SALES FORCE &

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SALE FORCE AND CHANNEL MANAGEMENT

ASSIGNMENT 1

SUBMITTED BY

DAKSHINYA SHREE N. (21021241044)

NAVYA VASHIST(21
Industry Overview
Bicycle Industry has its existence since decades when it was major means of
personal transportation. With the advancement of technology, the trend of the
bicycle was reduced in India among the middle and high- income population, but its
popularity is returning on account of the health priorities and adventure cycling
sports. The increasing congestion, urbanization, and sustainability are majorly
driving the growing demand for bicycles all over India. Punjab state accounted for
the largest share in the manufacturing of bicycles which produced around 10.5
million units in 2017. China bicycle manufacturer are expected to enter Punjab state
and boost the industry by introducing lightweight technology.

Moreover, the distribution channel has fuelled the growth of India bicycle market,
where sales through online distribution channel is rising at a steep rate and are
expected to take over large market share over the forecast period. Sales through
the bicycle specialty offline stores are still preferred option by the 80% of the
population which belongs to middle and lower income group and have a higher
preference for physical shopping.

Further, the trend of e-bikes is setting up ground for the growth of new and existing
entrants. Globally e- bikes are expected to contribute 50% value share by 2022 to
the total bicycle industry. Brands such as Atlas, Hero Cycles, Avon cycles have huge
market penetration offering low to medium price bicycles and accounted for around
60% market share in 2017. Brands such as Firefox and B’Twin from Decathlon are
penetrating into high price segment. Goldstein Market Intelligence analyst forecast
that the India bicycle industry is set to grow at a CAGR of 8.6% over the forecast
period of 2017-2030.

Key Competitors
 HERO CYCLES: Hero group was established by the Munjal brothers •
Founded in 1956 • Headquartered in Ludhiana • By 1975, Hero cycles
became the largest bicycle manufacturer in India • In 1986 Hero Cycles
Limited entered the Guinness Books of World Records as the largest
bicycle manufacturer in the world.

BSA / Hercules
Corporate Office – Chennai, Tamilnadu
| Establishment – 1949
Business – Bicycle & Firearms
| Website – www.bsahercules.com
The Birmingham small arms company is a leading player
in the bike, bicycles, firearms and steel casting
manufacturing. The company was founded long back in
1861 and started India operation in the year 1949; The
cycle business in India is managed and distributed by TI
cycles and Murugappa group. Its major bicycle
manufacturing includes BSA and Hercules brand.

3 | Avon cycles
Corporate Office – Ludhiana, Punjab | Establishment –
 1951
Business – cycle manufacturing
| Website – www.avoncycles.com
Founded in the year 1951, Avon cycles limited is a part of
Avon group. Avon distributes its products through 2000
authorised dealer and 12000 sub-distribution in the
country. Its bi-cycle plant manufacturing located in
Ludhiana, Punjab.

4| Firefox
Corporate Office – Waterloo, USA, Uttar
Pradesh| Establishment – 2005
Business – Off and On road Cycle
| Website – www.firefoxbikes.com
Firefox’s product offering includes mountain, road, BMX,
all train and Kids bikes. It started India operation in the
year 2005 and leading global brand in cycle manufacturing
and teamed up with Trek Bicycle corporation, USA in
2006.

Competition Analysis

Here we understood market trends, identified competitors, evaluated

opportunities, analysed threats to the organization and hence reached to the study
of the strategy.

The Table Below compares the mentioned particulars of Hero cycles and Avon
cycles, the top 2 bicycle manufacturers in the Indian Market:

AV
Particu
HERO O
N

Company Founde 19
1956
51

Total 8814.3 34
asset 3.9
(Crores 9
 Acquisi
tions Firefox
-
(Impac Bikes

M
ost
ly
av
ail
abl
Exports to
Strengt e
over 70
in
countries
Asi
an
co
un
tri
es.

Produc ATB bikes , AT

Customer MTB B
bikes ,City bik
bikes ,Wom es
en ,
cycles ,kids M
cycles ,girls TB
cycles ,E- bik
cycles and es
accessories ,Ci
. ty
bik
es
,W
o
m
en
cy
cle
s,
kid
s
 cy
cle
s,
girl
s
cy
cle
s,
E-
cy
cle
s
an
d
ac
ce
ss
ori
es.

