Deck 1: Selling and Salespeople

Question 1

Which of the following statements most describes someone engaged in personal selling?

A) The governor directs the state's legislature to enact a law that provides more legal protection for abused children.
B) Jackson's parents loan him $1,000 to repair his car.
C) A mother removes her children for misbehaving at the restaurant.
D) Vivian interviews for a job she really wants.
E) Your professor gives you a choice of essay or multiple choice questions.

Answer 1

D

Question 2

One of the advantages of personal selling is it is the most _____ method used to communicate with customers.

A) creditable
B) controlled
C) desirable
D) defensive
E) flexible

Answer 2

E

Question 3

(p. 5 Available)
Valerie's goal as a sales rep is to add _______, which is the total benefit that her company's products and services provide to the buyer.

A) Creativity
B) Relationships
C) Mission-driven maximization
D) Value
E) Go-to-market success

Answer 3

D

Question 4

As a field salesperson, Sheila schedules her sales calls, decides when she will do her paperwork, and, for the most part, controls her own time, and operates much like an independent entrepreneur.

Question 5

Sandra has decided to hire her own sales force as the sole method of marketing her products. She has decided to use a ______________________ strategy.

A) Public relations
B) Customer value
C) Sales-force intensive
D) Missionary
E) All of these

Question 6

Normally, missionary salespeople and local distributor salespeople are intensively competitive with each other as each strives to take business away from the other.

Question 7

Integrated marketing communications focuses on coordinating video with radio advertising.

Question 8

The reason information supplied through publicity is usually considered to be more credible than information supplied by a salesperson is:

A) salespeople are considered unethical.
B) the information is communicated by sources perceived to be independent.
C) information communicated by salespeople can be changed to fit the situation.
D) publicity costs more than personal selling.
E) organizations have more control over when information is disseminated through publicity.

Question 9

Personal selling includes all of the following EXCEPT:

A) credit analysis
B) building relationships with customers
C) offering information
D) helping customers identify problems
E) after-the-sale service

Question 10

The primary vehicle for providing unpaid personal communications to customers is:

A) publicity
B) print advertising
C) word of mouth
D) broadcast advertising
E) the salesperson

Question 11

Six Sigma selling programs are designed to reduce and eliminate errors in the selling system.

Question 12

Selling capital goods to manufacturers is much easier than selling concert tickets for top name musical groups to consumers.

Question 13

Gwen is considering how to sell her new product. She is considering Internet sales, hiring sales reps, using a manufacturer's rep, and several other options. Gwen is considering her:

A) Multi-channel mission
B) Go-to-market strategies
C) Customer-centric circle
D) Lifetime marketing value
E) Emotional versus intellectual challenge

Question 14

European customers place more emphasis on the rapport developed with a salesperson, whereas U.S. firms look more at the size and reputation of the salesperson's company.

Question 15

As a missionary salesperson, Joshua represents a large drug manufacturer and calls on physicians to explain the benefits to them of prescribing his firm's products for their patients.

Question 16

Because Pam sells oil-drilling equipment for Oil Field Technologies, and Harold is a salesperson at Dillard's department store, Harold will most likely earn more per year than Pam.

Question 17

Ryan is training his new salespeople. He is trying to dispel the myth the role of sales people is to "sell refrigerators to Eskimos." He tells his salespeople that they need to be a customer-centric organization that helps customers:

A) Identify problems
B) Find information to about potential solutions
C) By providing after-the-sale service
D) By making the customer the center of their efforts
E) All of these

Question 18

A firm's products move from the manufacturer to the final user through a series of institutions called a production network.

Question 19

Because more and more customers are demanding 24/7 service, selling firms need:

A) to schedule sales people's work hours in 24 hour blocks
B) to be available 24 hours a day, seven days a week
C) more salespeople
D) greater integrated marketing communications
E) All of these

Question 20

After almost a century of research, scholars have finally identified a definitive profile of the personality characteristics of the ideal salesperson.

