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Grace Zimmerman
Senior Lecturer
Email: gzimmerm@brandeis.edu
Office:
Lemberg 161
Office Hours: Mondays and Wednesdays
11:00 12:20
and 2:00 3:00 pm,
or by appointment
Brandeis University
International Business School
Course Description
To be successful in business, you have to be able to sell yourself, your ideas, your
product and your company. Indeed, one of the primary skills any good CEO must have
is the ability to sell her ideas and passion to shareholders, the board of directors, senior
staff, employees, customers, vendors and lenders.
Sales is the ability to learn about a customers needs in order to present just those
products and services offered by the organization that most effectively help the customer
achieve her stated goals, secure her commitment to buy the product, receive payment,
provide installation and ongoing service and maintain a positive relationship over time.
Obviously, the sales function is central to every enterprise, as every enterprise needs
revenues. This course will explore professional sales concepts and techniques, as well as
options and methods to best manage the companys sales force.
In most classes, we will analyze case studies that require us to identify sales and sales
management opportunities and challenges, and to develop strategies to maximize revenue
and customer satisfaction while optimizing costs to sell, service and maintain the
customer relationship.
Learning Goals and Outcomes
Through case study discussions, you will learn to:
Analyze and solve complex sales and sales management problems through case
discussion.
Evaluate applicability of sales and sales management concepts and techniques in a
variety of enterprises and markets, including, but not limited to financial services,
consulting, and high technology sales.
Build a persuasive argument
Express that argument extemporaneously in the classroom among peers, in
writing and in with the aid of visuals in a formal presentation
Make marketing and sales management decisions backed by solid reasoning
To listen critically and respectfully to the ideas of classmates.
Course Approach
This course will combine case study pedagogy with a professional online sales training
program. The first half of the module will be based on the sales training program and
will explore professional B2B selling techniques. The second half of the module will
utilize case studies to explore B2B sales management issues and strategies.
In each session of this course we will analyze and solve selling and sales management
challenges. We will use our time together in the classroom to sharpen our skills in
diagnosing problems and to build a framework to understand and leverage individual
sales representatives and sales managers opportunities.
To benefit from this approach, each student must come to class prepared either with the
sales training materials and exercise assignments or with an analysis and solution for the
sales management opportunity or challenge at hand, not simply regurgitation of case
facts. Class time together will follow a discussion format, with a constant challenging of
viewpoints from the instructor and student alike. Meaningful, daily participation is
essential.
Course Materials
Textbook: We will not be using a textbook per se for this course. Instead, we will use an
online professional sales training program from Rain Group called Rain Selling, Harvard
Business School cases and notes. The HBS cases and notes are included in the
coursepack.
I also highly recommend a Harvard Business Review Special Double Issue: Sales,
Managing Global Accounts, HBR R0709G, and a classic sales book by Dale Carnegie:
How to Win Friends and Influence People. The book is sold widely. You can buy new,
used and electronic copies at Amazon and other booksellers, any edition will do. It is an
older book, but a classic for very good reasons. Its a quick and powerful read. Dont
overlook it. The cheapest ($16.95) and easiest way to buy the HBR Special Sales edition
is by following this link:
http://beta.zinio.com/www/browse/issue.jsp?skuId=150962285&categoryId=47
RainSelling (the online professional B2B sales program): This sales training program
is typically sold to corporations for their professional B2B sales representatives at a cost
of $200/month/sales rep. We are lucky to be able to access this fabulous program for
$60/student for the module. The president of Rain Group will be the opening class
speaker. He will see how many of us there are. Please dont infringe copyright material
and jeopardize future student access to this program. Buy your own access to the
program. Ive negotiated a fabulous deal for us. Heres the link:
http://store.rainsalestraining.com/product?catalog=TP-002Orglv
Once on this page, you will be able to create a username, password and enter payment
information for the program through PayPal ($60 for the course). You will receive a
confirmation email of your payment. Once youve registered, you can go to:
www.rainselling.com/moodle
CoursePack: Case studies are the focal point of most class discussions. Course packs
with the cases we will cover are REQUIRED and only available through Harvard
Business Publishing at http://hbsp.harvard.edu/, with a specific link to our course pack at:
https://cb.hbsp.harvard.edu/cbmp/access/27988992Course packs are comprised of
copyrighted materials. Again, please respect intellectual property by purchasing your
own copy of the materials.