Target Each and Ea

Custom every ch
category of an
peoples in d
India as ev
well as er
abroad y
cat
eg
or
y
of
pe
opl
es
in
In
dia
as
we
ll
as
ab
 ro
ad

Rs
30
00
Rs 3000 –
Pricing -
5 lakhs
30
00
0

Positioning Positio Hero Cycles Av

is a leader on
in both the Cy
standard cle
and s is
premium on
segments e
in India, of
with an In
overall dia
market ’s
share of lea
nearly 43 din
percent. g
The bic
company is ycl
equipped e
with state- co
of-the-art m
infrastructu pa
re and the nie
most s
modern ma
machinery nu
producing fac
major tur
bicycle ing
component Bic
s within its ycl
premise es,
under Ele
stringent ctr
quality ic
parameters Sc
complying oo
with all ter
global s
standards. an
Hero Cycles d
has a E-
network of Ric
over 250 ks
suppliers ha
and 2800 ws
dealerships .
in India and Av
exports to on
various als
countries in o
the Middle div
East, Africa, ers
Asia, and ifie
Europe. d
Moreover, int
Hero Cycles o
is ISO9001 fit
& ne
ISO14001 ss
Certified eq
from BVC uip
of UK and m
recognised en
by the R&D t
departmen as
t of the Av
Govt. of on
India. Fit
ne
ss
M
ac
hin
es
Pv
t.
Ltd
 .

Th
e
co
m
pa
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s
au
th
ori
se
d
ca
pit
al
sta
nd
s
at
Rs
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lak
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an
d
ha
s
89.
64
42
pe
rce
nt
pai
d-
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ca
pit
al,
wh
ich
is
Rs
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64
lak
hs.
Av
on
Cy
cle
s
LT
D
is
ma
jor
ly
int
o
ma
nu
fac
tur
ing
(M
ac
hin
er
y
&
Eq
uip
m
en
t)
for
th
e
las
t
70
ye
ars
an
d
cu
rre
ntl
y,
th
e
co
m
pa
ny
op
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ati
on
s
ar
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ac
tiv
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Th
e
Co
m
pa
ny
de
sig
ns
an
d
dis
tri
bu
tes
m
ot
or
cy
cle
 s,
bic
ycl
es,
fit
ne
ss
ma
chi
ne,
an
d
Ele
ctr
ic
bic
ycl
e|
e-
bik
es.
Av
on
Cy
cle
s
Ltd
.
ser
ve
s
cu
sto
m
ers
in
In
dia
.

In
20
18,
 th
e
co
m
pa
ny
inv
est
ed
12.
5
mil
lio
n
eu
ros
to
ex
pa
nd
pr
od
uc
tio
n
ca
pa
cit
y
by
al
m
ost
50
%.
 CHANNEL SYSTEM ADOPTED BY COMPETITORS

Channels can be long or short, single or multiple (hybrid), and can

achieve intensive, selective or exclusive distribution. The length of
channel could have any number of intermediaries or be direct to
customers.

Some of the types of distribution channels used by the competitors

are:-

A. Direct Channel –

1. Selling at Manufacturer’s Plant 2. Door-to-Door Sales 3. Sales by Mail Order Method

4. Sales by Opening Own Shops
 The producer can sell directly to his customers without the help of middlemen,
such as wholesalers of retailers:

(i) By opening retails shop;

(ii) Through travelling salesmen;

(iii) Through mail order business.

 These channels take the shortest route to the consumer. Certain goods, like the
industrial machinery, are directly sold to the consumers. Costly goods like
computers and luxury automobiles, are also directly sold. Bicycle manufacturers
open their own retail shops in many localities and sell goods directly to
consumers. The Bicycle manufacturers also try to sell through their own mail
order departments.

 All these indicate that producers are now taking steps to approach the
consumers directly. Though this is possible for some types of goods, the fact
remains that the services of intermediaries, such as wholesalers and retailers, are
often essential in the distribution of goods to consumers.
 Therefore, now a days in order to eliminate the middle men bicycle
companies are trying to reach their customers directly.

B. Indirect Marketing Channel –These channel of distribution is used

widely across the globe.Here the manufacturer sells bicycles to its
customers through intermediaries i.e, wholesaler,retailer etc.

