This document discusses sales management and distribution management. It covers topics such as the definitions, objectives, and evolution of sales management. It also discusses the roles and structures of sales departments and organizations, including functional, product specialization, market specialization, territory-based, and hybrid structures. Additionally, it touches on the importance of distribution and provides definitions related to distribution.

1. SALES AND
DISTRIBUTION
MANAGEMENT

2. SALES MANAGEMENT
➢Sales management is a comprehensive term that includes
management of all marketing activities, including advertising, sales
promotion, marketing research, physical distribution pricing, and
product merchandising.
➢It is an art as well as science - Art because managing sales force
requires certain skills which are personal possessions of managers.
Science provides the knowledge & art deals with the application of
knowledge and skills. Sales management is science as it makes use of
scientific principles for managing the sales force and developing the
sales organization.

3. DEFINITIONS OF SALES MANAGEMENT
1. According to American Marketing Association, “Sales Management is
the planning, direction and control of the personal selling activities of a
business unit including recruiting, selecting, training, equipping, assigning,
routing, supervising, paying and motivating, as these tasks apply to the
personal sales – force.”
2. According to William J. Stanton, “Sales Management involves planning,
implementing and evaluating sales – force activities within the guidelines
set by the company's strategic marketing planning”
3. According to B.R. Canfield, “Sales Management involves the direction
and control of salesmen, sales planning, budgeting, policymaking,
coordination of marketing research, advertising, sales promotion and
merchandising and the integration in the marketing programme of all
business activities that contribute to the increased sales and profits.”

4. SALES MANAGEMENT
(source: https://www.geektonight.com/sales-management/)

5. OBJECTIVES OF SALES MANAGEMENT
➢ Achievement of sales target
➢ Growth in sales volume
➢ Increase in profits
➢ Increase in market share
➢ Effective management of sales force
➢ Effective management of sales territories

6. CHARACTERISTICS OF SALES MANAGEMENT
(source: https://theinvestorsbook.com/sales-management.html)

7. IMPORTANCE OF SALES MANAGEMENT
(source: https://theinvestorsbook.com/sales-management.html)

8. EVOLUTION OF SALES MANAGEMENT
➢Selling is as old as human civilization. Earlier times the salesman
used to sell axes, swords, buttons, blades, etc. In the medieval age,
the Britishers who were the enterprising traders started going across
countries to destinations such as India. The buying and selling has
gone through various phases of evolution and development over the
centuries.
➢Initially selling had a purely transactional approach i.e. barter
system in which goods were exchanged for goods. It was a concept
of “buyer” and “seller”. As there was increase in competition the
concept of “customer” evolved.

9. EVOLUTION OF SALES MANAGEMENT
Customer Oriented Period
Sales Oriented Period
Production Oriented Period
Pre Industrial Revolution Period

10. EVOLUTION OF SALES MANAGEMENT
➢Small-scale industries/crafts existed prior to Industrial Revolution
period.
➢The owner/craftsman turned entrepreneur, looked after all areas
and functions of management, such as, production, finance and
design and development.
➢Sales and marketing was never a serious problem in those days since
demand far exceeded supplies.
➢Selling was only a part-time job for these entrepreneurs who would
only demonstrate or display their craftsmanship.

11. EVOLUTION OF SALES MANAGEMENT
➢During the Production Period, mass production technique was
introduced. This increased the production level, where the focus was
on manufacturer and production capacity.
➢There was greater emphasis laid on production process which yielded
volumes.
➢Marketing meant "sell what is produced“ and it was a "sellers market“
➢The Sales Oriented Period, still prevalent in developing nations,
focuses on sales and sales promotion with emphasis on sales volume.
➢Marketing means "product does not sell by itself but has to be pushed.
Customers are to be manipulated in the highly competitive
environment.

12. EVOLUTION OF SALES MANAGEMENT
➢During the Customer Oriented Period, Globalization and
liberalization have further increased the competition.
➢This period is prevalent in developed nations after 1960s.
Developing nations started following this approach by 1980s.
➢The focus is on "customer satisfaction“.
➢Emphasis is on "problem solving" on customer "needs" and "wants“
to achieve customer loyalty.
➢Marketing means customer satisfaction before, during and after
sales. It is the “buyers market” having severe competition.

