Benefits of Employing Sales Force - Essay Example

Benefits of Employing Sales Force 2.0 Introduction Strategic management is a vital role in the implementation of any company goals. Companies chasing either corporate or business strategies are at a decision to make it possible for all the strategies to succeed. The strategies may be aimed at either local or international expansion. Saxon Plumbing Services London Ltd (SPSL), a company that is under the directorship of Peter and Harvey brothers would like to implement a strategy by moving its operation offices in the Manchester city northern region from the traditional south London area. This report therefore analyses some of the strategic plans in place to implement the same. In view of this, the report will analyse sales force with reference to the company. The report will also create an analytical look at the relationship variables and the business networks as well as their relevance to the business. B2B and B2C are very important to the business and will therefore be analysed with respect to the company. 3.0 Benefits of Employing Sales Force Sales force has got a wide expanse of advantages to both the company and the consumer. The first reason why this method is more suitable is the fact that apart from addition of generated income, the method adds a very big significance to the knowledge of the availability of the goods (Brennan, Canning, & McDowell, 2010, p. 45). This method creates more trust in customers than just the normal methods of product promotion. In sales force, customers are engaged at all stages of the relationship and are therefore able to get the correct version of the ideal goods they are looking for in the market. This is because new customers to the company or in a new place require a lot of interaction with the products for the purposes of familiarity and acclimatization. This method makes sure that there is consistent follow-up as well as communication that are very effective with the sales representative (Cohon, 2007, p. 87). In the case of peter and Harvey, the company creation of convenience will make it possible for the sales team to reach out to the individuals in their respective residences and their places of work so that they get access to the information about the company and its products in the area. The main issue here is to create trust through trying to identify even the other customers from Manchester that have been purchasing the products from the other sources through promotions, communication and effective sales cycles. The second advantage the company would get from use of sales force is the ability to reach varied types of customers. This is because there is a varied type of measures that are used to create the ability to reach to the customers. First, a varied type of sales team is created (Goodey, 2011, p. 88). There are the field representatives where the responsible and self-driven individual sales representatives would reach out to all the places in Manchester so that they create awareness of the new business venture. There is also another group called the telemarketers who reach out to the customers by use of the phones. This is important for the places that are not easily accessible or there is need to gauge the interests of the customers in this region (Ellis, 2011, p. 24). The Manchester region would therefore be reached in whole through getting the right information from the customers before engaging them in a constructive sales process. There is no sales method that creates a high sales awareness, company loyalty that is heightened and brand awareness to the consumers than sales force. It is a method that inculcates a very slow but effective recruitment method. His creates high benefits in the company as there is inclusion of the social media by promoting sales campaigns (Lehmann, 2009 , p. 95). In the Manchester region, the British communication industry is made up of the tech-savvy citizens and therefore the Manchester region as part of the British economy is able to effectively get to the consumers. According to the British economists, the town was one of the cities that led to the industrial revolution and therefore the population is bound to be very knowledgeable to the ways of technology. Vast centres like the Exchange Square is also very important in advertising the products made by the company. There are so many objections that occur to a firm in the marketing and sales promotion industry. Some of these are based on the intimidation of the sales people while others are based on logistical differences in the company as compared to other companies. Customers may directly state that they do not need the product, they will think about the offer or they cannot afford the good. Therefore use of sales force creates in the customer and the sales person a very interactive idea that makes sure there are high sales realized in general. This way, there are several ways of getting to the market and the customers without necessarily getting into wrong commitments with the customers. There is a high level of professionalism, integrity and commitment on the marketers in the sales force which makes it possible for a good union between the customers and the company (Bingham, Gomes, & Knowles, 2005, p. 77). 4.0 Options Available in Organizing the Sales Force Organization of the sales force depends on so many options available at the company. There is therefore the need to make sure that the customers are able to get the best in terms of the methods used on them as well as the company benefiting in terms of its strategies. Peter and Harvey is a company that has got so many business interests and therefore as stated earlier, each business enterprise in the company needs to approach the sales force strategically. The options available therefore for organizing the sales force diverse. One is lineation to the business strategy. The business strategy can create a company sales force to be regional or international (Fill & Fill, 2004, p. 78). In the case of Peter and Harvey, the company is moving from London to Manchester which is a regional strategy. Because of this, the market that will be created will have an aim of reaching to the local big customer base. The second option available for organizing the sales force is whether there will be need to have a diversified sales staff in the managerial or in the field. A high sales staff in the field will need a highly creative regional co-ordinator. There might also be telemarketers or