Salesmanship Skills in COVID-19 Times

The activities that depend on direct interaction with the customers were the most affected by COVID-19's restrictions. These include the activities developed by salespeople. This study aims to analyse the impact of salesmanship skills on sales strategy implementation and salesperson performance during the COVID-19 crisis. To achieve the research objective, the authors collected a set of data through a survey (n=517) to test a proposed conceptual model based on the literature. The findings of the study demonstrate that the salesmanship skills are an important resource in highly disruptive environments and impacts sales strategy implementation and salesperson performance. In addition, the study also reveals the important role of digital skills and intrinsic motivation during COVID-19 times. The results attained can be used as a guide to design an effective strategy for sales activities in adverse times.

A model for B2B salesperson performance with service ecosystems perspective: a grounded theory

Purpose The purpose of this study is to develop a model for business to business salesperson performance (SP) with a service ecosystems perspective. Design/methodology/approach To achieve the research aims, classical grounded theory was used. The data was gathered through in-depth interviews with 20 sales managers and main sales actors. Findings After coding and analyzing the data, salesperson institutional performance is introduced as a core category including three main dimensions of regulative, normative and cognitive-cultural performance. Multi-level factors determining SP are identified and performance results are introduced in a multi-level long term way. The sales actors, macro variables, actors’ orientations and sales method are introduced as circumstances, while salesperson stressors are presented as covariants deterring the fulfillment of salesperson’s activities. Originality/value This study focuses on the contributions of the salesperson in the alignment of institutional arrangements or the results of their being institutionalized, as well as determining the factors and variables affecting it.

Does brand-relationships matter? The role of brand attachment in salesperson performance in retailing

Purpose Salesperson performance is accepted as a relevant factor of retailing success. However, scarce studies reveal the relationship between sales performance and brand relationship. The purpose of this study is both, from one side, to empirically demonstrate the impact of salesperson brand attachment (SBA) on sales performance and, on the other side, to identify the mediators of this relationship in small retailing. Design/methodology/approach A survey was conducted with a sample of 206 small retailers from different sectors of an emerging country. The proposed model was tested using partial least squares–structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) in SmartPLS3. Findings The results demonstrated that SBA is relevant to driving sales performance through two relevant paths – one following SBA–satisfaction–performance and one path following the SBA–commitment–performance. The model was able to explain 63% of the outcome performance. Practical implications Regarding small retailers, where the owners, employees and managers have higher levels of interaction than the large national retail chains, the marketing executives must invest in improving the attachment to the brand and create emotional bonds and cognition between marketers and the brand. They must develop strategies to promote job satisfaction and organizational commitment because they determine performance. Originality/value Despite the relevance of small businesses for economies worldwide and the importance of salesperson brand relationships, no study has been developed to demonstrate the impacts of such relationships on salesperson performance in retailing. Furthermore, in addition to the central role of organizational commitment in the sales research, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to explore how to mediate the relationship between brand attachment and sales performance.

EXPRESS: Emotional Calibration and Salesperson Performance

The authors propose that the emotional intelligence (EI)-sales performance link can be better understood by considering a salesperson’s confidence in how they use emotions, known as emotional self-efficacy (ESE). Four multi-source studies across diverse sales industries offer evidence of the interactive effect of a salesperson’s EI and ESE – which we term emotional calibration – on salesperson performance. We find that sales performance suffers when salespeople are either overconfident or underconfident in their emotional skills and perform best when they are calibrated. Further, we demonstrate that the performance gains associated with emotional calibration (1) are attenuated when salespeople are under stress, and (2) occur because it encourages positive avoidance emotions (calmness and relaxation) among salespeople that result in improved customer rapport, but only among salespeople with relatively longer job tenures. Overall, the research highlights the critical role of ESE as an essential but neglected aspect of a salesperson’s emotional competence.

HUBUNGAN ANTARA KETERAMPILAN PENJUALAN DAN KINERJA TENAGA PENJUAL DI PERUSAHAAN CAT INDONESIA

The phenomenon of the existence of a successful salesperson and does not indicate that the variables affect the salesperson's performance. The understanding is beneficial for the company to provide training focus. The purpose of this study is to test the influence of sales skills dimensions (interpersonal skill, salesmanship skill, marketing skill, company’s product knowledge and competitors’ product knowledge) on salesperson performance in a domestic paint company which has the potential to influence salesperson performance. The questionnaire was distributed to 57 Supervisors with samples amounting to 268 salespersons form 348 population. The method is linear regression analysis through SPSS Statistik 26th edition software. This analysis was conducted to test the influence of sales skills dimensions on salesperson performance. Based on the questionnaire, it is evident that salesmanship and interpersonal skills have a significant influence on salesperson performance. On the contrary, the remaining three dimensions were found to have no influence on salesperson performance.AbstrakFenomena adanya tenaga penjual yang sukses dan yang gagal menunjukkan bahwa terdapat variabel yang memengaruhi kinerja tenaga penjual. Pemahaman ini bermanfaat bagi perusahaan untuk memberikan fokus pelatihan. Penelitian ini ditujukan untuk menguji pengaruh dimensi keterampilan penjualan yakni: keterampilan interpersonal, keterampilan keahlian menjual, keterampilan pemasaran, kemampuan pengetahuan produk perusahaan dan kemampuan pengetahuan produk pesaing terhadap kinerja tenaga penjual di sebuah perusahaan cat nasional yang memiliki potensi untuk memengaruhi kinerja tenaga penjual. Kuesioner didistribusikan kepada 57 Supervisor dengan sampel sebanyak 268 orang dari populasi sejumlah 348 orang. Metode analisis regresi linier menggunakan perangkat lunak SPSS Statistik edisi 26, analisis ini untuk menguji atas pengaruh dimensi keterampilan terhadap kinerja dari tenaga penjual. Berdasarkan pengumpulan kuesioner terlihat bahwa keterampilan dalam penjualan dan keterampilan interpersonal secara signifikan memengaruhi kinerja tenaga penjual. Sementara itu, ketiga dimensi yang lain tidak berpengaruh terhadap kinerja tenaga penjual.