Research Proposal for Understanding the Effectiveness of Sales Force in the Organization and Suggesting Ways of Improving their Effectiveness

1. 2014
SP Jain School of Global Management
Group Members:
Ankit Malhotra- GSEP13CMM021
Aryan Bhojnagarwala-GSEP13CMM022
Prajakta Talathi – GSEP13CMM031
Vikas Jamwal-GSEPCMM038
[MARKETING RESEARCH
GROUP ASSIGNMENT]
Research Proposal for Understanding the Effectiveness of Sales Force in the
Organization and Suggesting Ways of Improving their Effectiveness

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Executive Summary
Sales force is very important in any organisation. B2B consultants are highly paid for
their selling, and convincing of clients to get big deals. No organisation can neglect
the importance of sales behaviour on the success of the deals. According the report,
(Ryals & Davies, 2010), it has been established that there is some disconnection
between the behaviour of the salespersons and the success of the meetings. The
behaviour impacts the firm externally as well as internally. Therefore, there is a direct
relation between the behaviour and the sales success.
In this report we have analysed and categorized the salespersons into eight different
categories that depict the relation and impact of the salesperson’s behaviour on the
success of the sale. Some people with same profiles and roles have different sales
results. Therefore, attitude and professionalism turn out to be the most important
factors in determining the behaviour of a sales person.
We have done an in-depth analysis of the salespersons in the company, and come
up with a detailed research method for our analysis. Both qualitative and
quantitative methods have been used for the research as well as to do the data
analysis. Data analysis method have been described in the report below to show the
actual percentage figures of sales persons who meet the criteria, and are the
organizations’ best salespersons.
Critics on the existing study and recommendations for improvement are provided
towards the end of the report.

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Table of Contents
Executive Summary.................................................................................................................................1
Introduction ............................................................................................................................................3
Problem...................................................................................................................................................3
Objective.................................................................................................................................................4
Criteria ....................................................................................................................................................4
Hypothesis...............................................................................................................................................5
Secondary Research................................................................................................................................5
Balance Score Card..........................................................................................................................5
Observe Last 3 Year Performance...................................................................................................5
Analysis of Target Achieved by Salesperson ...................................................................................5
Customer response / feedback received .........................................................................................5
Data Analysis of Competitor’s Salesperson.....................................................................................6
Primary Market Research .......................................................................................................................6
Qualitative Research...........................................................................................................................6
Focus Group Discussion ..................................................................................................................6
In-depth Analysis.............................................................................................................................7
Quantitative Research ........................................................................................................................9
Questionnaire .................................................................................................................................9
Observation...................................................................................................................................12
Data Analysis.........................................................................................................................................12
Analysis .............................................................................................................................................12
Inferences .........................................................................................................................................13
Data Interpretation...............................................................................................................................13
Parameters and Salesperson Type....................................................................................................15
Percentage Distribution....................................................................................................................16
Team-wise Distribution.....................................................................................................................16
Critics.....................................................................................................................................................16
Recommendation..................................................................................................................................17
Bibliography ..........................................................................................................................................18

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Introduction
Sales team is the most crucial team in an organization as it is the revenue
generating team. Sales force is the team which involves direct interaction with the
customers.
Sales team in the Business-to-Business market primarily has the below task
(Edwards, Assesment No.1 and No. 2 Guidelines, 2014), (Kokemuller, 2014):
 Customer Attraction
 Conversion of Sales
 Customer Retention
 Face-to-face customer interaction
 Promotion of product/service
 Customer Relationship Management
 Forecasting sales
 Analysis of Customer needs and want or attitude and behaviour
 Consulting the Customers
The above factors indicate the importance of sales for an organization. But studies
have revealed that in spite of investing to improve the effectiveness of sales, the
returns are not significant (Edwards, Assesment No.1 and No. 2 Guidelines, 2014). A
similar study as that of (Ryals & Davies, 2010)was performed on the Sales force.
Problem
Organizations face very intense problems with respect to the sales consultants in the
company. Some of the key identified issues that were found, and which eventually
led us to do a research are:
High investments in Sales Persons
Efficiency of Sales Persons not as expected
Differences between the behaviors and success