1. One-Level Channel 2. Two-Level Channel 3. Three-Level Channel 4. Four-Level

Channel C. Hybrid Distribution Channel or Multi-Channel Distribution System.

The indirect channels of distribution are:

(i) Producer-Consumer (industrial goods with high technical content)

(ii) Producer-Retailer-Consumer (via large department ‘ stores)

(iii) Producer—Wholesaler—Consumer (most industrial

products)

(iv) Producer-Wholesaler-Retailer-Consumer (most consumer

goods)

(v) Producer-Sole Agent -Wholesaler-Retailer-Consumer

(usually for a prescribed geographical area).

The first channel, from the producer to the consumer, is preferable when buyers are
few and the goods are costly and mostly purchased by industrial users. In this
category fall such goods as complex machinery involving high technology, computers
and luxury bicycles. In this case, buyers can be directly contacted and goods can be
sold by direct personal approach.

The second channel, from the producer-retailer to the consumers, is preferable

where the purchasers of goods are big retailers like department stores, chain stores
or consumer co-operative stores. In these cases, the wholesalers may be by passed
because the bulk of the goods are purchased by these large retail distributors to be
sold to the consumers.
 Goods like electrical appliances, fans, radios, ready-made garments and a host of
other articles fall in this category. This channel is also suitable when the goods are of
a perishable nature, and quick distribution is essential. However, the manufacturer
will have to undertake such functions as transportation, warehousing and financing.
However this channel is not involved in bicycle industry.

The third channel, from the producer-wholesaler to the consumer, can be

successfully used in distributing industrial goods. Under industrial goods are included
goods which are used for further production and not for resale. This is a shorter
channel, and the producer eliminates the retailer in this channel link. In this case, the
buyers are business houses, government agencies, consumer co-operative stores,
etc. Example-selling of raw materials used in making of bicycles.

The fourth channel, from the producer-wholesaler-retailer to the consumer, is the

longest route in the distribution link but is very popular in “Bicycle Industry”. It is
used for the marketing of a variety of consumer goods of daily use, particularly
where the demand is elastic and a large number of similar products are available.
This channel is preferable as the market for the Bicycle is highly competitive.

C)Hybrid Channel of distribution- This channel of distribution is followed by almost

every Bicycle Manufacturing companies as it includes both Direct and Indirect
channel of distribution.

Sales Promotion
1. Social media contests: One of the most effective ways of marketing in this day and age
is through social media. Millions of people have social media accounts and making
yourself known on sites like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram will help boost your sales
significantly. Here, you can showcase some of what’s on offer and entice people into your
store, whether in-store or online. As well as letting people know who you are and what
you’re all about, social media is also the perfect place to run a contest. Everyone likes the
chance to win something, especially if there’s no cost involved. If one person enters,
others will follow and share, and before you know it you’re ad’s been shared millions of
 times without you having to lift a finger. Sure, you may have to give away a bike every
now and then, but the publicity that you’ll receive because of it will be worth it.

2. Free accessories/free shipping/free assembly: Everyone likes to get something for

nothing, even if this may not really be the case. For example, by strategically pricing your
bikes so that the customer gets free lights with their purchase but it’s not costing you too
much, everyone's a winner. The customer feels like they’ve got themselves a really good
deal and you’re selling extra bikes every week as a result. If you own a local bike retail
shop one very good tactic for pulling in customers is to offer them free assembly with
every bike purchased. It won't take you very long to do and the customer will feel much
more valued and likely to recommend you for your excellent service.

3. Rebates: This is quite a popular option for many bike retailers as is a very effective way
to grab a customer’s attention. Being offered money back for purchasing a product that
you would have done anyway is a no-brainer, which is why customers like them so much.
Retailers like rebates as not everyone remembers to claim and so for the retailer it hasn’t
cost them anything in discounts. Retailers often do this to try and clear excess stock they
may have of one particular item.

4. Special pricing: Another deal that customers find hard to pass on is limited time only
deals. These are typically really good offers that can only be taken advantage of during a
certain time. While some may say it’s a form of pressure selling, consumers are getting a
good deal and no one is being forced to buy anything they don't want too. It just comes
down to a person's willpower as to how much they can resist a bargain. One example of
this type of deal in a bike retail shop would be to offer the latest bike model out at a
reduced price for just one week only to boost sales.

