what they consist of, as well as to what extent his personal performance is consistent with the system of target settings enterprises. If deviations or even opposition (conscious, unconscious) arise, their causes should be carefully analyzed, since an unfavorable situation can arise not only due to negligence or malicious intent, but also through independent means.

employee circumstances. The effectiveness of any incentive system depends on the extent to which the possibility of rewarding unruly employees is excluded.

All forms of incentives for personnel in marketing (sales) departments can be grouped into four blocks (Fig. 512)

Fig. 512. Forms of incentives for management and personnel in the marketing (sales) systems of enterprises

Basic material remuneration is considered as basic for enterprises, regardless of the conditions and nature of their production and commercial activities. This block includes two levels and special-purpose Achenya groups.

The first level is salaries (pay or wage rate). Typically, their value ranges from 40 to 70% of the total remuneration of a certain employee of the marketing system

The second level - allowances, additional payments, additional payments, bonuses, commissions for employees of marketing departments and workers. In total, their value can reach about 60% of the total payments.

Separately in this block, “special forces” groups are highlighted, that is, tools for stimulating special purposes. This includes various forms of profit sharing, as well as options, which are special incentive benefits that are not used by all enterprises and not for all employees, but only for those in whom they are especially interested. Mostly, such radical means are resorted to by executives, inventors or specialist innovators.

Compensation. This is a specific set of tools for stimulating commercial employees of enterprises, which are used, as a rule, in large enterprises that have foreign representative offices and / or manage international economic relations. More often, compensation is provided for foreign official assignments and long-term business trips.

They are the main distinguishing feature of the remuneration system in the international environment from the so-called “home” Enterprises compensate their employees for real and expected costs associated with it. TR provides business trips (transport, rental of premises, meals, etc.), and also provides special payments and benefits, for example, for educating children, holding holidays, vacations, etc.

Non-material incentives. This block includes “classical” and specific forms of employee incentives that do not provide material rewards

The first group (classic forms) includes gratitude, awards, incentives, transfer to a more prestigious job, early promotion, etc.

The second (specific forms) - games, competitions, general and special education programs, etc.

mixed stimulation. This includes methods involving the use of combined (material and intangible) forms. Stimulants of this kind are considered as an addition to the main vineyard and compensation. These can be all kinds of prizes, gifts, pension and insurance programs, etc. d.

Various catalysts for strengthening positive motivation and the emergence of enthusiasm among enterprise employees also contribute to the development of employee loyalty in the present and an increase in the duration of active work in the future.

The theory and practice of management and marketing agree that the system of payment and labor incentives most directly affects the competitive advantages of an enterprise of any professional orientation. Moreover, this influence is often decisive not only in local areas of activity, but also at the corporate level.

In marketing, the role of the incentive system is so important that many people think that everything rests on it, and the level of service provided to consumers is only an expression of the degree of satisfaction of employees or the fear of losing what may be theirs.

In many enterprises, incentives and rewards for sales agents (sellers) are the focus of attention. Some of them are real virtuosos in their field, concluding agreements (making sales) 5-10 times more than the “average corporate norm.” Enterprises must look for, train, educate and value such personnel. Such agents (sellers) have payments corresponding to their abilities and which may exceed the earnings of others in several cases.

When hiring and paying for labor, you should be guided not by how much a sales agent can “cost” on average, but by his personal value in terms of quantity and sales volumes. In any analysis, good but expensive sales agents are cheaper than mediocre ones. Those enterprises that are trying to save money and pay little to the employees of their marketing and sales departments, often face higher costs for the preparation and implementation of sales, as well as due to their number and volume. The reason is that mediocre sales workers sell less product than is possible. In addition, the service life is usually short, since they either leave soon or are fired. After this, the enterprise again has to look for and select new employees, train them, “take them in” to the place (area, territory *) of work, etc. Currently, sales are falling, production is suffering, income may be lost, but, most importantly, buyers and part of the target market is lost. All these troubles can be avoided if the enterprise has qualified marketing and sales personnel, ensures that the work of specialists in the relevant system is paid for, firstly, no less than the work of employees of other structural divisions of the enterprise, and secondly, no less than that they deserve to push.

In general, the issue of motivation and incentives is a very complex area of ​​management, especially in relation to sales and sales personnel and employees of other marketing areas. The range of issues is due to the bug. Gateau has been the subject of serious research. In the theory of sales personnel management (marketing management), a number of conceptual provisions have been developed that can find practical application in motivating employees of relevant services and departments. These provisions give rise to generalized conclusions, the essence of which lies in this.

Once a certain need is satisfied, it can no longer serve as an incentive.

Different people have different needs and values

Increasing the degree of responsibility, level of qualifications, public recognition of achieved results and corresponding material incentives help to increase motivation among the majority of employees

People tend to become motivated if they believe that their efforts will produce the desired results, those results will be rewarded, and the form and method of reward has some value and significance for them.

