Wednesday, November 12, 2014

essay from other course (sales and selling management)



Introduction


Background

In the 1970s, Cosatto came to England where it has grown up into one of the world's leading Nursery Brands. Cosatto went on to design pushchairs, prams, highchairs, maternity goods, nursery equipment. In 2003, The Supercover Group purchased Cosatto having worked with the team for many years. We have not forgotten how Cosatto first begun, and the principles of the Brand has grown are value for money, quality and safety. Nowadays we add a generous helping of personality to our products so they make you smile, offer you practical solutions but will not break the bank!

Pre-call Preparation


Industry Trends and Relevant Technology


Currently, in the industry trends of baby cots, there are several technologies that are infused to the baby cots to attract more people to buy these baby cots. Some of it includes video monitoring, air circulation devices, automatic rocking of baby cots and convertible-to-beds baby cots.

Product Description


The product that we are intending to sell infuses several technologies and nursery products together so as to make it more value for money as costs could be saved on buying individual nursery products. The name of our product is “Sleep.Walk”.  The product is actually a multi function baby cot with 2 built in cots, one with automatic rocking sensor, a built-in cabinet, music player; milk warmer, luminous cot toy stand and the cots’ railing (Refer to appendix 1). There is actually two built in cots. The smaller cot is for babies who are newly born while the larger cot is for toddlers.

The motion sensor on the cot to monitor the movements of the infant before it activates the automatic rocking of the smaller cot. This ensures a better sleep for babies and a more undisturbed night for the parents. This is because rocking is one of the most natural ways of easing a child to sleep. The “Sleep.Walk.” incorporates a rocking mechanism which simulates the natural rocking motion of a baby in a mothers’ arms. The rocking can be used to help establish a child's regular sleeping pattern when used as part of a bedtime routine, and therefore parents too! The automatic rocking cot is detachable from the baby cot itself, so when the baby grows up to an older age, he or she is still able to use the cot.

The milk warmer would maintain the milk at optimal temperature suitable for baby immediate consumption.  This means that when a baby is hungry, the parent could feed the baby immediately without the need to spend time warming the milk.

Researchers have shown that music aids in the brain development of babies. Many parents would be keen to coax their babies to sleep with the help of music. Hence, a detachable music player which can be attached to either the walking aid or baby cot would be very handy.

Luminous plastic material of the cot toy stand and cot railing allows parents to see their baby without turning on main room lights and waking them up. Furthermore, it more feasible than using lighting as it helps to save electricity.

At one end of the cot, there is a compartment that is detachable and on this Detachable compartment is a foldable walking aid which saves storage space.  (Refer to appendix 1 for the products’ picture)

Finally, the cabinets make use of space that would normally waste, allowing for convenient access to blankets or to just stow away clutter.

Main Competitors


The main competitors are mainly, Tutti Bambini, Boori and Gro time. Tutti Bambini offers wardrobes, chairs, toys and beds mostly for infants. Boori specializes in nursery furniture, while Gro time offers nursery furniture and other relevant equipments.

Prospecting and Pre-approach


Firstly, our target customers are both in the form of business to business and business to consumers. For business to business we intend to sell it to specialty stores and departmental stores that offers baby cots or other nursery products. For business to consumer we intend to sell it to mostly new parents or parents-to-be.

There are several prospecting methods that we are using. Firstly is the use of endless chain. We chose this method because it saves time since it hit the right customer targets. It also allows the salesperson to gain trust much more easily and much more quickly. This is because recommendations are usually made to another person only when the person received good services from the sales person. When a person uses our product and find the function very useful or the product is very value for money, the person would definitely recommend it to her friends, relatives or other people. The endless chain of recommendations then continues when recommendation is made again and again.

Also, we will be using newspapers and baby magazine to prospect consumers such as pregnant women and especially first time fathers or mothers that reads these magazines or read newspaper for advice on maternity related information. Advertisement on our product could be placed on the magazines. This might attract the people that are reading these magazines to call in for more information on the product that is advertised and most likely the target market would be spot on as people usually only call in if they need the product and has enquiries on the product. Direct mail would also be used to prospect not only departmental stores but the also the customers through the customers’ records. Colourful and detailed pictures and information about the product could be mailed to the customers to attract their attention on the new product. Departmental store that receive this mail might also be attracted to the product and analyse if the product is feasible for sale in their stores that might help them in earning revenue. Then, the departmental store will then make a decision if they want to hold this product in their store.



