Page 8 - DMGT507_SALES AND PROMOTIONS MANAGEMENT
P. 8

Sales and Promotions Management




                    Notes          Introduction

                                   Before the industrial revolution the marketing task was relatively simple because the economic
                                   scene was dominated by small scale enterprises. The only problem was to produce goods for
                                   consumers which were sold out without any difficulty. Selling the goods was no problem. In fact
                                   all phases of the business  operations, including  manufacturing and selling, were generally
                                   supervised by one individual and more attention was paid to manufacturing problems rather
                                   than the marketing problems.

                                   The importance of marketing problems was realised only after the industrial revolution which
                                   started in England in 1760 and immediately thereafter in United States. The American Revolution
                                   necessitated the need for finding out untapped markets because the nearby markets were unable
                                   to absorb the increased quantities of manufactured goods.  This gave a lot  of importance to
                                   marketing activities. With the increase in production more land, labour and capital was required
                                   which gave  rise to corporate form  of organisations. There were bigger organisations which
                                   required  more delegation  of powers in  manufacturing  and administration.  Thus  the  sales
                                   department was given importance and it became a separate functional department.

                                   As the business activity  became more complex and dynamic, the  term “sales management”
                                   changed due to the changes in business operations. Earlier the sales management was solely
                                   concerned with the direction of the sales force personnel. However, at present the term “sales
                                   management” has a broader significance and includes all such marketing activities as advertising,
                                   sales promotion, marketing research, physical distribution, pricing and product merchandising.
                                   We can safely say that sales is the “cutting edge” of any business operations. It is that part of a
                                   company, however big or small, that meets the firm’s customers, from whom the business is
                                   derived. The people, who are engaged in this activity, meet customers  and get  information
                                   about the products or services  which are being sold and provide feedback to the firm. This
                                   information is then understood and interpreted by the firm and the firm reacts accordingly.
                                   It then translates the marketing plan into marketing performance and action. American Marketing
                                   Association has defined sales management as “the planning, direction and control of selling
                                   personnel including  recruiting, selecting, equipping, assigning,  routing, supervising, paying
                                   and motivating as these tasks apply to personnel sales force”.

                                   1.1 Overview of Sales Management

                                   Managing the sales function is a critical skill for the success of distributors and manufacturers in
                                   the power transmission/motion control industry. Sales management entails:
                                   1.  Defining desired corporate results.
                                   2.  Working with business partners to ensure goals of both organizations complement one
                                       another.
                                   3.  Determining the specific activities required to achieve company and partner objectives.
                                   4.  Implementing a  compensation  plan  that  motivates salespeople to  achieve  corporate
                                       objectives.
                                   5.  Providing needed training and coaching to enable salespeople to meet their goals.
                                   6.  Establishing appropriate monitoring systems to ensure activities are taking place.
                                   7.  Measuring results.
                                   Sales management is attainment of  an organization’s sales goals in an  effective &  efficient
                                   manner with the help of other management functions of planning, staffing, training, leading &




          2                                 LOVELY PROFESSIONAL UNIVERSITY
   3   4   5   6   7   8   9   10   11   12   13