field marketers. Peter and Harvey will need to use both because of the region they have to cover and the complexity of the industry they are to cover. Other options available for organizing the sales force are the available resources in the company. For peter and Harvey, the company will need to pool resources so that they are able to create a very wide market for the customers in the area. 5.0 Relationship Variables and Business Networks 5.1 Importance of Business Networks to the Business Proper business network is very important in creation of a sound business venture. This is especially important in the creation of a new business as well as creation of a new business venture in the market. Proper networking in a business is important in that it helps create a more clientele base, effective response to the client issues as well as creation of a closer relationship with the clients. Therefore, business networking is very important in that t expands the client base of the business (Langowitz, Sharpe, & Godwin, 2001, p. 176). The Peter and Harvey Company has a basis of mouth to mouth communication with the clients. This has its own advantages but it does not create a large client base to the company. It is a secretive method of getting to the clients without even the competitors getting to know the plans of the business. The company also benefits from networking through the business getting to understand the business clients clearly. Networking creates a situation in which the marketer is able to directly engage the clients in the field (Sharma, Gopalkrishnan, & mehropa, 2010, p. 336). This makes it possible for the business to provide the best services as the worry of the client being dissatisfied about the viability of the product is ruled out. This is also important in the creation of a long term strategy of the business and eventual creation of the customer loyalty with the business. Peter and Harvey is a company that is probably recognised in south London but in Manchester, there might be no one with sound knowledge about its existence. Therefore, the company networks will be very viable in the creation of a sound customer knowledge, creation and retention. Networking also increases the bond that exists between the business and the clients. Her business and the clients become one person. There is therefore a difference in the way the business and the client treats each other. From an entrepreneurial point of view, a business is an artificial person that has a life of its own (Piercy, 2010, p. 355). Therefore creation of a good bond establishes the ability of the bond between the business and the customers to be personal. The Peter and Harvey Company can take part in creation of a wider customer personality with the business in the larger Manchester region as opposed to the creation of a small region in the southern part of London alone. Future negotiations become easier and because there is a personal feeling between the business and the client. 5.2 Maintaining Relationship Variables Creation of the right level of the relationships maintenance between the business and the customers is very important for the continuation of the business inn a new place or already existing location. Maintaining customers in the dynamic and competitive market is perhaps more difficult than winning one. The first way to maintain a customer is by creation of constant communication with the customers. This can be done through so many communication media available. It can be in terms of a phone call to the individual customers as was mentioned in the sales force or can be through the mass media. All this keeps the company in existence in the minds of the customers (Capon & Hulbert, 2007, p. 341). With the increase in the availability of the social networks, create a way of reaching to them through chats and clearly define the importance of the business relationships to them. Sending of newsletters to the customers is very important in the creation of the business existence in the customer’s premises. For instance, Peter and Harvey is a company that is in existence by virtue of word of mouth communication. As an SME, the company can adapt provision of a newsletter that can be used by the customers to keep in touch with the company abilities and strengths. At all costs, the customers must be shown enough respect for who they are to the company. Impact is usually created a first contact. Therefore, the future of the relationship is highly depended on that relationship. Respecting customers goes a long way in trying to respect their needs (Canary & Dainton, 2003, p. 242). This is seen in the way the company responds to their needs. Therefore, business has customers as the main assets and must therefore be maintained as such. 6.0 Differences between B2B and B2C There is a varied difference between B2B and B2C marketing in every essence. The factors causing the differences are based on the complexity of the products, the costs involved, the people involved and the people directly or indirectly involved in the program. Amongst other factors there bare sound differences between B2B and B2C. B2B is a company contact initiative while B2C involves business to consumer sales. By variation factors involved, it is seen that the contact here is between the customer and the business. The individuals involved in this are different stakeholders that make up the business work. Therefore, if the business has a contact with all the stakeholders involved in its operations, then this makes a B2C marketing criteria. If the contact is between the business and the other business that influences its survival by way of competition, supplies and purchases, then this makes a B2B contact (Barschel, 2007, p. 09). The second difference is that bv2b contact is relationship driven while B2C is product driven. All the efforts in the B2B relationships are aimed at enhancing the relationship that occurs between the company and all other businesses involved in one way or the other with the business. Therefore, there is every need to believe that the binding factor is the business survival. On the contrary, B2C is a mutual relationship that is based on how much the customer can be of a resource to the business as well as the business being of a resource to the customer. B2B business involves a negotiation process that is very personal. As opposed to the B2C in which there is a high dependency on the mass media, it involves creation of a process that will create close contacts between