Performance through Salesmanship and Technical Selling Skills - Essay Example

The Competitor orientation, Tech orientation and Orientation effect on performance through salesmanship and technical selling skills Tutor: Course: Date: Abstract: Selling of the company’s products is a fundamental area that is always geared towards driving the revenue inflows of the particular company. Many times the argument has been that for customer orientation to be the predictor of the performance of a company’s sales, then the specific selling skills must be engaged appropriately. An understanding of the customer-oriented philosophy on the selling process and its applicability of the techniques of selling are essential in achieving this. The impact of improved sales skills as aligned by the customer, tech and competitor orientations, are widely held beliefs that will result in innumerable sales potentials to the company. As such, the marketing departments of most companies look into ensuring that the competitor orientation has well stipulated methods by which sales of the employing company shall out-do those of the competitors. The tech orientation seeks to determine the various technological means by which the company can be able to further its sales to the consumers of its products without losing its market base. The customer orientation on itself seeks to define various ways which the company can apply to enable it meet its customers’ tastes and preferences as well as the products’ perceived expectations. Why is research limited regarding the effect of competitor, customer and tech orientations on the company’s performance through salesmanship and technical skills? While no direct answer may be found, this study was conducted with the sole purpose of bringing out this variability. The findings in this study show that the customer orientation selling skills requires the immediate actions by the salespeople. While competitor orientation seem to have more effect on the sales performance, this study reveals that mostly it has been neglected by most marketing managers. Tech orientation seems to what is taking ground at the moment with most companies resorting to the internet to market their products and so a revelation of companies expanding their IT staff reported. The main aim of this study was to understand the effects of competitor orientation, tech orientation and customer orientation on the performance of the company through salesmanship and technical skills. Keywords: Sales skills, competitor orientation, tech orientation, customer orientation, customer service, company performance. 1. Introduction: The term "customer service" encompasses an assortment of techniques used by firms to make certain the contentment of a client; from sociable and thoughtful staff to punctual reply when confronted with produce defects. Successful small company owners often cite this feature as one of the most significant in establishing and maintaining a flourishing company. A cascade of valuable effects can result when a small industry cultivates consumer loyalty. That outline holds in all kinds of minute businesses those that sell to other businesses as well as those that sell to consumers. However, customer fulfilment is an uncertain and nonfigurative notion and the actual demonstration of the state of contentment will vary from person to person and product, service to product, service. The state of pleasure depends on a number of both psychological and physical variables which show a relationship with satisfaction behaviours such as return and counsel rate. The level of fulfilment can also show a discrepancy based on other options the client may have and other products against which the customer can compare the organizations products. As a cornerstone of the modern marketing discipline, the selling perception emphasizes the significance of integrating a firms schemes and tactics in quest of long-term customer fulfilment (Kotler, 1972). In deed, some company experts argue that value-based customer service can be a more vital factor in ensuring company achievement in some industries than promotion, advertising, and other promotion efforts. This consisted of a lot of competitors in a field and one of them courts customers with service and the others dont, its the customer-oriented company that pulls ahead. Customers buy more. They return to buy again. And the feed the positive word of mouth grapevine about the quality service company." Business owners who make customer service a central guiding principle in their business, then, are far more likely to succeed than those who are indifferent to such practices. You cant lose view of the fact that consumers come first. No matter the product, one must always please the purchaser. If you dont, they can find someone nicer and more accommodating to take their business. 