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Successful Selling of Complex Products Such as Computer Software Requires

question 51

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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.When John Cason began selling IBM computers,he used what he had learned at the training seminar and called friends,relatives,and former business acquaintances to see if they were looking for new computer systems.What is this lead generation technique known as?

Definitions:

Negative Externality

A cost that affects a party who did not choose to incur that cost, typically resulting from economic activity by another party.

Marginal Social Cost

The total cost to society of producing an additional unit of a good or service, including both private costs and external effects.

External Social Cost

Costs of production or consumption that affect individuals not involved in the transaction, often unaccounted for by the market price.

Efficient Level

Describes a state where resources are allocated in the most effective manner, maximizing output and outcomes.