Question 21

(p. 10 Available)
Manufacturers' agents:

A) actually take ownership of the products they sell
B) are independent businesspeople
C) are paid a monthly fee for their services
D) typically call on people who may influence a sale and not those who actually place the order
E) are accurately described by all of these

Question 22

Advance Machine Company makes industrial-strength floor cleaning equipment. In support of its sales force, it ran ads in trade journals aimed at supermarkets, entertainment venues, educational institutions, and other places that have a lot of foot traffic. It created an Internet website for customers to come and look at what type of products it sold. It set up a toll free number for clients to call and created a direct marketing piece that offered discounts and rebates on orders. Advance Machine Company used:

A) dyadic communication to reach its potential customers
B) feedback to qualify leads
C) integrated marketing communications
D) a decentralized promotions organization
E) any means possible to circumvent its sales force

Question 23

Even though personal selling is the most expensive method of communication on a per person reached basis, businesses continue to use personal selling because of advantages in:

A) flexibility and control
B) cost
C) credibility
D) efficiency
E) referral

Question 24

After making two major sales calls Jenneau spent time in her hotel room submitting information about the calls over the Internet to her company. Jenneau was providing information to her firm's:

A) distribution channel efficacy system
B) customer relationship management system
C) business simulation system
D) NAICS control center system
E) situational management system

Question 25

Missionary salespeople:

A) work for retailers
B) are an essential part of the consumer products distribution channel
C) frequently call on people who influence a buying decision but who do not actually place the order
D) only call on buyers
E) are paid a commission for each sale they make

Question 26

Pacific Rim sells outdoor furniture, garden and patio accessories, baskets, floral arrangements, and pottery to retail garden nurseries. Its salespeople would be correctly called:

A) distributor salespeople
B) trade salespeople
C) runners
D) manufacturers' agents
E) retail salespeople

Question 27

When Disney Company releases a new the movie, they usually advertise on television, give out sales promotion items at fast-food restaurants, create a website for the film, hold special showings of the movie, and encourage people to talk about the movie. This coordination of all these efforts is called:

A) generative marketing
B) tactical marketing
C) integrated marketing communications
D) the marketing concept
E) relationship marketing

Question 28

Integrated marketing communications is a program to coordinate all of the following marketing efforts EXCEPT:

A) personal selling
B) advertising
C) sales promotion
D) word-of-mouth
E) production

Question 29

Jerry was Zip's Business Services top salesperson. He often sold as much as the rest of the sales staff. After many years, he left for a better offer with a competing firm. Many of Zip's customers moved with Jerry. This illustrates in relationship marketing:

A) companies control the flow of sales
B) customers prefer loyal salespeople
C) customers often have greater loyalty to salespeople than to the firms they represent
D) companies need to pay salespeople more commission
E) customers are unpredictable, requiring sales organizations to adjust strategies as environmental factors alter the marketing landscape

Question 30

It's early on a Friday morning, and before she goes out to see any of her customers, Ruth is in her company's warehouse checking to make sure deliveries scheduled for some of her customers went out earlier in the week. This activity is a component of which sales activity?

A) partnering
B) internal selling
C) servicing customers
D) waiting
E) reporting

Question 31

The set of people and organizations responsible for the flow of products and services from producer to ultimate consumer is called a firm's:

A) selling function
B) sales channel
C) marketing organization
D) distribution channel
E) sales organization

Question 32

Manufacturers' Representatives, Inc. (MRI) is an independent company that employs sales representatives to sell products from a number of producers. MRI's sales reps sell the products to wholesalers and retailers. MRI receives a commission from the producers for the products it sells. MRI is an example of a:

A) manufacturers' agent
B) selling agent
C) missionary sales agency
D) partnership selling strategy
E) production agent

Question 33

Which of the following statements about how salespeople spend their time each week is true?

A) Salespeople typically spend the least amount of time in an average week traveling and sitting in waiting areas.
B) Most of the selling done by salespeople today is done over the telephone.
C) Salespeople spend less than 2 hours per week on administrative tasks.
D) Salespeople spend more time performing administrative tasks, waiting and/or traveling, making service calls, and selling over the phone than in face-to-face selling.
E) None of these statements about how salespeople spend their time each week is true.

Question 34

Alexandra has just returned from a sales training program focusing on eliminating errors in the selling process through attention to details and effective communication. Alexandra has just received ________________ training.

A) 24/7
B) Six Sigma
C) missionary sales
D) Go-To-Market
E) CRM

Question 35

Laura works for Seminole Textiles. In her job, she calls on upholsterers, towel and sheet manufacturers and other customers of the Seminole distributors to encourage them to use more Seminole textiles (which they would order from their distributor, not directly from Seminole.) Laura is a:

A) distributor rep
B) trade salesperson
C) missionary salesperson
D) trade partner
E) retail salesperson

Question 36

Salespeople are the _______________ of a company in the marketplace.

