Exam 14: Building Long-Term Partnerships

Clark,a salesperson at Peterson Company,is frustrated by his inability to handle rude customers and their complaints."Frankly,I don't know what to do when a customer starts telling me about a problem," he says.Which of the following steps should be adopted by Clark to solve customer a complaint?

In general,the faster and broader the change,the less likely it will meet with resistance.

Commitment requires that all employees be empowered to handle the needs of a customer.

Stephan knows that repeat orders are usually easier to handle and more profitable.What can he do to generate repeat orders?

Salespeople should encourage direct communication among similar functional areas.

The best way to begin a relationship is for each party to be aware of what the other expects.What do customers typically base their expectations on?

Experienced salespeople should assume product or service failure is always the user's fault.

The best way to establish a sales relationship is to be aware of what the customer expects.

Assuming proper expectations were set,customers can be disappointed when a product performs poorly,is used improperly,or the terms of the contract are not met.

Identify a feature about the dissolution stage in a sales relationship.

With _____,the emphasis is on helping the buyer realize the synergy of carrying all associated products of the same brand or manufacturer.

During the commitment stage of the development of partnerships,it is still unlikely that a customer will designate a supplier as a preferred supplier or partner.

In the expansion phase,the activities of the exploration stage,such as monitoring order processing,handling complaints,and so on,do not apply.

When a buyer-seller relationship has reached the _____ stage of partnership development,there is a stated or implied pledge to continue the relationship.

A salesperson owns the responsibility to secure commitment from his or her own company.

Gail is the Westinghouse salesperson on the Deep South Electric account (a major public utility company).Westinghouse and Deep South have developed a partnering relationship in which Deep South buys all of its pole-mounted transformers from Westinghouse.Gail worked hard for several years to establish this partnership,and now she is much more relaxed.Her only client is Deep South,and she knows the two firms are committed to the relationship.Her success has allowed her to take two or three afternoons off from work in order to work on her garden or play golf with some old college pals.Gail's attitude toward her clients and sales targets is now characterized by _____.

Full-line selling is the sale of those goods and services that are:

Once a customer has committed to a partnership,less work is needed to maintain the relationship.

Sheena,a salesperson for Myra Designer Wear,works closely with Blossoms Hub,a retailer who sells Myra's products in many major malls and stores in the city.What should Sheena do to maximize her selling opportunities during the expansion phase of the partnering process with this retailer?

_____ work for a buying firm in the areas most affected by a proposed change and work with the salespeople to make the proposal successful.