13. EVOLUTION OF SALES MANAGEMENT
In a nutshell,
➢During the early years of 1950s selling was mainly of consumer goods.
Companies such as Unilever, P & G were the pioneers in selling soaps,
detergents, etc.
➢In 1960s, the selling of industrial products started and slowly gathered
speed. The evolution and development of selling continued. 1970s gave
rise to non-profit and societal selling. In 1980s, “service” started to get
recognition and it prospered during the decade.
➢The development process led to the development of the concept of
“customer” and the emphasis was on relationship selling during the
1990s, developing and retaining customers. The main goal of the
organization was to build customer loyalty through sales management
and customer service.

14. SALES DEPARTMENT
A sales department is the direct link between a company's product/
service and its customers.
A well-trained sales department not only generates sales but also
builds relationships with customers.
Further, a quality salesperson helps identify a customer’s unique
needs and makes sure that those needs are met.
The most important role of sales department is to bridge the gap
between the potential customer’s needs and the products/services
that the organization offers to fulfil their needs.

15. ROLE OF SALES DEPARTMENT
➢Goal-Setting: The sales and marketing division sets individual sales
representatives’ quotas, as well as the overall goal for the company.
➢Designing and Managing the Sales Force:
• Establish sales force objectives
• Designing sales force strategy
• Structure sales force
• Recruitment and selection of sales force
• Training sales force
• Assigning territories
• Motivating sales force
• Evaluating performance

16. ROLE OF SALES DEPARTMENT
➢Product, Pricing and Distribution Planning
➢Sales Forecasting
➢Sales Budget
➢Customer Service
➢Sales Promotions
➢Ensure performance of activities
➢Coordination
➢To economize on executive time: As the activities of the sales
department increase in complexity and number, additional
subordinates are recruited. This permits higher rank executives to
delegate more authority to subordinates and they can themselves
devote more time to planning and lesser to execution.

17. INTERFACE OF SALES WITH OTHER MANAGEMENT FUNCTIONS
SALES
Planning
Organizing
Directing
Controlling
Budgeting
Reporting
Coordinating
Motivating

18. QUALITIES OF SALES MANAGER
Physical and Mental Characteristics
Effective Communication Skills
Positive Attitude
Intelligence
Leadership by Example
Teamwork
Persuasive Skills

19. DEVELOPMENT IN SALES MANAGEMENT
The new trends or major developments in sales management are:
➢Effectiveness to Efficiency: Effectiveness focuses on contribution in
relation to target or objective, and efficiency means contribution in
relation to cost.
➢Multidisciplinary Approach: Due to the focus of companies on increasing
efficiency they are adopting multidisciplinary approach to selling and
marketing function. In manufacturing, the increase in productivity and
cost reduction involves four different functions, namely :
• Research and Development
• Procurement
• Production Process
• Quality Control or Management
Each of these functions are specialized and being handled by specialists in
the appropriate field. Hence the total marketing or selling activity becomes
multidisciplinary in approach.

20. DEVELOPMENT IN SALES MANAGEMENT
➢Increasing use of Internet
➢Customer Relationship Management
➢Professionalism in Selling
➢Internal Marketing
Company
Internal Marketing External Marketing
Employees Interactive Marketing Customers

21. SALES ORGANIZATION
➢Sales organization is a structural framework, specifying the formal
authority and responsibility between persons working in the organization.
➢It consists of group of individuals working jointly to attain qualitative and
quantitative selling objectives.
➢According to H. R. Tosdal, “A sales organization consists of human beings
working together for the marketing of products manufactured by the firm
or the commodities which have been purchased for resale.”
➢Sales organization defines the duties, roles, and the rights and
responsibilities of salespeople engaged in selling activities meant for the
effective execution of the sales function. This demands a coherent and
unified effort of individuals in the organization for achieving a common
goal.

