Sales & Distribution An Application
to Efficiently & Effectively Manage your
Product S&D process.
Sales refers to the exchange of goods or services for an amount of money or its equivalent in kind. Selling helps an organization achieve its business goals. Thus, managing sales in an organization is a critical activity. A sales manager needs to ensure that the salespeople are motivated to perform the selling function in a way that will help the organization attain its goals.
The sales team continuously monitors the changes taking place in the external environment regarding competitors, customers, government and other regulatory agencies, advances in technology, and industry trends. This provides the sales personnel with vital information regarding trends in organizational sales, product development, and budgets.
By offering the management vital inputs pertaining to such information, the sales team helps the management to develop plans regarding sales, production, and design. Over the years, substantial changes have taken place in the selling environment, leading to changes in the sales function.
The trends that have shaped the sales function include shorter product life cycles, longer and more complex sales cycles, reduced customer loyalty, intense competition among manufacturing firms, rising customer expectations, increasing buyer expertise, electronic revolution in communications, and the entry of women into the sales force.
In addition to having a strong sales function, companies should also have efficient distribution channels to make the products available to the end consumer. Management of distribution channels involves efficient channel design, conflict management and implementation of sophisticated channel information systems which will enhance the process of making the products available to the end consumer in a timely manner.
