The spur of ambition should continually urge the salesman forward. Did he have a large volume of sales today? Make tomorrow's better. Did be se cure some particularly large single orders? How can Ile make the next ones larger? Has he discovered a new class of prospects for his goods? Are there any that he has missed? Most men achieve little because they attempt little. On the other hand, the more one accomplishes the more one becomes capable of accom plishing. In order to increase his capacity, therefore. a man need only combine ambition with application.
7. the term is here used, applica tion includes the determination to carry things thru —a capacity for hard work, stick-to-it-iveness, perse verance, energy. The difference between success and failure in any line is found largely in the degree of application. There is, perhaps, no profession where this is more apparent than in salesmanship. A man of fair intelligence and great energy will succeed in the selling field, whereas a man of brilliant mind and little energy is likely tO fail miserably.
8. salesman arrive's in a town. He should have his eyes open and begin his observa tions immediately. He climbs on a 'bus, and is driven to his hotel. By the time he reaches it he should have observed something that will enable him to say a good word about the town. He immediately gets out his sample case and walks up the street to his first prospect. From the moment he gets into hiS prospect's place of business, or in the case of a retail salesman, the moment the prospect approaches the counter, various signs that he should read are in evi dence; he should train his powers of observation to see and interpret them. He should be able to make a quick mental note of the surroundings, of the pros pect's appearance and of the conditions in which he finds him. He should be able to determine whether the circumstances are auspicious for a favorable ap proach. He should observe the tone of his prospect's voice, the expression of his eye and his general bear ing, for these things will indicate to the salesman his method of procedure. A rapid estimate of this kind will enable the salesman to adjust himself to the situ ation without delay. Above all, he should be quick to note when the prospect bas reached a favorable decision, and strive to close the sale. This power of quick observation can be acquired and developed by practice.
9. observation as has just been men tioned is closely associated with another important quality—tact. A salesman traveling for a clothing
house approached one of the partners of a firm that had been handling his line regularly. He was met with a volley of abuse directed at both himself and his goods. While he stood there half convinced that the outburst had no foundation hut the customer's state of mind, and waiting for some definite complaint on which to hang an offer of adjustment, the speaker ended abruptly with: "Besides, I'm not buying that line any more. My partner has taken over the man agement of that department." The salesman, seeing the partner in the front part of the store, hurriedly excused himself with the statement that lie would adjust the matter, approached the other partner and said: "Mr. Brown, your partner tells me that you are buying men's clothing this year. Shall I bring my trunks in here, or do you want to walk across the street to the hotel with me now where I have them all opened up?" "Oh," replied the sec ond partner, "I guess I'll walk over to the hotel with you." That was tact. The salesman conjectured that the attitude of the first man was due to the fact that he had not obtained a satisfactory profit the previous year, and not to any fault of the goods themselves. He further decided that to show his goods in the store where • the aggrieved partner might interfere would endanger the sale, so he threw into his question to the second man a strong positive suggestion that he go over to the hotel.
Tact is defined as the ready power of appreciating and doing what is required by circumstances. It is really the outward expression of intuition. It is the attribute that enables a man to deal with others with out friction, to adapt himself to circumstances and to do the right thing in the right place. The tactful salesman humors his customers' opinions when they are not antagonistic ; he governs his manner and speech to suit the peculiarities of the man with whom he is dealing. He bases his selling talks on his knowledge of his customer's likes and dislikes. He avoids such topics of conversation with his customer as politics and religion. Tact, in short, is a sort of sixth sense— a combination of wisdom and good judgment—which enables the salesman at a glance to size up the man and the situation in which he finds him and to take the right steps to secure an immediate order and es tablish future cordial relations.