Volume 15, Number 1

The Role of the Salesperson:

A Semiotic Analysis of Salesmanship in Movies
By Ria Wiid

This paper considers the public perception of salespeople as portrayed in movies. It uses social semiotics to analyze 10
classic sales movies spanning a period of 21 years to obtain a more holistic view of the salesperson as container for the
organizational brand. This unique framework of analysis allows for perceptions of salesmanship portrayed in the media,
and the concomitant context of the workplace to be examined in greater depth. As a salesperson’s behavior is crucial
in building relationships with customers, the results suggest that we should look wider than the typical stereotypes
associated with selling. Other influences – such as the role of the organization’s culture, the leadership styles displayed
by those in positions of power, and personal dynamics – play a significant role in the facilitation, or mitigation, of the
behavior we see exhibited by salespeople in movies. The study highlights the destructive effects on the individual when
the sales organization views members of its sales force as part of a sales machine.

Keywords: Sales, culture, salesperson behavior, film, movies, sales manager, semiotic analysis, sales leadership

INTRODUCTION and for many B2B firms, the successful development

Salespeople have been portrayed in movies/films and
television for more than a century – frequently by way of
unflattering and negative images (Yoho, 1998). The use
of popular culture stereotypes such as greed, deception,
distrust and self-interest to portray salespeople, has
belittled both the sales occupation and those in sales
positions (Hartman, 2006). This low standing of the selling
profession may be due to a social lack of appreciation
of the importance of the salesperson in an effective
economy, or due to the presence of unethical business
practices. Salespeople span the boundaries between their
organizations and their customers, and as a result of the
interactions deal with unethical challenges on a regular
basis (Serviere-Munoz and Mallin, 2013). Although the
sales community has made efforts to enhance the image
of the profession and the industry, negative reputations
remain and unethical behavior still flourishes (Schwepker
and Good, 2010; Hartman, 2006; Baldwin, 1992). Indeed,
to be at its most effective, the salesperson as trusted advisor
is the key win-win role attainment with a customer, in order
to ensure longevity of relationship and revenue continuity
in an ethical and trusted manner.
Personal selling is the dominant medium of
communication in business-to-business (B2B) markets
Ria Wiid is a doctoral candidate at the KTH Royal Institute
of Technology, Stockholm, Sweden, ria.wiid@fullstream.ie.
of buyer-seller relationships may hinge on the
salesperson’s behavior (Lynch and de Chernatony,
2004). The salesperson embodies the organization’s
branding effort – a focus of attention that exposes the
organization and its members to far greater scrutiny
(Hatch and Schultz, 2003). Consequently, to develop
client relationships, salespeople are expected to avoid
dishonest practices and sell with integrity (Schwepker
and Good, 2010).
So how then is a vital section of the organization’s
frontline staff – its sales force – portrayed and viewed in
the mass media, specifically in movies? Movies are very
powerful and studied to see how meaning is generated
and what they reveal, for example, about topics such as
racism and disability, amongst others (Devlieger and De
Coster, 2009). In 2011 the New York Times ascribed the
resurgence of interest in computer science programs, at
least in part, to Hollywood’s portrayal of the tech world
(Roberts, 2011).
In her research into salesperson stereotypes in movies
and television, Hartman (2006) suggests that negative
descriptions and villains occur more frequently
than expected by chance when selling behaviors are
prominent in the storyline. However, she also finds that
historical and modern representations of salespeople
include some positive representations. Hartman (2006)
used a text analysis of plot summaries to examine the