Removing “disincentives” (for example, identification of injustice or inattention on the part of management) increases the level of motivation

There is a relationship between the goals of the heads of marketing and sales departments (determined by their importance for the enterprise and largely determine the productivity of managerial labor) and the corresponding targets (and labor productivity) of their subordinates.

All this determines the requirements for the management process. Marketing managers, regardless of service level, must:

Know what is of value to each of the subordinates and what certain employees strive for (i.e., identify their unfulfilled needs);

Strive to increase the responsibility of your subordinates for the work entrusted to them;

Understand that learning can increase motivation, as well as the ability to see the connection between effort and results achieved;

Set realistic and at the same time quite serious goals for your subordinates;

Link the remuneration measure to the achieved performance indicators of your subordinates;

Understand that not only material rewards can play a big role, but also moral encouragement (for example, praise, sympathy, understanding)

A good illustrative aid for marketing managers is the sales force motivation model developed by American scientists. Churchill. Ford and. Walker. This model assumes that motivation as a phenomenon is cyclical in nature. The stronger the motivation of the salesperson, the more he strives, which causes an increase in productivity. The more productive the work, the higher the reward and pleasure from the work performed it provides the seller. The cycle ends with a new degree of satisfaction, which surpasses the previous one, which determines the formation of a motivational complex at the corresponding highest level (Fig. 513 5.13).

Fig. 513. Cycle of motivation of sales personnel according to the concept. Churchill. Ford and. Walker

Practical conclusions that can guide marketing managers in their activities can be reduced to two main generalizations:

In many enterprises, it is believed that employee motivation depends mainly on the characteristics of the payment system in a particular organization. However, in management theory it is known that not all people are motivated by money to the same extent. Various studies have been repeatedly conducted on this matter. It turned out that there are five types of sales and sales workers, each of which is determined by its own departmental structure and objectives:

Based on the presented structuring, marketing managers, before forming / developing a reward system for their subordinates, should try to pre-classify sales-related employees.

In the case when the composition of the sales and sales personnel of an enterprise is dominated by “victims of habit”, those who are “satisfied with little” and “supporters of compromise”, creating conditions for receiving only additional x monetary rewards will probably not bring appropriate results.

If among the sales staff the majority of employees can be characterized as “goal-oriented” and “money-oriented,” then expanding the opportunities for them to receive additional cash from the city can result in an increase in the level of motivation and productivity, which will ultimately give an adequate effect in the organization and implementation of commercial processes.

It is necessary to pay attention to another aspect of sales personnel management that is important in modern conditions. Sales automation is becoming more and more widespread among the means of increasing the productivity of sales personnel on the market. In many enterprises, managers who are responsible for organizing promotion and sales pay great attention to the “equipment” of their salespeople, especially sales agents. In developed countries, “field” representatives of companies are provided with a laptop computer, printer, copier, mobile phone, software, etc. All this is expensive, but progressive experience shows that the cost of technical equipment for the active part of a commercial apparatus quickly pays off. For example, the Hewlett Packard company made some of its agents available and taught users how to use the listed means. It soon became clear that their labor productivity immediately jumped. ZO% compared to those agents who did not use such equipment.

Decent “equipment” pays off on the other hand, perhaps even faster. Some enterprises, having provided their “field” representatives with everything they need, no longer see the need to maintain an office for sales agents. This is the same company "Hewlett Packard", the no less famous company "Kotrak" and many others. Representatives of such “advanced” organizations work from home and do not travel daily to their departments or offices. Thanks to this, companies significantly reduce costs for renting premises, heating, electricity, etc. Together, sales employees of enterprises receive additional time for productive robotics.

Sales automation is beneficial in another way. When on average one manager can supervise 10-12 sales employees, then thanks to the full-fledged technical and software support of the “field” category of sales personnel, each manager is able to effectively manage from 25 to 40 external representatives of the enterprise. This means that the need for such managers is reduced by 2-4 times with all the ensuing consequences (in particular, savings on salaries, offices, reduction of the hierarchical management structure, increased management efficiency; coordination of actions with agents and support staff over a larger territory and etc.).

In conclusion, it is important to re-emphasize that management, sales and support personnel at all levels of the organizational system must be held accountable not only for the performance of their jobs, but also to an appropriate degree for the implementation of the corporate philosophy, culture, plan and policy (set of strategies). ) companies. They should know that both the prospects of their enterprise and the amount of individual earnings depend on this.

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Developing a personal communication strategy requires first of all determining the role that the salesperson will play in implementing the company's marketing strategy. To do this, it is necessary to clarify the nature of the connection that the company wants to establish with its customers in each product market.

Typical sales staff tasks can be grouped into three areas:

- actual sale, including identifying potential customers, studying their needs, discussing the terms of sale and concluding a deal;

- provision of services to customers, including assistance in using the product, after-sales service, product promotion, etc.;

- collection of information for the company regarding changing needs, activity of competitors, adaptability of products.