2. Literature review 2.1. Tech-Orientation, Competitors-Orientation and Customer-Orientation: As a cornerstone of the modem marketing discipline, the marketing impression emphasizes the significance of integrating a firms strategies in quest of long term customer satisfaction (Kotler, 1972). One of the original attempts to formally assess in the field of sales behaviour, came as a consequence of researchers inquiring whether salespeople were without a doubt practicing the tenets of the advertising concept in their individual relations with customers (Charles H. Schwepker, 2003). Leading this effort to appraise the marketing concepts approval among individual salespeople, Saxe and Weitz, 1982 introduced a conceptualization of customer-orientated selling. In their view, customer-oriented salespeople exhibited a sincere desire to help customers and prospects make satisfactory purchase decisions by assisting in the assessment of their needs and by only offering products that satisfy those needs. Oftentimes, such customer oriented behaviours result in the sacrifice of immediate sales gains in favour of the establishment and/or maintenance of long-term relationships. Saxe and Weitz operationalized this conceptualization into 24-item sales-oriented customer-oriented scale, which distinguishes between salespeople practicing a traditional "sales orientation" that attempts to make the most of short term sales gains by inspiring order for products versus the "customer-oriented" approach that favors exchange of products only in response to bona-fide customer needs or wants (e.g., improve innovation; solve latent "pain" etc.).To date, the majority of the literature has focused on customer orientation from the perspective of the firm in contrast to individual performance. When performance and, sales-orientation and customer-orientation, have been assessed at the firm level, the results have generally been inconclusive or weak. One area which has seen heavy attention is that of organizational level factors as they come to impact sales-orientation and customer-orientation, including culture, climate, and ethics. Several studies have also evaluated customer orientations impact on the salespersons role conflict and role ambiguity. From an outcomes perspective, a popular topic has been customer orientations impact on loyalty, and even more popular is a satisfaction. In contrast to the areas of inquiry outlined above, the impact of sales-orientation and customer-orientation, on individual-level of performance has received relatively scant attention in the literature. Recently, a few studies have evaluated the correlation between customer orientation and individual outcome performance. However, the last 20 years have produced surprisingly little empirical evidence to support the supposition that a positive and significant relationship exists between customer orientation and individual-level performance. However, the fact remains that despite its intuitive appeal and the obvious overlap with the broader marketing concept, much remains to be learned about the Tech-Orientation, Competitors-Orientation and Customer-Orientation to the customer satisfaction relationship. This context sets the foundation for the current study. Competitor orientation can enhance a firm’s competitive advantage by allowing it to benchmark with, learn from, imitate, and improve on the products of successful competitors. Dissimilar to the long-term benefits of customer orientation, widely divergent findings on the relationship between competitor orientation and organizational performance have been noted, and a positive relationship between competitor orientation and organizational performance identified. Competitor orientation reduces the profitability of a firm and suggested that firms should focus on maximizing their own profit and ignore their competitors’ tactics completely. 1.2. Selling skills: Selling skills have been identified as one of the five factors of selling effectiveness. Selling skills, loosely defined, were found to be the most highly associated factor of performance. Yet there has been very little empirical attention. Hence, the notion that "selling skills" are vital to success in the sales role has retained an enduring conceptual appeal among sales scholars and managers. However, the examination of the impact of specific types of selling skills on customer satisfaction has largely remained an important, yet dormant and largely unexplored thematic area in the literature. In an effort to address this gap in the literature, an empirically validated perspective that marries three distinct components of overall selling skill can be derived: (i) Salesmanship skills (e.g., sales presentation abilities); (ii) Technical skills (e.g., the salespersons product knowledge). Technical knowledge refers to salespersons skills in providing info about design and specification of the company products and the applications and meanings of both products and services. Where, Salesmanship skills dimensions can be generally categorized into five subclasses i.e.: 1- adaptability, 2- consultative selling, 3- negotiation and questioning, 4- salesperson cues and 5- Communication style skills. Earlier studies had utilized each dimension independently to represent salesmanship skills in testing its relationship with salesperson performance. Adaptive selling is defined as the salesperson’s ability to alter her/his sales behavior when interacting with customers and is important because it shows the amount of customisation a salesperson utilizes. These two components which have mentioned above comprise a higher-order construct of selling skills which are germane to the salesperson and, these authors argue, exemplary sales performance, customer satisfaction and long-term success in the sales role. Curiously, the exhaustive review of the literature we conducted revealed that no known study has yet applied this tripartite measure of selling skills in an empirical field setting to further evaluate its efficacy, or to determine how it might mesh from a theoretical perspective with other existing frameworks of sales effectiveness (e.g., TOCOCO). With this overview and context in mind, we now turn our attention to developing a testable research model and associated hypotheses. 