Personal selling objectives-2

We are talking sales force automation in this blog. We talked different tools and different aspect of SFA or Insurance SFA. Today we continue our talk on personal selling objectives

1. Distribution policies (who to sell): The component policies related to distribution are:
- Channel design and channel types.
- Channel remuneration, motivation and training.
- Channel principal relations.
- Channel costs.

2. Pricing policies:
- Policy on pricing relative to the competition such as, setting the price of product to meet the competition, pricing above the competition, pricing under the competition.
- Policy on pricing relative to costs. Full cost pricing, promotion pricing, contribution pricing.
- Policy on uniformity of prices to different buyers.
- Policy on list pricing
- Policy on discounts; trade discounts, quantity discounts

Structuring the sales force
Organizations usually structure their sales force on a territory basis or on a product/product line basis. In the case of territory based structuring, the same salesman handles all the products or product lines of the firm in given territory, which will be compact. Now day’s territory basis sales are not much important for those who are doing online business. For example, a Life insurance quotes online company, who is providing Instant life insurance rates; there is no territory basis for them. They are doing business of any territory. In the case of product based structuring, several salesman of the firm operate in a given territory, each handling different products of the firm. Here the sales territories will be relatively larger. Sometimes the sales force is also structured based on customer type or customer class, in yet other case sales force is structured on a complex basis, involves a combination of the types mentioned above.