5
Journal of Selling
descriptions and occupations of salesperson characters,
the role of selling behaviors in plots, and salesperson
character archetypes. The work described in this paper,
however, goes one step further and uses social semiotics
to answer the following research questions:
Research Question 1: Will a social semiotic analysis
of salespeople in movies confirm the negative media
portrayal of salespeople?
Research Question 2: Will such an analysis identify
other factors that impinge on the salesperson’s behavior?
Social semiotics in movies
Semiotics looks at the ways people comprehend and
mentally organize phenomena, and the subsequent
ways in which they communicate that understanding
with others. Knowledge, meaning, intention and action
are thus fundamental concepts in semiotics (Moriarty,
1996). Building on semiotics, a social semiotic theory
is interested in meaning, in all its appearances. It takes
meaning to arise in social environments and in social
interactions, therefore placing the social as the origin
and the generator of meaning (Kress, 2013).
A theory of movies consider the essence of the cinema
and attempts to provide conceptual frameworks
for understanding movies’ relationship to reality,
individual viewers and society in general. It is a form
of speculative thought that aims to make visible the
underlying structures and absent causes that provide
order and intelligibility upon movies (Buckland, 2008).
One such a theory is Social Semiotics. Social semiotics
aims to explain meaning-making in a social context,
and it focuses on social meaning-making practices of
all modes of communication, e.g. visual, verbal, aural,
gestural or written (Thibault, 2011). It focuses on the
techniques used to highlight not only what was edited
in, but also to show what was left out and thus taken-for
granted (Iedema, 2001).
Moviemaking involves a tension between portraying
people as complex individuals and as representatives of
particular social roles and archetypes. The characters
are drawn from everyday life and they have clear,
consistent sets of traits, qualities and behaviors
(MacDougal, MacDougal and Taylor, 1998; Bordwell,
1989). In a few vivid scenes a movie has the ability to
6 Northern Illinois University
present us with a person as a whole. Framing people,
objects and events with a camera is a way of “pointing
out, of describing, of judging. It domesticates and
organizes vision” (MacDougall, 2005, p.3). Whereas
the moviemaker reduces the footage for the movie onto a
very small canvas, for the viewer the movie is not small,
but instead becomes a world opened up (MacDougall,
1998). The stream of movie images involves us as if we
were witnessing reality itself – we become one with the
camera, and observe the drama from above and below
and from near and far (Barry, 1997).
METHOD
Iedema (2001) provides a social semiotic framework for
the analysis of movies. He suggests that social semiotics
balances on the issue of how the viewer is positioned
by the movie, and how the viewer sees certain social
responsibilities and values as being promoted over
others. Furthermore, a social semiotic analysis enables
us to question the ways in which the movie text presents
social reality and should enable us to see the essence of
the movie and engage with the medium in a systematic
and informed way (Iedema, 2001).
The framework of Iedema (2001) was used to analyze
the movies in the sample. This framework suggests six
levels of analysis, namely frame, shot, scene, sequence,
generic stage, or the work as a whole (See Table 1).
The level of analysis in this study involved scenes and
sequences.
Table 1
Framework to Analyze Movies (Iedema, 2001)
Levels of analysis Description
Frame A representative still of a shot.
Shot Uncut camera movement.
Scene Characterized by its continuity of time and
place.
Sequence When the camera moves with specific
character(s) or sub-topic across time and
spaces.
Generic stage The movie consists of a beginning, middle
and end.
Work as a whole The work as a particular genre.
 Volume 15, Number 1

Apart from the six levels, Iedema (2001) suggests social semiotics works with the hypothesis that all meaning-
making always performs three functions simultaneously: representation, orientation and organization. Framework
representation tells us about the world in the movie in some way and considers what meanings represent visually,
verbally, musically or sound-wise. Here we attempt to answer the research question: How is the salesperson portrayed?
In this regard the analysis was structured around the classification used by Hartman (2006) – a classification based upon
Jung’s (1959) archetype of characters and Campbell’s (1949) interpretations of the hero’s journey. Next, orientation
deals with inter-personality and the social enactment of the characters. Here we answer: How does the salesperson
interact with customers/superiors? This part of the analysis used Bern’s (1961) Transactional Analysis (TA) parent
adult child model to classify the salesperson’s interpersonal interactions. Finally, organization involves how meanings
are ordered and integrated into dynamic text. Here we consider what representations of salespeople reflect about
salesmanship and the organizations they represent. These three concepts form the basis of the analysis.

Table 2
Movies Included in the Sample

Movie name Release About Leading Actors

Date

Death of a Salesman1 1985 An aging traveling salesman recognizes Dustin Hoffman

Director: the emptiness of his life and attempts to
Volker Schlöndorff fix it.

Wall Street2, 3 1987 A young, hungry stockbroker is willing to Charlie Sheen

Director: trade on illegal inside information to get Michael Douglas
Oliver Stone to the top. A ruthless, greedy corporate
raider takes him under his wing.
Glengarry Glen Ross2, 3 1992 An examination of the maneuvers behind Al Pacino, Jack
Director: the scenes of a real estate office. Lemmon, Ed
James Foley Harris, Kevin
Spacey
Barbarians at the Gate1, 2 1993 The president of RJR Nabisco decides to James Garner
Director: buy the company himself, but a bidding
Glenn Jordan war ensues with other companies.

Jerry Maguire 1996 A sports agent has a moral epiphany and Tom Cruise
Director: is fired for expressing it. He puts his new
Cameron Crowe philosophy to the test as an independent
with the only athlete who stays with him.
Pirates of Silicon valley1 1999 The history of Apple and Microsoft. Noah Wyle,
Director: Anthony Michael
Martyn Burke Hall

Boiler Room2, 3 2000 A college dropout joins a fast track to Ben Affleck
Director: success as a broker for a suburban
Ben Younger investment firm. The job however is not
as legitimate as it sounds.
Lord of War2 2005 The humorous, disturbing and tragic story Nicolas Cage
Director: of coming from nothing to becoming a
Andrew Niccol successful arms dealer.

Thank you for Smoking2 2005 Satirical comedy follows the machinations Aaron Eckhart
Director: of Big Tobacco's chief spokesman who
Jason Reitman spins on behalf of cigarettes while trying
to remain a role model for his son.
The Pursuit of Happyness3 2006 Chris Gardner, a struggling salesman Will Smith
takes custody of his son as he's poised to
Director:
begin a major professional endeavor.
Gabriele Muccino
1
Movies made for television.
2
Movies included in www.inboundsales.net, www.johnnywednesday.com, and www.salesforcetraining.com.
3
Movies included in http://en.wordpress.com.

