Page 14 - Journal of Strategic Marketing Magazine - January 2019
P. 14
SALES
Death of all salesmen: Waiting for
the final curtain to fall?
Stephen Endersby questions the role of the modern salesman, asking if, like Death of
a Salesman’s Willy Loman, they’re waiting for the final curtain to fall. Or whether the
digital stage offers a new world of opportunity.
I n February 1949 Arthur Miller’s most our role to better suit a newly- authority and consequentially, not
designed stage?
entirely or immediately trusted,
famous and now much celebrated
today’s sales professional irst has to
play, Death of a Salesman, irst
In exploring these questions, I will
opened at the Morosco Theatre on
with his prospective client before
Broadway. The story focuses on the last revisit themes from Miller’s play. establish and nurture a relationship
24 hours of salesman Willy Loman’s Loss of identity any real attempt to sell can be made.
life, tackling major themes including In a bygone small-town era, the Establishing rapport, insight into a
loss of identity, supericial ideals and salesman was a familiar, trusted client’s needs and establishing trust –
a man’s appetite for accepting change and uncontested go-to authority, the basis for any healthy relationship
within himself and society. relied upon to facilitate purchases. takes time, tenacity and patience. Three
In some respects, those of us An individual or organisation had a things that are the antithesis of typical
engaged in sales roles of one kind or speciic need, engaged the expertise sales success metrics which reward,
another may ind ourselves grappling of the salesman, who likely had a and are typically based on conversion
with the same issues faced by Willy in relatively limited basket of available rates, quarterly or more frequent
his tumultuous inal hours. solutions and readily helped fulil the performance cycles and perpetually
Sales is a vocation under assault.
What is the role of the modern sales
professional? Are the practitioners Sales people often get a bad rap,
of the craft viewed with respect and
admiration, revered for their integrity accused of being nothing more than
and value-adding contribution? Or gloriied order takers, or commission
are they reviled as unnecessary evils
charged with misdirection and blinded junkies
by the lure of attractive commissions?
The onset of the digital age
has radically reshaped business, requirement based on their knowledge increasing revenue targets. In an age of
exponentially exploding information, and experience. Customers and global supply, unprecedented choice
choice and product availability salesmen may often have known each and a raft of strangers claiming to be
and ushering in a fourth industrial other personally and fostered enduring experts offering tailored solutions, it
revolution. This has brought with it relationships cemented by ongoing stands to reason that buyers lack a
unprecedented automation, rampant interactions and a deep understanding clearly deined view of sales people,
adoption of artiicial intelligences (AIs) of one another’s respective businesses often demonstrating a healthy degree
and has birthed an alternate world and expertise. of scepticism towards their suiters.
exempliied by virtual and augmented Fast forward to today and the
realities. role of the salesman appears far Supericial ideals
Are we facing our sunset, the less simple. No longer a familiar or The hedonistic ‘80s, characterised by
twilight of the profession, or is there known individual, often questionable the rise of mass media, domination
opportunity to reimagine and recast in terms of being an uncontested of global brands and runaway
p12 - Strategic Marketing
Death of all salesmen: Waiting for
the final curtain to fall?
Stephen Endersby questions the role of the modern salesman, asking if, like Death of
a Salesman’s Willy Loman, they’re waiting for the final curtain to fall. Or whether the
digital stage offers a new world of opportunity.
I n February 1949 Arthur Miller’s most our role to better suit a newly- authority and consequentially, not
designed stage?
entirely or immediately trusted,
famous and now much celebrated
today’s sales professional irst has to
play, Death of a Salesman, irst
In exploring these questions, I will
opened at the Morosco Theatre on
with his prospective client before
Broadway. The story focuses on the last revisit themes from Miller’s play. establish and nurture a relationship
24 hours of salesman Willy Loman’s Loss of identity any real attempt to sell can be made.
life, tackling major themes including In a bygone small-town era, the Establishing rapport, insight into a
loss of identity, supericial ideals and salesman was a familiar, trusted client’s needs and establishing trust –
a man’s appetite for accepting change and uncontested go-to authority, the basis for any healthy relationship
within himself and society. relied upon to facilitate purchases. takes time, tenacity and patience. Three
In some respects, those of us An individual or organisation had a things that are the antithesis of typical
engaged in sales roles of one kind or speciic need, engaged the expertise sales success metrics which reward,
another may ind ourselves grappling of the salesman, who likely had a and are typically based on conversion
with the same issues faced by Willy in relatively limited basket of available rates, quarterly or more frequent
his tumultuous inal hours. solutions and readily helped fulil the performance cycles and perpetually
Sales is a vocation under assault.
What is the role of the modern sales
professional? Are the practitioners Sales people often get a bad rap,
of the craft viewed with respect and
admiration, revered for their integrity accused of being nothing more than
and value-adding contribution? Or gloriied order takers, or commission
are they reviled as unnecessary evils
charged with misdirection and blinded junkies
by the lure of attractive commissions?
The onset of the digital age
has radically reshaped business, requirement based on their knowledge increasing revenue targets. In an age of
exponentially exploding information, and experience. Customers and global supply, unprecedented choice
choice and product availability salesmen may often have known each and a raft of strangers claiming to be
and ushering in a fourth industrial other personally and fostered enduring experts offering tailored solutions, it
revolution. This has brought with it relationships cemented by ongoing stands to reason that buyers lack a
unprecedented automation, rampant interactions and a deep understanding clearly deined view of sales people,
adoption of artiicial intelligences (AIs) of one another’s respective businesses often demonstrating a healthy degree
and has birthed an alternate world and expertise. of scepticism towards their suiters.
exempliied by virtual and augmented Fast forward to today and the
realities. role of the salesman appears far Supericial ideals
Are we facing our sunset, the less simple. No longer a familiar or The hedonistic ‘80s, characterised by
twilight of the profession, or is there known individual, often questionable the rise of mass media, domination
opportunity to reimagine and recast in terms of being an uncontested of global brands and runaway
p12 - Strategic Marketing