40%
30%
10%
20%
100%
Class Participation. Students are expected to attend every class and participate on a
regular basis. Less value will be placed on the quantity of your contributions than on
their quality. Participation is graded daily, as follows:
-5 absent without prior notification
-3 absent with prior notification
0 present but without a class contribution
+1 contributed a case fact
+2-3 contributed analysis or a reasoned recommendation
+4-5 contributed excellent analysis and/or reasoned recommendation
For many students, qualitative analysis comes more easily than quantitative analysis,
therefore, I will on occasion cold call students to present their quantitative analysis to the
class. Be prepared. If you are hesitant to participate in class, please come to see me. I
will work with you.
Absence from two or more classes can result in a failing participation grade for this
course. If you have to miss class for any reason, please notify me in advance. Further
and importantly, anyone interested in taking this course MUST ATTEND THE FIRST
DAY OF CLASS. NO EXCEPTIONS!
Many of you will bring your laptops to class. This is fine if you are using your laptop to
access the case we are discussing or your notes on the case. Using your laptop or other
electronic devise to access the Internet is distracting to others and is not acceptable. You
will be marked as though you were absent if you are online during class.
To allow me to get to know you more quickly, please send me an email with your
preferred email address and a few sentences about your work experiences and career
goals. Also, please select your seat for the semester by the start of the second class, and
use a name card, at least for the first several sessions.
Simulation Exercise. For class #4, Thursday, November 7, you will take the simulation
exercise in the RainSelling program, parts 1 & 2. Submit screen shots of your scores.
Negotiation Exercise. For class # 5, Tuesday, November 12, you will participate in and
write up a negotiation exercise prior to class. Follow the instructions for the exercise
listed below. The analysis and negotiation are to be done on your own, without any
outside assistance.
Case Write-Up. For class # 9, instead of just preparing the case for class discussion,
students should submit their answers in a case write-up of up to 4 pages. This is an
individual assignment, one that you need to do entirely on your own. Cases should be
handed in at the start of class on Thursday, November 20. Submissions after the start of
class will not be accepted.
You have 4 pages in which to write your analysis. You can also include addenda, if you
need or choose to. This case analysis is no different than any of the cases we will do in
class. You will be practicing case analysis skills virtually every time you prepare for
class. Organize the relevant facts. Don't give me case facts that aren't pertinent to your
analysis; I've read the case, too. Do necessary analysis. Come to conclusions. Develop
detailed recommendations. Be sure that your logic flows from analysis through
conclusions to recommendations. Be persuasive. You don't have to follow the outline of
the questions in the syllabus, but you need to include the answers to the questions at a
bare minimum. I don't need beautiful prose; you can use bullets, etc., but if you use a
chart for pros and cons, say, be sure that you come to a conclusion. Cases write-up
grades will be based on completeness and quality of analysis and recommendations, and
the logic, strength and clarity of your arguments.
Office Hours
Office hours are Mondays and Wednesdays from 11:00 12:20pm and 2:00 3:00 pm
in Lemberg 161, and by appointment. I enjoy the opportunity to get to interact with
you as much as possible. Email has proven very helpful in this regard. Please dont
hesitate to contact me if you need assistance in any manner, or have comments, concerns
or words of praise for some aspect of the course.
gzimmerm@brandeis.edu
Assignments
Class #1:
Module:
(Th, 10/23)
Pre-assignment:
Reading:
RainSelling: Lessons:
Keys to prospecting
Networking and relationship building
Keys to qualifying prospects
The RainSelling conversation framework
There are several different formats for learning the RainSelling method,
including: video, PPT, transcripts, MP3 and exercises. I think you will get
the most by viewing the video first and doing the exercises and concept
reviews, when available. I recommend the PPT, MP3 and/or transcripts to
reinforce the ideas once youve seen the video. I realize that this
preassignment and the assignments for the rest of this module will take
you well beyond the typical 2+ hours of viewing, reading and analysis.
