Part 52 (2/2)

As a salesuained his customer's attention and confidence

But, with his nepoint andpermission to study the custo routine, or power plant--or whatever section of the latter's business is involved

The experience of the thick-spectacled inally he sold passenger cars Then came the ith factory facilities centered on er cars to sell, they switched him over into theto develop sales arguuht have been possible to demonstrate the superior construction of his motor truck; but competitors would meet point with point, and customers were not interested in technicalities anyway He tried service as an arguely a proht them, and competitors could always promise just as much, and a little more

Company reputation? His company had a fine one--but ht Price? No argument at all, because only one other concern reat an initial invest naturally serious and solid, began to dig into ot per a five-ton motor truck toJohnny play with a loaded un Such a vehicle co fro to routing and the number of hours employed; but it involved a daily expense of twenty-five dollars

The purchaser could lose ly: Hecapacity each day or would use it only half the year, during his busy season Or hesuch items as interest and depreciation

Thick-Specs' first actual sale was not a motor truck at all, but a motorcycle, made by another company Within threetrucks to a fleet of one dozen operated by a wholesale firood trucks, and kept theood But at least once daily there would be a road breakdown Usually this is a minor matter, but it ties up the truck while its puzzled driver tries to locate the trouble

When a e, drivers were forbidden to tamper with machinery on the road--they telephoned in to the superintendent By answering each call on his own motorcycle--about an hour daily--the repairood shape that valuable extra service was secured froinate this scheme hianization; in fact, this is the advantage the salese of ood wrinkle fros the outside point of view; and, because modern business runs toward narrow specialization, the outside point of view is pretty nearly alelcome, provided it is honest and sensible

In another case he had to dig and invent to meet a peculiar situation

There was a coal co under a handicap in household deliveries Where a residence stood back from the sidewalk coal had often to be carried fro nearly an hour A motor truck's time is worth several dollars hourly If the coal could have been du the truck, that would have saved expense and made more deliveries possible

A city ordinance prohibited du coal on the sidewalk except by pered But the salesures showing the expense and waste involved, secured a ot a blanket perainst abuse of the privilege Then a little old last year's runabout was bought and followed the coal trucks with a crew to carry the coal indoors, clearing sidewalks quickly

This salesman-adviser's philosophy was as si factor in selling, he reasoned Your customer will have confidence in you if he feels that you are square and also knohat you are talking about By diligent study of gasoline hauling problee and after that had only to apply his knowledge from the customer's side of the problem

”Put it another way,” he said: ”Suppose you had a factory and expected to run it only one year There would not be ti economies over a five-year period; but if you intended to run your factory on a five-year basis, then that hly profitable

”In sales work it was just the sa for this year's profit alone, you'd close every sale regardless of your customer's welfare Let the purchaser beware! But if you meant to sell on the five-year basis, then confidence is the big investment, and the most profitable sale very often one you refuse towhen the draft reached hiht e of gasoline transportation as an expert in Uncle Saed he returned to his job and his customers, and to-day the concern hich he is connected is taking steps to put all its motor-truck salesmen on this advisory basis

War shot its sales force to pieces--the Army and the Navy reached out forto sell

But war also gave a clean slate for planning a new sales force

As old salesmen return and new men are taken on for sales instruction, this concern trains them--not with the old sales uasoline hauling proble methods of contractors, department stores, wholesale ht, ate the kinds and quantities of stuff to be e facilities They ride behind typical loads and check up running tiasoline and oil consu teaches people to think in curves This youngster had tobefore he could visualize it himself His curve included factors like increase in stuff that had been hauled during the past three years and additions to theany business activity, the logical thing to do, after bringing it right down to date, is to let it run out into the future at its own angle This was done with the grocery curve, and its future extension indicated that not rocery house would need about four ation of facts behind the curve revealed an unusual growth in sugar hauling, due to the increase in supply and rerocery concern bought additional trucks for sugar within two ht ht safely have ordered the trucks without his custoe and driven them up to his door the day the curve showed they were needed

”Here are the trucks you wanted to haul that sugar”

”Good work! Drive 'em in!”

What has been found to be sound sales policy in the motor truck business applies to many other lines Yesterday the salesue and a snorance of the technical proble is under suspicion, because purchasers of technical equip points and left to work out for the to therecent years a large nu purposes Purchasers bought froue-and-smile type of salesman, hooked their pumps up to a power plant--and found that they lifted only about half the nuue Manufacturers honestly believed those pus They had not allowed for variations in capacity where pumps were installed under many different conditions and run by different ation at the custoht to be rated with an allowance for loss of capacity a half to two-thirds of the power, due to friction and lost power

It ain in an irrigation district where a lot of his puue and sineer appeared from the pump company to help customers out of their difficulties, he won confidence immediately and made additional sales because people felt that he knehat he was talking about