SELLING PROCESS-MISCELLANEOUS 1. Concurrence of buyer awl seller.—Thruout this discussion of the selling process we have kept two things constantly in mind: the words and actions of the salesman, and the reaction of the buyer to these words and actions. Let us endeavor to chart these two phases of the selling process and show their con currence.
The upper half of the accompanying diagram rep resents the buyer ; the lower half the salesman. The salesman's approach and introductory remarks secure the prospect's attention. As he proceeds with his presentation and demonstration, attention changes to ever-inereasing interest. The good salesman will have approached his subject from the prospect's stand point right from the start. He will make use of this "you" attitude more strongly than ever, however, at the end of his presentation and demonstration. In terest will thereby be ripened into desire. Confidence, starting very early in the interview, increases during its progress until, at the point of desire, it entirely bridges the gap between the buyer's and the seller's mind and blends them harmoniously. From this point the salesman drives sharply—albeit fairly—for the close, and the minds of buyer and seller meet at the point of completed sale.
2. Persistence of the right many sales men lack the right kind of persistence. They pre sent their proposition in a more or less stereotyped fashion and, because the prospect does not respond immediately with his signature, become discouraged and leave him, when a little more endeavor, a little more judicious "working" would have secured dri or der and, in some cases, would have created a perma nent customer.
There are still more salesmen whose persistence bores and tires their prospects without getting the salesmen an2,-where. The trouble here is that usually the salesman has allowed the prospect to come to a definite, adverse decision and is battling to change it. The really astute salesman plans his talk in such a manner as to prevent an outright adverse decision. He tests out to discover whether or not inhibition has been removed and desire created. If he believes that
conditions are right he then leads up to the close. If at this point, however, he finds some inhibiting thought still in the prospect's mind, he once more strives to create desire. In other words, he finds that the psy chological moment has not quite arrived. When he again thinks that the prospect is ready, he leads back to the close on a new tack. And unless he sees quite clearly that further persistence at that particular time would not result in an order and might even destroy all chance of securing one in the future, he continues to maneuver until his efforts are crowned with success or his reserve talk is exhausted. That is persistence of the right kind.
We may judge from this discussion that the sales man should have such a fund of reserve selling talk and extra selling points as to make it possible for him to assemble two or three different complete presenta tions of his proposition ; and that he Should be master of as many different methods of closing a sale as his ingenuity, combined with the experience of his asso ciates on the same proposition, can devise.
3. Ill humor unsportsmanlike.—Above all, any dis play of peevishness or temper at the close on the part of the salesman is unpardonable. The prospect is a reasonable being, presumably possessed of sound judgment. He must be credited with the ability to decide for himself and with a clear knowledge of just what he wants. To tell him that his judgment is extremely bad may ease the disappointed salesman's mind, hut it is not to be expected that the prospect will agree with any such criticism.
Furthermore, selling is a clean, fascinating game, in which the minds of salesman and prospect, respec tively, move and countermove for supremacy. Any display of ill humor is just as unsportsmanlike as it would be in tennis or baseball or polo. The salesman should always bear in mind that the prospect's source of information about the proposition is the salesman himself. If he remains cold or lukewarm, therefore, the salesman should take the blame to himself and en deavor to change the attitude.