all the businesses that make the external environment of the business. In view of this, the company will therefore be formidably associated with a few stakeholders. In the B2C issue, there are thousands of customers that may not be reachable at an instance. Therefore, it is only possible to reach a few especially in the process of promotion (Kotler & Pfoertsch, 2006, p. 59). B2B to a larger extent covers small markets as opposed to the B2C that covers very large markets. The reason why there are small markets covered in B2B is that a business would want to get in touch with another business and this would involve sales, supply or consultancy. This is a situation that will involve creation of a relationship with businesses in the same or similar business areas and environments. It is therefore a personality issue. However, getting to the issue of business to business, there will be a very high level of segmented regions that will be involved. There is no probability that all the customers that receive the information will purchase the offer. However, there is a high probability that the larger the market covered, the higher the likely sales for the business. B2B marketing also has a scale cycle that is very long as compared to B2C. The scale cycle is the rate at which the company is able to sustain a relationship between itself and a given stakeholder. In view of this, there is need to get concerned with the fact that due to the high dynamism in the market values there is always a shift of loyalty as far as the customers and the businesses are concerned. However, as far as two businesses are concerned, there is always a very high possibility that there will be a continuous relationship since there level of dependence is very high (Gillin & Schwartzman, 2010, p. 5). Losing a customer may cause a negligible change in the business aspects but loss of a supplier for instance would go a long way in creation of a supply gap in terms of the products involved. B2B in most cases is based on rational purchase decisions while B2C is based on the emotional and status decisions. This means that in B2B, there is a low wastage because there is only proximate purchase based on the need to do so. However, there is a purchase decision in B2C based on class. That is why some businesses come up with the ideas related to price discrimination and consideration of segmentation values in the market. The level of wastage therefore in B2B is lower in general terms as opposed to that in B2C. 7.0 Analysis of the Advantages and disadvantages of B2B AND B2C Though the target audience of the two methods are different, there is a very big reason to believe that they serve same purpose to both parties. There have been several avenues for advertisement and these have highly contributed to the advantages that occur to the companies involved as a result of using these methods. Regardless of the relevant media that is chosen to advertise the products, there is a highly created awareness of the products and the company to the new market (Birkner, 2013). Peter and Harvey have an obligation to go into the market and reach out to the customers in the Manchester region as well as the other similar businesses which will help create a companionship either by way of supplies, purchase or support services. Employment of these methods makes it possible for the company to be aware of its market and thereafter collect all the small details that are needed for entry onto the market. If the company involves the two methods, there will therefore be a surety that the whole Manchester market is interacted with basing their strength on the traditional word of mouth method of advertisement. Another advantage is the fact that the company will be able to create a high level of interaction with the community in Manchester as opposed to the way that would have included taking the market by surprise. The two methods that are very involving will make sure that there is a high level of interaction of not only people but also the goods and services in the Manchester market. Couple with better services to be produced, the method gets to realize the specific needs and the feedbacks that are given by the customers so that they provide the very best (Stokes & Lomax, 2008, p. 10). The disadvantage of this method especially to Peter and Harvey company is that being an SME, the company will have to spend a lot of money trying to reach out to the market and creating a very viable network given that the industry is very competitive and equally involving. Moreover, the B2B market is very small and cannot therefore be compared to the fact that there will be need for an expansion strategy to be immediately implemented. 8.0 Conclusion Promotion of the services of a business is very important in creation of a wide region of operation. The SPSL Company with the expansion vision to operate in the northern side of Manchester, UK is trying to see the abilities of employing effective methods of reaching out to the customers. This report therefore has analysed the advantages that would accrue to the firm as a result of use of sales force in reaching out to the customers. The report therefore has analysed the sales force and its advantages to the company strategies. It has also looked at the actions available at organizing the sales force items to generate a successful transfer to the Manchester to the region. The B2B and B2C are very important connection components of a network. They were therefore analysed in reference to the business alignment to setting up the new office in Northern Manchester. 9.0 Reference Barschel, H. ( 2007). B2b Versus B2c Marketing. Dublin: GRIN Verlag. Bingham, F., Gomes, R., & Knowles, P. (2005). Businesss Marketing. Boston: McGraw. Birkner, C. (2013, 2 20). 5 'Must Haves' for B-to-B Demand Generation. Retrieved 4 20, 2013, from American Marketing Association: http://www.marketingpower.com/ResourceLibrary/Pages/newsletters/mne/2013/2/demand-generation.aspx Brennan, R., Canning, L., & McDowell, R. (2010). Business to Businesss Marketing. London: Sage. Canary, D. J., & Dainton, M. ( 2003). Maintaining Relationships Through Communication. London: Routledge. Capon, N., & Hulbert, J. M. (2007). Managing Marketing in the Twenty-first Century. Wessex: Wessex Incorporated. Cohon, C. M. (2007). The Sales Force. London: Prime Devices Corp. Ellis, N. (2011). Business to Business Marketing. Oxford: OUP. Fill, K., & Fill, C. (2004). 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