1.3 Performances In short, this analysis suggests that performances is a cognitive and pleasurable emotional state resulting from the appraisal of a good or service leading to or achieving one’s values. Conversely, consumer dissatisfaction refers to an unpleasurable emotional state resulting from an appraisal that an object, action, or condition blocks the achievement of one’s values. Found that desires congruence had a positive impact on attribute satisfaction, information satisfaction, and overall satisfaction. The latter finding concerning desires congruence and overall satisfaction was consistent with an earlier study. Finally, we expect that Tech-Orientation and Customer-Orientation will have highly positive relation with Customer Satisfactions either way direct or indirect and that is through the moderate effect of selling skills (Salesmanship skills, Technical skills). 2. Objectives: 1. To identify the direct influence of tech-orientation, competitors’ orientation, customer-orientation (TOCOCO) on selling skills (salesmanship and tech-skills). 2. To identify the direct influence of tech-orientation, competitors’ orientation, customer-orientation (TOCOCO) on customer satisfaction. 3. To identify the direct influence of selling skills (salesmanship and tech-skills) on customer satisfaction. 4. To examine to what extent does the selling skills (salesmanship and tech-skills) moderate the relationship between (TOCOCO) and customer satisfaction. 3. Methodology: This study formulates competitor orientation, tech orientation and their effect on customers satisfaction through salesmanship and technical selling skills as shown in Figure 1. Below framework outlines the research model. The model begins from the basic logic that both perspectives of the two constituent components; a sales orientation and a customer orientation should each impact customer satisfaction. Specifically, this encompasses the achievement of general and long-term objectives, such as exceeding sales targets and objectives, identifying major accounts in ones territory, and producing a high market share for ones territory. More specifically, tech orientation and customer orientation should positively impact customer satisfaction , as the customers needs and best interests have been heeded by the sales person(by using their best sales skills). Conversely, competitor orientation should negatively impact customer satisfaction as the salesperson has set aside the customers primary needs and drivers in exchange for the satisfaction of their own interests (such as generating the quick sale etc.). Figure 1: theoretical framework When this research framework is translated into the hypothesized model (see Figure 1), the manifesting variables are drawn with the error terms for each latent variable. The three exogenous variables of Tech-orientation, Competitors-orientation and Costumer-Orientation each one contains seven manifesting (observed) variables. Whereas, the endogenous variables which are customer satisfaction and selling skills contains seven manifesting (observed) variables. Research Hypotheses: The hypotheses of this study were formulated as shown in below Table (table 1): Table 1: Hypotheses Formulation H1 Tech-orientation will have a positive direct effect on customer satisfaction. H2 Competitors’ orientation will have a negative direct effect on customer satisfaction. H3 Customer Orientation will have a positive direct effect on customer satisfaction. H4 The greater the selling skills knowledge, the greater the impact of a Tech-orientation on customers’ satisfaction. H5 Selling skills knowledge will have a positive direct effect on customer satisfaction. H6 Customer-orientation will have a direct negative effect on customer satisfaction. H7 The lower the salespersons selling skill knowledge s, the greater the impact of a competitors-orientation on customers’ satisfaction. H8 The greater the salespersons selling skills knowledge, the greater the impact of a customer-orientation on their satisfaction. With selling skills, the research assumes that this perspective if treated as a single higher-order construct reflected in interpersonal, salesmanship and technical skills will have a positive and significant direct effect on customer Satisfaction, as per the initial development and conjecture espoused. Population and designing: The population of this study will consist of salespeople selling industrial cleaning supplies, as well as marketing, MBA students from Utara University, Malaysia. 3.1 Sampling and data collection The sample in this study consists of an entire sales force of 150 salespeople selling industrial cleaning supplies, as well as MBA marketing students from a Utara University, Malaysia. A stratified random sampling technique was used to select the salespeople for the study. The salespeople were then divided into three groups each digging into the prospects of the study’s categories of competitor, customer and tech orientations. These salespeople were thoroughly screened to ensure that they are committed to the study. Findings and analysis of the study To analyse this study we used the structural equation modelling with maximum likelihood method. SPSS software was used to develop the sales analysis data for the study. The primary focus of an orientation is to create a more superior based on the knowledge derived from the competitor and customer analysis. However, this focus may risk overlooking the