For consumers, the information that we will obtain before the approach of consumer prospects is age and marital status, the characteristics of our target market are easily identifiable with these information collected. For companies, the information that we will obtain is the company’s target customers, products, store traffic, reputation, sales volume and purchase volume. Only with this information, then we can find out the feasibility of these companies being able to sell our product to their customers.

The Approach


When we approached our prospect, we start with a mixture of two different approaches, the product approach and offering a benefit. “Our company has come out with a new product “Sleep.Walk”, discovered by a group of talented researchers”. Then, we continue by saying “With the purchase of our “Sleep.Walk”, a fusion of different products, you can save cost. This approach would firstly attract the attention of the prospect when they find out that there is a new product that they might have never come across before in the market and with the name mentioned to them, they might be even more curious to find out what the product is about. Then, after mentioning the cost saving abilities of the product, the prospect would be even more curious and excited and would be very keen to find out what is the product and how it would help them save costs and the multi-functions that is infused in this particular product.

 

Problem Recognition


After the approach, we will then attempt to find out the customers’ need.  To make sure that the customer’s needs are related to our product, we would start by asking “Are you looking for baby furniture?”, before any further questions on the customers understanding is asked. This is to make sure that the need of the customer is looking for is related to our product, and not other maternity goods. If the customer replies with a yes, continue with the information flow, by asking “What type of furniture are you looking for?” This is to make sure that the customer is looking for a baby cot or other related products. If this misunderstanding is not cleared, time might be wasted in promoting goods that the customer is not intending to get. If the customer replies that he need a baby cot or other related furniture, we then would check the customer understanding by asking for the customer’s rough budget. “Would a multi-function baby cot at S$1200 be within your budget?” Then, confirm the problem and clear up any misunderstanding by confirming with the customer by summarizing. “I would like to summarise that you would want a multi-functioned baby cot, priced between S$1000 to S$1200, have I made any errors in interpretation? The customer most likely would see the product at around 1000 dollars so when summarising the price range, the higher range must be above the price of the product and the price of the product must be close to the lower range.

Sales Presentation

Since “Sleep.Walk.” is a new product with special features, we will be using product demonstration and comparison technique to promote it to our potential customers.

Product Demonstration

During the presentation, we will be showing all the special features of “Sleep.Walk” and how to operate them in front of the customers. More time would be spent to emphasis more on features that matches the customer needs, For example, we would emphasis on the detachable music player that could be placed both on the cot and the walking aid. Questions would also be asked to ensure the customer understand each features and benefit. Furthermore, customers are also encouraged to try the cot themselves so as to allow them to have a hands on experience on how user friendly the cot is.

Flyers showing product picture with highlighted key features, product and company profile, awards, test reports and testimonials, contact number and ordering mode would be given to the customer. This information in the flyers aid in ensuring the reliability of our product to the customer and hence, might help in increasing sales. For example, test reports ensure that the product is safe for usage and positive testimonials show good response of the product.

Comparison Technique

Since it is a new product, we can emphasis more on key features and benefits of the product that are absence in competitor’s products, thus stating that it’s the customer loss of benefit if the competitor product is to be purchased.


Handling Objection

Prospect’s doubt


“Since it is so big, won’t it be very difficult to move?”

We can demonstrate how to dismantle and assemble the product to ensure easy transport and storage of product after use. Technical report can also be shown to the customer to ensure that the material is made of pine wood which is light and durable. Hence, this make “Sleep.Walk.” users friendly and moveable.

Price Situation

“The price is over my budget.”

We can break the difference into small increments.
For example, the cot cost $200 more than the normal baby cot. But, since it is more users friendly and can reduce time wastage in the need to buy baby walking aid or milk warming compartment separately, it is worth price. Furthermore, you might also sleep at least 2hour longer per night with “Sleep.Walk.” features. Thus, with it 4 years usage, you will only need to spend $0.15 extra for all the added features and 2 more hour of your sleep.




Sales closing & Follow up


Sales closing method

After identifying the closing signals by customer, a summarisation close would be used. We would summarise all the major benefits in which the prospect has indicated interest and re-emphasise points made earlier. Furthermore, we would also try to provide positive picture of the sales proposal.