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The prime reason behind identifying the problem was that organizations only
concentrate on the internal research and the methods, but tend to lose on the
feedback of the clients. Hence, it was very important to have a feedback from the
client about the sales consultant, which our report has taken into consideration.
Objective
The primary research objective of the report is to identify the best sales consultants
in the organization.
Below is the objective of the research:
Criteria
The three important criteria on which the behavioural research of sales consultants
was based are:
To Identify Sales Force Behavior
To find the efficiency of Sales Force
To validate success of B2B sales
Criteria
Credibility
ProfessionalismKnowledge

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Hypothesis
The hypothesis to be tested, which would give the result and analysis of our study of
best sales consultants in the organization is given below:
The important part was to testify and analyse whether the sales consultants have the
criteria matching with the performance. If yes, then the hypothesis holds true,
otherwise the hypothesis is negated.
Secondary Research
Secondary research was based upon the case “Improving the Sales Force” (Ryals &
Davies, 2010) which helped in identifying 7 key points or parameters to gauge the
effectiveness of the sales force:
1. Pre-meeting,
2. Sales pitch,
3. Company Presentation,
4. Company Interaction,
5. Rising to the Challenge,
6. Storytelling and
7. Presentation and Rapport
The following research was conducted:
Balance Score Card
To identify the performance of a sales person
Observe Last 3 Year Performance
To collect data about sales made by different salesperson
Analysis of Target Achieved by Salesperson
To identify the salesperson types (expert, focussed, story teller etc.)
Customer response / feedback received
To understand sales person effectiveness from customer’s perspective
H0: Sales force behavior is effective and matching with
the criteria
H1:Sales force behavior is ineffective and does not
match the criteria

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Data Analysis of Competitor’s Salesperson
To compare the sales performance of salesperson with the competitors
Primary Market Research
The research to identify sales force behaviour and to check if their effectiveness
matches with the required criteria, we need to perform both Quantitative as well as
Qualitative Research.
Qualitative Research
Qualitative research was conducted to identify variables, gain in-depth
understanding and insight of sales force behaviour and attitude (Edwards, Marketing
Research Notes, 2014). After diagnosing the situation, alternatives were screened
and new ideas for improvement in sales were discovered.
Focus Group Discussion
FGDs were conducted to Gain Sales Force insights. A moderator-cum-observer was
required to conduct and facilitate the discussion. FGD led to identification of the
sales effectiveness and ineffectiveness.
Since FGDs have a free-flowing, informal structure, employees were able to express
their feelings freely. In spite of the unstructured manner of the FGDs, the discussion
revolved around the centre theme i.e. Sales Force Effectiveness.
Minimum 2 FGDs with each sample were conducted. The environment was enclosed
and all findings were confidential. Discussion was recorded for further analysis.
Participants in FGD were:
Define Problem
Research Proposal
Research Method
Qualitative
Focus Group
Discussion
In-Depth
Analysis
Quantitative
Survey Observation

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1. Sales Force
2. Customers
In-depth Analysis
In-depth analysis to gain additional insights on different parameters was done on the
Sales Team which comprised of:
1. New Business Sales
2. Account Managers
3. Telesales
A highly skilled interviewer asked semi-structured questions. Interviewer encouraged
respondent and asked probing questions to gain additional information.
There was no bias in judgement and interviewer had knowledge about sales.
Observations for each of the sales team person can be summarised in the below
graphs:
1. New Business Sales

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2. Account Managers
3. Telesales

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Quantitative Research
Quantitative Research was performed for data collection and conversion into
numerical values and a conclusion was drawn.
Questionnaire
Set of questions were asked to sales force employees and customers. Questions
were coded based on the identified parameters.
Questionnaire platform for employees was Face-to-face interviews and online /
direct-mail surveys
Questionnaire platform for customers was Face-to-face, telephonic and online /
direct-mail surveys.
Parameters to be considered
These parameters can be generally identified using observation and simulations or
case study (Ryals & Davies, 2010):
 Rising to the Challenge
 Meeting Preparation
 Customer Interaction
 Company Presentation
 Presentation and Rapport
 Sales Pitch
 Story telling
Other Parameters
 Motivation
 Work-life Balance
 Knowledge of the product/service
 Availability of resources to be used in sales calls
Survey Questions
Survey was conducted using the coded questionnaire.
Sales Force
Code – Professionalism
1. Do you respect and follow the deadlines given by customers. (Please
select any one)
o Always, and adjust internal timeline accordingly
o Most of the times, depending upon my internal schedule
o I prefer to give timeline/deadlines as per my readiness and preference and
accordingly inform customers
o I have too many customers to handle, so it’s case to case basis.

