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Sales management is a
business Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or buying and selling products (such as goods and services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for profit." Having a business name does not separ ...
discipline which is focused on the practical application of
sales Sales are activities related to selling or the number of goods sold in a given targeted time period. The delivery of a service for a cost is also considered a sale. The seller, or the provider of the goods or services, completes a sale in r ...
techniques and the management of a firm's sales operations. It is an important business function as net sales through the sale of products and services and resulting
profit Profit may refer to: Business and law * Profit (accounting), the difference between the purchase price and the costs of bringing to market * Profit (economics), normal profit and economic profit * Profit (real property), a nonpossessory inter ...
drive most commercial business. These are also typically the goals and performance indicators of sales management. Sales manager is the typical title of someone whose role is sales management. The role typically involves talent development. Churchill mentioned that the antecedents of sales performance are based on the meta-analysis for the period 1918- 1982 (76 years of previous research work). He suggested five factors that influence a salesperson’s job behaviour and performance along with different categories like skill level, role perceptions, motivation, aptitude, personal factors, and organizational factors with three moderators.


Sales planning

Sales planning involves strategy, setting profit-based sales targets, quotas, sales
forecasting Forecasting is the process of making predictions based on past and present data. Later these can be compared (resolved) against what happens. For example, a company might estimate their revenue in the next year, then compare it against the actual ...
,
demand management Demand management is a planning methodology used to forecast, plan for and manage the demand for products and services. This can be at macro-levels as in economics and at micro-levels within individual organizations. For example, at macro-lev ...
and the execution of a sales plan. A sales plan is a strategic document that outlines the business targets, resources and sales activities. It typically follows the lead of the
marketing plan A marketing plan may be part of an overall business plan. Solid marketing strategy is the foundation of a well-written marketing plan so that goals may be achieved. While a marketing plan contains a list of actions, without a sound strategic founda ...
,
strategic planning Strategic planning is an organization's process of defining its strategy or direction, and making decisions on allocating its resources to attain strategic goals. It may also extend to control mechanisms for guiding the implementation of the s ...
and the
business plan A business plan is a formal written document containing the goals of a business, the methods for attaining those goals, and the time-frame for the achievement of the goals. It also describes the nature of the business, background information on ...
with more specific detail on how the objectives can be achieved through the actual sale of products and services. Sales is a recurring and periodical process (maybe 'daily'), hence, this can not be called as a project. Sales is a process and ideally a periodical activity.


Recruitment of sales staff

The three recruitment tasks used in sales management are job analysis; job description and job qualifications.Spiro, Rosann L., Gregory A. Rich, and William J. Stanton (2008), Management of a Sales Force, 12th Edition, McGraw-Hill Irwin, Boston, pp. 134-137. Job analysis is performed to specify the certain tasks that a salesperson is responsible for on a daily basis. It should identify what activities are deemed as being vital to the success of the company. Any person associated with the sales organization or the human resources department could carry out the analysis, or it could be done by an outside specialist (Spiro, pp. 134-137). The person that is responsible for completing a job analysis should have an in-depth comprehension of the daily activities of the salespeople. This job analysis is then written in an explicit manner as a job description. The general information consists of: # Title of job # Organizational relationship # Types of products and services sold # Types of customers called on # Duties and responsibilities related to the job # Job demands. An effective job description will identify compensation plans, size of workload, and the salespeople's duties. It is also primarily responsible for hiring tools such as application forms and psychological tests. The most difficult part of this process is the determination of job qualifications. A reason for this difficulty is because hiring affects a company's competitive advantage in the market as well as the amount of revenue. Additionally, there should be a set of hiring attributes that is associated with each sales job that is within a company. If an individual does not excel in their assigned territory, it could be due to external factors relating to that person's environment. A company should be careful not to submit to discrimination in regards to employment. A number of qualifications (ethnic background, age, etc.) can not be used in the selection process of hiring.


Sales reporting

The sales reporting includes the key performance indicators of the sales force. The Key Performance Indicators indicate whether or not the sales process is being operated effectively and achieves the results as set forth in sales planning. It should enable the sales managers to take timely corrective action deviate from projected values. It also allows senior management to evaluate the sales manager. More "results related" than "process related" are information regarding the sales funnel and the hit rate. Sales reporting can provide metrics for sales management compensation. Rewarding the best managers without accurate and reliable sales reports is not objective. Also, sales reports are made for internal use for top management. If other divisions’ compensation plan depends on final results, it is needed to present results of sales department's work to other departments. Finally, sales reports are required for investors, partners and government, so the sales management system should have advanced reporting capabilities to satisfy the needs of different stakeholders.


See also

*
Economy An economy is an area of the production, distribution and trade, as well as consumption of goods and services. In general, it is defined as a social domain that emphasize the practices, discourses, and material expressions associated with th ...
*
Good (economics) In economics, goods are items that satisfy human wants and provide utility, for example, to a consumer making a purchase of a satisfying product. A common distinction is made between goods which are transferable, and services, which are not t ...
*
Marketing Marketing is the process of exploring, creating, and delivering value to meet the needs of a target market in terms of goods and services; potentially including selection of a target audience; selection of certain attributes or themes to emph ...
*
Merchandise Merchandising is any practice which contributes to the sale of products to a retail consumer. At a retail in-store level, merchandising refers to displaying products that are for sale in a creative way that entices customers to purchase more ...
* Personal selling * Promotional mix *
Sales Sales are activities related to selling or the number of goods sold in a given targeted time period. The delivery of a service for a cost is also considered a sale. The seller, or the provider of the goods or services, completes a sale in r ...
* Sales operations * Sales force management * ''''


References

{{Management Business terms Promotion and marketing communications Retail processes and techniques Sales