Business Marketing Advertising

“I wouldn’t buy another dollar’s worth of goods from your company if you were the last company on earth. Ten years ago, when we bought those ledgers from you over there, we decided we were through with you people.”
This is an assault directed at an office equipment salesman by the name of Sax.

“I am ashamed,” said the salesman, “for not having discovered previously that you hold a grudge against the company. It is no use for us to go back ten years and discuss old grievances, so we will take it for granted that you had good reasons for your hard feelings.

In analyzing its office overhead for last year, one of the big Chicago wholesale companies was amazed to find that the overhead in the bookkeeping department had increased 50 per cent, in the face of a 30 per cent decrease in sales.

The general manager hit the ceiling. He pressed button No. 999. “See here,” he said to the flustered office manager, “why don’t you cut down this overhead? It is higher than it was when we were doing, almost twice the business.”

An excellent illustration of how salesmen in widely different lines can pick up ideas from studying one another’s work is shown in the case of a grocery sales person who recently took out some insurance.
The grocery sales person was full of questions. The insurance salesman was fighting hard to keep control of the situation. It was evident the grocery salesman was purposely trying to throw the insurance salesman off the track.
Finally the insurance salesman said: “Now, Mr. Towne, the questions which are bothering you have bothered every other man who has ever taken out automobile insurance. I have given a lot of thought to explaining my policy in the fewest possible words. It will take me just eleven minutes to do it.
“At the end of eleven minutes you will find that I have covered most of the points you have in mind bringing up ? if not, I will be glad to answer your questions. But it will save my time and yours if you will first let me tell it my way.”
The grocery salesman realized that he had at last found a way to handle buyers who were constantly interrupting him with questions. He has since used the idea a number of times ? and it works just as well in, selling groceries as it does selling insurance. I am passing it along to you for what it may be worth.

A well-known sales manager tells a story about a boy who walked into a drug store near his home and asked the druggist if he could use the phone. This is what the druggist heard:

“Hello, is dis Mistah Johnson’s residence?” ? “Is Mistah Johnson theh?” ? “Mr. Johnson, Ah heahs as how you is needin’ a boy to look after yo yand and drive yo cyar?” ? “Yo say yo ahready has a boy?” ? “Is de boy givin’ yo satisfaction?” ? “You say he am givin’ you puffect satisfaction? All right, Mistah Johnson, good-by.”

Dr. John A. Stevenson relates a plan for selling insurance which he gave to 241 new salesmen before they were placed in territories, enabling all but 13 to make a success of their work, while insurance author?ities claimed that it was impossible to get more than 25 successful salesmen out of 241. The plan he imparted to those salesmen is the same one that helped Dr. Stevenson climb to his present position and it is of interest to all salesmen.

A point which received much emphasis at the last convention of salesmen for the National Cash Register Company was the greater need of what might be termed “making-him-want-it” salesmanship.

A particularly successful business getter from Los Angeles made the whole sales force think when he stated that his success was due to a policy he persistently followed since the slump overtook business ?that is, putting in at least one whole hour in studying the prospect’s business before he made any attempt to sell him a cash register. He further said that the average time which he spent in demonstrating last year was five minutes and the average time spent in studying the prospect’s needs for the thing he sold was one hour and ten minutes.

Wm. Wrigley, Jr., does not see the many salesmen who call. He has assistants who see them. However, the other day a young salesman wandered into Mr. Wrigley’s office and sold him twenty thousand souvenir blotters before he found out that Mr. Wrigley does not do the buying. This is how he did it.
Edward Caldwell, the salesman mentioned, is only fourteen years old. The first time he called at the Wrigley building he learned the gum king was at his club. So Caldwell called the following day. This time he avoided the information clerk. He spotted a man through an inner door. He decided that that must be Mr. Wrigley himself. When the man came out, young Caldwell walked up and made himself known.
It was Mr. Wrigley. After Caldwell had stated his mission, Mr. Wrigley received him cordially but turned him down. “I’m sorry, my boy,” Mr. Wrigley said, “but we do not require anything in the souvenir blotter line just now. Very sorry, I’m sure.”
“Please don’t feel sorry, Mr. Wrigley,” said the youngster, “I have a good proposition and know I can sell it.” “Well,” replied Mr. Wrigley, “if it is as good as that, call me up some time and we’ll talk it over.”
Caldwell agreed. A week later he made an appointment to see Mr. Wrigley. Arriving at the office, he was ushered into the presence of a different man. The young salesman was surprised, but he quickly awl fearlessly stated that he understood he was to see Mr. Wrigley personally. He was finally admitted into Mr. Wrigley’s private office. After hearing the boy?s story, Mr. Wrigley agreed to take ten thousand blotters. However, Caldwell believes in hitching his wagon to a star. So he pointed out to Mr. Wrigley how much more economical it would be to buy twenty thousand. Mr. Wrigley smiled. But he saw the point and signed a contract for the full twenty thousand.

Dr. George B. Pegram, dean of the Columbia University schools of engineering, stated in public that whereas a few years ago most of the graduates of engineering schools went into production work, the number of this year’s graduates who will go into sales work will probably be larger than in any preceding year.

“From talks I have had with employers in regard to the use of engineers as sales people,” said the dean, “I find that selling is becoming more and more a matter of training and knowledge. . . . Since the determination of the most economical methods of obtaining a given result is an engineering problem, it is natural engineers are well equipped to sell goods that are bought on that basis.”

A salesman for the Sealy Mattress Company has a plan for disposing of the greatest obstacle the very first thing in his sales talk, usually the matter of price. For example:
A recent deal involving upwards of fifty thousand dollars was put up to the buyer by laying the contract before him in the approach. The entire proposition was there before the buyer in black and white including price in bold figures.
“What’s this? Fifty thousand dollars?” exclaimed the buyer as soon as he saw the figure. “Why, yes,” answered the salesman. “Can’t you handle it?” The buyer hesitated an instant, then said: “I suppose I could if I wanted to. But it wouldn’t be worth while at that price.”
The salesman then proceeded to sell him on the proposition. The price was disposed of. There was no leading up to a point where the price would be sprung. No constant fear that the buyer was going to break in and ask price. The salesman put the reverse English on ordinary selling tactics and having the contract on the desk, the desired signature was easily secured.
The same plan was used in an eastern sale, considered one of the largest ever put over in the indus?try. The buyer was very difficult to see. The sales man phoned but was informed that they were not interested. He replied:
“It really doesn’t make any difference to me whether or not you are interested. Every place I go I hear about you. It’s Mr. Waltham did this and Mr. Waltham said that. I’ve heard so much of you that I just want to get a look at you.”
Waltham ?whose real name is widely known ?just laughed and said the salesman might come in for a couple of minutes. The salesman called and told the buyer that he heard of him in every large city he visited endeavoring to find someone big enough to put over a dozen carload mattress deal. He added that he had come to the conclusion that there was no one capable of doing it. The buyer wanted to know what the proposition was. The salesman sold him on the idea and left with the order.

You have probably read in the newspapers about the big mergers that are being formed. One of the difficulties which the accountants working on one merger have had to solve is determining the figure at which the good will of each concern should be capitalized.

One plan considered was to multiply the average earnings over a period of five years by five, and set that amount up as good will. But objections have been raised that such an amount is far too small ?that the earnings should be extended over at least a ten-year period. Others wanted to put the profits on a 6 per cent basis, and so on.