Example:
“Sleep.Walk. is convenient and value for money multi-function baby cot which can be used for a wider age range for your child. Not only your child could enjoy a better night sleep, you can also have more an undisturbed sleep with our automated rocking function when your child fidgets. Furthermore, with the presence of milk warming compartment available at the cot end, your child would be fed without any delay without the time wastage in the need to warm the milk.

Finally, the four years warranty would assure that you would not need to worry about any defects in our product.

Should we go ahead with the purchase?”

Sales Follow-up


In order to maintain long lasting relationship with customers, we decide to have sales follow-up for our product. We have come up with an activity plan which is to make sure that the customer receives the maximum satisfaction from the purchase and to follow through on assurances and promises made during the sales presentation.

Therefore, we would deliver more than we promised by giving free cute stickers and milk bottle upon delivery.  We would also try to ensure that our promise on timely delivery, proper installation and detailed training on how to operate and maintain the product and to teach on the warranty registration are to be carried out without fail. All this are to guarantee customer satisfaction and hence, help in build rapport with them.

critical reflection summary (peer review reflection)



The process of creating a portfolio on the blog during the course has open up and improve my writing and critical skills. The process gave me a better sense and perceptions on the different styles of writing by different people. Throughout the process, I came to discover that it is much easier to spot out the mistakes of writings not written by yourself.  Therefore, comments by my course mates on my essay would assist me in terms of how I spot mistakes in my own essays. 

I would definitely be more conscious of my own common mistakes and watch out for the repetitive ones every time I do a certain academic writing. Collective comments from my peers enable me to improve on how I write my essays, ensuring that what I write is understandable to the majority. The tutor’s comments is one of the most important aspect of the course. Tutor’s comments are usually very constructive, critical and strict. I learn a lot from the tutor’s comment as I got a lot of pointers from him that I previously was not unaware of. Through the comments, I would be able to write a much more effective, convincing and critical essay.

The course structure of intensive editing and writing has allow me to better focus on the main point and thesis of the essay. Previously, I tend to stray from the main focus of the essay when my essay progresses. Through experience from the course, I found out the real importance of drafting your essays at least 2 to 3 times to ensure that everything is in place. “A skillful writer might not be a skillful editor”, the course has allow my skills on both writer and editor to be put into practice. Other benefits that I have gain from the course would be proper citation, use of proper grammatically correct sentences, sentence structures and tone. These skills would definitely be useful to me in my subsequent semesters in university!

ESSAY DRAFT 4



In today’s modern society, the trend of the development of digital technology has been more apparent over the years. This will continue to intensify in the future. This trend will be getting more apparent as many countries foresee the advantages. These advantages include broader academic development, a more conducive commercial landscape and better integration of information amongst people in the country. However, issues of digital disparity often surface, especially in developing countries such as China. According to the China Internet Network Information (2014), "the internet users in rural regions remain at 27.6% in comparison to 73.4% in urban regions." This indicates the issue of digital disparity.

The situation of the imbalance in the diffusion of internet access between urban and rural areas indicates the need for rural regions to better improve their access to digital technology. It is important as it would enable the rural community to better thrive in today’s competitive landscape of technological agriculture to be able to make improvements in the livelihoods of poor farmers. 

The adoption of digital technological techniques in agriculture farming would greatly improve efficiency in agriculture production and this would lead to improvements in their standards of living. For instance, Farmers who have access to digital technology are able to receive disaster warnings and weather forecasts for their crops through technology (China Mobile Limited, 2009).  However, to enable farmers to gain access to these information, the first step is to get these people experiencing extreme poverty to be able to access to internet. People experiencing extreme poverty are struggling with basic necessities such as food.

The levels of internet access could be improved through subsidies by China’s Ministry of Finance to make enhancement in the technological skills of the citizens and also the usage of mobile commerce to the poor. Thereafter, the adopting of agriculture technology landscape of extreme poverty-stricken regions would then be much possible with the basic digital foundation. Poverty stricken regions such as Pingnan County is an example of a region that has virtually no internet users and poor landscape for digital technology to develop. This results in minimal room for digital development in their agricultural sector.

The Chinese government has been making efforts to improve the situation of digital divide between the urban and rural region. According to the International Fund for Agriculture and Development (IFAD) (2014)), the Chinese government has attempted to venture into various rural areas such as Shanxi, Jiling and Anhui. However, the attempts to venture into poorer rural regions remain a challenge for the Chinese government. According to a corporate report written by China Mobile Limited (CML) (2009), through analytical assessments, Pingnan County has the most number of people amongst rural regions living below the poverty line, with minimal developments and internet users. In addition, the landscape of Pingnan County lacks the basic digital infrastructure and is not favourable for potential digital development to thrive. 

