Sales process

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In business science a sales process describes an approach to selling a product or service. The sales process has been approached from the point of view of an engineering discipline (see sales process engineering).[1]

Rationale

Reasons for having a well-thought-out sales process include seller and buyer risk management, standardized customer interaction during sales, and scalable revenue generation. Approaching the subject from a "process" point of view offers an opportunity to use design and improvement tools from other disciplines and process-oriented industries.[2] Joseph Juran observed that "there should be no reason our familiar principles of quality and process engineering would not work in the sales process".[3]

In Management of a Sales Force (12th Ed. p. 66) by Rich, Spiro and Stanton a "sales process" is presented as consisting of eight steps. These are:

  • Prospecting / initial contact
  • Preapproach - planning the sale
  • Approach
  • Need assessment
  • Presentation
  • Meeting objections
  • Gaining commitment
  • Follow-up

From a seller's point of view, analysis of a sales process can reveal steps in a sale that are problematic, and may allow the prediction of numbers of sales based on initial interest.[4] The interface between the selling and buying process has also been diagrammed.[5]

References

  1. ↑ Paul H. Selden (1997). Sales Process Engineering: A Personal Workshop. Milwaukee, WI: ASQ Quality Press. p. 23. ISBN 0-87389-418-9. 
  2. ↑ William H. McNeese and Robert A. Klein (1991). Statistical Methods For The Process Industries. Milwaukee, WI: ASQC Quality Press. ISBN 0-8247-8524-X. 
  3. ↑ Selden (1997). p. xxii.  Missing or empty |title= (help)
  4. ↑ "The Sales Funnel", www.mindtools.com 
  5. ↑ Paul H. Selden (November 2000). "The Power of Quality Thinking In Sales and Management". Quality Progress: 58–64. 
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