Page 31 7
Journal of Selling

Data collection categorization. The kappa-coefficient (Carletta, 1996)

To examine how movies portray the salesperson, the
content of 10 movies produced during a period of 21
years from 1985 to 2006 was analyzed. (See Table
2). A Google search of the search term top ten sales
movies resulted in four lists: (1) www.inboundsales.
net; (2) www.johnnywednesday.com; (3) www.
salesforcetraining.com; and (4) http://en.wordpress.
com. The list www.inboundsales.net was used as basis
for the analysis; this was the only list to directly state the
prerequisite that a salesperson, or the activity of selling,
be the central theme in the movie. However, six of these
movies also appear on lists (2) and (3), and four of the
six on list (4) – see Table 2. Four of the movies were
produced in the 2000s, four in the 1990s and two in the
1980s. Only English language movies were included;
seven of the movies were made for cinema and three
for television. Three of the 10 movies are biographies.
All movies were in DVD-format and chosen because
of their obvious accessibility and the added feature of
being able to return to certain scenes again and again for
magnification. The Internet Movie Database (IMDB,
n.d.) was used to get the general details such as release
dates, synopsis, and actors for each of the movies.
Data Classification
Based on the coders’ interpretation of the salespeople’s
roles in the movie scenes, the data was organized into
the following groups: at work, with family or significant
others, or engaged in some other activity. The coding
framework was adjusted to cater for the multiple
number of acts contained in some of the scenes.
Further categorizations involved identifying (1) notable
archetypes deployed in the scene/act, and (2) scenes
containing interactions between the salesperson and
manager/superior and customer. To support the analysis
of the representation and orientation functions, coders
captured instances where archetypes and TA modes were
deployed. In this regard character archetypes include
hero and combination hero, supporting character, and
villain, and TA modes parent/child, child/parent, and
adult/adult with the salesperson’s mode mentioned first.
The kappa-coefficient (K) was used to measure
interobserver variation with regard to scene, archetype
and interpersonal interaction identification and
measures pair-wise agreement among coders making
coding and category judgments, correcting for expected
chance agreement. Good quality categorization of
discourse phenomena normally yields a co-efficient of
about .80 (Carletta, 1996).
Data Analyses
The formal process of developing the coding scheme
began before the first viewing and involved both
deductive and inductive methods. Two coders then
used the categories in Iedema’s (2001) framework,
and categories for Archetypes and TA modes to code
each of the movie scenes in accordance with explicit
definitions and coding rules. Themes related to the
research questions were interpreted and expressed in
single words or short phrases.
At first the coders viewed and coded three movies;
during this process category definitions were tested
for clarity and consistency through an assessment of
inter-coder agreement. The process was iterative, and it
took a number of revisions to refine the coding scheme.
Once consistency was achieved the two coders viewed
and coded all the movies independently, followed by
another coding consistency check.
A third person was appointed as mediator for those cases
where the coders could not reach agreement. At the end
of the coding process the coded data was interpreted
as follows: first, by identifying relationships between
categories and uncovering patterns, second by compiling
the reconstructions of the meanings derived from the
data, and finally by drawing conclusions (Mayring,
2000; Weber, 1990; Zhang and Wildemuth, 2009).
The analysis involved 1,154 minutes of film, 203 scenes
and within these scenes, 488 separate acts (See Table 3).
Of these acts, 39 percent show salespeople engaged in
selling, 13 percent with family, and 25 percent in other
situations – such as antagonist character development,
social gatherings amongst others. In 10 percent of
the acts salespeople are interacting with managers/
superiors and in 14 percent with customers. Although
Family and Other scenes were taken into account for
the overall meaning making, they were not included in
the analysis.

8 Northern Illinois University

 Volume 15, Number 1

Table 3
Movie Scene Categorization

Category
No of
Length Non-
Movie film At Manager Customer
(min) work Other
scenes work dyad dyad
(family)
Barbarians at the Gate 22 107 24 0 6 2 19
Boiler Room 32 120 32 14 8 3 14
Death of a Salesman 12 136 1 1 0 10 10
Glengarry Glen Ross 13 100 27 10 5 1 3
In Pursuit of Happyness 28 117 22 8 6 21 15
Jerry Maguire 25 139 20 1 17 4 15
Lord of War 12 122 9 0 9 9 11
Pirates of Silicon Valley 24 95 15 1 2 4 17
Thank you for Smoking 20 92 20 7 2 4 8
Wall Street 15 126 21 5 11 4 10
203 1,154 191 47 66 62 122

Kappa coefficient 0.82 0.88 0.79 0.98 0.83

Percentage of category
39% 10% 14% 13% 25%
total (n=488)

Table 4
Salesperson Archetypes Deployed

Archetypes
Combination hero Supporting
Movie
Hero Shape- Villain
Trickster Antihero Mentor Other
shifter
Barbarians at the Gate 11 0 0 2 0 14 0
Boiler Room 18 11 10 3 2 16 1
Death of a Salesman 1 0 0 4 4 7 0
Glengarry Glen Ross 5 6 6 2 1 3 5
In Pursuit of Happyness 17 1 0 1 6 18 0
Jerry Maguire 11 0 1 4 4 23 0
Lord of War 5 6 8 0 0 13 3
Pirates of Silicon Valley 13 5 1 2 0 14 0
Thank you for Smoking 10 6 6 3 1 7 1
Wall Street 6 4 7 0 0 13 1
Archetypes detected (n=353) 97 39 39 21 18 128 11
Percentage of total 27% 11% 11% 6% 5% 35% 3%
Kappa32coefficient
Page 0.82 0.79 0.65 0.84 0.84 0.77 0.82

Archetypes were positively detected in 371 of the instances, with the hero and combination hero in 27 and 28 percent
of those cases respectively. The trickster and shape shifter archetypes each appeared in 11 percent of the instances,
and supporting archetypes (mentor and other) in 41 percent of the cases. The salesperson as a villain only appeared
11 times (See Table 4).

