BST 3202 Sales Management and Personal Sales

BST 3202 Sales Management and Personal Sales

Course code: 
BST 3202
Department: 
Marketing
Credits: 
15
Course coordinator: 
Geir Knutsen
Course name in Norwegian: 
Salgsledelse og personlig salg
Product category: 
Bachelor
Portfolio: 
Bachelor - Programme Electives
Semester: 
2023 Autumn
Active status: 
Active
Level of study: 
Bachelor
Teaching language: 
Norwegian
Course type: 
One semester
Introduction

Companies more than ever focused on the "top line" and how revenue is generated. Sales and sales management is the reality of the world and in market-oriented businesses, it is important what has been sold, what was not sold and what should be sold to whom. Our market economy is dependent on skilled sales people who do their utmost to sell in national and international competition. Excellent sales management and personal selling is the key to any company's success, with the incessant demands to see the competition in the eyes and change with the market. The answer to the market's changing challenges driven by behavioural, technological and managerial effort, which inevitably changes the way sales people understand, preparing for and realize themselves in their jobs. The behavioural forces are increased expectations from customers, globalization of markets, and de-massification of the domestic market. The technological forces include IT systems for sales support, virtual sales offices and online outlets. The management and control of the future sales means an understanding of direct marketing, outsourcing of sales functions and a sensible mix of personal sales and marketing.

Learning outcomes - Knowledge

Sales representatives and sales managers need to face these changes influences on any part of the sales management and management of sales, from the way sales are organized on the selection, training, motivation and reward of the individual seller.

Sales and sales management is central to any company's strategies and action plans. Without sales, no business.

During the course students should:

  • Be able to create targeted results, conduct its own sales and develop sales function within the company, conduct sales planning in practice, to operative recruitment and leading a sales staff.
  • Develop a level of knowledge that enables them to plan and implement personal sales and lead a sales function.
  • Understand what it means, in practice, to sell professionally and how to acquire skills that enable people to act as the seller by profession and lead a sales staff.
  • Get added expertise that enables them to establish and develop customer relationships as well as motivate and plan.
Learning outcomes - Skills

After completing the course, students will:

  • On their own be able to contact potential customers and establish a sales process.
  • Be able to prepare a sales plan that meets the management of the sales scheduled activity targets and carry out planning of the customer relationship over time.
  • Be able to conduct meetings with clients in both industrial sales and retail sales.
General Competence
  • During the course, the student will understand that the seller is indispensable for the company, and an active builder of corporate reputation to new and existing customers.
  • Through professionalization of the participant they will establish a critical and constructive attitude to the concept of sales.
  • Develop a good understanding of the ethical side of the personal selling and management of sales staff.
Course content

The course consists of two parts which begins with Personal sales and continues with Sales Management.

  • Personal selling and sales planning (module 1 - 3)
  • Sales Management (Module 4 - 7)

Module 1 - the sale process (12 hours) Module 1 - the sale process (12 hours)

  • Introduction to personal selling and sales planning
  • Sale and purchase processes
  • Sales calls and sales call
  • Communication Understanding
  • Questionnaires and sales techniques
  • Objections
  • Closing deals

Module 2 - Reasoning (12 hours)

  • Presentation Technique
  • Economic arguments
  • Negotiation Skills
  • Sales to consumers in specialized trade
  • Telemarketing

Module 3 - Relationship building and quality assurance (12 hours)

  • Reporting, management and control
  • Understanding Needs and performance experience
  • Building relationships and partner sales
  • Quality assurance and control for key
  • Account Management and Key Account Management
  • Competence

Module 4 - Sales management and sales roles in the organization (12 hours)

  • What is Sales Management?
  • Sales Plan from planning to evaluation
  • The importance of the external and internal environment
  • Purchase and sales process
  • Organizational buying process
  • Sales Activities
  • Steps in the sales process
  • Alternative methods of selling
  • The sales role in a CRM context
  • Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
  • The personal sales role in corporate strategies

Module 5 - Organisation of sales efforts (12 hours)

  • The purpose of a sales organization
  • Horizontal structures in sales staff
  • Account management and Key Account Management
  • The information role in sales management
  • Analysis of market opportunities
  • Forecasting techniques
  • Sales Quotas
  • Size of sales staff
  • Vendor Performance: Behaviour, role, perception and satisfaction
  • Understanding the seller's performance
  • Model Review
  • Seller's role

Module 6 (10 hours)

  • Seller's performance: sales force motivation
  • The psychological motivation process
  • The motivation characteristics
  • The organization's function in the seller motivation
  • Personal characteristics, skills and potential
  • Determinants of a successful sales team
  • Recruitment and selection
  • Job analysis and selection criteria
  • Selection Procedures

Module 7 - Sales Training: Objectives, techniques and evaluation (10 hours)

  • Goals for seller training
  • Development of a training program
  • Development of compensation and incentive programs
  • Decisions on what should be rewarded
  • Different types of compensation plans
  • Sales Contests
  • Assessment and control of the sales plan
  • Analysis of the cost of CRM implementation
  • Review of process in the sales plan
Teaching and learning activities

The course consists of 80 hours of classroom teaching and work in groups. 

In order to secure learning it is emphasized that the student should be prepared for class, to that effect cases will be distributed before each lecture and are supposed to be solved before the lecture in question. 

During the semester five assignments within sales analysis and sales management will be proposed. The student will have to solve at least three of the five assignments. The assignments can be used in the project report. The assignments will be evaluated by the teacher and rated "accepted/not accepted", and three of the five assignments must be accepted before the student can register for the final exam.

Software tools
No specified computer-based tools are required.
Additional information

Digitale læringsressurser vil bli benyttet. Asynkront og synkront.

Qualifications

Two years of college education in economics and business administration, marketing or equivalent is required for taking the course.

Disclaimer

Deviations in teaching and exams may occur if external conditions or unforeseen events call for this.

Required prerequisite knowledge

Basic course in statistics, MET 3431 or MET 2920.
In addition, students must have the course MRK 3414 Marketing Management and MRK 3480 Consumer Behavior (or MRK 2980 Consumer Behavior). It is an advantage to have MRK 3500 Business to business, marketing and sale.

Assessments
Assessments
Exam category: 
Submission
Form of assessment: 
Written submission
Weight: 
100
Grouping: 
Group/Individual (1 - 3)
Duration: 
1 Semester(s)
Exam code: 
BST32021
Grading scale: 
ECTS
Resit: 
Examination when next scheduled course
Type of Assessment: 
Ordinary examination
Total weight: 
100
Student workload
ActivityDurationComment
Teaching
74 Hour(s)
Teaching
6 Hour(s)
Participation in plenary exercises with analysis tools
Prepare for teaching
50 Hour(s)
Group work / Assignments
30 Hour(s)
Group work / Assignments
40 Hour(s)
Student's own work with learning resources
80 Hour(s)
Submission(s)
120 Hour(s)
Sum workload: 
400

A course of 1 ECTS credit corresponds to a workload of 26-30 hours. Therefore a course of 15 ECTS credit corresponds to a workload of at least 400 hours.