teachthe4ps.com - For instructors of marketing.

In “A Dinner with Drug Reps” (November 1, 2011) Dan Ariely describes a dinner with some former pharmaceutical and medical device salespeople.  After plying them with a few drinks, he and a colleague elicited some pretty interesting stories of personal selling to medical doctors. To be successful in the industry do you need to:

• Go to a dance class with a physician?
• Bring elaborate meals to doctor’s offices?
• Sell medical devices in the operating room?
• Hire doctors to speak about the pharmaceutical firm’s drugs at medical conferences?
• Switch on and off various accents, personalities, etc.?

It might be fun to describe each of these actions — and ask if students thought each was an ethical practice — and why.  It is easy to say they are not ethical, but then how would sales reps get their information to doctors?  And how do they compete with other drug makers that may be utilizing these practices?  Users of our text books might find it useful to contrast this description with the video we have that shows a sales call for a Johnson & Johnson sales rep and a doctor.  Also posted at Learn the 4 Ps.

I am always looking for good B2B or even better a great B2G (business to government) example.  This article, “Flogging Flak Jackets in War Zones” (Bloomberg BusinessWeek, August 4, 2011) describes how salespeople for some defense contractors will get out into the field — literally into a tank in Afghanistan in one case here — to better understand their customers needs.  While there are dangers, there can be big benefits for defense contractors as identifying urgent opportunities can help avoid the Pentagon’s bureaucratic purchasing process.

The article provides a very interesting example to use in the organizational buying chapter — or when you are teaching personal selling and sales management.

Increased competition results in the need for more sophisticated marketing tools.  This article describes the pressure on many college athletic teams (particularly the big revenue sport of football) to sell more tickets.  A growing number of college athletic departments have turned to telemarketing — many outsourcing the task to a specialist firm with commissioned salespeople.  Many of our students will be interested in the context, but it might also be interesting to talk about the fine line that many colleges have to walk with respect to their marketing efforts.  Read “Marketers reshape how college teams sell tickets” (USA Today, Auguts 5, 2011).

This article and example could be used as a first day of class marketing example as students could relate to the context, or use it when you discuss competition or personal selling.

Not the best of news for our marketing graduates, as many  pharmaceutical drug makers are using iPad apps and other digital tools to replace the activities of at least some of their salespeople.  See “Drug Makers Replace Reps with Digital Tools” (Wall Street Journal, May 10, 2011, non-subscribers click here).

When do firms need salespeople, when does technology replace or complement the sales force?  Our books have a great 2 x 2 exhibit in the “Personal Selling and Customer Service” chapter that discusses this very issue.  For many doctors there is no need for relationship building.  This situation creates an opportunity for low-cost e-commerce solutions.  When information needs are standardized, digital solutions may be sufficient — but when information needs are complex and higher, digital solutions may complement personal selling activities.

This article can be a great segue to a discussion of other industries that may see the decline of the traditional sales force — and which industries might be technology-proof.

A recent Seth Godin blog post “Selling vs. inviting” (May 9, 2011) offers a succinct comparison of personal selling and marketing.  Many of our students will begin (and maybe spend a long time) in sales.  Godin’s outside (not a professor) perspective is refreshing and should make selling less intimidating for our students.  Also posted at Learn the 4 Ps.

It can be difficult to break into new markets — especially in the medical devices field where doctors usually like to stick with products they know.  A company called Biotronik found a way to generate significant market share in one particular hospital in southern Nevada.  In fact, while the company’s market share nationwide is about 5%, in this hospital it exceeds 95%.  Perhaps a great salesperson found a way to make Biotronik the preferred supplier and/or they have a superior device and this hospital is one of the few to recognize it.  Or maybe it has something to do with the fact that a few years ago Biotronik hired several of the hospital’s cardiologists as consultants — paying them as much as $5000 a month.

That, in a nutshell, is the background for a story in the New York Times, “Tipping the Odds for a Maker of Heart Implants” (April 2, 2011).  There is currently a federal investigation underway looking into Biotronik’s marketing and sales practices.

The article is quite long and will give you more background.  It might be an interesting example to discuss in class because you can probably imagine some gray areas.  It is probably important to have doctors testing products and offering insights.  At what point does this cross a line?

Somehow this article slipped by me – and it is now more than a month old, see “The Future of Selling:  It’s Social” (Forbes, December 3, 2011)   But it is chock full of great information and ideas from Brian Fetherstonhaugh, Chairman and CEO of OglivyOne Worldwide, one of the world’s largest advertising agencies.  He provides some brief highlights of research OglivyOne conducted on sales professionals in the U.S., U.K., Brazil, and China.  The results show quite a variance in the role of social media in personal selling across different countries.  The article also suggests some strategies for companies and salespeople.  While there has been a lot of talk about social media in consumer markets, this suggests opportunity in B2B as well.  File under international, social media and personal selling.  Also posted at Learn the 4 Ps.

Hiring people who know horses and/or farming gives them a leg up when serving Tractor Supply’s customers.  This article,  “Tractor Supply Makes Hiring The Right Staff Pay Off” (Investors Business Daily, January 7, 2011), provides a nice example of customer service and personal selling.  The article also highlights something we talk about in the cross-functional chapter in Basic Marketing — the importance of marketing working closely with HR.  For your students, this also shows them they have a competitive advantage working for a company they are passionate about – so this is also posted at Learn the 4 Ps.

Zappo’s and its founder Tony Hsieh are on a roll.  The company is highly successful by having customers at the focus of its operations.  Hsieh’s recent book, Delivering Happiness is on best seller lists.  The book is on my “to-read” list.  The company continues to grow rapidly, even during the current economic slowdown.  The man is onto something — and it is worth sharing some of his ideas with your class.  The company is renowned for customer service, which we cover in the selling and sales management chapter — so there is a great fit with this video.

This articles “Rediscovering the art of selling,” (McKinsey Quarterly, October 2010)  provides some good ideas and suggestions about improving sales in retail stores.  The article points out that perhaps too many retailers have cut back on personal selling efforts — perhaps falsely assuming customers have already researched purchases before entering stores.  It points out the importance of having enough well-trained salespeople.  This online interactive – making the sale – provides some additional example.

The article also points out  merchandising opportunities driven by understanding consumer needs and behavior.   Pointing out how a major bath care chain organized products by scent rather than function following insights about consumer behavior.  Sales increased when they set up a “Vanilla” section for example.

The article provides a nice supplement to a class on personal selling, sales management, or retailing.