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Concept
Personal selling
Summary
Personal selling occurs when a sales representative meets with a potential client for the purpose of transacting a sale. Many sales representatives rely on a sequential sales process that typically includes nine steps. Some sales representatives develop scripts for all or part of the sales process. The sales process can be used in face-to-face encounters and in telemarketing.
Personal selling can be defined as "the process of person-to-person communication between a salesperson and a prospective customer, in which the former learns about the customer's needs and seeks to satisfy those needs by offering the customer the opportunity to buy something of value, such as a good or service". The term may also be used to describe a situation where a company uses a sales force as one of the main ways it communicates with customers.
The earliest forms of exchange involved bartering systems. However, the advent of coinage enabled exchange to occur more efficiently and over much larger distances. The earliest references to selling, involving coin-based exchange, comes from Herodotus who noted that "The Lydians were the first people we know of to use a gold and silver coinage and to introduce the retail trade." This implies that selling and buying, originated in the 7th century BCE, in the area now known as Turkey. From there, selling spread along Mediterranean, and then diffused throughout the civilized world.
The Socratic philosophers expressed some concerns about the new type of selling in around the 4th century BCE. Their commentary was primarily concerned with potential disruption of the more social aspects of selling. Traditional forms of exchange encouraged a social perspective - emphasizing the social bonds that united members of a society. For example, during periods of drought or famine, individuals shared in the plight of their neighbours. However, the advent of this new form of selling encouraged a focus on the individual such that in times of scarcity, sellers raised their prices.
During the Medieval period, trade underwent further changes.
Official source
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