Chapter Summary

All human behavior starts with motivation. That is, the reason people act in a certain way is that they are motivated to do so. Motivation is the desire to expend effort to fulfill an aroused need. Sales managers are interested in the effort salespeople desire to expend on various activities or tasks associated with the sales job.

Sales executives generally agree that effective motivation of a sales force is essential to the success of any sales organization. The problem lies in finding the right combination of motivators for any given group of salespeople. Motivating a sales force is difficult because of the unique nature of the sales job. Also, each rep is an individual who responds in his or her own way to a given motivator. Another motivational difficulty occurs when there is a conflict in management’s sales goals. Finally, changes in the market or selling environment pose motivational problems.

To motivate salespeople, managers must first understand their needs. Both Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory and Hertzberg’s dual-factor theory help managers understand the kinds of needs salespeople have. Managers must also understand how their sales reps evaluate rewards. Salespeople will ask themselves: Are the rewards worth the effort? Are they equitable? Salespeople must also believe that rewards are based on performance.

Managers must make sure that salespeople not only know what is expected but also understand what kinds of activities will lead to better performance. Role theory helps managers understand that salespeople often experience role ambiguity and role conflict due to the nature of their jobs. This can make it difficult for the reps to understand management’s priorities for sales performance.

Management’s task is to select the right combination of motivators—the right motivational mix for a given sales force. Motivational tools fall into two categories: financial rewards, such as compensation, travel, merchandise, and sales contests; and nonfinancial rewards. Nonfinancial rewards include job enrichment, recognition and honors, promotions, encouragement and praise, and support from the corporate culture. Sales meetings are another method commonly used to motivate salespeople.

In the future, the problem of plateaued salespeople will continue to challenge managers. It is important that managers recognize the symptoms of plateauing and work with their plateaued reps to overcome these problems. Sales force segmentation—a system in which people are grouped according to their motivational needs and different rewards are offered to each group—provides an innovative approach to the challenge of motivating salespeople.

It is important to remember that motivation is only one component of successful sales performance. Motivational policies must be incorporated into a well-planned and well-executed sales management program.