Budget the time, come prepared to class. If this workload doesnt match
your commitment to the class, now is the time to bow out.
Class #2:
Module:
(Tues 10/28)
RainSelling: Lessons:
Maximizing the Impact of Your Solution
Bringing New Reality to Life
Telling a Convincing Story
Balancing Advocacy and Inquiry
Find your persona
Find solution in Maximizing Sales Achievement
Research:
For the class periods 2 and 3 we will practice the sales skills you will be
learning through the RainSelling program. View and prepare the lessons.
In addition, you will need to do some preliminary research and analysis on
a fictitious sales scenario so that we can role-play in class. On the next
page of this syllabus, you will see a competitive analysis that was done a
few years ago on the cell phone industry. You can use this analysis to help
guide your research, as a template, if you will, for our computer role-play
scenario.
Please research the competitive pros and cons for a Fortune 500 company
whose IT department wants to standardize on either Apple or PC laptop
computers for its professionals worldwide and in all departments.
Consider the 5Cs, 4Ps and all other relevant factors.
You will not know which product you will represent in your sales efforts,
so your research must prepare you to effectively sell either product; more
instructions to follow. We will role-play in class. Be prepared.
Role-Play
Preparation: RAPPORT, DISCOVERY and QUALIFICATION
Using your competitive analysis of the Apple and PC laptops, prepare
yourself to meet and begin the selling process with a Fortune 500
company in your territory. The company has many divisions. These
divisions use their laptops in the widest array of possible applications. As
with most companies, the majority of users use the basic functions of a
laptop: processing documents, running spreadsheets, making
presentations, communicating electronically, etc.
The company would like to standardize on one laptop brand for ease of IT
support, including: software, service, and security considerations. You
will be paired with a classmate. Each student will be assigned one of the
two laptop types. You will role-play; taking turns to be the client and the
sales representative.
To prepare for the role play you will need to consider the issues that a
Fortune 500 company faces in its IT choices and the pros and cons of your
product, and those of your competitor. Really thinking through both
sides of the table will help your sales efforts. As we know, you have to
understand your customer to be an effective marketer and salesperson.
In this FIRST MEETING with your prospect, the OBJECTIVES are
RAPPORT, DISCOVERY and QUALIFICATION. We will handle
objections and closing techniques in the next class period. Focus on
establishing a good working rapport, and learning all that you can about
your prospects needs, challenges, buying criteria and buying process.
Make sure that this prospect is worth investing additional time.
Messaging
Competitive
Advantage
Strengths
Weaknesses
Product
(Flagship)
Pricing
Nokia
45%
Enabling
mobility by
offering a range
of phones for
different
stakeholders
World leader;
many devices
cover many
market
segments
Large scale,
good design,
and tight
operations
Exclusive focus
on hardware
(vs. software)
led to losing
share in smart
phones
Nokia N97
Moderate;
subsidized by
cell phone
carriers
Research In
Motion
Apple
HTC
19%
13%
6%
Focus on e-mail
for enterprise
Optimized for
e-mail;
government
approved
security
Focus on
enterprise core
business;
strong security
Stunning style
and design;
iPhone Apps;
Steve Jobs
Outstanding
brand. Stylish
design.
Profitable retail
operations.
Low levels of
resources; slow
traction in
consumer
market
BlackBerry
9700
Premium;
subsidized by
cell phone
carriers
No clear
succession plan
once Steve Jobs
leaves
Apple iPhone
3GS
Premium;
subsidized by
cell phone
carriers
Rapid evolution
of advanced
functionality,
for an "antiiPhone"
Leverage power
of Google
Android
operating
system
Solid hardware.