9
Journal of Selling

Salesperson interactions with superiors and customers were observed in 54 and 82 instances respectively. Of the
interactions with superiors, more than half of those (54 percent) were in the child-parent (CP) mode, with the
salesperson in the role of child. Adult-adult (AA) interactions between salesperson and superior occurred in 35 percent
of the cases. In interacting with customers, salespeople assumed the role of parent-child (PC) in 32 percent, child-
parent (CP) in 26 percent, and adult-adult (AA) in 43 percent of the instances (See Table 5).

Table 5
Salesperson Interactions based on TA parent child adult model

Interpersonal interaction
Movie With superior with customer
(n=54) (n=82)
PC CP AA PC CP AA
Barbarians at the Gate 0 0 0 1 0 3
Boiler Room 1 9 4 8 3 2
Death of a Salesman 0 1 0 0 0 0
Glengarry Glen Ross 1 6 5 8 0 0
In Pursuit of Happyness 0 4 5 0 0 8
Jerry Maguire 0 1 0 2 4 8
Lord of War 0 0 0 0 3 7
Pirates of Silicon Valley 1 0 0 2 0 0
Thank you for Smoking 3 2 5 5 1 4
Wall Street 0 6 0 0 10 3
Number of instances 6 29 19 26 21 35
Total per category 54 82
Percentage of category total 11% 54% 35% 32% 26% 43%
Kappa coefficient 0.84 0.93 0.77 0.82 0.78 0.87

DISCUSSION OF ANALYSES AND FINDINGS own personal values. Both display the self-centered,
power-hungry characteristics of a villain, and Fox the
Representation: Salesperson portrayals
backstabbing of a shape shifter.
The reader of the movies meets 13 salespeople at
A further four salespeople are portrayed as selling from
different stages in their careers. Rookies Seth Davis
a place of vision and passion. They use narrative skills,
(Boiler Room) and Bud Fox (Wall Street) both want to
charisma and passion to sell their ideas. Steve Jobs
make “a quick and easy buck”. They are portrayed as
and Bill Gates (Pirates of Silicon Valley) are young,
smart, motivated, eager to learn and hungry for money
competent and fearless. Jobs is charming, explosive and
and success, and they know how to be confident, pushy,
high-octane whereas Gates is low-key, conservative and
manipulative and well able to “act as if”. Both are
stable. Both are valued by their followers for wanting to
ruthless in selling the dream of wealth to their clients,
change the world. However, both display the dishonest
and they do so with the deception of a trickster. Their
traits of a trickster; both are portrayed as men with
selling is calculated – the narrative rehearsed and
questionable morals and little conscience. Another
appears to be executed with little heart passion. The
salesperson with a dream, Chris Gardner (In Pursuit of
camera highlights the darkness of deceit underlying
Happyness) hopes to make a difference with his bone-
their transactions, the cover-up by superiors, and stress
density scanner. He refuses to let anybody tell him “you
caused by the conflict between the fraud and their
Page 34 can’t do something”. “You got a dream – you got to

