Sales and

Distribution
Management
Dr. A. Iyappan., B.SC (Che), MBA, Ph. D,
PDF (ICSSR)
Associate Professor- Marketing and
Entrepreneurship
 01 what is sales management?

Emerging trends in sales

management?
02
04 Evolution and Importance
sales management

Nature and role of sales

management 03
what is sales management?

• Originally, the sales function or the sales management

was very narrowly defined as the direction of personal
sales force.

• Sales management began to relate to other functions of

management, both strategic and tactical; including
Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning which is STP,
product merchandising and assortment, pricing, physical
distribution and marketing communication, including
advertising and sales promotion
Definition of sales management

• According to the American Marketing Association,

sales management is defined as the “planning,
direction and control of personal selling, including
recruitment, selecting, equipping, assigning, routing,
supervising, paying and motivating as these tasks
apply to the personal sales force”.

• “Sales is not about selling anymore, but about

building trust and educating.”
Nature of sales management
• Goal-Oriented

• Customer-Centric Approach

• Dynamic and Adaptive

• Interdisciplinary Nature

• Motivational and Performance-Driven

• Strategic and Tactical

Nature of sales management
• Transactional selling is a negotiation strategy that focuses
solely on making a sale. It emphasizes competitive pricing,
social proof, and purchase urgency. The goal is to make the
greatest number of individual sales possible.

• Transactional selling typically has very short sales cycles and

low customer lifetime value. Emotional connections aren’t
important in this sales methodology—what matters most is
closing the sale. Reps aren’t necessarily trying to develop
strong, prolonged relationships with customers.
Scope of sales management

• Sales Planning and Forecasting

• Pricing and Promotions Management

• Recruitment and Training of Sales Personne

• Budgeting and Resource Allocation

• Pricing and Promotions Management

• Distribution and Channel Management

Scope of sales management

• Customer Relationship Management (CRM)

• Market Research and Analysis

• Sales Performance Evaluation

• Use of Technology and Automation

Nature of sales management
• The second kind of selling which we talk as a relationship is
value-added relationships, where it is a selling style or a
situation where the salesperson contacts the customer after
the purchase, so as to determine if the customer is satisfied
with the product, and if he needs anything else, or has any
requirements in future.

• collaborative of partnership, which is moving much beyond

where the seller enters into a long-term partnership or a
contractual agreement with the buyers.
 The role of sales management
• The first and foremost is to determine the goals and
objectives of the sales force

• Organizing the sales force in terms of territory management

and quota allocation, forecasting, budgeting

• To deal with sales force management, recruitment, selection,

training, motivation, performance management, career
appraisals, development, etcetera.
 The role of sales management
• The first and foremost is to determine the goals and
objectives of the sales force

• Organizing the sales force in terms of territory management

and quota allocation, forecasting, budgeting

• To deal with sales force management, recruitment, selection,

training, motivation, performance management, career
appraisals, development, etcetera.
Fundamentals of Sales Management
Duties and Responsibilities of a Sales Manager

Determining sales
force objectives Designing career
Forecasting
and goals growth plans and
and
budgeting building relationship
sales strategies with key
customers
Duties and
Finalizing Responsibilities of a
sales force Sales Manager
Designing
organizatio compensation plan
n, size, and control
territory, systems
and quota Motivating and
Selecting, leading the
recruiting, and sales force
training the
sales force
Sales Management, Personal Selling, and Salesmanship

• Sales management is the direction of the sales force. It

includes amongst its purview the recruitment, selection,
training, motivation, compensation, and performance
appraisal of the salespeople. It contains issues like planning,
forecasting, budgeting

• Personal selling is a face-to-face interaction between sellers

and prospects. It is a face-to-face interaction that takes
place between two entities: one is a seller and the other is a
buyer.
Characteristics of Personal Selling
Personal Selling vs Salesmanship
Selling vs Marketing
Organisation of sales management
• “Sales management” originally referred exclusively to the
direction of sales force personnel.

• From the company’s viewpoint, there are three general

objectives of sales management: sales volume, contribution
to profits, and continuing Growth

• Sales management and financial results are closely related.

Financial results are stated in terms from two basic
accounting formulas:

• sales - cost of sales = gross margin

Sales Process

• “Sales Process” It would be a cycle that will start with

identifying a prospect or a potential customer and then
converting him into a customer.

• SPIN as a communication-focused strategy, which a

salesperson must adopt, where he must ask questions

• Situation questions…. Problem questions

• Implication questions…. Need-payoff questions.

