SOURCES OF SALES FORCE

RECRUITMENT
 SOURCES WITHIN THE COMPANY
Recommendations
By company sales personnel
o For friends and acquaintance with similar interest
+Sales personnel continually meet new people
+ Know something about company
+Valuable for remote territories where local sources are more effective than main office
recruitment
By company executives
o By sales manager, President and higher level executives
+Yield top calibre people due to their understanding of needed qualifications
+Not based on friendships
Internal Transfers
o From other departments and non-selling section of sales department
+Familiar with company policies
+Personnel has detailed information about them
+Possess excellent product knowledge
-Need sales training
 SOURCES OUTSIDE THE COMPANY
Direct unsolicited applications
o Not asked for walk in and write in
+Managers favour those who take initiatives since it indicates aggressive selling
-Some desist due to the low proportion of qualified applicants
+Best way is to set certain criteria/minimum requirements in the job specification
-The volume fluctuates due to certain dynamic reasons
Employment agencies
o Recruiter meets agency counsellor to communicate the need
-Unpromising sources
-Agencies oriented towards mass recruitment to get placement fees
-Leave out on unique requirements
+New agencies administer tests ,check references and perform other tasks to insure
the interests of recruiter are met
 Sales people make call to company
o Purchase direct in contact with salesperson of other companies act as point of
contact
+High calibre and high potential people
+The recruiter has seen the person presenting in front of prospect
Employee of customer
o Customers recommend people in their organisations who have reached the
maximum potential of their existing jobs
o Need prior approval of customer
+Favourable impact on Customers morale
Sales executives clubs
o Salesperson seeking new positions submit their personal data sheets that are
duplicated and forwarded to members
+Sales executives have opportunities for informal discussion and exchange
information
 Sales force non-competing companies
o Attractive recruiting prospect
+Have selling experience in related industries
+For sales person in dead end jobs seeking upgrade in employment
Sales force of competing companies
+Have experience in similar market
+Minimal training
-Costly source, policy of other organisation
-Know the reason for switching companies
Educational institutions
o Includes colleges and universities, community colleges, vocational-technical institutes,
business schools etc.
o Need certain training in general business
o High competitions even among the top recruiters as it is difficult to attract students
 Older persons
o Age discrimination in employment act prohibits discrimination in hiring decisions
against persons 40-70 years of age
+Valuable Maturity and years of selling experience in different selling situations
+Immense industry knowledge
The pre-recruiting reservoir
o Companies have a pool of application and prospects to meet urgent
recruitment
o They do it by simultaneously collecting information of potential sales person
o Volunteer walk-ins people who inquire about job opportunities
o Chance remarks made by people with whom sales executives come into
contact at professional meeting/conversations with customers/informal
meets
o Centre of influence- person who meets individuals who have high potentials
as possible sales personnel and who often seek for job opportunities.
Example: University professor of marketing and sales management, trade
association executive etc.
o Names in pre-recruiting reservoir needs to be reviewed periodically to escape
outdated information
RECRUITING SOURCE EVALUATION
Analysis of each source reveals no. of recruits produced
Analysed quantatively and qualitatively
Ratio of success to failure
One source may provide numerous recruits but few success
Source # of recruits % of total # of success Ratio of success to
total
Recommendation 22 30 17 0.77

Agency 5 6.25 2 0.4

Customer employees 6 7.5 3 0.5