10 Northern Illinois University


protect it. If you want something, go get it. Period.”
Gardner displays the thoughtful, empathic, conservative
and caring characteristics of a hero, mentor and father.
When faced with adversity, he is able to change tact,
yet remain fixed on his mission of making a difference.
Another salesperson who follows his dream is Jerry
Maguire (Jerry Maguire). Maguire is a successful
celebrity agent who realizes he had become “just
another shark in a suit”. He too exhibits similar values
to those of Gardner. As he follows his conviction, he is
portrayed as a hero valued by his customers.
One salesperson who had worked himself up through the
ranks is Nick Naylor (Thank You for Smoking). Naylor,
a promo man for big tobacco business, is portrayed as
pleasant, good-looking, in the prime of his career and
someone who makes a great many evils palatable to
stakeholders. “I’m never wrong; if it’s your job to be
right, then you’re never wrong.” Naylor is portrayed as
a villain who is only interested in achieving his personal
goals, even at the cost of others. Another salesperson
at the peak of his career is Ross Johnson (Barbarians
at the Gate). Johnson made it through the ranks of the
American corporate system as door-to-door salesman.
He has concern for both the Nabisco shareholders
and the people “who bake, pack, ship and truck” for
Nabisco, yet on the other hand his management and
lifestyle is excessive and he goes to great lengths to get
what he wants.
A salesperson who would do anything for wealth is Yuri
Orlov (Lord of War). Orlov is lured into gun trading and
in this world of power and money he becomes a ruthless
and unscrupulous operator. With his personal belief that
“some of the most successful relationships are based on
lies and deceit, and that since that’s where they usually
end up anyway, it’s a logical place to start”, he displays
the values of trickster, shape shifter and villain. For
Orlov it is not about the money, it is simply because he
is good at it.
Finally, the die-hards still chasing the sale are Ricky
Roma, Shelley Levene and Dave Moss (Glengarry Glen
Ross) and Willy Loman (Death of a Salesman). Roma,
Levene and Moss are portrayed as contrary characters
– one more disreputable than the next. All three of
them display characteristics of chicanery and service to
self. Roma is raking in commissions and lives by the
Volume 15, Number 1
mantra “so be it”; Levene, by far the oldest, has lost his
touch and yet relentlessly continues to pursue potential
clients; and Moss is a calculated individual on the look-
out for ways to screw management. They are portrayed
as cantankerous, disrespectful and quarrelsome. Willy
Loman (Death of a Salesman) on the other hand has
dedicated 34 years of loyal service to his firm, only to
be told that he is no longer needed. For Loman it is
all about recognition. He became a salesperson before
selling became “all cut and dry”; in the days when the
sales profession still involved “personality, respect,
comradeship and gratitude”.
The reader also gets a view of those in positions of
power from the salesperson’s perspective. In Boiler
Room and Glengarry Glen Ross the leaders are
portrayed as arrogant, rude and ruthless. “We all
know we are here to make money” stresses one Boiler
Room leader, while another instructs his brokers to “be
aggressive, learn how to push; and if you can’t learn to
close, you better start thinking about another career.”
Those in positions of power are shown bragging about
their riches and successes, swearing, and indulging in
worldly pleasures. In a tirade Blake (Glengarry Glen
Ross) patronizes those in his sales team: “You drove
a Hyundai to get here – I drove an eighty thousand
dollar BMW. You see pal, that’s who I am, and you’re
nothing. Nice guy? I don’t give a damn. You want to
work here – close! You can’t take this, you don’t like
it, leave.” Although the sales leaders in the sample are
mostly portrayed as negative heroes, shape shifters and
negative mentors, the reader is not given an insight into
the background to such behavior, nor shown the leaders
in positive situations.
Orientation: Salesperson interaction with superiors
and customers
The reader gets a glimpse of the salespeople in the
sample in their interaction with those in positions
of power, their conduct while representing the
organization, and their interaction with significant
others. First, in all of the movies the interaction
between salespeople and those in positions of power
appear to be are anything but conducive to a healthy,
creative environment. In Boiler Room, Glengarry
Glen Ross and Wall Street, those in power positions
are brutal in their leading and they set anything but
11