5. Free finance: Buying a new bike and all the accessories to go with it can add up to quite
an expense. So, being able to offer your customers interest-free finance is a great selling
tool. It allows them to spread the cost and it allows you to pitch the price differently in an
ad. Which sounds more tempting to you: £500 or 10 monthly payments of £50? For many
people, £50 isn’t too hard to find, but £500 is another matter. By allowing people the
opportunity to spread the cost will help secure a lot more sales year round.

6. Coupons: Offering money off a customer’s next purchase is another good sales

promotion technique. Not only does it entice the customer to buy the goods now, but it
also sets them up for another purchase later on as they now have a coupon to use.
Coupons can be very cost effective for bike retailers too as is a good way of getting
repeat business when you might not have ordinarily. Of course, you don’t have to just
offer coupons for a customer’s next purchases. You can offer coupons too.

Sales strategy and tactics deployed by

key competitors.
Retaining customer interest by encouraging higher-value purchases

If a customer is facing a long waiting time for their potential bike

purchase, or the lower-value models have sold out, there needs to be
encouragement in purchasing a higher-value model. This incentive must
be immediately visible to avoid lost interest and gravitation towards a
competitor. Below are proven methods that will achieve this goal through
innovation in the bike sector:

Cashback rewards

Offering a cashback reward for buying a bike can be a compelling reason

for purchase and is a more financially efficient strategy than traditional
discounting. With only the most engaged customers claiming their
cashback reward, sometimes around 50%, your promotional costs are cut
in half! To remove the financial risk of over-redemption, check that you
are covered by specialist insurance when running a cashback campaign.
To find out more on effective strategies for cashback rewards, download
our whitepaper, which focuses on the current challenges facing bike
manufacturers.

Basket boost campaigns

Offering customers cashback when they have purchased your bike and
spent a specified amount on a store’s accessories, not only increases the
chance of purchase from the customer but also builds favourable
partnerships with your retailers. Promoting their products alongside your
bikes will encourage them to prioritise your models over the competitors
making this one of the most effective cycling industry sales promotions.

Provide financial reassurance in unprecedented times

During periods of uncertainty, customers may be reluctant to invest in

high-value products, therefore look at ways to reassure your customers
should they experience financial difficulty. This assurance could be
through offering payment via smaller instalments or with a payment
‘holiday’ if and when needed. Another example is a redundancy refund
policy, such as our job safe scheme, where customers are promised a 50%
refund on their purchase should they be made redundant in the following
12 months. By providing financial reassurance, there is more confidence
to invest in higher-value goods, thus giving the buyer more options should
their preferred lower-value model be unavailable.

Our experience working with headline brands in durable consumer goods,

such as Wahoo Fitness, Microsoft and Samsung, has shown these methods
 of high impact promotions are a cost-effective way to drive your top and
bottom line. By also reinforcing their financial predictability
with specialist promotional insurance, your brand’s ongoing profitability
and long-term growth will be supported.

PART B

TARGET MARKETS

A target market is a portion of an addressable market you plan to sell your

products to. The purpose of targeting (or market segmentation) is to help you
identify the most likely buyer demographics and allocate marketing resources
accordingly.

Furthermore, a target market can be drilled down to:

 TAM — total addressable market or all the people who may demand your products. 
 SAM — the serviceable available market is a portion of TAM within your geographical reach. 
 SOM — the serviceable obtainable market is a slice of SAM you can effectively capture. 

The two segments that we will be targeting are:

 Independent Bicycle Shops: The large majority of bicycle retailers are independently owned sole

proprietorships. They are usually owned by one person and range from three to ten employees,

depending on the season.

 Chain Bicycle Shops: Although chains are not the predominant business form, most large cities

(over 200,000 people) have at least one chain serving the community. Sometimes the chains are

franchises with different owners, other times they are same owners with multiple stores.

The majority of sales will be to the independent bicycle shops. The reason
for this is most of the chains have a very uniformed product offering that
does not deviate for specials and closeouts. The chains tend to value
consistency of product offerings at the expense of increased profit
margins on special items.

The university students are our main target market.