22. STRUCTURE OF SALES ORGANIZATION
➢Medium and large sized companies expand their sales organization
structure in a specialized form to increase the effectiveness of the
sales force.
➢The criteria used to design the sales organization structure are
meeting:
• customer needs,
• abilities of sales force,
• nature of the product,
• number of the product,
• sales cost etc.

23. STRUCTURE OF SALES ORGANIZATION
1. Functional Sales Structure
2. Product Specialization Structure
3. Market Specialization Structure
4. Territory Based Structure
5. Combination or Hybrid Sales Structure

24. STRUCTURE OF SALES ORGANIZATION – Functional Sales Structure
Head–Marketing
Marketing Research
Manager
Sales Manager
Promotional
Manager
Customer Service
Manager
Area Sales Manager # 4
Salespeople

25. STRUCTURE OF SALES ORGANIZATION – Functional Sales Structure
➢These organizations are based on the principle that each individual
in an organization should have as few responsibilities as possible.
➢They follow the principle of specialization to the fullest extent.
➢Assignments of duty and delegation of authority are made according
to function.
➢Each functional specialist has line responsibility over sales people.
➢This structure helps organizations run their business and earn a
profit by grouping employees based on their skills and expertise. It
provides a clear hierarchy and minimizes confusion among
employees who may be unsure who they are to report to.

26. STRUCTURE OF SALES ORGANIZATION – Functional Sales Structure
➢The marketing research manager/ sales manager/ promotional
manager/customer service manager give their inputs or feedback to
the area sales manager who conveys them, after his analysis, to the
salespeople.
➢Each functional unit handles one aspect of the product or service
provided such as:
• information technology
• marketing
• development
• research, etc.
They are referred to as "silos" because the function independently and
have their own vertical management structure.

27. STRUCTURE OF SALES ORGANIZATION – Functional Sales Structure
➢The marketing manager may sometimes interact directly with the
sales staff.
➢These structures are used by large companies with a number of
products or market segments, especially ones that produce just a
few types of goods or services.

28. STRUCTURE OF SALES ORGANIZATION – Functional Sales Structure
Advantages :
a)Its administration is simple.
b)Qualified persons guide the salesforce.
Disadvantages :
a) Smaller firms find this system expensive.
b) The burden of coordinating the activities of highly diverse
specialists is placed on single individual.

29. STRUCTURE OF SALES ORGANIZATION – Product Specialization
Head–Marketing
Marketing Research
Manager
General
Sales Manager
Promotion
Manager
Sales Training
Manager
Area Sales Managers–
Product Group ‘A’
Area Sales Managers–
Product Group ‘B’
Salespeople –
Product Gr. ‘A’
Salespeople –
Product Gr. ‘B’

30. STRUCTURE OF SALES ORGANIZATION – Product Specialization
➢A sales organization based on product specialization is more applicable
for multi-business companies with a large number of products or
brands.
E.g. P & G
➢Product specialization is of two types :
i) Sales organization with product managers.
ii) Sales organization with specialized sales force.
➢When there are two groups of products, it is the responsibility of each
divisional marketing manager also known as product manager to plan
and implement a separate marketing plan for each group of products.
➢Each salesperson has to sell the products of both the group and there
is no specialization by the product.

31. STRUCTURE OF SALES ORGANIZATION – Product Specialization
➢There is no staff assistance and the regional and district sales
managers are line managers.
➢The product managers develop a cost effective marketing mix
strategy for each brand and product and instantly react to the
changes in the market place.
➢The trend is to move from product or brand driven organization
(Colgate toothpaste) to category management (any tooth paste) to
customer need (oral care) management.
➢The main focus is on the needs of the customers

32. STRUCTURE OF SALES ORGANIZATION – Product Specialization
Advantages :
a) There is specialized attention for each product from the
salesperson and the territory managers.
b) They can improve the quality by focusing only on their product.
c) Adequate attention is given to the product lines and brands at the
planning level.
d) Management can guide selling efforts.
Disadvantages :
a) More than one salesperson calls the same customer leads to
confusion.
b) Too many calls frustrate the customers.
c) Lack of product specialization by salesperson.
d) Higher costs due to duplication of efforts within geographies and
customer accounts.

