end–of–chapter resources

Reviewing the Key Terms

approach: The step in the selling process in which the salesperson meets the customer for the first time.
catalog marketing: Direct marketing through print, video, or electronic catalogs that are mailed to select customers, made available in stores, or presented online.
closing: The step in the selling process in which the salesperson asks the customer for an order.
customer database: An organized collection of comprehensive data about individual customers or prospects, including geographic, demographic, psychographic, and behavioral data.
customer sales force structure: A sales force organization under which salespeople specialize in selling only to certain customers or industries.
direct marketing channel: A marketing channel that has no intermediary levels.
direct-mail marketing: Direct communications with carefully targeted individual consumers to obtain an immediate response.
direct-response television marketing: Direct marketing via television, including direct-response television advertising and home shopping channels.
follow-up: The last step in the selling process, in which the salesperson follows up after the sale to ensure customer satisfaction and repeat business.
handling objections: The step in the selling process in which the salesperson seeks out, clarifies, and overcomes customer objections to buying.
inside sales force: Inside salespeople who conduct business from their offices via telephone or visits from prospective buyers.
integrated direct marketing: Direct-marketing campaigns that use multiple vehicles and multiple stages to improve response rates and profits.
outside sales force (or field sales force): Outside salespeople who travel to call on customers.
preapproach: The step in the selling process in which the salesperson learns as much as possible about a prospective customer before making a sales call.
presentation: The step in the selling process in which the salesperson tells the "product story" to the buyer, highlighting customer benefits.
product sales force structure: A sales force organization under which salespeople specialize in selling only a portion of the company's products or lines.
prospecting: The step in the selling process in which the salesperson identifies qualified potential customers.
sales force management: The analysis, planning, implementation, and control of sales force activities. It includes setting and designing sales force strategy and recruiting, selecting, training, supervising, compensating, and evaluating the firm's salespeople.
sales quotas: A standard that states the amount a salesperson should sell and how sales should be divided among the company's products.
salesperson: An individual acting for a company by performing one or more of the following activities: prospecting, communicating, servicing, and information gathering.
selling process: The steps that the salesperson follows when selling, which include prospecting and qualifying, preapproach, approach, presentation and demonstration, handling objections, closing, and follow-up.
team selling: Using teams of people from sales, marketing, engineering, finance, technical support, and even upper management to service large, complex accounts.
telephone marketing: Using the telephone to sell directly to customers.
territorial sales force structure: A sales force organization that assigns each salesperson to an exclusive geographic territory in which that salesperson sells the company's full line.