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Chapter Seven—Sales Dialogue: Creating and
Communicating Value
Learning Outcomes
After completing this chapter, you should be able to:
1. describe the key characteristics of effective sales dialogue.
2. explain how salespeople can generate feedback from buyers.
3. discuss how salespeople use confirmed benefits to create customer value.
4. describe how verbal support can be used to communicate value in an interesting and
understandable manner.
5. discuss how sales aids can engage and involve buyers.
6. explain how salespeople can support product claims.
7. discuss the special considerations involved in sales dialogue with groups.
Chapter Outline
I. Introduction
II. Effective Sales Dialogue
III. Encouraging Buyer Feedback
IV. Creating Customer Value
V. Interesting and Understandable Sales Dialogue
A. Voice Characteristics
B. Examples and Anecdotes
C. Comparisons and Analogies
VI. Engaging and Involving the Buyer
A. Types of Sales Aids
B. Visual Materials
C. Electronic Materials
D. Product Demonstrations
E. Using Sales Aids in the Presentation
F. State the Selling Point and Introduce the Sales Aid
G. Present the Sales Aid
H. Explain the Sales Aid
I. Summarize
VII. Supporting Product Claims
A. Statistics
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B. Testimonials
C. Case Histories
VIII. Group Sales Dialogue
A. Sales Tactics for Selling to Groups
B. Arrival Tactics
C. Eye Contact
D. Communications Tips
E. Handling Questions in Group Dialogue
Exercises
Developing Professional Selling Knowledge
1. What are the key characteristics of effective sales dialogue?
The key characteristics of effective sales dialogue include the following:
• Are planned and practiced by salespeople
2. What are the advantages of using response-checks during a sales dialogue?
Response-checks increase buyer interaction enable salespeople to understand what the
3. What is the relationship between confirmed benefits and customer value?
Confirmed benefits are the benefits that the buyer indicates are important and represent
4. How can salespeople make sales dialogue interesting and understandable to buyers?
Salespeople can make sales dialogue interesting and understandable by developing and
incorporating sales aids/tools that grab the buyer’s attention. Types of sales aids/tools
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5. What are the advantages and disadvantages of the different types of sales aids?
Students’ answers will vary, but they should include something similar to the examples
below in their answers.
Visual Materials
• Advantages—easy to carry; can be left behind easily; and can present complex
Electronic Materials
• Advantages—greater sensory presentation of materials; low costs involved in
Product Demonstrations
• Advantages—engage the buyer directly; gives the buyer the opportunity to see the
6. How can electronic materials be used as sales aids?
Electronic materials include slides, videos, or other multimedia presentations. They can be
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7. What are the four stages of the SPES Sequence for using sales aids effectively?
Following are the four stages of the SPES Sequence for using sales aids effectively:
The SPES Sequence is designed to facilitate the effectiveness of sales tools and aids by
providing a clear structure for introducing, presenting, explaining, and summarizing the
8. How can testimonials be used to support product claims?
Salespeople use testimonials to support product claims when the testimonials are relevant
9. What are the key challenges of selling to groups versus individuals?
Selling to a group is more challenging than selling to an individual because the salesperson
is working simultaneously with people possessing different personalities, communication
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10. How should salespeople handle questions during a group dialogue?
Group Activity
Divide the class into groups of three to five. Each group assumes the role of a salesperson for the
CanDo Laptop Company selling laptops to a small firm that wants to equip its salesforce with
laptop computers. Previous meetings with the buyer indicate that its salespeople need laptops
that are easy to transport and allow salespeople to show multimedia segments during a sales
dialogue. CanDo laptops excel in each of these areas. Each group should identify one sales aid to
use for each confirmed benefit and explain how the sales aid would be used during a sales
dialogue.
Experiential Exercises
1. Interesting and Understandable Sales Dialogue
Objective: To help students understand how examples, anecdotes, comparisons, and analogies
can be used effectively to make sales dialogue more interesting and understandable for the buyer.
Time Required: 30 to 40 minutes
Teaching Tip: Provide the class with a benefit statement such as: “XYZ copiers are the most
dependable copiers on the market.” Ask students to create examples, anecdotes, comparisons,
and analogies to make this statement more interesting and understandable. Then, have 2–3
students present their ideas for each element and discuss these in class. You can then compare
the different elements and have the class determine the best example, anecdote, comparison, and
analogy presented during the class session and why it was effective.