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2. In case of any probable delay, (reason may be any like – dependency on
other department) I – (Please select any one)
o Immediately inform customer, take responsibility and try to fulfil the
commitment as soon as possible.
o Inform customer that the delay is not because of you but other department
of your organisation.
o Wait for customer to respond back and simply give him new deadline.
3. Your meeting time clashes between your National Sales Manager and
Major Customer. You would – (Please select any one)
o Continue customer meeting and accordingly inform NSM
o Reschedule customer meeting since NSM’s time is important
o Ask immediate supervisor for his suggestion
4. Please rate yourself on a scale of 1-10 on your pre-client-meeting
readiness (Rate on the scale of 1 to 10, 10 being maximum)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
5. How would you rate yourself for being professional with customer in
closing the deal? (Rate on the scale of 1 to 10, 10 being maximum)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Code – Knowledge
6. Before any meeting what is your usual strategy? (Please select any one)
o Nothing, I am a sales person and attend these kind of meetings on daily
basis
o Try to get in touch with customer and understand his needs and prepare
accordingly
o Gather all brochures and brush up all technical data of the product/service
7. In a customer meeting, The first thing I do is to –
o Introduce organisation’s product/service and brief customer of its features
and USP’s
o Let customer talk about his requirements, usually 80 % of the time. Take
notes of it
o Give a presentation of product/service and then ask for customer’s
preferences
8. Do you believe that it’s important to understand customer’s need first
and then prepare a proposal? (Rate on the scale of 1 to 10, 10 being
maximum)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

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Code – Creditability
9. During sales closure phase, if required to consult your technical/product
team you would – (Please select any one)
o First try to understand the requirement yourself and then explain it to
customer
o Request your product team to take appointment with customer and set up a
demo meeting
o Give customer the details of contact person
10. After sales closure customer calls you, your strategy is to – (Please
select any one)
o Usually not take any calls, after all your job is done
o Always pick up the calls and be ready to resolve any queries, even its not
related to sales
o Guide him to right person in the organisation
11.How would you rate the importance to be the first contact person for
customer, even after project is completed? (Rate on the scale of 1 to 10,
10 being maximum)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Group 2 – B2B Customers
Code – Professionalism
1. Please rate the salesperson for pre-meeting readiness. (Rate on the
scale of 1 to 10, 10 being maximum)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
2. Please rate the salesperson for professionalism in closing the deal.
(Rate on the scale of 1 to 10, 10 being maximum)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
3. Was the salesperson courteous? (Rate on the scale of 1 to 10, 10 being
maximum)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Code – Knowledge
4. Did the salesperson have product knowledge? (Rate on the scale of 1 to
10, 10 being maximum)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
5. Were your expectations matched and fulfilled? (Rate on the scale of 1 to
10, 10 being maximum)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

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Code – Creditability
6. Was the salesperson your first point of contact even after project was
completed? (Rate on the scale of 1 to 10, 10 being maximum)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
7. Were you satisfied with the market analysis of the sales person? (Rate
on the scale of 1 to 10, 10 being maximum)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
8. How was the complete sales experience? (Rate on the scale of 1 to 10,
10 being maximum)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
9. Would you recommend the salesperson?
Yes No
Observation
Observer observed live calls, client site sales pitch, etc. based on the parameters.
He understood the knowledge and skills and was non-judgemental in his
observation. His observations were categorized according to the chosen parameters.
Data Analysis
The responses to questionnaire led to rating of salesperson on the scale of 1 to 10,
from both the group.
Ratings received from the survey were categorized into 5 groups
1. Unskilful,
2. Need improvement,
3. Satisfactory,
4. Excellent,
5. Expert
Analysis
Below sheet and graph shows the data analysis for both the surveyed groups:
S No Scale Category Sales Force B2B Customers
1 0 - 2 Unskilful 21 38
2 3 - 4 Need Improvement 83 103
3 5 - 6 Satisfactory 234 207
4 7 - 8 Excellent 156 151

