Motivating Salesman

Background
A successful sales manager is one who earns the enthusiasm, loyalty and interest of sales-force, which cannot be bought for a price.  This earning depends on his ability to motivate his sales-force.  It is because, there can be vast difference in sales volume produced by individual salesman with equal manager who earns his confidence and whole-hearted effort through skillful motivation than a sales manager who failed to win over the sales-force through the skilful function of motivation.  A motive is an idea, need, or an emotion within an individual, which incites him to actions.  It is an impulse or urge that influences the will and compels it to action. It can be aroused by some external influence or incentive or stimuli.  Therefore, motivation involves providing sales-force with incentives or stimuli’s, which influence their motives and cause them to contribute their best. Hence, this chapter plans to discuss in detail to the various dimensions of motivation – as measuring, factor of motivation and methods of motivation.

Motivation is a psychological set of forces influencing the behavior of an individual.  To motivate sales-force, a sales manager is expected to know the needs and emotions of salesmen; its emotional, mental and physical needs; why they work? What they want to get for their work? What are their attitudes towards the firm, their work and superiors?  The need for sales for motivation is quite apparent in every organization.  According to experts, 75 per cent of the sales are turned out by just 25 per cent of the sales men.  It indicates that human efficiency is at only 30 per cent of potential performance.  Even an attempt to increase performance rate by say 5 per cent, there can be a tremendous increase in the sales turnover for the company.  Still another reason for motivation of sales force is higher rate of turnover of sales-force. The persons leaving the old organization and joining the new ones very often give the reason of desire for recognition, security, satisfaction, opportunity than monetary rewards or success.  Thus there is dire need for sales-force motivation in every sales organization.  In essence, motivation is linked with will of work.  It is the act of changing the psychology of a salesman to make him to work better; it is the task of intensifying the desire to work at one’s highest pitch, it is to encourage, stimulate, elevate to lift up productivity.  Motivation seeks to know, understand, analyze and bring into play motives behind salesman’s actions.

What motivates sales force?

Before motivating the sales-force, the sales manger is to have a thorough understanding of he motives, impulses urges behind the work.  He should identify the forces that motivate salesmen to gear up to productive effort, company loyalty and enthusiasm what makes them to put their heart and soul together.  The worldwide studies conducted reveal the following as the most significant motives behind such a marked performance.  These are recognition, and praise, fair-pay-packet, good working conditions, opportunity for advancement, good supervision and leadership, opportunity for self expression, social acceptance, security, desire to excel, participation, pride in selling and so on.  A brief outline of each point will not be out of place at this juncture.
1.    Recognition and praise.  Salesmen, like any other human beings, seek recognition for their achievements and praise for the work done, which they think, is more than monetary gain for them.  The common complaint of sales force is that sales managers rarely praise their work par excellence.  Failure to complaint and praise is ignoring a vital need in salesman’s nature having deeper impact on sales performance.
2.    Fair pay packet.  Though financial incentive is secondary to recognition and praise, it is dominant motive because salesman is to earn and decent living for himself and his dependents.  It is but natural that he expects an assurance of salary that is comparable with his colleagues in his own organization and competitive organization with equal performance and responsibilities. Therefore, it should be attractive and assured one.
3.    Good working conditions.  It is the working conditions-both physical that influence his attitude towards his work performance.  Thus salesman looks for a territory that gives him adequate sales potential; he wants a protection against infiltration by a few salesmen in his territory, he expects a fair division of compensation on all joint sales efforts.  He is likely to expect an adequate and regular expense allowance, a conveyance facility or reimbursement to that effect.  The other such conditions may be freedom from excessive paper work, cost office facilities, feeling of home away from home and so on.
4.    Opportunity for advancement. Good many sales people give op priority to promotion to higher ups than to attractive salary or even too security.  By nature, he does not want to be stagnant.  IT is the case with more ambitious and efficient and industrious salesmen.  Any company that fails to provide such an opportunity for advancement will be responsible for high sales-force turnover by depriving the basis need and creating dissatisfaction injection for frustration.
5.    Good supervision and leadership.  The productivity of sales-force is dependent on the very nature of leadership provided in company from sales manager down upto sales-supervisors.  Every manager is a leader and not a boss.  Salesmen look to their superiors as outstanding in terms of industry, knowledge, Salesmen respect those who are fair and impartial, determined, keep words, accommodate the personal dignity of salesmen they expect that their leader should understand them, their problems and solve them.
6.    Opportunity for self-expression.  Salesmen have their own views, attitudes, suggestions and ideas, which they want to express, assert their personalities and exploit their latest talents and abilities.  A salesman is sure to increase his sales efforts if he has the opportunity to assert himself, express his personality.  Absence and suppression of salesman’s expression and assertion will kill his initiative, drive and enthusiasm.  Management stands benefited by such rich services of untapped source of new ideas of increasing sales, cutting down costs and improving profitability.
7.    Social acceptance.  Every human being – a social and rational animal – has the strong feeling of ‘belonging’ to a group.  Salesmen naturally desire the acceptance and goodwill of their association in business.  It is the sales manger’s task to develop a sense of “belongingness” in case of every salesman.  He wants to have the satisfaction of being accepted as a member of a sales team, sales organization, having his actual participation, voice in its affairs, cooperating in matters of mutual interest.
8.    Job security.  Every salesman expects that his job must be secured one so that he will be able to retain his job so long as his work is quite satisfactory and the prevailing economic and social conditions permit.  Jot security does not mean absolute performance of job tenure. He means protection from arbitrary discharge or dismissal or transfer.  Salary is not eh only factor that determines such security.  He looks to future social security.  When he gets old, he should have the opportunities of reasonable earnings to pull on longer with respect and dignity.
9.    Desire to excel.  One finds the strong urge of excelling others in performance and achievement.  It speaks of aggressiveness of any successful salesmen.  Desire to excel others implies increasing sales, cutting costs, improving profitability.  It is a motive that helps both the parties in that the management can prosper and that prosperity is made to share by the sales-force.
10.    Pride in selling.  In addition to job security, job satisfaction is another strong motive of every salesman.  This job satisfaction is dependent on pride in selling as a vocation.  When one has accepted a sales career, it should not be looked down upon.  The salesman should not have a feeling that he is doing some worthless job to hang on or as matter of last resort or as a mans of livelihood.  Therefore, significance of selling must be emphasized in preparing and training salesmen.  They should be given an understanding that they are doing creative, gainful, socially acceptable and respected job.