2. Individual or Group Sales Dialogue for Getting a Job
Objective: To help students understand the key differences between individual and group sales
dialogue.
Time Required: 20 to 30 minutes
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Teaching Tip: This exercise works best if it is assigned during the prior class. Ask each student
to come to class with an outline of a sales dialogue to be used in an individual job interview.
During the beginning of class, have 2-3 students present their individual sales dialogue outline to
the class. Sometimes companies conduct group job interviews. Instruct the students to assume
that they have a group job interview tomorrow and have them suggest the key things they need to
do to make this group job interview successful. End the class with a summary of the most
important points presented.
Chapter 7 Case
Office Furniture Company
Background
The Office Furniture Company specializes in providing customer with office furniture solutions
that are customized and designed to address productivity and aesthetic needs. It sells office
furniture from the leading manufacturers, but creates value by analyzing the specific needs of
each customer and then developing a customized design to meet these needs. There are several
competitors in the office furniture industry, but most of them focus on low prices. Customers
usually pay more for an Office Furniture Company solution, but receive more value in terms of
increased productivity and business effectiveness.
Current Situation
Naiser & Associates is a small, but growing accounting firm. The company plans to add more
office staff and to increase the number of its accountants. This planned growth means that the
firm will have to find new office space, because it will have outgrown its current location.
Because it plans continued growth in the future, it is looking for a new office that will
accommodate current and future growth objectives. Naiser & Associates also wants to purchase
new and better furniture for its new office.
You are a sales representative for the Office Furniture Company and have been meeting with
partner, Frank Naiser, as well as accountants and staff at Naiser & Associates. Based on these
meetings, you have identified the following office furniture needs:
1. Naiser & Associates has typically met with clients at their offices. It would like to have
most client meetings in the future at its new office. This means they desire furniture for
these meetings that facilitates these meetings and communicates a professional and
customer-friendly image.
2. Their current office furniture did not provide much storage for accountants or staff. Thus,
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important documents were stored at the end of a long hallway. Employees wasted a lot of
time trying to retrieve important documents. Thus, they desire furniture that provides more
storage for each employee.
3. Technology is changing at a rapid pace, so furniture that can be easily adapted to new
technologies is very important.
4. As Naiser & Associates continues to grow, it will probably have to reorganize itself and is
likely to need to adapt the physical office to different organizational arrangements. Office
furniture that is adaptable to different configurations is important.
You have created an office equipment design for Naiser & Associates that addresses each of the
issues presented above and are preparing for a meeting with the partner, Frank Naiser, the office
manager and a representative for the firm’s accountants. You know that a competitor has already
made a presentation to the same group and their offer will cost less than what you will be able to
charge.
Questions
1. How will you try overcoming the lower price offer by a competitor?
The Office Furniture Company creates value by analyzing the specific needs of each
2. What specific value can you offer Naiser & Associates?
As a sales representative of the Office Furniture Company, you could provide value by
3. How can you most effectively communicate the value of your proposed office equipment
design?
Effective communication can happen through an effective sales dialogue. The most effective
sales dialogues:
• Are planned and practiced by salespeople
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4. What sales aids could you use to make your presentation more engaging and effective?
Role Play
Situation: Read the Office Equipment Company case
Characters: Frank Naiser, partner; Jennifer Hamman, office manager; Jessica Attaway,
accountant representative
Scene:
Location—Current Naiser & Associates office
Action—Role play this meeting. Be sure to address the specific needs identified earlier, to
communicate effectively with each person in the meeting, and to incorporate sales aids
appropriately.
Questions
After completing the role plays, address the following questions:
1. How would you evaluate the role play in terms of interesting, understandable, and
engaging sales dialogue?
2. How well did you involve each person in the meeting? What improvements would you
recommend?
3. Evaluate the effectiveness of each sales aid used? What improvements in the use of sales
aids would you recommend?
Chapter 7 Role Play
All Risk Insurance and National Network
Background
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The All Risk Insurance Company has 3,200 sales agents spread across five regions that cover the
United States. They are moving toward the development of a national network that would tie
each of the agent offices together with the regional offices and corporate headquarters. The
improved communication capability will allow all company personnel to have full access to
customer records and form the core of a comprehensive customer relationship management
system that is to be rolled out in 18 months.
Current Situation
Jim Roberts is a network account specialist for National Networks, a specialist in large corporate
network solutions, and has been working with the technology-buying group at All Risk Insurance
for several months now. Roberts has worked through several meetings with the buying group
members and has a meeting scheduled for next Wednesday to present his recommendations and
demonstrate why they should select National Networks as the supplier for this sizable project.