1. They are mostly undergraduates, so there is a 25% annual turnover.

2. The lack of parking in the university area and the general ease of bike mobility throughout Metroburg
motivates them to use bicycles as inexpensive transport. Athletic pursuits draw them, and the nearby
areas for use of mountain and trail bikes provides a great place to ride.
3. There is a new enthusiasm for retro Cruiser bikes, and higher tech cruiser-style bikes with multiple
gears, good brakes, etc. among the college age population.
4. Also, main market for racks, locks, throughout, pannier/bags, fenders, rainwear, etc.
5. They want convenience for sales and service.

IT employees are another prime market segment.

1. Small growth and turnover, but on the whole, the group is pretty stable.
2. Are willing to commute by bicycle to work.
3. They want a stable, comfortable bike and a full range of accessories.
4. When their bikes need service and maintenance, local drop off/pickup convenience is important.

Marketing Mix

PRODUCT
A product is a good or service that satisfies a need or want of a target market.

A product is a solution to a markets problem. Which, can come in the form of a physical
good, a digital product, or a service.

Another way to define a product is with Kotler and Armstrong. They say a “product
means the goods-and-services combination the company offers to the target market”.

PRICE
Price is what customers pay for a product or service. It is a measure of the value placed
on a product, both by the buyer and the seller.

Also, price is a key component in the marketing mix. Being one the most direct ways of
communicating value to a customer. Also, price is the one component of the marketing
mix that has a direct impact on a product or companies revenue and profitability.

Thus, pricing is the act of determining the price of a given product or service. Using the
marketing mix and various pricing strategies and tactics to accurately convey the value
of a product or service.

PLACE
Place, as it pertains to the marketing mix, is the movement of a producers goods to the
producers intended user. It is the distribution of your products within the market.

Place can also be called placement or distribution, but all three terms are referencing the
same component of the marketing mix.

Another way to think about place is that it is the point of sale.

Place encompasses everything about distributing your product to your users. That means
channels, inventory, logistics, market coverage, location, and transportation.
PROMOTION
Promotion, as it relates to the marketing mix, is all the communication activities a
company performs to inform its customers and prospective customers.

Promotion is how companies establish their brand, the company voice, communicate

features and benefits, build awareness, and persuade customers and prospective
customers.

Since promotion is everything to do with communication, it is often referred to as

marketing communication. Thus, the mix of activities may also be referenced as the
marketing communications mix.

Promotion is an essential component of the marketing mix and it contains its own set of
components.

Channel Design decisions

A channel is a means by which products such as Bicycles, Parts &

Accessories are sold to a customer. Products may be sold through
various types of retail establishments, service providers directly and
indirectly involved with the product, or adjacent industries that see sales
 demand for the product among their customer base.

Research on the distinct channels in which is sold can enable companies

to increase sales by:

 Developing specific products or marketing campaign tailored to industry needs

 Controlling for channel conflict in which different channels are competing to sell Bicycles,
Parts & Accessories to the same set of customers
 Find resellers or distributors that can make it easier for companies to do business with your
product
 Identify types of competitors in adjacent industries that you may be unaware of

Sales channel strategy can be as simple as identifying potential retailers

interested in Bicycles, Parts & Accessories, or it may be as complex as
developing differentiated products that resellers can modify or include in
larger, customized orders.

Channel marketing for market research and strategic analysis shows

economic activity for Bicycles, Parts & Accessories. national statistics on
revenues and product sales. Business strategy and channel strategy for
marketing managers and product managers to make informed decisions
using the latest research.

Sales forecast

A sales forecast is an expression of expected sales revenue. A

sales forecast estimates how much your company plans to sell
within a certain time period (like quarter or year). The best sales
forecasts do this with a high degree of accuracy.

Sales forecasts differ in where they’re getting their inputs – for

example, they may rely on sales reps’ intuition or even artificial
intelligence (AI). More on that in the section on tools used to
forecast sales revenue. But all sales forecasts answer two key
questions:

 How much: Each sales opportunity has its own projected amount it’ll bring into
the business. Whether that’s $500 or $5 million, sales teams have to come up
with one number representing that new business. To create the number, they
take everything they know about the prospect into account.
 When: Sales forecasts pinpoint a month, quarter, or year when the sales team
expects the revenue to hit.
 Coming up with those two projections is no easy feat. So sales
teams factor in the important ingredients of who, what, where, why,
and how to make their forecasts:

 Who: Sales teams make their forecasts based on who their prospects are.
Depending on if their prospects are the actual decision makers or just influencers,
the forecast will be more or less exact.