33. STRUCTURE OF SALES ORGANIZATION – Market Specialization
National Sales Manager
Market Specialisation
Sales Manager
Commercial
Area Sales Mangers –
Commercial
Salespeople
Sales Manager–
Government
Area Sales Managers
Government
Salespeople

34. STRUCTURE OF SALES ORGANIZATION – Market Specialization
➢Market specialized sales organization is desirable when the customer
is classified by the specific type, user industry, channel of
distribution.
➢In this structure the salesperson carries out all sales activities for all
the products but for certain specific customer group.
➢These customer groups can be government, commercial etc. Dealers
have different buying practices and preferences.
➢In the recent years the use of marketing specialization is increasing.

35. STRUCTURE OF SALES ORGANIZATION – Market Specialization
Advantages :
a) The sales and marketing efforts are organized to meet the needs of
specific customer group.
b) Management control can be strategically allocated to different
markets.
c) Sales representatives know the needs of their customers and build
stronger relationships with them
Disadvantages :
a) There may be duplication of territory coverage (different
salespersons working in the same territory but covering different
customer groups)
b) High selling cost.

36. STRUCTURE OF SALES ORGANIZATION – Territory Based Structure
Marketing Manager for India
Sales Manager for India
Area Sales
Mg., Delhi
Area Sales
Mgr., Chennai
Area Sales
Mgr., Mumbai
Area Sales
Mgr. Kolkata
Area Sales Officer
Area Sales
Representative

37. STRUCTURE OF SALES ORGANIZATION – Territory Based Structure
➢Large organizations selling at national level organize their sales
operations along national boundaries.
➢The salesperson is assigned geographical areas and they are
responsible to sell their products in the areas assigned to them.
➢A number of people are placed under the territory manager also
called as a branch, regional, area or district manager.
➢There are two or three territory managers in company’s having large
number of salespeople

38. STRUCTURE OF SALES ORGANIZATION – Territory Based Structure
➢The national market is divided into regional market based on the
ethnic and demographic segmentation with different promotional
strategies for each region.
➢Many companies have local marketing managers or area managers
to support the local sales effort at regional and district level.
➢There are marketing managers who prepare regional and district
plans for selling the product and also helps the selling team by
adjusting the company’s marketing plans and strategies as per the
local needs

39. STRUCTURE OF SALES ORGANIZATION – Territory Based Structure
Advantages:
a)It has control over the sales force.
b)It has better market coverage.
c)Quick response to local service and conditions.
d)They provide superior customer service.
e)Low geographical duplication.
f)Low cost
Disadvantages:
a)It is limited to specialization of marketing tasks.
b)Sales are restricted to geographical boundaries.
c)Territory sizing can be a challenge, resulting in uneven
revenue/opportunity across geographies.
d)Sales representatives have hard time in developing market or

40. STRUCTURE OF SALES ORGANIZATION – Combination or Hybrid
Director – Sales & Marketing
General Manager
Sales – North
General Manager
Sales – East
General Manager
Sales – West
General Manager
Sales – South
Regional Sales
Mgr. – Govt.
Regional Sales
Mgr. – Commercial
Regional Sales
Mgr. – Dealers
Salespeople Salespeople Salespeople

41. STRUCTURE OF SALES ORGANIZATION – Combination or Hybrid
➢The strength of one organization’s sales structure is the weakness of
other organization’s structure.
➢To avoid this problem, company’s use combination or hybrid sales
structure that include the sales structure of various organizations.
➢They maximize the advantages and minimize the disadvantages.
➢They may combine the geographic and market specializations.
➢The basis of specialization varies from company to company but this
type of specialization is needed for the firms to remain competitive

42. Suggest, with reasons, suitable Sales Structure for the following
products:
1. Laptop
2. Soaps
3. Mobile Phone
4. Photocopy Machine