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5 9 - 10 Expert 26 21
Inferences
From the above analysis we can infer that for lower levels of skills such as unskilful
and need improvement, there is considerable difference in ratings by sales force and
customers. Organisations should use this information and segregate the sales force
into different skill levels.
There are 120 possible permutations & combinations possible for the 5 skill levels.
Taking 15 combinations each, we have divided sales force into 8 different skill levels:
Expert being the best performers and story-tellers the least.
Based upon these levels, Management can plan sales force improvement and
trainings. The advantage here is that these levels are prepared from the customer
feedback and thus once the training is imparted to sales, the probability of
improvement and sales’ success would increase.
Data Interpretation
Types Characteristics Good Bad Ugly
Expert
Salesperson
exceeds their
target (typical in
service sales
rather than
product sales)
Selling seems
effortless, keeps
customer happy
Appears to be
very epitome
-
Closers
Pulls off some
very big deal
(typical in
product sales
rather than in
service sales)
Can Effectively
counter customer
objection
Smooth talking
style puts some
customers off.
Heavy focus on
product and little
on the company
-
0
50
100
150
200
250
Focus Group 1
Focus Group 2

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Consultants
High quality
sales person,
better all-
rounder, gets
most out of
introduction and
builds rapport
with customers
High levels of
marketplace,
promotes value
proposition and
demonstrates
market
differentiation
Lack of pre-
meeting
preparation,
failure to set
agendas and
one-dimensional
pitch
-
Story-tellers
Good level of
marketplace
knowledge
which is used
for selling
through story
telling
Use case studies
and anecdotes,
create solutions
on the fly and
counters
customer
questions
Failure to position
story telling
against
competition or to
utilise value
proposition and
less likely to
discuss their own
company
background
Talk through
sale, missing
opportunities to
utilise and
capabilities to
close the deal
Product/Ser
vice
Focussed
Know all about
their products
They can be
termed as
product
specialists
Worst when it
comes to
differentiate their
products from
competitors
Poor at
negotiations and
preparing sales
value
prepositions
Narrators
Good
Presenters &
speakers
They have good
knowledge of
offerings &
organisation
Unable to make
link between
knowledge &
customer needs
Most
disorganised in
terms of setting
agenda
Deal
Makers
Hard price
negotiators,
good at setting
agendas
Good at
negotiation, sales
value proposition
Worst objection
handlers, bad at
creating solutions
on the fly
Worst at utilising
information about
marketplace,
product, lower
personal
presentation
Socialisers
Very good
presenters, well
prepared for
meetings
Build reasonable
rapport
Are lower in
every other
measure
compared to
other groups
Poor at thinking
on the fly, lack
basic sales skills

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Parameters and Salesperson Type
Socialisers
Average
Deal Makers
Average
Narrator
Average
Product Focused
Average
Story Teller
Average
Consultant
Average
Product Closer
Average
Expert
Average

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Percentage Distribution
Team-wise Distribution
Critics
In the case study “Improving the Sales Force” (Ryals & Davies, 2010) the following
were observed:
 Need to focus on group discussion and
 Need to conduct more personal interview
 Customer feedback is important to gauge the salesperson’s effectiveness
 Impact and Availability of other resources on the Sales
 Perform experimental research on
- Training v/s No Training

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- Specific Trainings v/s Generic Trainings
 Need to consider EQ Parameters
- Motivation
- Work-life Balance
Recommendation
Training can be provided to salesperson based on the identified salesperson types.
Motivation is required by sales force to achieve the desired sales target. 360 degree
feedback is really important within the company. Constructive feedback should be
given to each and every salesperson depending upon the survey results and
feedback.

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Bibliography
Edwards, J. (2014, February 22). Assesment No.1 and No. 2 Guidelines. Sydney, NSW, Australia.
Edwards, J. (2014). Marketing Research Notes. Sydney.
Kokemuller, N. (2014). The Importance of Sales in an Organization. Your Business.
Ryals , L., & Davies, I. (2010, December). Do You Really Know Who Your Best Salespeople Are?
Harvard Business Review.