 What: Forecasts should be based on exactly what solutions you plan to sell. In

turn, that should be based on problems your prospects have voiced, which your
company can uniquely solve.

 Where: Where is the buying decision made, and where will the actual products be
used? Sales teams see better accuracy when they get closer (at least for a visit)
to the center of the action.

 Why: Why is the prospect or existing customer considering new services from

your company in the first place? Is there a compelling event making them
consider it now? Without a forcing function and a clear why, the deal may stall
inevitably.

 How: How does this prospect tend to make purchasing decisions? If you’re not
accounting for how they do it now and how they’ve done it in the past in your
forecast, it may be fuzzy math.
Sales strategy

In order to stand out from the competition, not only should your bike shop provide
high-quality services as well as products, but it should also rely on meticulously
planned marketing strategies that will eventually allow your bicycle business to
flourish. A well-organized campaign instantly builds your reputation with your
customers. On the other hand, a poorly done campaign wrecks it in no time.
Therefore, it is crucial to think through your marketing ideas and options.
Nowadays, there are many ideas perfect for your bicycle business. Here are a few
that you ought to consider:

Customer comes first

Before we take drastic measures to advertise your bike shop, you need to put
customers first. Identify who your loyal customers are and what they need. If your
customers prefer quality over quantity, you need to offer the products that will
satisfy their wishes. Keep in mind that each customer is different, so you will have to
be flexible. Offering discounts or giveaways is a good way to start. For example,
make a special discount for elementary students. Along with bicycle maintenance,
you can offer a bike makeover at a reasonable price for customers’ old bikes.
Remember, the customer comes first.
Connect via social media
Another way to find out what your customer wants is by using the power of social
media. Create an online page on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter as to advertise your
bike shop. This is probably the easiest and the most convenient way of online
promotion. By posting important announcements and photos, your page will attract
the customer's attention. In addition, the customer can easily get in touch with the
salesperson. Moreover, why not make an online contest engaging the whole cyclist
community? The winner gets a prize, while your bike shop builds a reputation. It’s a
win-win situation.

Your bike shop website

As already mentioned, social media will come in handy for your online promotion
because it can reach many potential buyers. However, having your own bike shop
website with a logo will likely draw the potential customers’ attention, too. No
matter how big or small your bike business is, without an online presence, you are
invisible. For that reason, it is crucial to put your business online and keep the
customers updated about the shop’s services or products. With this, make sure you
provide former customers’ testimonial so they can get a better insight into your
professionalism.

Put a spotlight on your business

Take advantage of content marketing and give a thought to making a guide or even
an e-book. By doing so, your audience can sign–up for your newsletter. This type of
marketing strategy is extremely popular nowadays. For a bicycle business, a good
idea would be to help the customers choose a good bicycle. Since there is a wide
range of bikes to choose from, with a guide you can help your customer make the
right decision. Before purchase, many customers usually prefer to inform
themselves about bike models, its price or quality. By giving them useful
information, you can put a spotlight on your business.

Go green and ride

When it comes to bikes, there are many benefits. Along with being a perfect way to
exercise and get in shape, a bike is also an eco-friendly vehicle. There’s no better
promotion than this. Bring awareness to your community about health benefits of
 commuting by a bike. Get your message across by writing blog posts on this topic or
handing out flyers. Air pollution is the topic that concerns the whole community.
Just by getting on a bike, every person makes a great impact on their environment.
Sometimes, the best part of the job is giving something back.

Riding together
As a bike business owner, you must be a riding aficionado. You may have competed
in several competitions; maybe you have even won a few. If you are still in your top
shape, why not mix business with pleasure? Think about starting a ride group.
Consider using social media e.g. Facebook or Twitter, to gather cyclists who will ride
together every week or month. As a result, not only will you surround yourself with
people who rely on your business, but you’ll have fun and make some new
acquaintances.

Perfect marketing strategies

As far as you can see, there are various marketing options to choose from. Pick
those that will help you stand out from the competition. To be on the safe side;
consult your customer’s demands and needs. Social media are another way to get in
touch with them. The best option is to build your reputation with your own bike
shop website. Put a spotlight on your business with a guide, e-book or blog posts.
Engage your business with the community and you will be rewarded. 