Journal of Selling
good examples. They are shown to interact mostly
by way of announcing, instructing, or reprimanding
staff – very little listening takes place. Achievement of
sales targets is celebrated with fanfare, whereas non-
achieving salespeople are castigated, in a very visible,
often humiliating way. Negative mentoring experiences
befall both Davis (Boiler Room) and Fox (Wall Street);
Davis at the hands of his superiors and Fox the hands of
his ‘big fish’ customer. They are manipulated and they
too manipulate their way to success. Most of the sales
leaders rule their charges with a carrot-and-stick and
little or no regard for the wellbeing of the individual.
The reader is constantly reminded of the power the
manager holds over the salesperson’s destiny. Not only
do they lead mostly from a parent-child perspective,
they also seem to encourage salespeople to follow this
position when selling. When salespeople transact in the
adult-adult mode – in particular Gardner (In Pursuit of
Happyness), Maguire (Jerry Maguire), Naylor (Thank
You for Smoking), Johnson (Barbarians at the Gate) and
Orlov (Lord of War) – the outcomes seem to be better.
Similarly, every time a salesperson moved from a child-
parent to adult-adult, or even parent-child position with
their superiors, the superiors got a reality check. These
cases present the moment when the superior finally
hears the salesperson.
Second, with regard to the conduct of salespeople and
their customers, unethical activity appears in all but
Death of a Salesman and In Pursuit of Happyness.
Usually shrouded in darkness, both salespeople and
leaders are shown as willing to go to almost any length
in order to close the deal. In most of the movies the
organizational culture facilitated the amoral behavior.
Roma (Glengarry Glen Ross) is a ruthless operator who
succeeds because he has a talent for spotting a client’s
weaknesses and crafting a pitch that will exploit those
weaknesses. Davis (Boiler Room) and Fox (Wall Street)
are portrayed as pushing something their clients never
asked for, and according to Naylor (Thank You for
Smoking) “My job requires a certain moral flexibility”.
Naylor justifies his behavior with “I just need to pay
the mortgage”. In their attempts to clinch high value
clients, Fox (Wall Street) and Orlov (Lord of War)
become entangled with their clients. These powerful
clients manipulate the salespeople to play by their rules.
12
Fox’s client Gekko shamelessly preys on “guys who are
poor, smart, hungry, and with no feelings”.
Finally, nine of the 13 salespeople (Loman, Davis, Jobs,
Levene, Fox, Orlov, Naylor, Gardner and Maguire) are
dealing with some or other dysfunction in the family
situation. Over and above the need to provide for family,
challenging relationships add complexity and stress to
the lives of these salespeople.
Organization: Woven together as semiotic construct
The movies are all structured to have a beginning,
middle and end. Throughout the narratives the reader
is aware of a pending turn or disaster in either (or
both of) the salesperson’s career and family situations.
The outcomes conclude with (1) a fall from grace,
humility, retribution and a changed vision, (2) renewed
commitment to a passion/vision, (3) business as usual,
or (4) the demise of the character.
Fox (Wall Street), Davis (Boiler Room), Maguire (Jerry
Maguire), and Naylor (Thank You for Smoking) each
experience a fall from grace, followed by remorse
and a strengthening of character. With the undoing of
Davis, the reader sees him set right a client who lost
all his life savings through one of his high pressure
sales. Similarly, Fox repays the money an airline lost
through his involvement in a case of insider trading and
Johnson (Barbarians at the Gate) gets a reality check
when he loses his bid to buy-out Nabisco. Two other
salespeople emerge without a visible change of heart
(Levene, Glengarry Glen Ross and Orlov, Lord of War).
Gardner (In Pursuit of Happyness), and the two Pirates
of Silicon Valley all steer through their highs and lows by
holding on to their vision. For Roma and Moss (Glengarry
Glen Ross) it is business as usual – they continue with
their suspect practices in an office where only the obvious
deed of “stealing the leads” is caught and punished.
Finally, Loman (Death of a Salesman) is portrayed as
disillusioned with his career in selling: after a lifetime in
sales he never gets the recognition he so desired.
The 10 movies are about the struggle and compromises
it takes to make a sale, the wealth that accompanies
success, the fall from grace, and ethical versus
unethical. Ultimately it is about every human’s desire
for recognition and connection.
Northern Illinois University