This indicates the challenge of bridging Pingnan County to digital technology. These people are poor and can only afford to obtain necessities for themselves to get on with their lives. Pender (2008) states that, if these poverty-stricken continue to lack behind in technological advancements, the access to better agricultural techniques would not be possible. The poverty situation in these regions would not improve at all without technology. 

The very first step is to bring digital access to the Pingnan communities. The government would have to make changes in their policies and direction in terms of subsidiary incentives. The policies would include devoting a larger part of resources to the development of rural regions. This would not only equip them with the necessary technological skills but also convince these people to start adopting technology. According to the Economic intelligence unit (2012), to make improvements in the digital divide situation, a good start would be having a healthy number of internet users. Therefore, the Chinese government should change its policies to stimulate the growth in internet users. The foundation of having high internet users is to first ensure that the citizens are technology literate through education. Policies should include the necessary incentives to better attract contractors to provide services to educate citizens so that they will be technologically literate. 

The government can also adopt mobile commerce. Mobile commerce is one of the most viable ways for these rural citizens to be able to get internet access. According to Alizila (2014), access to internet through mobile phones are more viable as people cannot afford personal computers and mobile networks have larger geographical coverage with decent speeds. On top of the cheaper alternative of mobile commerce, subsidies from government is another way to further reduce the cost. With that, the networking and telecommunication in these regions would become more viable.

The benefits of networking can then be presented to poor communities such as the Pingnan County’s community. With the cheaper alternative of mobile commerce along with government subsidies, the people would be more open to changes. When the people are open to the technological change, the government can then attract contractors to develop the region as the area now has higher potential with the higher rates of users open to technology.

With the basic foundation of technology being laid, the (digital) agricultural technology could then be introduced to the farmers in Pingnan County. According to the Food and Agriculture Organisation (2011), “Because food represents a large share of farmer income and the budget of poor consumers, large price changes have large effects on real incomes.” This indicates that the information about commodities are crucial for poor farmers as they have their limits in terms of resources. If farmers can gain access on prices of different commodities and make decisions it can lead to higher profitability. 

In conclusion, the Chinese government has to: do what where to achieve what for whom?

The government has to ensure that benefits such as the profits to service providers are taken care of. Also, the benefits of technology towards helping crop efficiency should be made known to the rural communities. The government should give out incentives and convince contractors on the potential of doing the job. The contractor would only do the job if it is profitable and when the contractor foresees the potential in developing the region. The citizens of the poor rural area would only be open to change and start using technology if the government is able to convince them to do so. This can be done through subsidies, viable options and by also making the benefits of technology to their crops known to them. 

Through vigorous development and constant investment in rural areas, the digital gap between the urban and rural region would eventually narrow. The situation of poverty would also improve drastically with more farmers adopting these technologies.


Reference
International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). (2014, June). Corporate booklet – Investing in rural china. Retrieved October 1, 2014. From : http://ifad.org/operations/projects/regions/pi/factsheets/cn.pdf\
China Mobile Limited. (2009, December). Corporate Social responsibility report. Retrieved October 1, 2014. From: (http://www.chinamobileltd.com/en/ir/reports/ar2009/sd2009.pdf

 Alizila – Ali Baba Group. (2014, July 8). Mobile Commerce Is Thriving in Unexpected Places. Retrieved October 1, 2014. From: http://www.alizila.com/mobile-commerce-thriving-unexpected-places-video

Chinese internet network information center. Statistical report on internet development in China (2013, January). Retrieved October 1, 2014.From: http://www1.cnnic.cn/IDR/ReportDownloads/201302/P020130221391269963814.pdf

Economic Intelligence Unit. (2012). Smart policies to close divide. Retrieved October 1, 2014. From:http://unpan1.un.org/intradoc/groups/public/documents/un-dpadm/unpan049753.pdf\

Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (2011). Corporate booklet on food insecurity of the world. Retrieved October 25, 2014. From: http://www.fao.org/docrep/014/i2330e/i2330e.pdf
 
Pender, J (2008). Research on Agricultural technology choices for poor farmers in less-favoured Areas of South and East Asia. Corporate booklet – Investing in rural china. Retrieved October 25, 2014. From: http://www.ifad.org/operations/projects/regions/pi/paper/5.pdf