The sales worker, therefore, is not only the commercial organ of the company, but also an important element of its marketing information system.

Depending on the attention paid to one or another of these functions, the terms “sales worker” and “sales agent” in real life can be given different meanings. The following types of sales worker can be distinguished.

- Delivery representative whose main role is the physical delivery of goods.

- Salesman, operating in the sales area, who takes orders and, in addition, can act as a customer advisor, especially in large stores.

- Traveling representative who meets with wholesalers and retailers to receive orders and ensure uninterrupted supply of goods.

- Sales Promotion Representative: it organizes advertising and promotional activities directly at the point of sale.

- commercial propagandist, which does not accept orders, but only informs about new products, especially in the medical sector.

- Sales Engineer, technically competent and able to play a consultant role in helping clients solve their problems. This is exactly how IBM sales engineers work.

- Traveling salesman, selling products such as cars, electrical appliances, encyclopedias, insurance policies, where creativity and communication strategy play a decisive role.

- Contract drafter on a complex project, which, in addition to technical and financial competence, must have the talent of negotiation.

The roles of all these employees are, to one degree or another, related to creative and strategic functions. The challenge lies in the correct organization of commercial relations and the optimal distribution of responsibilities between sales staff, the sales network and communications.

The Role of Sales Personnel in Strategic Marketing

Generally speaking, the salesperson's primary task remains to satisfy the buyer's need for two-way communication regarding the product's suitability for his needs. For a company, the new importance of sales personnel is to obtain information that allows the company to speed up its adaptation to market changes.

Here's how one Japanese company defines the role of its sales staff:

“Salespeople are indispensable collectors of information; they need to be trained... rather in solidarity with other salespeople and the firm as a whole for better verification and information gathering, than in the individual vanity of the salesperson trying to fulfill his sales plan, i.e. improve only your own performance” (Serieyx, 1985).

This evolution in the concept of the role of salespeople enhances the extent of their involvement in strategic marketing, which consists of performing the following strategic functions.

Achieve market acceptance of new products.

Find new clients.

Maintain the loyalty of existing clients.

Provide technical assistance.

Provide information about products to consumers.

Collect information.

Thus, sales personnel are involved in the development of: product policy, i.e. e. in strategic marketing that provides information about customer needs.

Sales force strategy

Various organizational structures of sales personnel are possible: regional, by product, by type of customer, or by a combined principle.

Regional organization - the most popular structure due to its logic and simplicity. The seller is the exclusive representative of the company for all products for all potential and actual clients in the region. This approach, which is also the cheapest, is applicable only when the products are few or similar, and all customers have similar needs.

A company that produces paints and varnishes, whose clients are wholesalers and retailers, as well as industrial firms (construction, automotive), obviously cannot have one representative for all clients.

Organization by goods it is preferable when products are dissimilar or difficult to use. To respond to customer requests and combat competition, the sales representative must be more specialized. Costs can add up, especially if multiple representatives must visit the same client.

Organization by clients effective when clients have very different needs and require specific services. Customers can be classified by industry sector, size and other segmentation criteria discussed in Chapter 6. The advantages of the approach are possible specialization and, therefore, good adaptation of sales representatives. But if there is a large geographic spread of customers, this option can become very expensive.

Most computer companies distribute their sales personnel among the following groups of buyers: administration, banks, industrial enterprises, trade.

When using combined schemes, sellers can specialize, for example, based on the criteria of “sector-customer”, “customer-product” or even “sector-customer-product”. This principle is used only by very large firms with a diverse clientele.

13.2.4. Multi-level sale

Multi-level selling, also called network marketing, can be determined in the following way:

“Multi-level distribution is a system that allows anyone wishing to sell a range of products, without first investing anything other than their own effort and time, to receive goods directly from the manufacturer, and creates a multi-level distribution network through successive assignments of rights” (Xardel, 1986) .

Multi-level selling, using sales personnel working on a commission basis, is characterized by the following elements:

The increase in revenue is due to the expansion of sales, not the sales network,

The final price is the same for all clients,

Sellers are officially independent persons,

The seller's inventory is limited,

Trade associations act as guarantors of the quality of goods.

This approach allows you to quickly cover a large market at low costs, which is important for mass production. It has become widespread in the USA. Merchants who work according to this principle can more easily adapt to their clients. For the manufacturer, this constant interaction with customers is a very valuable source of information.

The described principle is effective for overcoming the inertia of classical distribution networks and especially for bypassing barriers to entry that can be created by firms that control traditional distribution channels. Small firms benefit in this case by reducing communication costs (Clothier, 1992).

The need of modern society for personalized communication gives the described form of trade new life. However, we must not forget about its inherent limitations in relation to industrial goods, goods that require technical competence or are sold at a small premium.