GENERAL DISCUSSION
The findings of this study suggest that perceptions of
salespeople portrayed in movies indeed appear to be
weighted towards unflattering and negative archetypes
and transactional modalities. However, the movies may
represent the view of Hollywood and it is here that a
social semiotic analysis revealed more than what a
text analysis could offer; namely the complexity of
human behavior – something by no means exclusive
to salespeople. The reader gets an opportunity to see
the salesperson within the context of his journey –
including the stressors presented by work pressures,
incompatible values between the salesperson and the
organization, and family issues.
All the salespeople in the sample were in the business
of making money. They all wanted to better themselves:
for some it was part of bringing a vision into being,
for others it was a way of getting in on the action
where money is made, for Orlov (Lord of War) it was
an addiction to that at which he excels, and for Loman
(Death of a Salesman) it was a search for recognition.
All the sales processes were designed to help members
of the team “replicate the approaches of star performers”
(Adamson, Dixon and Toman et al., 2013, p.1).
Personal circumstances also affected the majority of
salespeople in the sample. The pressure to earn and
provide for family, or keep up appearances, motivated
half of the salespeople in the sample. Family dynamics
spilling over into the work place and vice versa also
surfaced in a number of the narratives. In these movies
the norms applicable to the natural family are contrasted
against the norms applicable to the virtual family or
employing organization. The aforementioned examples
are far too familiar nowadays and have a significant
impact on the wellbeing of the individual. According to
Greenhaus and Beutell (1985), strain from participation
in one role makes it difficult to fulfill the requirements
of another.
The findings also highlight the role of the leader
behavior in the creation of these negative perceptions
and the impact personal circumstances can have on the
salesperson’s motivation and wellbeing. In most of the
cases these influences went a long way to explain, or
even mitigate, the behavior that leads to unflattering
Volume 15, Number 1
perceptions about the salesperson. There is a distinct
lack of compassion for each other and the customer in
all of the movies.
In every movie the organizational culture was to some
degree the real driver for dysfunctional behavior within
the organization entity and provided the context for
the behavior. The poisonous environments in some
of the movies did little or nothing to provide a caring
environment. The sales culture portrayed via archetypes
deployed and interactions depicted suggest that in some
of the cases, unethical behavior was even encouraged.
Finally, a number of the salespeople (Loman, Davis,
Naylor, Orlov, Roma, Fox) at one stage or another either
questioned themselves or were confronted by a family
member about the validity of living “off the buying and
selling of others” (Boiler Room). It appeared as if the
seed of shame may be just below the surface.
MANAGERIAL IMPLICATIONS
So what are the implications for sales leaders? There
is little individual sales leaders can do to change any
negative stereotypes that may exist in the mass media.
Numerous processes contribute to the maintenance of
even unimportant stereotypes – it is easier to maintain
a stereotype than to change it (Hilton and Von Hippel,
1996). Sales leaders should therefore focus their
attention where they can have most impact, namely
the salespeople and sales function within their own
organizations. Firstly, leaders must lead by example.
According to Chakrabarty, Brown and Widing (2013)
the perceived selling behaviors of sales managers
influence salesperson selling behaviors. The leaders
in almost all of the 10 movies displayed inappropriate
behavior and should therefore take at least some of
the accountability for the inappropriate behavior of
salespeople. The styles of sales leaders which teach and
model real care for others should be especially effective
in fostering a sincere focus on the customer’s wants and
needs (Jaramillo et al., 2009). For example, in Boiler
Room the leading modal transaction type was parent
to child where the required behaviors were overtly
identified by the superior. Nine of the 14 interactions
were portrayed as child to parent (CP) transactions
on the part of the salespeople towards their superior.
Arrogance was part and parcel of most of the leaders
13
Journal of Selling
in the sample and according to Kroth and Keeler
(2009) arrogance as a trait is likely to obstruct caring
behavior. Within the sales function the hero’s journey
is particularly apt and caring behavior by superiors will
lead to outcomes such as organizational citizenship
behavior, job satisfaction and productivity (Kroth and
Keeler, 2009). In contrast, caring behavior was lacking
in most of the movies – the personal needs of both the
salespersons and managers seemed to come first.
Next, sales leaders must be able to hear their sales
forces. Most of the sales leaders in the sample
appeared ineffective at listening. Effective listening
skills are the single most important attribute of sales
manager effectiveness, from the viewpoint of both sales
managers and salespeople (Pryor, Malshe and Paradise,
2013). This inability to hear was echoed in some of
the salesperson-customer interactions. In adult to adult
(AA) transactions, active listening was demonstrated
as a key sales behavior. This was observed in the
interactions of salespeople with customers in Jerry
Maguire, Lord of War and In Pursuit of Happyness.
Third, new or less experienced salespeople require more
guidance, organizational socialization, and mentoring
while they learn the ropes early in their careers
(Jaramillo et al., 2009). This is particularly pertinent
as inexperienced salespeople are more inclined to
engage in selling-oriented practices that prioritize
the achievement of short-term sales gains even if it
compromises customer relationships (Jaramillo et al.,
2009). In this regard salespeople must be empowered
to actively participate in the caring process by way of
rejecting, modifying, ignoring unacceptable workplace
behavior (Kroth and Keeler, 2009).
Fourth, leaders who want to transform their sales
organizations will need to shift from an emphasis
on short-term rewards such as increased variable
remuneration, to longer-term motivators such as
autonomy and the opportunity to generate value for
customers. Instead of subscribing to a culture whereby
salespeople compete, and leaders inspect and direct,
organizations will benefit from both creating an
environment that fosters individual decision making
and emphasizing the importance of collaboration and
judgment. In order to foster such a climate, leaders will
have to re-visit the organization’s employment value
14
proposition and then focus on recruiting candidates with
the ability to think analytically, exercise their judgment
and assume considerable responsibility for business
growth (Adamson, Dixon and Toman, 2013). The
increased importance of the selling function coupled
with escalating cost per sales call for a sharper focus on
the sales manager’s role in influencing the performance
of the salesperson (Shannahan et al., 2013).
Next, efficient on boarding programs, more targeted
and rigorous skill programs, and more standardized
sales coaching methods will be required to support
the salespeople (Forrester, 2012; Adamson, Dixon
and Toman, 2013). Organizations may also benefit
from investing in training aimed at emphasizing the
organization’s position on ethically appropriate conduct
as well as improving the capacity to make equitable
judgments. Such awareness should be incorporated
in sales training programs for both new hires and
experienced salespeople (Servier-Munoz and Mallin,
2013). However, managing ethical accountability
requires the direct involvement of organizational
leaders – individuals learn by observing the actions,
decisions and consequences of role models, and then
emulate what they observed (Resick et al., 2013). In
this regard leadership development initiatives should
be aimed at equipping leaders to act as examples for
ethically appropriate behavior and decision making. A
sales force that does not follow ethical standards can
have detrimental consequences on an organization’s
performance (Serviere-Munoz and Mallin, 2013).
Helping employees balance their work and family
lives is increasingly viewed as both a business and
social requirement. Without getting into the business
of nurturing and promoting work-life balance, leaders
may need to consider programs targeted at helping
employees negotiate expectations with regard to their
role-related partners in the work and family domains.
Such programs are attractive as they are consistent
with common training programs offered in many
organizations (Carlson, Grzywacz and Zivnuska, 2009;
Grzywacz and Carlson, 2007).
Leaders must be concerned about how others see their
salespeople. Every time the organization’s frontline
people interact with stakeholder groups, the visual
communication, skills and abilities directly influence
Northern Illinois University

