Introduction to the
Creative Sales Process
An important ingredient in the successful retail or service business
is good selling. Without it, many sales are lost -- sales that may mean
the difference between success and failure. This publication tells you
how you can train yourself and your employees to become creative sales
people.
To many customers, the salesperson is the business. Therefore, if the
sales personnel are good, the business is good. But if the sales personnel
are bad, then so is the firm. Although important to all businesses,
effective sales personnel are especially important to small businesses.
Why? Because it is difficult for a small business to compete with the
big firms on things like assortment, price, and promotion. Selling effort,
on the other hand, is one place where the small product or service retail
business can compete with larger competitors -- and win.
Effective selling doesn't happen by accident. The small entrepreneur
must work to achieve a high level of sales effectiveness in his or her
business. In order to work toward
this goal, the businessperson should be aware of the different types
of salesperson, the selling process, and the attributes of effective
salespersons. Applying such knowledge to a business situation should
result in the desired goal of effective sales personnel -- the competitive
edge.
It is important to note that retailing may involve selling services instead
of products. Appliance repair, beauty shop, lawn service, and photography
studio are all examples of service retailing. Even though services are
intangible, personal, nonstandardized, and perishable when compared to
products, they are sold by retailers either alone or in conjunction with
products. The effective selling of services has the potential to give
a business a competitive advantage.
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