Methods of Motivation

Thorough knowledge of each salesman’s motives enables sales manager and sales supervisors to appeal to the specific motives to which a salesman or a group of salesman will respond.  It goes without saying that motivation is going to be very effective on individual basis than on group basis as all men are not lured by the same set of motives.  When a salesman’s motives have been determined, they can be stimulated by external influences called incentives, which arouse his motives and incite him or her to action.

Good incentives stir the motives of salesmen release their drives and influence their conduct to gain satisfaction of their needs.  Incentives are classified in a number of ways – as positive and negative, financial and non-financial, material and metal.  Positive incentives are cash awards, praise, promotion and recognition and the negative incentives can be threats, discharge, demotion, and insults.  It is the wise use of these positive and negative incentives that plays important role in getting much; for at times, positive or negative incentives work well.  Financial incentives are money rewards such as commission, bonus, profit sharing, cash prizes, and higher salary than others.  On the other hand, non-financial incentives are recognition, praise, pride in work, participation, promotion, acceptance, job satisfaction, job security and the like.  Though financial incentives are the strongest, yet non-financial incentives are equally important.  Material incentives are financial rewards such as salary, commission, bonus, prizes; mental or social incentives are desire to excel, self-respect, social acceptance, self-expression, prestige and so on.

Sales force can be motivated in two ways as on : (i) on individual basis and (ii) group basis.  Let us examine these two methods at length.

(i)    Individual Basis
Individual motivation is most effective in stimulating his interest and getting best response for no two salesmen are equally identical.  Personal and casual relationships between manager and his salesmen provide regular opportunity to motivate salesmen by showing them respect for their personal dignity.  Praise for good work works wonders.  He can elicit interest, devotion and cooperation if they have satisfactory participation. Personal experiences of sales managers and sales supervisor will stimulate the sales force to emulate their leader. These can be:

1.    Personal conference.  Personal conference between sales manager, supervisor and salesman provide salesman with a medium of self-expression and on outlet for his likes and dislikes.  It is an opportunity to share information discusses the issues, assure security, review the work progress and generate a sense of belongingness. These conferences are to be held at regular intervals, in such social settings such as club, restaurant, home of a sales manager, sales supervisor or salesman.
2.    Personal correspondence.  Writing of personal letters to salesmen and getting replies from them is really very effective method of motivating the sales-force as it grants individual salesmen consideration, praise and recognition.  A letter encouraging poorly performing salesman changes his mind and the result is that the sales manager earns loyalty and co-operation of that salesman.  To get the best of such letters, the tone must be positive, optimistic and encouraging that builds mutual trust and confidence.

(ii)    Group Basis
Salesmen are also motivated in groups or batches through conventions and conferences, publications, booklets and handbooks, motion pictures, contests, participation programs, suggestion systems and group compensation plans.  Let us know these too.
   
