Salesmanship is for the society as it is the part of society. Like any other human being, salesman is also a social and rational animal. Rather a special kind of social and rational animal.
The social traits essential for a salesman are: (1) extending extroversive (2) Conforming conversing, (3) portraying poise (4) built in courtesy, tacit tact (5) centering cooperation and (6) good manners.
1. Extrovert:
A successful salesman is an extrovert and overt than introvert or covert. Extroverters speak of pronounced social iodination, basic liking for people, readiness to mix with people, enjoy the company of others by being friendly. Salesman’s cork is to mix and mingle with people of differing age, sex, life-style, back-ground, deals, levels of education, beliefs and habits, customs and labour. Extending extroversy is the solution for having social adoptability and friendship. A salesman needs to be a good mixers enjoy meeting of his follow men and an interested participant in the conversation that is general at such social get together.
2. Conversing:
Speech is the most important thing in business of today, as business is conducted through spoken words, Conversing is the art and practice that can be developed and refined. It is the product of communication skill. It is the process of communications – pouring your ideas into the heads of others. It is a clear pleasant, persuasive act. Conforming presentation of ideas to create an impression that is interesting and convincing. He communicates by listening.
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He relies entirely on oral expression to convert a prospect into a purchaser, the importance of effective vocabulary cannot be overstressed in this art of conversing. He should have command over woods and phrases to speak Queen’s English. Speech clinics have made major strands in correcting many of the speech defects. Improvement can be attained to a very great extent in enunciation, tone placement, timbre, unpleasant mannerisms stuttering, stammering, pitch and other features of faulty speech.
3. Poise:
Poise is the power of an individual that keeps him in effective command in terms of physique, mind and emotions. It implies self-control, self-possession and self-assurance. Poise gives an impression that he has mastery in the live of selling, he has attained the zenith point of maturity and pitch of emotional stability; he is indifferent to the differing reactions of differing customers many be praises or sarcasms or the criticism or the brick-bats. He takes all very supportively. Such an attitude cools down the customers and makes them to follow him.
4. Courtesy:
Courtesy is the consideration for the feelings of others. It speaks of being polite, neck, modest to win the hearts of others and mend the behaviours of others. The world of business makes no place for a person who is curt because he hurts the feelings of others. A pleasing and everlasting imprint is made of salesman by his little niceties of behaviour. Words like ‘welcome’, ‘please’, ‘excuse me’, ‘thank you’ cost nothing but pay rich rewards. Even things like covering month while yawning or coughing or nose while sneezing, opening the door, offering a chair, cleaning the seat before the customer to sit all these go a long way is manifesting courtesy.
5. Tact:
Tact is a nice perception or discernment. It is a social, intelligence and skill of doing the things. It is the art of saying proper thing and doing the work, accurately unhurt offending others. It is the capacity of apprehending the delicate situation and acting accordingly. It is the mental awareness as to what is appropriate to say or to do at a given moment of time, to avid dissatisfaction, inconvenience and inward happenings. It is the diplomacy of thoughts and actions. Tact or diplomacy helps in avoiding objections, interactions and barriers in the sales programme.
6. Cooperation:
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Antagomism , animosity and bickering is the realm of business speak of crevices or cavities is the same bed-rock. Harmonious, homogeneous and frictionless humming of sales unit is the direct product of cooperation among all the men and women who well power and operate. Cooperation is the union of thought purposes and actions. Collective pulling together, ream-work, connectivity are the basic tenets of cooperation. A salesman is to be cooperative with other salesman, other employees is the sister departments, his superior and the general public. He becomes in contact in day to day business dealings.
7. Good manners:
Selling in the final analysis, is largely a human problem and a person who possesses the faculty of getting along well with his fellow men has a success. He should have like able and cheerful manners. Each individual is the bundle of gestures, expressions, postures, voice, approaches which may irritate others or irrigate others. These manures are the habits acquired consciously or unconsciously by imitation and routine contact and a salesman is no exception to these habits which may irritate others such as coughing continuously, clearing ones throat, blowing the nose, tapping the counter with fingers, or pencil, twisting ones hat, buttoning and unbuttoning the coat or a shirt, fiddling with pocket knife, tugging the ear-lobar, targeting with eyeglasses, stretching the head, cocking the knuckles, chewing the gum, cutting the nails, biting the nails, smothering the hair, hoodwinking the eyes, standing on a single leg like a horse, jerking the neck, struggling the shoulder, toying with the ring, fumbling with pocket, clasping and unclasping hands, swinging back and forth in the chair and so on. A salesman is expected to be alert to detect and avert these manners in his own in test.