Question

Which of the following is not part of the groundwork salespeople need to cover before approaching customers?

Which of the following is not part of the groundwork salespeople need to cover before approaching customers?

How to reposition their products

Understanding the competition

Understanding the industry

Understanding the products they are offering

Understanding how the customers intend to use their products

Answer 1

• How to reposition their products

A salesperson needs to do a lot of research before approaching a client. This research includes:

Understanding the competition – In the market, there is always a competition with different companies approaching the same client with similar products. In such a scenario, a salesperson needs to be aware of the products offered by the competition so that he can distinguish his products from the ones that the competition is offering.

Understanding the industry – It is important for the salesperson to understand the industry that he is operating in so that he can get a better understanding of the marketplace and the competitors present in the industry.

Understanding the products that they are offering – Probably the most important aspect of groundwork, a salesperson should be totally aware of the characteristics of the product that he is offering. If he lacks knowledge about the product then he won’t be able to convince the client in making the purchase.

Understanding how the customers intend to use the product – It is important that the salesperson understands the need of the client and how he intends to solve his problem by using the product offered by the salesman. This allows the salesperson to specifically highlight the unique points that will help the customer.

A repositioning of the product, on the other hand, refers to making a major change in positioning for the brand or product. This is the duty of the firm who make an effort to change the target market’s understanding of the product. This is done in response to a decline in sales or due to environmental shifts. The salesperson in turn conveys this to the client.