potential contribution of other sources. This study focused on three major strategic orientations: customer, competitor and tech. Customer orientation is of central interest due to the ability to create the highest priority on the profitable creation and maintenance of customer value. Particularly, this study found that customer orientation emphasized on the serious need for the entire organization to acquire, disseminate and respond to the intelligence in the market place from the current customers, current competitors and future potential competitors. Further, this study discovered that by a firm prioritizing on the customer orientation, it excels in its ability to seek and use the customer-market information to deliver value to the same customers. Consequently, the study found that the ability by a firm to uncover its customers’ needs can be enhanced by the use of a more advanced technology. Although most firms abscond investing in technology based on the fact that it is very risky, it provides clear and certain signs of the ,market which a customer oriented firm can tap into. This study further found that both the customer and tech orientations promote openness to new ideas in the firm. A technology oriented firm will always favor the use of new technologies in its production of products and so will devote all its resources to ensure it excels in technical proficiency and flexibility which are the key drivers for breakthrough innovations. A tech orientation is positively associated with the tech-based innovations and performance of the firms. References Charles H. Schwepker, J. (2003). Customer-Oriented Selling: A Review, Extension, and Directions for Future Research. The Journal of Personal Selling and Sales Management, 151-171. Kotler, P. (1972). A Generic Concept of Marketing. Journal of Marketing, 46-54. Saxe, R., & Weitz, B. A. (1982). The SOCO Scale: A Measure of the Customer Orientation of Salespeople. Journal of Marketing Research, 343-351. Does Competitor orientation, Tech orientation have an effect on salesperson performance Please, append sign ( ) to box ( ) when you want result of the completed research: Yes, I want to get the completed research report Yes, I want to know further information about the research result through a seminar. Listen General Information about the Company Name of the company: Name of person who completed/authorized this questionnaire: Position in the company: Company sector Your e-mail address or other contact details: Is your company a listed company? Yes No Please tick the appropriate column. The numbers 1 to 7 represent the following: 1: Strongly Disagree 4: Natural 7: Strongly Agree Please choose the appropriate number Questions Section A (Competitors’ orientation) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 1 Our organization systematically analyzes the strengths and weaknesses of our direct competitors. 2 Our organization systematically analyzes the threats coming from substitute products. 3 Our organization analyzes the best practice of competition to improve the quality of our own offers. 4 Our organization is fast to respond to competitors’ actions directed at our customers. Section B (Customer orientation) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 1 I try to figure out what the customer needs are. 2 A good employee has to have the customers best interest in mind 3 I try to bring a customer with a problem together with a product/service that helps solve that problem 4 I offer the product/service that is best suited for the customers problem 5 I try to find out what kind of products/services will be most helpful to a customer Section C (Tech orientation) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 1 How do you help improve the skills of your oriental? (Developing people) 2 Rate our service based on performance in a neat and professional manner. 3 Rate our service based on completion within the timeframe promised. 4 Rate our technician based on courteousness and professionalism. 5 Rate our technician on his/her explanation of the work performed. 6 Condition of your home or office upon completion - neat and clean. Section D (Customer Satisfaction) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 1 Did you find the right commodity you needed? 2 Was the sales person helpful in providing you with the required products? 3 Was the price of the product fairly affordable for you? 4 Do you consider making a return purchase in future? 5 How can you rate our services? Selling skills Section E (Salesmanship skills) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 1 Ability to prospect for customers 2 Ability to qualify prospects 3 Ability to close the sale 4 Ability to present the sales message Section F (Technical skill ) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 1 Knowledge of the customers markets and products 2 Knowledge of your companys procedures 3 Knowledge of competitors products, services, and sales policies 4 Knowledge of product line, including product features and benefits 5 Knowledge of customers operations (e.g. store and shelf layout, employee training, etc.) 6 Knowledge of customers markets and products. 7 Knowledge of your own companys procedures. 8 Knowledge of competitors products, services, and sales policies. 9 Knowledge of product line, including product features and benefits. 10 Knowledge of customers operations, such as store and shelf layout, and employee training. 11 Imagination in supplying products and services that meet the customers needs. Read More