Articulating the role of sales person

Our bicycle salespeople are tasked with matching people with the perfect bike for
them. Whether a person is interested in mountain bikes, cruisers, or a hybrid, our
salespeople have to be ready to ask the right questions to drive to the heart of what
the customer really wants. We don’t want our customers to feel pressured, but rather
empowered to make a smart choice for them. Our salespeople are also expected to be
up-to-speed on new bicycle technology so they can better assist the customer in
upgrading their current models.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

 Greeting customers and providing customer service

 Asking questions to determine the type of bike a customer needs
 Answering questions regarding available inventory
 Learning details of all merchandise
 Researching new bike technology to better handle customer requests
 Ringing up sales
 Working with vendors to discover new opportunities for the store
 Performing general store maintenance and cleaning
 Arranging ‘test drives’ for customers before they buy
 Building relationships to ensure future business

Recruiting and motivating sales force

1. Follow the steps in the sales force recruitment process.

Due to the critical importance of recruiting, sales managers should have an effective
system for finding and selecting sales personnel. To ensure that new recruits have the
aptitude necessary to be successful in a particular type of sales job, sales managers
should follow the steps in the recruitment process: (1) conducting a job analysis, (2)
preparing a job description, (3) identifying sales job qualifications, (4) attracting a
pool of sales recruits, and (5) evaluating and selecting the best recruit available.
Before a company can search for a particular type of salesperson, it must know
something about the sales job to be filled. This is determined by conducting a job
analysis and developing a job description. The job description lets prospective job
applicants know exactly what the duties and responsibilities of the sales position are
and on what basis employees will be evaluated. Since a job description is used in
recruiting, selecting, training, compensating, and evaluating the sales force, the
description should be in writing. Duties and responsibilities set forth in the job
description should be converted into a set of job qualifications. Job qualifications
should specifically spell out the characteristics and abilities a person must have to
carry out the requirements of the sales position, such as education, previous
experience, decision-making ability, product knowledge, transportation, ability to
travel, and computer literacy.

2. Identify sources of sales applicants.

Companies use several sources to find qualified applicants. The search can begin
within the company by surveying the sales force for possible recruits and then seeking
individuals from other departments. Some of the external sources include competitive
and noncompetitive firms, educational institutions, advertisements, and employment
agencies. A relatively new source of sales candidates is through online career centers.
Recruiters must recognize that top rated candidates can come from any source.
However, with the increasing costs of recruiting, sales managers must be careful to
devote their time to the most productive sources.

3. Follow the steps in the sales force selection process.

Selecting good applicants is an extremely important and challenging task for the sales
manager. The salesperson selection process involves choosing the candidates who
 best meet the qualifications and have the greatest aptitude for the job. General steps
in the salesperson selection process include (1) initial screening, (2) reference
checking, (3) in-depth interviewing, (4) employment testing, (5) follow-up
interviewing, and (6) making the selection. In selecting salespeople, several tools are
used to screen and eliminate undesirable recruits. Initial screening may start with an
application form or resume, a screening interview, or some type of brief test.
Application forms, as well as resumes, are the most widely used screening tools and
are an easy means of collecting the information necessary to determine applicants'
qualifications, such as educational background, work experience, and personal
references. An important function of application forms is to help sales managers
prepare for personal interviews with candidates for sales positions. Almost all
companies make use of initial screening interviews or tests.

4. Apply the criteria used to make the final selection decision.

When all other steps have been completed in the selection process, the sales manager
must decide whether or not to hire each applicant. The company reviews everything
known about a particular applicant, gathered from screening, reference checks,
interviews, and tests. The applicant's goals and ambitions are matched against
present and future opportunities, challenges, and other types of rewards offered by
the job and the company. While selection tools and techniques can eliminate the
obviously unqualified candidates and generally spot the more competent individuals,
some amount of judgment is typically used to make the final selection decision.

