JOIN USThe salesman is knocking...
Although these salesmen are only doing their job, most people are uncomfortable with them and have found ways of dealing with their sales tactics.
“Sales executives are the best face-readers in the world and they know your weakness at the first glance. If it is my wife who opens the door for the salesmen, he would not dare to sell her anything. However, if I am there, I do end up buying a few products. So, I always let my wife handle them. No salesman can make her buy anything unless she really needs them,” says Shripad Holla, a retired professor.
Interestingly, some people go to the extent of hanging a board at the gate restricting entry for salesmen. And some negotiates only through the windows.
“Since in most houses, women are alone during the daytime, it is not advisable to allow any outsiders into the building. Sales people generally market consumer durables and cosmetics which are not needed urgently. Therefore, I never open the door for sales executives when my husband is not around,” says Shalini Rajshekar.
In most apartments, sales representatives are not allowed inside the gates without an appointment. “People who stay on the ground floor have to face sales people more often,” she says.
There are people who are also sympathetic towards salesmen and treat them as professionals. “As a commerce graduate, I can understand the difficulties faced by marketing guys. Though I don’t buy products from them all the time, I encourage them to present their views and product range in a professional way. It is sad that people always cast doubt on their credibility and chase them out,” says Raghavendra, a CA student. It is wrong to say that all marketing executives try to sell unsold, low quality goods. However, one should make sure that the person is a genuine representative of the company. And sometimes, even the marketing students turn up at the doorstep with a range of products to complete their projects in retail sales and marketing. And they can be quite unwilling to leave your house without selling anything.
“It is very difficult to get rid of these students. They start pleading instead of convincing us to buy products. However, sometimes even people behave badly with the salesmen. They make him open all his products, watch the demo and sometimes even tear the covers of the products though they have no intention of buying them. Like us, marketing people too are doing their job and we should treat them in a professional manner. And at the same time, as there are so many fake brands. One should be careful before striking a deal,” says Manjunath.