A) brains and muscle
B) feet and nose
C) voice and arms
D) eyes and ears
E) total body representative

Question 37

To promote their products, Valerie's firm has always depended solely on advertising in the local newspaper and occasional direct mail programs. Valerie suggests using integrated marketing communications because:

A) no single communication vehicle is free of weaknesses
B) all organizations are doing so
C) a sustainable competitive advantage can only be derived from alternative advertising
D) it will lengthen their channels of distribution
E) it will serve as a competitive intelligence tool

Question 38

Which of the following statements about salesperson relationships with customers and prospects is true?

A) Selling to new prospects requires the same skills as selling to existing customers
B) Salespeople responsible for existing customers place more emphasis on selling products than on servicing and relationship building
C) Rejection is an inevitable part of making initial contacts with potential customers
D) To convince prospects to purchase a product they use regularly, salespeople need to be especially self-confident and aggressive
E) None of these

Question 39

Hampstead Fire Safety Equipment employees who sell to its network of distributors are known as:

A) distributor salespeople
B) trade salespeople
C) runners
D) manufacturers' agents
E) retail salespeople

Question 40

On average, salespeople spend less than ____ percent of their time in face-to-face meetings with customers.

A) 95
B) 75
C) 55
D) 35
E) 15

Question 41

John, the dynamic sales manager at Pulverize Construction Company, often solicits the ideas of his salespeople. John also has been known to ridicule suggestions from his staff. John is hampering the flow of ______________ in his organization.

A) craftsmanship
B) creativity
C) character
D) charisma
E) charm

Question 42

Customers constantly consult with Kathy, Hump & Pack's sales representative, regarding installation problems, new product ideas, and other issues because she offers unique, imaginative ideas. Customers value Kathy's _____________.

A) honesty
B) emotional intelligence
C) discreetness
D) creativity
E) behavioral intellect

Question 43

_____ is the ability to effectively understand and use one's own emotions and the emotions of people with whom one interacts.

A) Emotional intelligence
B) Adaptive learning
C) Environmental awareness
D) Generative learning
E) Behavioral intelligence

Question 44

The skills required to be a successful salesperson:

A) are associated with intellectual achievement
B) can be learned
C) are the focus of Six Sigma selling programs
D) create a value proposition
E) allow customer-centric production managers to become effective multi-channel distributors

Question 45

Why does personal selling work better than other communications options available to firms selling in the business-to-business market?

A) Personal selling employs more people in the U.S. than advertising
B) Salespeople are able to tailor unique messages for each prospective buyer
C) U.S. firms have become particularly adept at hiring "born" salespeople
D) Personal selling is the most expensive form of promotion
E) Salespeople are proficient in all aspects of new product development

Question 46

A person who _____ would probably find a career in sales attractive.

A) wanted a nine-to-five job
B) wanted to work in an office
C) was not motivated by financial rewards
D) liked independence and was willing to take responsibility
E) did not like to take responsibility

Question 47

Which of the following is NOT one of the aspects of emotional intelligence?

A) knowing one's own feelings and emotions as they are experienced
B) controlling one's emotions to avoid acting impulsively
C) controlling customer's emotions to avoid conflict
D) recognizing customer's emotions
E) using one's emotions to interact effectively with customers

Question 48

Personal selling is a more effective communication method than advertising because:

A) salespeople are so closely supervised
B) salespeople can become very persuasive since they give an identical sales presentation to so many different people
C) salespeople rely on puffery
D) salespeople can change their message if they find their customers are losing interest
E) salespeople are accurately described by all of these

Question 49

A salesperson will find that he or she is called upon to use the greatest creativity when:

A) selling to new prospects rather than present customers
B) selling office furniture rather than business insurance
C) receiving customer orders in the firm's telemarketing center rather than going to the customer's place of business
D) selling repairs on a company's existing photocopying machine rather than persuading the firm to buy a new copier
E) selling to consumers who are buying vegetables rather than a new home

Question 50

Betty checks her e-mail at 6 AM, returns messages and telephone calls from customers by 8 AM, meets with customers during the day and then processes sales at home in the evening. Betty displays the characteristic of successful salespeople of:

A) always being honest with her customers
B) being a "self-starter"
C) viewing her relationships with customers as a partnership
D) adjusting her presentations to her customers as individuals
E) being very perceptive

Question 51

Which of the following products would most likely be the hardest for a new salesperson to sell?

