Successful Selling of Complex Products Such as Computer Software Requires

question 29

Multiple Choice

Successful selling of complex products such as computer software requires excellent salespeople.Lack of quality service in the marketplace led Alan Hall,head of a small computer networking company,to open Technology Advancement Corporation in 1988.Today,Technology Advancement is a national field marketer with several divisions.The bulk of its business involves training and educating salespeople on the features,benefits,competitors,and market potential of Technology Advancement's clients' products.To date,Technology Advancement has focused on computer software and hardware makers and has launched most of the marquee names in the industry: Novell,Lotus Development,IBM,Microsoft,Apple Computer,Hewlett-Packard,Motorola,Intel,and Xerox,as well as smaller firms.
Here's how the Technology Advancement client relationship works for training.A marketer hires the company to promote its product or to launch a new product,and Technology Advancement assigns a team exclusively to that client.The team gathers and the client comes in and does the training.The training starts with explaining how personal selling fits the company strategy and how it differs from sales promotion.Latest developments in the selling process are explained with a special emphasis on networking,follow-up strategies,and postpurchase customer service.Many computer giants have reported that this type of training program has significantly affected their business.
-Refer to Technology Advancement.Why is personal selling important in the computer industry?

• A) The number of potential customers has increased.
• B) The complexity of products has decreased.
• C) The value of the products is high.
• D) Products are standardized.

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Definitions:

Behaviorally Anchored Rating Scales

A performance appraisal method that rates employees based on specific behaviors as indicators of various levels of performance.

Behavioral Incidents

occurrences of actions or conduct that deviate from acceptable norms within a community or organization.

Performance Expectations

The standards or objectives set by an organization or manager to define what is considered successful performance for employees in their roles.

Management by Objectives (MBO)

A strategic management model that aims to improve the performance of an organization by clearly defining objectives that are agreed to by both management and employees.