BUSN1091 Consultative Selling Week 1 Reading : What is a Consultative Salesperso
ID: 399925 • Letter: B
Question
BUSN1091
Consultative Selling
Week 1 Reading
: What is a Consultative Salesperson?
Week 1
Case Study: The Consultant’s Purpose 40points BrianMurray was a newly hired salesrepresentative for Marshall Operation Services(MOP). MOP provided companies involved in warehousing with machinery, equipment and software for inventory management and order management. Brian was excited to complete his initial training and schedule his first appointment with client,Janet Clothespin atTR Distribution.He locatedTR’swebsite and gave it abrief once-over. Brian could see dozens ofopportunities to sell MOP’s products and services. As he washeading out the door, hementioned to another MOP rep where he was going.“Good luck,”the salesrep said with a wry smile. I’ve heard that Janet Clothespin give ssalespeople about 10 minutes to givetheir pitch...then“pitches”them out the door! Brian was a little dismayed at the challenge this story presented, however he still felt confiden the could make a sale today.On meeting Janet Clothespin, he found hercordial,briskand to the point.“What canI do for you today, Mr. Murray?”she asked.Brian quickly got out his equipment catalog and started showing Janet all the great new models that hadcome out this year. He was charming and enthusiastic.He especially talked about all the great pricedeals available including quantitydiscounts! Janet Clothespin looked at her watch repeatedlythroughout this presentation and at about the 10 minute mark cleared her throat.“Thank you, Brian. I appreciate your showing me what MOPhas to offer, but I really don’t see how any of this will help TR Distributionwith our immediate needs.You see,we’re currently combining several of our warehousesand will need help with this process.We’ll need all new systems to make it work...it’s going to be complicated.I’ll give you a call if I need more information.Brian was shown the way out. He stood in the parking lot and wondered what had gone wrong. He hadhoped tomakethissaleand win an opportunity to conduct more business withTR Distribution in the future.
1.Did Brian use a transactional approach or a trust-based relationship approach? How could you tell? How did his approach hinder or help himin his interaction with Janet Clothespin? Discuss.
2.Being a consultant requires a certain amount of expertise. Do you think that Janet Clothespin was looking for input from“an expert?”How could Brian come prepared to be a bette consultant to Janet?
3.How do you think being a consultant in this situation might have helped Brian to secure a stronger relationship as well as future business? How do you think the win-win philosophy could have applied here?
Explanation / Answer
1. Brian used transactional approach in this case. Instead of listening to the requirements of client, he started to explain about the price deals, discounts and all that Marshall Operation Services had to offer. Janet was not interested in the conversation anymore and was not listening to him. The transactional approach of Brian thus hindered him in his interaction with Janet Clothespin.
2. Janet Clothespin was definitely looking for input from an expert. Brian could have come prepared beforehand by knowing the exact requirements of the client and by understanding how MOP can satisfy their requirements. Furhter, he could have gained more technical expertise on the offerings of MOP. This would have prepared to him to be a better consultant to Janet Clothespin.
3. Instead of trying to sell on discounts and offers, being a consultant and understanding the problem of the client would have helped Brian to secure a stronger relationship as well as future business. By understanding the requirements of the client and knowing whether POM can cater to those requirements Brian would have been in a much better situation. This way even if the current requirement cannot be met by POM, future business from TR distribution could have been secured by the company. By forming stronger relationships and a win-win philosophy, both the companies would have been in a situation to get future advantage from the relationship i.e.TR distribution in the form meeting its business needs and POM in the form of a reliable client to do business.
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