Basis for Designing a sales Organization

• Firm’s Mission and Objectives

• Target Market Segments

• Core Competence

• Organizational Relationships

• Organizational Culture

• Size and Type of Sales Force

• Terms of Employment
RECRUITMENT & SELECTION OF SALES PERSONNEL

• Planning This process begins with the analysis of the annual

turnover of salespeople of a company to arrive at a sales
manpower forecast

• Recruitment is generating a pool of qualified candidates for

a particular job.

• Situation questions…. Problem questions

• Implication questions…. Need-payoff questions.

STAGES OF RECRUITMENT & SELECTION OF SALES PERSONNEL

• The first stage involves the human resource planning

process

• The second stage is called the recruitment stage where

decisions are made on identifying the best source of
candidates and generating a pool of candidates for selection.

• In the third stage, various techniques are used to identify

the right candidate for the organisation.

• The fourth stage involves socialization, where the new

employees are oriented towards the organisation and also to
Sales Process

 Lateral or upward move

 Internal transfers

 Interns and cooperative

students

 Employee referral

programmes

 Company sales personnel

Sales territory

• The establishment of sales territories facilitates matching selling

efforts with sales opportunities. Sales personnel are assigned the
responsibility for serving particular groupings of customers and
prospects and providing contact points with the markets.

• Realistic sales planning is done on a territory-by-territory basis.

Characteristics of customers and prospects vary from one sales
territory to another, and sometimes even from one country to the
next. The territory is a more homogeneous unit than the market as
a whole
Sales territory

• Sales territory comprises both existing customers and potential

customers, and when entrusted to a salesperson or assigned to a
salesperson, the entire group of existing and potential customers
becomes a sales territory.

• Most companies group customers and assign them to a

salesperson or a dealer to a distributor or a marketing
organization, and link these to a geographic territory. However, a
sales territory may or may not be linked to a geographic unit, and
may or may not have geographic boundaries.

• Now a viable sales territory is one which comprises customers who would
 Sales territory and its Importance
• Sales forecasting is a procedure for calculating the number of sales for your business or
company over a future period. The forecasting period varies and can be monthly, quarterly,
half-yearly or yearly.

• Importance of Sales Forecast

• It helps set targets for the employees of the company to achieve the desired results.

• It plays a beneficial role in setting the budget of the company for the upcoming years as it
helps in setting the finance limit to overcome from difficult situations.

• Efficient sales forecasting helps in reducing the wastage of resources and helps in
maintaining control over demand and supply of the products, as lack of proper forecasting
may result in over or low production of goods.

• Sales forecasting helps in evaluating the efficiency of the personnel.

• Proper and efficient sales forecasting is advantageous for better inventory control
management.
Sales Forecasting Methods
Sales Forecasting Methods
Management of Sales Territories
• Planning of Efficient Routes for Salespeople

Procedure for Setting up a Routing Plan

• The first step in setting up a routing plan is to identify the present and
prospective customers on a territory map.

• Next, each customer should be classified into high, medium or low sales
potential and call frequency for each class of customer to be decided.

• The route plan should be built around locations of high potential

customers.

• Generally, medium and low potential customers will fall into place near
high potential customers, with a few exceptions. Prospective customers
 Management of Sales Territories
• Scheduling the Salespersons' Time

• Allocation of Time

• Customer Calls

• Time Management Tools for Salespeople

• High-Tech Equipment

• Inside Sales people

• Evaluate and Revise Sales Territories

• Revising Sales Territories

CONCEPT OF DISTRIBUTION CHANNEL
• A distribution channel consists of a set of people and firms involved in
the transfer of title to a product as the product moves from producer to
consumer. Thus, a distribution channel is primarily concerned with the
movement of goods from the point of production to the point of
consumption, which involves a variety of functions.

• The main participants in the distribution system are: (1) the

manufacturers, (2) the intermediaries, (3) the facilitating agencies, and
(4) the consumers.

• Thus, the channel of distribution is a network of institutions that perform

a variety of interrelated and coordinated functions in the movement of
goods from producers to consumers.
 FUNCTIONS OF DISTRIBUTION CHANNELS
• Facilitate selling by being physically close to customers

• Provide distributional efficiency by bridging the manufacturer with the user efficiently and
economically  Break the bulk and cater to the small requirements of buyers  Assemble
products into assortments to meet buyers’ needs;

• Look after a part of physical distribution/ marketing logistics

• Share the financial burden of the principal; provide deposits; finance the stocks till they are
sold to the ultimate consumers;

• extend credit to the retailers/ consumers. Provide salesmanship and after-sale service

• Assist in sales promotion

• Assist in merchandising

• Assist in introducing new products

Marketing Channels for Consumer
Products
Evolution of Logistics and SCM