5. Implement the sales force socialization process.

Once the process of recruiting and selection is complete, the new salesperson must be
integrated into the sales force. Socialization involves the formal introduction of the
recruit to company practices, procedures, and philosophy as well as the social aspects
of the job. Effective development of job skills, adoption of appropriate role behaviors
and organization values, and adaptation to the work group and its norms can
influence a recruit's motivation, job satisfaction, and performance. There are two
levels in the socialization process. Initial socialization occurs during the recruiting,
selection, and introductory training processes. Extended socialization is accomplished
through long-term training, job rotation, and corporate social activities.

Salesforce evaluation & control mechanisms

Decisions in terms of sales territory &territorial coverage

Conceptually, a territory may represent:

(a) A particular geographical area mostly.

(b) A group of customer accounts or prospects, e.g.,

hospitals and institutions.

(c) A market.

(d) An industry, i.e. pharma-central formulation

units are a territory of bulk doing manufacturers.

Considered operationally, a territory represents a

customer grouping. Though most of the companies
emphasize geographical territories, some
companies with technical style of selling ignore this
basis and assign salespersons to a particular
customer grouping.

Even in geographic territories, ultimately a

salesman deals with a customer grouping.
Geographical territories also do not matter much in
insurance selling, property selling, selling in shares
and securities and automobiles. In all situations
when the salespersons are internal order takers,
geographical territorial division does not matter.
Only when the salespersons are external order
getters, there is scope of geographical territorial
division.
 Specialized salespersons also call for non-
geographical territorial division. Small companies
and companies with innovative products also avoid
geographical division.

Sales Promotion
1. Social media contests: One of the most effective ways of marketing in this day and age
is through social media. Millions of people have social media accounts and making
yourself known on sites like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram will help boost your sales
significantly. Here, you can showcase some of what’s on offer and entice people into your
store, whether in-store or online. As well as letting people know who you are and what
you’re all about, social media is also the perfect place to run a contest. Everyone likes the
chance to win something, especially if there’s no cost involved. If one person enters,
others will follow and share, and before you know it you’re ad’s been shared millions of
times without you having to lift a finger. Sure, you may have to give away a bike every
now and then, but the publicity that you’ll receive because of it will be worth it.

2. Free accessories/free shipping/free assembly: Everyone likes to get something for

nothing, even if this may not really be the case. For example, by strategically pricing your
bikes so that the customer gets free lights with their purchase but it’s not costing you too
much, everyone's a winner. The customer feels like they’ve got themselves a really good
deal and you’re selling extra bikes every week as a result. If you own a local bike retail
shop one very good tactic for pulling in customers is to offer them free assembly with
every bike purchased. It won't take you very long to do and the customer will feel much
more valued and likely to recommend you for your excellent service.

3. Rebates: This is quite a popular option for many bike retailers as is a very effective way
to grab a customer’s attention. Being offered money back for purchasing a product that
you would have done anyway is a no-brainer, which is why customers like them so much.
Retailers like rebates as not everyone remembers to claim and so for the retailer it hasn’t
cost them anything in discounts. Retailers often do this to try and clear excess stock they
may have of one particular item.

4. Special pricing: Another deal that customers find hard to pass on is limited time only
deals. These are typically really good offers that can only be taken advantage of during a
certain time. While some may say it’s a form of pressure selling, consumers are getting a
good deal and no one is being forced to buy anything they don't want too. It just comes
down to a person's willpower as to how much they can resist a bargain. One example of
 this type of deal in a bike retail shop would be to offer the latest bike model out at a
reduced price for just one week only to boost sales.

5. Free finance: Buying a new bike and all the accessories to go with it can add up to quite
an expense. So, being able to offer your customers interest-free finance is a great selling
tool. It allows them to spread the cost and it allows you to pitch the price differently in an
ad. Which sounds more tempting to you: £500 or 10 monthly payments of £50? For many
people, £50 isn’t too hard to find, but £500 is another matter. By allowing people the
opportunity to spread the cost will help secure a lot more sales year round.

6. Coupons: Offering money off a customer’s next purchase is another good sales

promotion technique. Not only does it entice the customer to buy the goods now, but it
also sets them up for another purchase later on as they now have a coupon to use.
Coupons can be very cost effective for bike retailers too as is a good way of getting
repeat business when you might not have ordinarily. Of course, you don’t have to just
offer coupons for a customer’s next purchases. You can offer coupons to everyone on
your emailing list, for example. This is a far more cost-effective way of promoting your
products and will hopefully produce an influx of sales as a result.