Sales Budget - SFA

Sales Force Management (SFA) we are talking here which is a part of agency management system of business. We talk about Sales forecasting in our last talked. Today we are going to talk on Sales budget.

Sales Budget:

The sales budget is a statement of projected sales revenues and selling expenses. Agency management system needs to have a sales budget. The projected sales revenue is, in effect the sales volume objectives derived from the various sales forecasts. The projected selling expenses are determined by the different organizational units with in the sales department and are based on assigned sales and profit objectives.

The sales budget is best prepared in an atmosphere where the bottom-up planning style predominates, with each echelon preparing a tentative budget of revenue and expense.
During the period in which the budget is in effect, items in the approved budget are compared with actual sales and expenses, and action is taken to bring the two into alignment.


In reality, the sales budget is a composite of quotas for sales, profits and expenses. Budget is a valuable too for control.

ref: agency management system, Insurance SFA & CRM

Sales Territory - Sales Force Management

Structuring sales force and Sales Territories we talked as part of agency management system in our past post. Sales Force Management we are talking here and as a part of that we talk Sales Force Automation .

Reasons for eastablishing Sales Territories:
Sales territories play a major role in plannig and control of sales operations. Follwing are the some of the reasons for having sales territories.

• To provide proper market coverage.
  
  
• To control selling expenses.
  
  
• To assist in evaluation sales personnel.
  
  
• To contribute to sales force morale.
  
  
• To aid in the co-ordination o persnnel sllng and advertising efforts.

Steps involved in setting up sales territories:
in setting up sales territories, there are four major steps-

• Selecting a basic gegraphical control unit.
  
  
• Determining sales potential in control units.
  
  
• Combining control units into tentative territories.
  
  
• Adjusting for coverage difficulty and redistricting tentative territories.
  

ref: agency management software, Insurance SFA & Insurance CRM Software

Sales Territories - SFA Software

Sales Force Management we are talking here. Agency management system include sales force management, as part of that we talk Sales Force Automation and also structuring sales force. Today we are going to talk Sales Territories.

Definition:A sales territory is a grouping of customers and prospects assigned to an individual sales person.

In reality, sales planning are done on the basis of sales territory, depending on the characteristics of customer and prosperity vary from one sales territory to another, and some times even from one zone to another zone, or country, a territory is more homogenous unit than the market as a whole,.

Breaking down the total market into smaller units makes control of sales operations more effective. Assigning responsibility for achieving specific objectives to subordinate line executives and individual sales personnel bring selling efforts into alignment with sales opportunities. The emphasis in sales territory concept is upon customers and prospects rather than upon the area in which an individual sales person works.

ref: agency management system, Insurance SFA software

Incremental Method - Sales Force Management Software

Sales Force Management we are talking here with reference to Sales Force Automation. We talked Workload Method, Sales Potential in previous posts as part of agency management system.

Today we are going to talk about Incremental Method as tool deciding the size of the sales force.

Incremental Method:
The incremental method is the best approach to determine sales force size. It is based on one proposition that net profit will increase when additional sales personnel are added if the incremental sales revenues exceed the incremental costs incurred. To apply this method as organization need two important items of information namely:

• Incremental revenue.
• Incremental costs.

Though this method is conceptually correct, it s also the most difficult to apply. It requires lot of efforts from the organization side to develop a sales response function to use in approximating market behavior in relation to alternative levels of personal selling efforts, and one need to have an efficient research and information team in the organization.

ref: sales force management software, agency management system

Sales Potential - Sales Force Management

We are talking here Sales Force Management, as part of SFA we are going to talk today Sales Potential.

This method is based on the assumption that performance of the set of activities contained in the job description represents one sales personne unit. A particular sales person may represent eithe more or less than one sales personal unit.

If the individual's performance is excellent, that individual may do the job of more than one unit, if the individual performance is below par, he or she may do less. If management expects all company sales personnel to perform as specified in the job description, then the number of salespersons required equals the number of units of sales personnel required.



Generally it is observed sales descriptions are constructed on management's assumption that they describ what the average sales person with average performance with accomplish.


ref: SFA Software

Workload Method - Sales Force

Sales Force Management we are talking here. In my last talk we talk about Structuring Sales Force. Before that We talked Sales Force Automation, Sales Policies Formulation, Product Polices, Distribution Policies and Pricing Policies.

Today we continue our talk on Sales Force Management and we talk about deciding the size of the Sales Force Team. There are 3 basic approaches used in approximating sales force size.

• Workload Method
• Sales Potential Method
• Incremental Method

We talk here Workload Method.
According to this method the basic assumption is that all sales personnel should shoulder equal workloads. Management estimates the total workload involved in covering entire companies market and divides by the workload that an individual sales person should be able to handle, thus determining total number of sales people required. The companies applying this approach generally assume that the interactions of three major factors – customer size, sales volume potential and travel load – then determine the workload involved in covering the entire market.

ref: Sales Force Automation & Lead Organizer Software

Sales Force Size - Sales Force Management Software

Sales Force Management we are talking here. In my last talk we talk about Structuring Sales Force. Before that We talked Sales Force Automation, Sales Policies Formulation, Product Polices, Distribution Policies and Pricing Policies.

Today we continue our talk on Sales Force Management and we talk about Deciding the size of the Sales Force Team.

Deciding the size of the Sales Force:-
Under this activity management need to determine how many number of sales man required meeting sales volume and profit objectives. If a company has too few sales persons, opportunity for sales and profits go unexploited, and if it has too many, excessive expenditure for personal selling reduce net profit. It is difficult perhaps impossible to determine exact number of salespersons that a particular company should have. Three basic approaches are used in approximating the sales force size they are:

• Workload Method
  
• Sales Potential Method
  
• Incremental Method

ref: Sales Force Management & Leadorganizer Software

Structuring Sales Force - Sales Force Automation (SFA)

Sales Force Management we are talking here. We talked Sales Force Automation, Sales Policies Formulation, Product Polices, Distribution Policies and Pricing Policies.Today we are going to talk about Structuring 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.