the customer’s experience of the organizational
brand values (Lynch and de Chernatony, 2004).
The perceptions that stakeholder communities hold
of the way an organization presents itself, either
intentionally or unintentionally, all shape the image
of the organization (Markwick and Fill, 1997).
Furthermore, in all the movies the dividing line
between the selling of the person and the selling of the
product or organization was portrayed as being blurred.
According to Shepherd (2005) if the contact made by
the employees of an organization constitutes a form of
marketing then it can be said that all customer contact
also constitutes opportunities for self-marketing. After
all, the employee is in the marketplace as an individual
brand, and everyone he/she comes into contact with
will be scanning and screening for signals about his/
her value against the comparative value of others like
him (Shepherd, 2005). In some of the` movies it was
difficult to get a glimpse of the organization as the
salesperson’s personality and pitch was too powerful.
Finally, as container for the organizational brand, the
salesperson’s wellbeing and happiness is important.
In this regard leaders can benefit from the insights
stemming from the framework of archetypes. One
such archetype is the ‘happy loser’; most salespeople
will lose many deals in the process of selling (Coutu,
2006, p.4). It is not always about winning the deal,
but for a significant number of salespeople it is about
the thrill that emanates from the crusade to close the
sale. The focus should be on keeping the sales force
content, keeping them motivated with ambitious tasks
instead of emphasizing the aspect of winning all the
time (Coutu, 2006). Furthermore, investments into
increasing the work satisfaction of salespeople may
be especially fruitful in terms of customer satisfaction
when accompanied by activities focusing on increasing
their empathy, expertise and reliability (Homburg and
Stock, 2005).
LIMITATIONS AND FUTURE RESEARCH
This research is obviously restricted in that it involves
a study of a limited number of movies with selling as
a theme. From the outset the intention was to opt for
richness of information (O’Reilly and Parker, 2012) by
way of an in-depth analyses of a manageable number of
movies as opposed to merely classifying and counting
Volume 15, Number 1
a larger number of salespeople in a wider sample of
movies. A further consequence of the sampling method
is that other movies with salesmanship as prominent
theme may have fallen through the net. This study is
further restricted by our choice to use Iedema’s (2001)
framework, and in doing so, precluded the use of other
frameworks.
The analysis presented above placed the representation
of salesmanship in direct relation with its cinematic
realization, and in doing so, it is acknowledged that the
cases presented were notably supported by how they
were carried out.
Furthermore, this study did not test for statistical
significance, but instead uncovered patterns, themes,
and categories important to a social reality. The results
represent the interpreter’s personal and theoretical
understanding of the phenomenon under study (Zhang
and Wildemuth, 2009). An attempt to address credibility
was made by verifying interpretations against the raw
data, and with the other coder. The inherent ambiguity
of word meanings, category definitions, and coding
procedures are a threat to the consistency of coding
practices, and may therefore have a negative effect on the
credibility of the findings. Transparency was addressed
by providing sufficient detail about the data collection
process (Meyrick, 2006). At most generalizability is
moderate; the findings of this study are testable against
data and subject to alternative reasoning (Payne and
Williams, 2005).
There are also a number of drawbacks associated with
social semiotic analysis. Firstly, the process involved
several levels of analysis and as a result can become
quite technical. Secondly, although the analysis may
seem straightforward, there is a strong interpretative
component at work. Another limitation is that social
semiotics’ main concern is with textual structures and
not with the categories of viewers and their readings
of texts. While the distinction between text and reading
in other media may be tenuous, traditional movies still
allow for the analysis of text in its linear entirety (Kress,
1985; Iedema, 2001). Social semiotics asserts that
the type of analytical reading presented in this study
provides a way to understand and manipulate what
might otherwise stay at the level of vague notion and
intuitive response.
15
Journal of Selling
A final limitation of social semiotic analysis is that
it reads the movie text regardless of the specific
individuals who were involved in its creation. It is
possible for example that certain constraints or conflicts
experienced by the moviemakers could shed light on
specific camera, script or sound choices in the text and
could well inspire different or richer interpretations.
On the positive side, social semiotics supports the view
that every aspect of a movie contributes to its meaning
potential in a meaningful way. It does not set boundaries
around what is text and what not, and around what can
or can’t be analyzed (Iedema, 2010).
Possible areas for future research include the
development of a unified framework for semiotic
analysis, in particular one that incorporates character
archetypes. The same approach of using social semiotic
analysis can be used to research movies about business
and corporate governance. Along the same lines, future
research could include the manager as primary subject
of analysis into other areas such as organizational
dynamics and leadership.
Another area for research is to explore or confirm
the results presented by using additional data sets.
The sampling method used in this study deliberately
identified plots about salesmanship and consequently
omitted characters not identified according to their job
occupation. Future research could also compare titles
by popularity or box office sales to better weight the
potential impact on popular perception (Hartman, 2006).
The applicability of servant leadership versus
other leadership styles such as Transformational,
Transactional, and Laissez-Faire (Eagly, Johannesen-
Schmidt and Van Engen, 2003) in the sales environment
may require further exploration. A further area for
research may be to examine the impact of issues
highlighted in this study such as culture, ethics, listening
and work/home roles on sales performance from the
salesperson’s point of view. It may also be beneficial
to explore existing sales constructs in relation to the
findings of this study. Finally, it may also be useful to
integrate managers’ and customers’ responses to the
salesperson-sales manager dynamic.
16
CONCLUSION
The fresh approach used in this study highlighted some
of the other factors at play in the life of the salesperson,
namely the leadership of those in positions of power, the
culture of the organization and personal dynamics. It is
therefore prudent that organizations consider questions
such as “How healthy is our culture?” and “How healthy
is our leading?” Finally it is about recruiting the right
people for the particular sales situation, and matching
the message with the salesperson in order to maximizing
return on the selling asset. It is about ensuring that the
salesperson as container for what the organization stands
for does justice to the organizational brand.
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