Vector Marketing : An Ideal Candidate For the Sales Position | Discussion

Question 1. What are some of the challenges in managing a sales force consisting mainly of college students?

First of all, although college students are young and energetic (which are good qualities for a sales agent), their personalities and plans are still in the process of formation, so the turnover of such sales agents might be notably higher compared to more mature sales force professionals. In addition, Vector sales agents present the product in customer homes which means that they should communicate a lot with customers, make a positive impression on them, travel a lot and plan their time themselves. College students might lack many of these qualities. Most likely, sales managers have to pay a lot of attention to training sales agents, to teaching product presentation and communication skills to them. Although new sales agents receive extensive training, they also have to be quite self-determined and highly motivated to succeed in selling CUTCO cutlery.

Additional challenges are caused by the fact that college students have to devote time to studying and at the same time engage in sales activities, i.e. organize sales demonstrations, communicate with leads, invite referrals, etc. There is a great probability that the motivation of young sales agents will fluctuate and therefore their sales might decline after first successes. However, Vector invests a lot of resources in training sales agents, so one of the problems that should be solved by sales managers is keeping the motivation and focus of sales agents on the due level.

The specifics of Vector sales force is that the agents have to operate on their own (external sales agents) and are therefore their corporate involvement is low. Young sales agents might lack basic corporate skills, the knowledge of key ethical business rules and follow-up procedures. Therefore, one more issue that should be addressed by sales managers is increasing the sense of “belonging” among new sales agents and helping them master the basics of corporate culture.

Finally, the biggest risks of managing a sales force consisting of students emerge when these students graduate. New job offers and career perspectives related to their college profession might be more attractive that the career of sales agent in Vector, so the company has to accept the risks of losing even good sales agents after they leave college.

Question 2. Develop a profile of the ideal candidate you would select for the Vector sales position.

An ideal candidate for the Vector sales position would be an energetic and enthusiastic person, preferably with a driver’s license, owning a car, with good communication skills and interpersonal skills, with work experience as a sales agent in external sales, with experience in lead development and managing customer relationships. The ideal candidate should be emotionally stable, should have a strong respect for people and desire to help them, optimistic and confident.

The candidate should possess good demonstration and presentation skills, and should be committed to building long-term customer relationships. The candidate should be able to accept rejection and criticism, since some customers might be skeptical with regard to new products. The desirable qualities in an ideal candidate also include advanced time management skills, purposefulness, determination, active listening, negotiating and “getting things done” attitude.

Question 3. What could management do to increase the number of students applying for a sales job with Vector Marketing?

Currently Vector uses web advertising and newspaper classified advertising for recruiting new sales agents. In addition, direct mail is used to attract potential applicants. However, there are many other opportunities that Vector is not using to increase the number of potential sales agents. First of all, it might be efficient to survey existing employees from other departments. Furthermore, it would be efficient to survey the existing sales agents and other employees in order to find other whether their friends, relatives or acquaintances would be willing to work as Vector sales agents. Offering reasonable bonuses or commissions for successful employments might increase the motivation of current employees to invite new candidates to Vector Marketing.

One more abundant source of potential applicants is the educational system. It would be very good for Vector to cooperate with colleges and universities to look for new sales agents. Such initiatives might be very welcome in those educational institutions where there are sales-related professions. Vector Marketing could use simple advertising in educational institutions in target locations or contact administrative staff in order to make the process of recruitment more organized.

In addition, Vector Marketing is not using the potential of determining  new sales applicants offered by the web and social networks. One approach might be placing recruitment ads in social networks. It is also possible to collaborate with online career centers and job search websites to show Vector Marketing offers. However, it would be more efficient to create groups in social networks where existing sales agents would share their work-related impressions and experiences. Invitations to such groups and group participation would likely motivate young people to become sales agents.

The terms offer and acceptance. (2016, May 17). Retrieved from

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016.

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

freeessays.club (2016) The terms offer and acceptance [Online].
Available at:

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]

"The terms offer and acceptance." freeessays.club, 17 May 2016

[Accessed: March 28, 2024]
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