In the case of product based structuring, several salesman of the firm operate in a given territory, each handling different products of 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.


ref: sales force Automation software

Pricing Policies - Sales Policies - Sales Force Management

Sales Force Automation is part of Sales Force Management . We were talking about Sales Policies Formulation and we talk about product police and Distribution policies.

Today we are going to talk about Pricing Policies as part of sales policies formulation.

• 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.

ref: sfa software leadorganizer

Distribution Policies - Sales Policies - Sales Force Management

Sales Force Automation is part of Sales Force Management we are talking here. As a part of our talk about sales force management we were talking about Sales Policies Formulation and we talk about product police as part of sales policies formulation.

Today we are going to talk about Distribution Policies as part of sales policies formulation.

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.

ref: sales force automation software

Product Policies - Sales Policies - Sales Force Management

Sales Force Management we are talking here. Sales Policies Formulation was our last post and before that we talk different aspect of Sales Force Management including Sales Force Management and Sales Management-Task Involved, Setting Personal Selling Objectives.

Formulating sales policies is nothing but the policies related to marketing. These sales related marketing policies delineate the guide lines within which the effort to reach personal selling objectives is made. There are three major types:

1. Product policies (what to sell).
2. Distribution policies (who to sell).
3. Pricing policies.

we talk each of the about types of sales policies.

1) Product Policies (what to sell):-

• Which product should find a place in the product line?
• Whether some of the existing products are to be dropped?
• Whether any new products are to be added?
• Whether product design or product quality needs to be changed?
• What models, type, size, colors and packing are to be sold?
• What kinds of product guarantees are to be given?

we talk about remaining two types in our next post.

ref: sales force management software

Sales Policies Formulation - Sales Management Task2

We talk about Sales Force Management and Sales Management-Task Involved in our previous talk and also we talk our first task that is Setting Personal Selling Objectives which we have mention in our task involved list in our talk on Sales Management and Sales Force Management.Today we are going to talk on second task and that is Sales Policies Formulation.


Formulation sales policies is nothin but the policies reltaed to marketing. There sales related marketing policies delineate the guide lines within which the effort to reach personal selling objectives is made. There are three major types:

1) Product Policies (what to sell)
2) Distribution Policies (who to sell)
3) Pricing Policies


We talk on each of these policies in our next post.

Personal Selling Objectives-Sales Management Task-1

Setting Personal Selling Objectives

We talk about Sales Force Management and Sales Management-Task Involved in our previous talk. Today we are going to talk first task that is Setting Personal Selling Objectives which we have mention in our taks involved list in our talk on Sales Management and Sales Force Management.

Marketing management in consultation with sales management determines person selling’s exact role in the promotional program. Usually the marketing planning group sets personal selling objectives, determines sales related marketing policies, formulates personal selling strategies and finalizes the sales budget.

Types of personal selling objectives:
Selling objectives broadly classified into two categories they are qualitative objectives and quantitative objectives.

Qualitative objectives:
1) To do the entire selling job.
2) To service existing accounts.
3) To search out and obtain new customers.
4) To secure and maintain customers co-operation in stocking and promoting the product line.
5) To keep customers informed on changes in the product line and other aspects of marketing strategy.
6) To assist customers in selling the product line.
7) To provide technical advice and assistance to customers.
8) To assists with the training and middlemen’s sales personnel.
9) To provide advice and assistance to middlemen on management problems.
10) To collect and report market information of interest and use to company management.

Quantitative Objectives:
1) To capture and retain a certain market share.
2) To obtain sales volume in ways that contributes to profitability.
3) To obtain some number of new accounts of given types.
4) To keep personal selling expenses with in set limits.
5) To secure targeted percentage of certain accounts business.

ref: sfa and sales management software

Sales Management-Task Involved

According to the definition committee of the American Marketing Association Sales Management meant “The Planning, direction and control of personal selling including recruiting, selection equipping, assigning, routing, supervising, paying and motivating as these tasks apply to the personal sales force”. Following are the important task involved in the success of sales management in any organizations:
1) Setting personal selling objectives.
2) Formulating sales policies.
3) Structuring the sales force.
4) Deciding the size of the sales force.
5) Designing sales territories.
6) Developing the sales territories.
7) Developing the sales forecasts and sales budgets.
8) Fixing sales targets for individual sales territories/salesman.
9) Creating the sales force
10) Managing the sales force
11) Managing the marketing channels.
12) Ensuring growth and developing new accounts.
13) Sales communication and reporting
14) Sales coordination and sales controlling including sales expense control.
15) Building the sales organization
16) Co-ordination with marketing management in the areas like, product mix, pricing, distribution, advertising and sales promotion.
17) Creating and maintaining right image for the company and its products in the market.

Sales Force Management

Introduction:
Sales Force Management is a sub-system of marketing management. It is Sales Management that translates the marketing plan into marketing performance. That is why sales force management is sometimes described as the muscle behind the marketing management. Actually sales force management does much more than serving as the muscle behind marketing management. Sales managers in modern organization are required to be customer-oriented and profit-directed and perform several tasks besides setting and achieving personal selling goals of the firm. In this article let us understand briefly the sales force management, tasks involved in the sales force management.

Definition:
Sales Force Management originally referred exclusively to the direction of the Sales Force. Sales force management meant of all marketing activities including advertising, sales promotion, marketing research, physical distribution, pricing and product merchandising.

To be Continue……..