This was an interesting read, and something I’ve not really thought about before. It’s amazing the transformation that salesmanship in American has undergone, and yet also the magnitude of things that have remained unchanged over the decades. However, change is inevitable; as the economy naturally progresses and evolves, so too must salesmanship. But it’s interesting to look at its role in America’s history of industrialization and innovation. Salespeople may still have a bad rep, but where would America be without them?
This article demonstrates just how much planning and research goes into sales. A rather naïve view is that products are simply advertised on television or some other media channel and consumers will automatically go out and buy them. I don’t think I even really appreciated just how much research and planning goes into selling a product until I read this. Using the “thief-catcher” campaign as a way of heightening the customer’s curiosity and garnering more sales through “selling expectations” was a concrete example of salesmen’s ingenuity in the earlier part of the twentieth century. Sales as a method of creating demand is also testament to the planning that went into each promotion and pitch, from 1776 to present. It was certainly enlightening to read about the multiple methods salesmen engaged in promoting products and encouraging customer purchases.
I found it interesting. Sales people generally get the bad “used-car salesman” wrap, but they are the ones generating revenue for a company. If salesmen did not do their job, most businesses would not exist. There needs to be a change in mentality though. Most salesmen get a bad reputation because they push their product on people who don’t need it. But if a salesman takes time to know his leads and build a relationship with them, then amazing things can happen. Hopefully sales will get a better name in these future years.
This was an interesting read, and something I’ve not really thought about before. It’s amazing the transformation that salesmanship in American has undergone, and yet also the magnitude of things that have remained unchanged over the decades. However, change is inevitable; as the economy naturally progresses and evolves, so too must salesmanship. But it’s interesting to look at its role in America’s history of industrialization and innovation. Salespeople may still have a bad rep, but where would America be without them?
This article demonstrates just how much planning and research goes into sales. A rather naïve view is that products are simply advertised on television or some other media channel and consumers will automatically go out and buy them. I don’t think I even really appreciated just how much research and planning goes into selling a product until I read this. Using the “thief-catcher” campaign as a way of heightening the customer’s curiosity and garnering more sales through “selling expectations” was a concrete example of salesmen’s ingenuity in the earlier part of the twentieth century. Sales as a method of creating demand is also testament to the planning that went into each promotion and pitch, from 1776 to present. It was certainly enlightening to read about the multiple methods salesmen engaged in promoting products and encouraging customer purchases.
I found it interesting. Sales people generally get the bad “used-car salesman” wrap, but they are the ones generating revenue for a company. If salesmen did not do their job, most businesses would not exist. There needs to be a change in mentality though. Most salesmen get a bad reputation because they push their product on people who don’t need it. But if a salesman takes time to know his leads and build a relationship with them, then amazing things can happen. Hopefully sales will get a better name in these future years.