Testing for deterministic salesperson attributes in mature markets

Article Abstract:

This research centers on the attributes that the customer perceives to have value in the marketing situation. To gain information, first a questionnaire was sent by mail to Corporate Marketing staff members who had just left sales field positions. They were asked to discuss their sales experiences and to list the features a customer considers when he chooses a supplier. Also a small group of product users were interviewed about important attributes, and about specific suppliers. The salespeople saw their role and attitudes as more important in the process then it was ranked by the customer, who ranked product performance of the greatest importance. Yet the salesperson's knowledge of the product and ability to convey this to the customer was a definite factor. Sales managers should pay attention to this and develop programs to improve performance in this area.

Social aspects, Economic aspects, Consumer preferences, Customer service, Public opinion, Attribution (Social psychology), Attribution (Psychology), marketing research

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An exploratory study of gender and age matching in the salesperson-prospective customer dyad: testing similarity-performance predictions

Article Abstract:

The increasingly diversified composition of the sales force poses one of the most challenging organizational issues of our time. Employing similarity-attraction theory and social identity theory, this study provides theoretical foundations for: (1) investigating salesperson preferences for selling to similar others; and (2) exploring the dynamic nature of these preferences as they relate to sales performance. The results of an empirical study using a sample drawn from insurance sales indicated that salespeople are primarily attracted to prospects who are similar to themselves in terms of age and gender. However, contrary to predictions, buyer/seller age similarity was found to have no impact on sales performance, while gender mismatch in the sales dyad was found to actually enhance performance. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)

Demographic aspects, Sex differences, Consumers, Age, Age (Biology)

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Scaling and measurement: multi-item scaled measures in sales related research

Article Abstract:

Marketing researchers, in general, have increased their usage of multi-item scaled measures dramatically in the past decade. This article relates to a project that categorized and summarized the uses of these measures during the 1980's. It describes first some general findings vis-a-vis all areas of marketing research and then gives some highlights of sales related measures in specific. Finally, based on our observations during the course of the project we make some basic recommendations for the improvement of scale-measurement and reporting. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)

Usage, Compensation and benefits, Employee motivation, Marketing research, Incentives (Business), Scaling (Social sciences)

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