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Sales Success as Predicted by A Process Measure of Adaptability |
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| Authors: | Carolyn E Predmore Joseph G Bonnice |
| Institution: | 1. Carolyn E. Predmore is Assistant Professor of Marketing at Manhattan College. She received her Ph.D. from City University of New York in 1991. Dr. Predmore's areas of interest in research focus on sales, consumer behavior and the effect of consumer perceptions on their buying behavior. She has presented refereed papers at various conferences. She is a recipient of a Capalbo grant to aid in her research.;2. Joseph G. Bonnice is Associate Professor of Marketing at Manhattan College. He received his Ph.D. from New York University in 1984. His research interests include insurance, consumer behavior, marketing management, sales management, and marketing ethics. His research has appeared in Journal of Insurance Issues and Practices, Delta Pi Epsilon Journal and the Proceedings of the American Council on Consumer Interests, among others. |
| Abstract: | Previous studies of sales performance have not used process measures to evaluate the sales interaction as it occurred. The purposes of this paper are to propose the use of a process measure of adaptability and to determine whether observed adaptability behaviors could predict sales success. Salespeople's observed adaptability was positively related to two measures of sales success in a sample of telemarketing sales representatives.A process measure of adaptability could be used to facilitate the selection of sales trainees by encouraging marketers to hire people who exhibit more adaptability during interactions. Sales training could also be used to teach current salespeople to adjust their dominance levels in order to project more adaptability in sales interactions. |
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