Introduction to Passive Representation
Passive sales representatives tend to fall into one of two categories:
- The shopkeeper
- The repairman
Here's a bit more about each type.
The Shopkeeper
The Shopkeeper
Some passive representatives can be classified as shopkeepers.
Shopkeepers are basically order takers.
An inside order taker is the retail sales assistant. The customer has full freedom to choose products without the presence of a salesperson. The sales assistant's task is purely transactional: receiving payment and passing over the goods. Another type of order taker is the telemarketing sales team, which supports field sales by taking customers' orders over the telephone.
Delivery salespeople's tasks are primarily concerned with delivering the product. In the UK, milk, newspapers, and magazines are delivered to the door. However, there is little attempt to persuade the household to increase the milk order or number of newspapers taken; changes in order size are customer driven.
Outside order takers are unlike inside order takers; these salespeople visit the customer but primarily respond to customer requests rather than actively seek to persuade. Unlike delivery salespeople, outside order takers do not deliver.
Outside order takers are a dying breed, and are being replaced by the more cost-effective telemarketing teams.
The Repairman
The repairman is, in essence, a technical shopkeeper. Like the shopkeeper, the repairman loves to help people and may end up making a sale, but with one caveat. The people they are dealing with have to be technical in nature, just like them. Otherwise, the repairman the the customer won't understand each other because the repairman can only talk "tech talk. "