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Due to its relevance in profit generation, practitioners and academics alike have dedicated years of thoughtful effort to answering questions most relevant to the practice of professional selling and sales-centric [...]

To link to full-text access for this article, visit this link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.indmarman.2010.02.004 Byline: Pavlos A. Vlachos (a)(b), Aristeidis Theotokis (a), Nikolaos G. Panagopoulos (c) Keywords: Corporate social responsibility; Sales force; Attributions; Organizational trust; Behavioral intentions; Loyalty Abstract: Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is gaining momentum among researchers and practitioners. In spite of this extensive interest, systematic research regarding the effects of CSR on other stakeholder groups, besides consumers, remains sparse. Based on a field study in a global Fortune 500 consumer packaged goods company, we examine sales force attitudinal and behavioral outcomes of company's partnership with a United Nations (UN) philanthropic organization. Specifically, we seek to examine whether sales force perceptions of CSR motives influence their evaluation of CSR actions. Findings indicate that egoistic-driven motives negatively influence salesperson trust in the company, whereas stakeholder- and values-driven motives positively influence salesperson trust; however, strategic-driven attributions do not have an influence on salesperson trust. The results further reveal the mediating role of trust in the relationship between sales force attributions and outcomes including loyalty intentions and positive word-of-mouth. Author Affiliation: (a) Athens University of Economics and Business, Department of Management Science and Technology, ELTRUN Research Center, Evelpidon 4A & Lefkados 33, GR-11362, Greece (b) Graduate School of DEREE - The American College of Greece, The Aghia Paraskevi Campus, 6 Gravias Street, GR-15342 Aghia Paraskevi, Greece (c) Athens University of Economics and Business, Department of Marketing & Communication, 76 Patission, 104-34, Athens, Greece Article History: Received 13 January 2009; Revised 20 November 2009; Accepted 23 December 2009

The ability to understand differences in communication preferences and adapt to make relationship interactions more productive or versatility is a skill that makes sales people more likeable for customers. Salespeople can increase their versatility by having the insight that we have different styles and that each style has its own strength.

The influence of salespeople and their trustworthiness on product development and modifications of manufacturing companies is examined. Findings suggest the impact of salespeople's trustworthiness on rationality and exchange and coalition building.

If you're looking for a successful salesperson to hire--a salesperson who not only CAN sell but WILL sell--look for a salesperson with PRIDE. PRIDE is an acronym for 5 characteristics […]

It's Tuesday and I'm meeting with an executive for a large equipment organization. It's an interesting conversation, as it's indicated the sales force is very busy with customers wanting equipment, […]

Knowing where you stand in the selling process is the key to achieving or exceeding your sales goals and is therefore the key to successful selling. Knowing where you stand […]

How many times have you referred a restaurant to a friend? Think about why you made that referral ... was it the food or the service? Maybe it was both, […]

Memory is the ability to gather roses in the winter. -Carol Burnett quoting someone smart Have you ever eaten at a restaurant and had the "absolute best" meal ever, only […]

Efforts of the Barack Obama administration aside, what is your plan to grow your own wealth? Whether you're a business owner or professional, the prospect of creating financial success may […]

The ability of general mental ability (GMA) and social competence and certain thinking styles to help salespeople to reach their sales goals is studied. High GMA combined with high social competence brings the highest sales performance.

EVERY INDUSTRY AND profession goes through changes, and the sales profession is no different. Just because a certain sales technique or mindset worked in the past doesn't mean it'll work [...]

You're knowledgeable and understand your product or service backwards and forwards. You've practiced your pitch and closing statements, and have worked on developing key relationships. But at the end of […]

Have you ever attended a cocktail party and observed the attendees talking about their profession? The accountant discusses his role with great pride and a sense of importance, the marketing […]

Multilevel marketing organizations (MLMs) are a rapidly growing but often controversial marketing organizational type boasting nearly 10 million members and over $20 billion in annual sales. The success of the [...]

