COURSE OUTLINE

Course Title:	SALES & DISTRIBUTION MANAGEMENT

OBJECTIVE

The objective of the course is to provide a customer centric approach to the sales and distribution function. The customer centric approach helps in (a) integrating advertising, salesforce and channel members by building non-conflicting and non overlapping routes to fulfill the needs of the consumer during their brand and store decisions and (b) developing frameworks for decision making keeping the customers as the primary focus.

EVALUATION

Term paper	30%

Project	30%

Final Exam	40%

TEXT BOOK

Pingali Venugopal (2001)

Marketing Channel Management: A Customer Centric Approach. Response Books (ND)

DISTRIBUTION MANAGEMENT MODULE

Overview of Distribution Management

Reading: Introduction, Pingali Venugopal (2001). Marketing Channel Management: A customer centric approach.

Channel Environment:

Reading: Chapter 1-3, Pingali Venugopal (2001). Marketing Channel Management: A customer centric approach.

Distribution Objective/ Strategy

Readings: Chapter 5, Pingali Venugopal (2001). Marketing Channel Management: A customer centric approach.

Case:	Konark TV

Questions for discussion:	How do you decide the distribution strategy of a company? What is its realation with the other marketing mix elements of the company?

Interface between Salesforce & Channel

Reading: Chapter 4, Pingali Venugopal (2001). Marketing Channel Management: A customer centric approach.

Questions for discussion:	Identify the areas where an interface would be required between sales force and the channel. Suggest a framework for designing and interface between the sales force and the channel.

Channel Design

Readings: Chapter 6, Pingali Venugopal (2001). Marketing Channel Management: A customer centric approach.

Case:	Xerox. Revising a Distribution Strategy.

Questions for discussion:	What are the steps in designing a channel structure? What criteria of evaluation should one use?

Implementing Channel Design

Readings: Chapter 8, Pingali Venugopal (2001). Marketing Channel Management: A customer centric approach.

Questions for discussion:	What are the criteria for selecting dealers? How would you collect information for the same?

Managing the Channel Members

Reading:	Chapter 11, Pingali Venugopal (2001). Marketing Channel Management: A customer centric approach.

Case:	XYZ Consumer Durable Limited.

Questions for discussion:	How does one identify the needs of developing one’s dealers? What are the alternate methods available for developing the dealer? What factors lead to the success or failures in dealer development?

Channel conflict

Case: Clogging of the channel

Appraisal of Channel members

Readings: Chapter 9, Pingali Venugopal (2001). Marketing Channel Management: A customer centric approach.

Questions for discussion: Identifying the ideal criteria for appraising the channel members.

Channel Evaluation

Readings: Chapter 10, Pingali Venugopal (2001). Marketing Channel Management: A customer centric approach.

Case:	Bright Engineering

Questions for discussion:	What criteria should be used to evaluate the performance of the channel as a whole? How would it be different from evaluating the performance of individual members?

Internet as an alternate channel

Reading: Chapter 7, Pingali Venugopal (2001). Marketing Channel Management: A customer centric approach.

Physical distribution

Readings: Chapter 12, Pingali Venugopal (2001). Marketing Channel Management: A customer centric approach.

Questions for discussion: Identify the dimensions of physical distribution. Specify the criteria for formulating a physical distribution strategy.

SALES MANAGEMENT MODULE

Introduction to Sales Management

Readings: Professional Sales Management

Integrating the salesforce into your Marketing effort

Management of Sales force

Territory Allocation

Readings: Chapter 22. Still et at, Sales Management

Sales Territories

Sales force work load

Case:	Bihar Oils Limited

Questions for discussion:	What are the important issues in territory design and modifications? How would you set quotas for salesmen?

Managing Accounts

Readings: Chapter 9. Still et al, Sales Management

Development of a selling strategy

Case:	Incomplete Solutions

Questions for discussion:	A paradigm shift away from the traditional focus on individual transactional exchanges is being talked off. What should be the way in which a long term relationship is developed with the channel members?

Effective selling

Reading:	Chapter 2. Still et al, Sales Management

Questions for discussion:	Selling tasks are classified into four categories: Trade selling, Missionary selling, Technical selling and New Business selling. Comment on the classification. Identify the profile of the salesmen who would be effective under different situations.

Compensation & Motivation of Sales Force

Case:	Anupama Cosmetics

Reading:	Chapter 15, Still et al, Sales Management

Rationalising Salesmen’s compensation

Questions for discussion:	What are the major instruments (financial and non financial) for motivating the sales personnel? In what situations would the above instruments work best.

Supervisory Styles

Reading:	Chapter 6, Still et al, Sales Management

Transforming salesforce with leadership

Sales management environment and the job of a sales manager

Case:	Lightening Electric Products Company

Questions for discussion:	What role does the supervisor play in the development of the salesmen.

Sales Organization

Reading:	Chapter 7. Still et al, Sales Management

Organisation for Marketing

Case:	Komal Food Products Company Limited

Questions for discussion:	What are the conflicts between the line and staff functions? How should the two functions be integrated.

Evaluation & Control of Sales Personnel

Reading:	Chapter 19, Still et al, Sales Management

Sales forecasting

Sales Budgeting

Questions for discussion:	How would you evaluate and control sales personnel? What are the critical problem areas of Branch / Head Office interactions with the sales force?

XLRI JAMSHEDPUR

A C JESURAJAN SJ

1998-08-18

P Venugopal

ALUMNI ASSOSIATION XLRI