A) photocopy machines
B) horse trailers
C) management consulting services
D) wooden building trusses
E) restaurant tablecloths

Question 52

Opal is a salesperson for a wholesaler. There are many retailers in her territory and she says, "No two are alike. I must adjust my way of communicating to their different styles. Some are strictly business. Others like to talk about their families or sports before I discuss my company's products." Opal's approach illustrates which characteristic of a successful salesperson?

A) ethical
B) flexibility
C) knowledge
D) dependability
E) motivation

Question 53

Which of the following is a characteristic of a successful salesperson?

A) able to work well with very little direct supervision
B) good communicator
C) knows a lot about his or her own product and competitors' products
D) ability to use information technology
E) All of these

Question 54

The Frito-Lay salesperson who drives a truck to a store, checks the store's stock of Frito-Lay products, determines what the store needs and gets the manager's permission to place that stock in the store is:

A) creating alternatives
B) an inside salesperson
C) a missionary salesperson
D) selling intangibles
E) taking orders

Question 55

Salespeople who spend most of their time selling their company's products in the customer's place of business are:

A) missionary salespeople
B) inside salespeople
C) obsolete in the partnering era
D) field salespeople
E) None of these

Question 56

When LeAnn called on a long-time customer, she realized that the man was upset and took the time to listen to his problem. She was able to sympathize with the customer's recent loss of a pet by using her:

A) emotional intelligence
B) adaptive learning
C) environmental awareness
D) generative learning
E) behavioral intelligence

Question 57

Salespeople are like entrepreneurs because:

A) they do not have to invest in themselves
B) integrated marketing communications eliminates investment risk
C) manufacturers trust salespeople to be corporate-centric
D) of the unusual freedom and flexibility in doing their jobs.

Question 58

Frederica sells products to businesses which are purchased infrequently and usually involve a group making the purchase decision. Frederica sells:

A) capital goods
B) MRO supplies
C) services
D) retail products
E) None of these

Question 59

Over half of all sales positions in the United States are in ______________ sales.

A) real estate
B) insurance
C) retail
D) securities
E) manufacturer's rep

Question 60

Luis works for USAA, an insurance company headquartered in San Antonio. Luis is employed in the firm's telemarketing center where he answers customers' calls to the firm's 1-800 number about buying insurance. Luis is an example of a(n):

A) inside salesperson
B) production era salesperson
C) field salesperson
D) tangible product salesperson
E) missionary salesperson

Question 61

Stephanie is asked to create a customer relationship management system for your company. What information will she include in the system typically provided by salespeople?

Question 62

Why do many organizations use integrated marketing communications?

Question 63

What does it mean to say salespeople are account team managers?

Question 64

What is the role of missionary salespeople?

Question 65

On average, salespeople send less than 35 percent of their time in face-to-face meeting with customers and prospects. What are they doing with the rest of their time?

Question 66

List the four aspects of emotional intelligence.

Question 67

As a sales job category, what tasks do missionary salespeople perform?

Question 68

What six factors are used to describe sales jobs?

Question 69

What are manufacturer's agents?

Question 70

Respond to the statement, "salespeople are just order takers."

Question 71

The partnering landscape refers to understanding of the:

A) knowledge and skills of selling
B) nature, role, and rewards of selling
C) the development process of selling
D) formal negotiating techniques in selling
E) sales manager's role in selling

Question 72

Relative to advertising, what is the major advantage and disadvantage of personal selling?

Question 73

How would you respond to the following statement? "I'm just going to have to take a sales job until I find a more interesting and more promising career opportunity."

Question 74

How do field salespeople differ from inside salespeople?

Question 75

Why do companies spend money on personal selling when there are so many less expensive alternatives?

Question 76

Relative to publicity, what are the major advantages and disadvantages of personal selling?

Question 77

Chapter 1 includes a cartoon showing a salesman selling refrigerators to Eskimos. What does this cartoon convey about selling?

Question 78

Compare personal selling with other marketing communications methods in terms of control, flexibility, credibility, and cost.

Question 79

How is being customer-centric different from the stereotype image of salespeople?

Question 80

What factors influence the type of sales jobs?