For a variety of reasons, corporations have turned their attention to diversifying the sales force. If firms are to attract racial minorities, sales recruiters must be aware of differences in how African-American students perceive sales careers. This study evaluated 488 African-American and Caucasian business students in terms of their appeal for and perceptions of sales careers. The findings of this study dispel the assumption that African-American college students find sales to be less appealing than Caucasian students. For the majority of sales career options, no racial differences in appeal of the sales career existed. In the case of real estate sales, African-American students rated sales careers as being more financially rewarding and requiring higher levels of education. A discussion of the findings is provided for managers.

A significant theme in contemporary marketing, customer orientation focuses not only on what buyers receive (technical product attributes) but also on how buyers and sellers interact (interpersonal process attributes). This underscores the significant role played by salesperson behavior in optimizing customer value and satisfaction. Yet, support for the use of customer-oriented interaction processes has not been consistent across industries. Accordingly, an exploratory study is reported that examines the relative effects of 'interpersonal process attributes' and 'technical product attributes' on buyer satisfaction in a commodity environment. Results extend recent research and support that interpersonal process attributes of the total market offering can be significant determinants of customer satisfaction. Managerial implications and applications are discussed relevant to sales force issues. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)

The authors explore salesforce socialization tactics as a means of building organizational value congruence - an important dimension of salesforce culture strength. An empirical study is presented in which six socialization tactics are measured and it is found that certain socialization tactics have a greater effect than others on organizational value congruence. The findings have important implications for salesforce managers and suggest future research direction. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)

Everyone hated him. On paper, the salesman for Wyo-Ben, Inc., was everything this mining company wanted in a rep. He was a top producer with a construction background, who understood […]

A random sample of purchasing agents was surveyed and split into two groups based on their socializing behavior. These two groups differ as to the importance of various salesperson attributes and behaviors. It was also found that 'high' socializers tend to engage in after-hour meetings and discuss non-business related topics more so than 'low' socializers. In addition, 'high' socializers tend to be younger, provide more time for sales meetings, have less tenure, and are more likely to be found in smaller purchasing departments compared to 'low' socializers. Other findings and implications are discussed and areas for further research are suggested. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)

A study was conducted to examine salespeople's adaptation to change. The performance of 400 sales representatives at a major U.S. pharmaceutical company during the introduction of a new customer relationship management system were recorded during a 12-month period. Findings show that salespeople with a learning orientation are more likely to embrace change fully.

Purpose, focus, confidence, credibility and performance are the road map to the executive suite. Once there, sales come easily and continuously. The sad truth is most salespeople believe they are […]

It's the bottom of the ninth, the bases are loaded and we're behind by three runs. The capacity crowd is roaring and you, the manager, are calling for your best […]

This study explores sales managers' perceptions of the relationship between saleswomen's stereotypical behavior and their functional effectiveness in selling. The results show that sales managers do perceive negative stereotypic behavior to have some deleterious associations with performance. Moreover, sales managers' knowledge of the sex role identities of saleswomen is helpful to them in recognizing those saleswomen who are least likely to be perceived stereotypically. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)

God Bless Us, Every Shopper 'Twelve million unemployed in this country. People should consider themselves lucky to have jobs.' So offered a WWD colleague imagining the general mind-set of corporate [...]

Business is based on relationships--relationships with your customers, salespeople, employees, and bosses. Building and improving those relationships is a key element in every business career. The following questions on relationship […]

Forget competitive games and physical challenges; firms are pumping up the sales force by having some fun David Shackley is stopped midsentence by a posse of 10 men in drag [...]

In an effort to better understand relationships between salespersons and their customers, in-depth interviews with salespeople were used to establish a classification schema of customer types or identities. Using identity theory, three categories of customer identities were identified and partially supported: commercial friends, customer coworkers and business acquaintances. The identities can serve as vehicles for further developing theory and research concerning salesperson-customer dyads as well as for investigating the genesis of relationships between salespeople and customers., Introduction Salespeople face the challenge of understanding their customers in order to interact effectively with them. In that sense, salesperson insights concerning customer-salesperson relationships are important as productive interactions between [...]