Partnerships
with Google
Android and
Palm webOS
Being sued by
Apple for
patent
infringements
Droid
Premium;
subsidized by
cell phone
carriers
Place
Promotion
Class #3:
Module:
Wide
Wide
distribution
Selective
distribution
through Alltel,
distribution
through Alltel,
AT&T, Qwest,
through TAT&T, BestBuy,
Spring, TMobile, Verizon, MetroPCS,
Mobile, U.S.
AT&T. Can also Sprint, T-Mobile,
Cellular,
purchase
U.S. Cellular,
Exclusive
Verizon. Can
unlocked
Verizon, Virgin, distribution via
also purchase
mobile phones
WalMart and
AT&T Wireless
at HTC online
online
more
Services
store
AT&T website;
Social media,
Advertise online
Apple website;
such as HTC
at nokia.com
Promotions
Steve Jobs
Wildfire Friend
and on carrier's through cellular keynote
Stream
website
carriers
speeches
promotion
Handling Objections and Closing Techniques
(Th 10/30)
Leading Masterful Sales Conversations
RainSelling: Lessons:
Overcoming Objections
Leading Sales Negotiations
Closing Sales
Role-play
Preparation: HANDLING OBJECTIONS and CLOSING TECHNIQUES
This is the follow up to the first set of meetings between you and your
prospect. In this role-play scenario, you will meet with your prospect to
address her needs and challenges with the features, functions and benefits
of your product and company. You will handle her OBJECTIONS and
make an effort to CLOSE the sale. As you did the last time, you will each
play the sales person and the Fortune 500 company prospect. You will
retain the laptop company assignment you were given the last time.
Class #4:
Module:
(Tues 11/4)
Class #5:
Module:
(Th 11/6)
Case:
DUE:
Questions:
1. What are the pros and cons of doing an OEM deal with EMC from
Michael Howards perspective? How might Howards list be different
from the boards list or from Mark Burtons perspective? What would
be the consequences to OuterBay if EMC did this type of deal with
Princeton?
2. From Scott Menzels perspective, what are the pros and cons of doing
a deal with OuterBay?
3. Based on EMCs initial offer, which terms, or combination of terms
give you the most concern, in other words, what are the potential deal
breakers from your perspective? What would you be willing to offer
on these terms to try to come to an agreement? Where do you walk
away? In other words, what deal terms go too far?
4. Assuming EMC and Outerbay can come to terms, what steps does
Mark Burton need to take in order to maximize value from the deal
while retaining an effective and motivated internal sales organization?
TO BE COMPLETED AFTER THE NEGOTIATION:
5. Which side of the negotiation did you play? Did you or did you not
come to an agreement? If so, spell out the terms of your agreement,
and explain your rationale. Are you satisfied with the outcome of your
negotiation? Why or why not?
Class #6:
Module:
(Tues 11/11)
Readings:
Case:
Questions:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Class #7:
Module:
Case:
Questions:
(Th 11/13)
Class #8:
Module:
All At Once
Selling In
(Tues 11/18)
Readings:
Case:
Questions:
Class #9:
Module:
DUE:
Case:
Questions:
(Th 11/20)
Class #10:
Module:
(Tues 11/25)
Case:
Questions:
Class #11:
Module:
Reading:
(Tues 12/2)
Class #12
Module:
(Th 12/4)
Readings:
Case:
Questions:
1. What are the main hurdles standing in the way of effective demand
Generation? What should Claereboudt and Gruenewald do to overcome these hurdles and build the demand generation engine theyre
trying to build?
2. What do you make of the gap that Charlie Ill talks about on p. 10 of
the case? What gives rise to this gap? Is this gap inevitable? What
are some of the implications of this gap?
3. What is the objective of Marketing? What is the objective of Sales?
How do we ensure that these objectives are aligned and reinforcing?
4. Once you come up with a plan for aligning Sales and Marketing, think
about how you might implement your plan in Avayas markets.
5. Look closely at Exhibit 7. If you were the sales manager in charge of
the Brazil market, how would you react to the fact that you converted
only 2.8% of Marketing leads to sales? If you were the marketing
manager, how would you react to the fact that only 30% of your leads
were accepted by Sales?