1.    Conventions and conference.
These refer to group meetings of salesmen that provide unique opportunities for them to participate, gain social satisfaction and express their views on all the matters influencing their work.  These meetings conducted properly, create interest, inspire and raise their morale to new heights.  The possible social barriers are cleared between the management and the sales-force where they are deeply impressed by the resources of the companies, its growth, status in industry and its efforts of new products.  There can be several types of sales conferences such as national conventions at head quarters, sectional conventions in districts, local sales meetings in branches, conventions by telephone, by television by mail, even there may be traveling sales convention.
2.    Periodicals/publications.
A periodical devoted totally to a salesman is an effective dose of motivation. It gives salesman a real sense of participation in the enterprise as it keeps on informing them of company policies and programs.  Salesmen are invited to write articles sharing their rich and vary experiences for the benefit of others.  These publications motivates salesmen to a greater loyalty and performance by keeping salesmen, informed about a company’s expansion, addition of new products, research and developmental achievements, diversification, improved competitive position in the line and the like.  These publication enjoy high degree of reader interest because, its contents are salesman’s achievements, company news, details of new sales contest news, letters to editor, sales training matter and material, work of successful salesman, case histories, hints to salesmen to cut expenses, prospects, demonstrate, sales equipments, prize-winning sales ideas.
3.    Booklets and handbooks.  Salesmen are to be informed about new company policies, programs and achievements.  This is done through booklets, handbooks, bulletins and folders.  We consider here orientation packet, salesman’s manual and handbook and booklets and folder. “Orientation packet” contains several printed booklets or folders to inform them about the history of the company, its products and policies.  It is called as packet as it contains a hand book – a magazine – history of the company – annual report – organizational manual – policy book – product catalogue – sales training manual – proofs of current ads and other material.  “Sales manual describes sales techniques, methods of meeting objections, demonstrating, closing the sales and dealing with buyers.  Hand-book, on the other hand, includes detailed information about salesman’s benefits, pension plans, relief and loan plans, life insurance, hospitalization plan, savings plan, vacation transfers, promotions, absences, compensation, expenses etc. “Booklets and folders” contain facts about new products, researches, advertising, organizational changes, speeches by major executives, changing economic and business outlook, and the like.
4.    Motion pictures. Salesmen can know more and effectively about their company, products and operations through motion pictures.  There is no other better way of telling and convincing of salesmen of company’s past history- the line of production, the process of manufacture-research and developmental activities, company’s present growth, future growth, expansion through diversification.  Even the literature read can be reiterated effectively by motion pictures.
5.    Sales contests.  Salesmen are looking for an opportunity to exhibit their abilities of out-selling their associates.  This is possible through sales contests.  It is one that appeals to the desire of salesmen to excel, to enjoy the esteem others, to be recognized and to belong to a winning group.  His competitive spirit is channeled by contests into more constructive activity.  The aim of sales contests are: (1) to maintain and increase sales volume, (2) to use it as motivating dose to do the job more effectively, (3) to clear off the old stock or to introduce new products, (4) to improve personal performance of competitive spirit, (5) to develop group consciousness or team-spirit (6) to popularize a product that has no or least demand (7) to accelerate collection of dues.  To take advantage to the fullest extent, such contests must be equitable, should give equal chance to all, should spread the spirit of cooperation, to boost up the morale, the rewards must be worth participating.  Those persons who win such contests are given prizes in the form of hard cash, merchandise, or both, certificates of honor, medals, vacation awards and travel grants.
6.    Participation programs. Sense of participation is very strong motive of majority of salesmen.  They desire to voice in the matters that affect their work.  They do not want to remain on pay rolls as employees.  They want to feel that they are part of business.  That is why, they want to get all the information about their business and its problems, and they want to express their views in planning and implementation sales policies and programs.  This is done through meetings with management that clears gaps and fosters sounder human relations.  A committee consisting of salesmen and the representative of management solves this problem of participation.
7.    Suggestion system.  A sales suggestion system can be an effective motivating device that improves the morale and efficiency of sales-force as it encourages to propose worthwhile ideas to management of improving sales efficiency and reducing sales costs.  Any successful suggestion system provides a way for salesmen to contribute practical ideas for increasing sales volume, reducing costs, outline sales expenses, expanding distribution and improving sales training, supervision, advertising and promotion, customer service, sales policies, territory coverage and the like.  A separate suggestion committee should be plan the system determining awards, procedure for submitting suggestions, judging their merit, declaring the winners and follow-up actions.
8.    Financial security programs. Financial security is more important for majority of sales people.  Among all the securities, financial security is the strongest motivating force that stimulates salesman’s interest, improves efficiency and boosts morale.  That is why, most of the companies have recognized this fact and have granted various financial benefits to the salesmen such as group life insurance, health hospitalization, accident, dental, medical, surgical services, company loans at low rates, retirement plans, vacation with pay, credit facilities, dismissal compensation, educational aid and the like.