43. DISTRIBUTION
➢Distribution (place) is one of the important elements in the
marketing mix.
➢According to Mossmam & Norton “Distribution is the operation
which creates time, place & form utility through the movement of
goods and persons from one place to another”.
➢The major purpose of marketing is to satisfy human needs by
delivering products of various types to buyers when and where they
want them and at a reasonable cost.
➢Distribution is a critical component of supply chain strategy which
leads to customer satisfaction and competitive advantage.
➢The “when and where” is the function of Distribution

44. DISTRIBUTION
➢The key role that distribution plays is satisfying a firm’s customer
and achieving profit for the firm.
➢From a distribution perspective, customer satisfaction involves
maximizing time and place utility to:
• Organization’s suppliers
• Intermediate customers
• Final customers.
➢The role of distribution is through channels or intermediaries who
make possible the delivery of a product to final consumers
whenever and wherever they want.

45. DISTRIBUTION CHANNEL/ MARKETING INTERMEDIARIES
➢A set of interdependent organizations (intermediaries) involved in the
process of making a product or service available for use or consumption
by the consumer or business user.
➢Distribution channels help in the smooth flow of goods and services. This
intervention is necessary as there is a difference between the assortment
of goods and services generated by the producer and the assortment
demanded by the consumer.
➢Intermediaries not only add value to selling but also perform a number of
other functions which are very useful to a company
➢The use of intermediaries result from their greater efficiency in making
goods available to target markets, the purpose is to match supply from
producers to demand from consumers.
➢Distribution channel decisions are among the most important decisions
that management faces and directly affect every other marketing
decisions.

46. ROLE OF DISTRIBUTION CHANNEL/ MARKETING INTERMEDIARIES
Supply of Information
Product Promotion
Financing Operations
Maintaining Price Stability
Feedback
Negotiation
Risk Sharing

47. EVOLUTION OF DISTRIBUTION CHANNEL
➢In the past, all the products produced on the agricultural farms had
to be distributed in the vicinity by the farmers. He would sell his
produce within the limits of his physical reach.
➢Thereafter, due to the Industrial revolution, there was large scale
manufacturing and hence the need to reach out to more consumers.
Not only this, it also required procuring raw materials, machinery,
equipment etc. from various sources. All this added new dimension
to distribution and thus traders came into picture.
➢Then the concept of branding became apparent as economies of
scale ensured high levels of production and inventories. Distribution
was relevant only for the ‘place’ part of the marketing mix.

48. EVOLUTION OF DISTRIBUTION CHANNEL
➢The concept of ‘selling’ led to many independent intermediaries in
the form of wholesalers and retailers.
➢The early 1950s are credited with laying the foundation of the
marketing concept which meant each channel member had to work
towards meeting the needs of his customers.
➢The next stage was “relationship marketing” which meant that mere
transactions were not enough – relationships were required to be
built for long-lasting and strong business results. Sophisticated
databases and interactive technologies became a big support to
pursue this strategy.

49. EVOLUTION OF DISTRIBUTION CHANNEL
➢However the recent marketing concept is “interactive marketing”,
sometimes called trigger-based or event-driven marketing is a
marketing strategy that uses two-way communication channels to
allow consumers to connect with a company directly.
➢A new form of distribution channels have evolved due to this and
thus marketing has increasingly taken place almost exclusively
online through email, social media, and blogs. This has led to less
number of channels or a concept called “zero channel”.

50. EVOLUTION OF DISTRIBUTION CHANNEL
➢As distribution channels have evolved, some retailers, such as
Walmart, have grown so large that they have taken over aspects of
the wholesale function. Still, it is unlikely that wholesalers will ever
go away.
➢Most retailers rely on wholesalers to fulfill the functions and they
simply do not have the capability or expertise to manage the full
distribution process.
➢Wholesalers are able to focus on creating efficiencies for their retail
channel partners that are very difficult to replicate on a small scale.