Joyce Fields (director of information systems), John Harris (comptroller and CFO), Mike Davis
(Director of Agent Services), and Dianne Sheffield (Director for Customer Services) will make
the final decision. Roberts also knows that there is one other competitor who will be making a
presentation in hopes of landing the project. The equipment both vendors are proposing is
virtually identical due to the detailed specifications that All Risk Insurance had included in the
RFP. Prices are also likely to be pretty similar. The decision will most likely come down to the
services each competitor includes in their proposals. Based on the information that Roberts has
collected from different sources, he has come up with a comparison of customer services of
National Networks and the competitor (see the table on the following page) offer.
Role Play
Situation: Read “All Risk Insurance and National Networks” background and current situation.
Characters: Jim Roberts—salesperson for National Networks; Joyce Fields—director of
information systems for All Risk Insurance; John Harris—comptroller and CFO for All Risk
Insurance; Mike Davis—director of agent services for All Risk Insurance; Dianne Sheffield—
director for customer services for All Risk Insurance
Scene: Location—A conference room at All Risk Insurance.
Action—As described, Jim Roberts is presenting the National Networks proposal for a corporate
computer network linking All Risk Insurance’s corporate offices with each of its five regional
offices and 3,200 sales agents out in the field.
Role play Roberts’s presentation of each of the feature-benefit sets incorporating sales aids
suitable for use in the group presentation.
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Features
Capability of
National Networks
Capability of
Competitor
Benefits
Service and repair
centers
175 affiliated service
and repair centers
across the United
States
21 affiliated service
and repair centers
across the United
States
Ensures fast and
reliable repairs for
hardware and
software
Installation and
testing
Installation and
testing done by
National Networks
employees
Installation and
testing outsourced to
several different
companies
Knowledge that all
installations will be
done the right way
Customer call center
24 hours, 7 days per
week, and staffed by
National Networks
employees
24 hours, 7 days per
week, and staffed by
an outsource
commercial provider
Knowledgeable staff
always available to
assist All Risk
Insurance employees
with problems
Chapter 7 Continuing Case
Up for the Challenge
Brenda has a meeting today with the office manager at the law firm Abercrombie and Wilson
(A&L). A&L is a local law firm with five attorneys and one main office. During her initial
telephone conversation, the office manager indicated that the firm was reasonably satisfied with
their current copiers, but that he was always looking for ways to increase office productivity. He
also mentioned that he was a little concerned that the firm was paying for many copier features
that were not really used. The law firm needed to make a lot of legal-sized copies, and be able to
collate and staple them. There was little need for other “bells and whistles.” It was also important
that a copier was dependable, because the law firm made many copies each day. When the copier
did break down, fast service was needed to get it repaired as soon as possible.
The office manager had some familiarity with NCC products and was eager to talk to Brenda.
However, he made it clear that any decision to switch to NCC copiers would require that Brenda
also meet with the attorneys and office personnel to get their approval. If Brenda convinced him
that NCC copiers would increase office productivity at the law firm, he would be glad to set up a
meeting for her with the attorneys and office personnel.
Brenda is excited about this opportunity. She knows that NCC copiers are very dependable and
that NCC provides exceptional service. She can also offer the law firm a copier with the specific
features A&L desires.
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Questions
1. Prepare the sales dialogue Brenda might employ to use as an example and an anecdote to
communicate the dependability of NCC copiers to the office manager.
Students’ answers will vary. Examples should be relatively short and should not refer to a
real event. Anecdotes are short-stories that refer to a specific incident or occurrence. Below
are sample answers.
2. Brenda will not be able to demonstrate a copier during this sales call. So, describe the types
of sales aids she should use to show the buyer an NCC copier with the exact features
desired.
Students’ answers will vary but should include some reference to using a model, a picture,
3. How can Brenda best use statistics and testimonials to support the excellent service
provided by NCC?
Brenda can present service call response data incorporating the average time it took
(historically) to get a repair technician on-site once a call was placed, and the average time
4. Brenda did a terrific job in her sales call with the office manager. He is interested in NCC
copiers and has scheduled a meeting for Brenda with the five attorneys and the office
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personnel. Discuss the major things Brenda should do during her sales call to this group.
First, Brenda should be prepared to work with and present to people with different needs,
communication styles, and concerns. To help alleviate this issue, if possible and