Scenario 18-3 Successful Selling of Complex Products Such as Computer Software Requires

Scenario 18-3
Successful selling of complex products such as computer software requires excellent salespeople. Lack of quality service in the marketplace led Alan Hall, head of a small computer networking company, to open Technology Advancement Corporation in 1988. Today, Technology Advancement is a national field marketer with several divisions. The bulk of its business involves training and educating salespeople on the features, benefits, competitors, and market potential of Technology Advancement's clients' products. To date, Technology Advancement has focused on computer software and hardware makers and has launched most of the marquee names in the industry: Novell, Lotus Development, IBM, Microsoft, Apple Computer, Hewlett-Packard, Motorola, Intel, and Xerox, as well as smaller firms.
Here's how the Technology Advancement client relationship works for training. A marketer hires the company to promote its product or to launch a new product, and Technology Advancement assigns a team exclusively to that client. The team gathers, usually at a ski resort, and the client comes in for the training. The training starts with explaining how to use direct communication with a prospective purchaser and how it fits the company strategy and differs from sales promotion. Latest developments in the selling process are explained with special emphasis on networking, follow-up strategies, and post-purchase customer service. Many computer giants have reported that this type of training program has significantly improved their business.
-Refer to the scenario. When John Cason began selling IBM computers, he used what he had learned at the training seminar and called friends, relatives, former business acquaintances, and former fraternity brothers to see if they were looking for new computer systems. What is this lead generation technique known as?

A) cold calling
B) networking
C) qualifying
D) following up