51. DISTRIBUTION MANAGEMENT
➢Distribution management is a type of marketing activity that
provides place, time and possession utility to the consumer.
➢Distribution management is the management of all activities that
facilitates the movement and co-ordination of supply and demand
in creation of time and place utility in goods.
➢Distribution management includes the broad range of activities
concerned with efficient movement of finished products from the
end of production line to the consumer and in some cases it also
includes the movement of raw materials from the source of supply
to the beginning of the production line.

52. IMPORTANCE OF DISTRIBUTION MANAGEMENT
➢Creation of utilities
➢Satisfaction of customers
➢Standard of living
➢Value addition
➢Communication
➢Employment
➢Efficiency
➢Product Planning & Pricing
➢Financing

53. CASE STUDY – NOV. 2017
The Indian Government has implemented the scheme of Public Distribution
System (PDS) for food grains and other essential consumer’s items. The main
objective of this scheme is to ensure the supply of essential consumer items to
the vulnerable sections of society. However it has been found that the scheme
has not been vary efficient many of the vulnerable society members could not
avail of services of the distribution system.
This government is now proposing to launch a new targeted Public Distribution
(TPDS). This shall be particularly targeted at the lowest income customers. This
schemes shall segment the lower and higher segment consumer through
separate ration–cards and pries for the items sold.
Questions
a)Analyse the case (7)
b)What factors will you consider while selecting a distribution channel. (8)

54. INTEGRATION OF MARKETING, SALES AND DISTRIBUTION
➢The integration of marketing and selling and also sales and
distribution are two important steps towards effective sales
management.
➢The next important step in this direction is the integration of all the
three activities – marketing, sales and distribution.
➢Sales management and distribution channels are two sides of the
same coin which are inseparable.
➢Sales management plans operations and distribution channel
executes these plans. They have influence on each others working
and deliver high customer service

55. INTEGRATION OF MARKETING, SALES AND DISTRIBUTION
➢Sales management plans the strategies and operational details to
achieve revenue, growth and market share, the distribution executes
these plans under the guidance of the sales managers
➢Planning and execution is a team effort between the sales manager
and distribution channels.
➢The distribution management has the responsibility of the physical
movement of goods and its storage which can be done through
marketing channels.

56. INTEGRATION OF MARKETING, SALES AND DISTRIBUTION
The list of tasks given below are performed by the sales management
and is accomplished in cost effective way through the distribution
management with the help of marketing channels:
• If the sales management task is to achieve volume and market
shares, then the distribution channels role is to ensure shelf visibility
and physical movement and storage of goods close to the market.
• The sales management task is to participate in promotional events,
the role of distribution will be to organize and participate in fairs,
exhibitions. Making promotion successful in terms of set objectives
and ensuring the success of new products launches

57. INTEGRATION OF MARKETING, SALES AND DISTRIBUTION
• The sales management task is implementing marketing plans, the
distribution role is to ensure wide and equitable distribution.
• The sales management’s task is market feedback and reporting, the
distribution role is retain stocks up to norms.
• The sales management’s task is managing institutional business, the
distribution role is getting orders and execution.
• The sales management task is to cover the markets and outlets, the
distribution role is make the customers call productive.
• The sales management task is width and depth of distribution, the
distributors role is focus on slow movers, ensuring high visibility, sell
more than competition.

58. REFERENCES
1. A. Nag, Sales And Distribution Management, Mcgraw Hill, 2013 Edition
2. Richard R. Still, Edward W. Cundiff, Norman A.P. Govoni, Sales
Management, Pearson Education, 5th Edition
3. Krishna K. Havaldar, Vasant M. Cavale, Sales And Distribution
Management – Text & Cases, McGraw Hill Education, 2nd Edition, 2011
4. Dr. Matin Khan, Sales And Distribution Management, Excel Books, 1st
Edition
5. Kotler & Armstrong, Principles Of Marketing – South Asian Perspective,
Pearson Education, 13th Edition
6. Nagpal, Sharma, Kukreja, Sales and Distribution Management, Sheth
Publishers

59. Thank You
Dr. Parveen Kaur Nagpal
www.linkedin.com/in/dr-parveen-kaur-nagpal