Sales are the lifeblood of the business world and therefore an area of fundamental importance for scholarly research. This concise book analyses current thoughts and emerging practices in sales management research.

Organisations who are looking to increase revenues and add new customers to their portfolio will find it increasingly difficult to successfully do this without being aware of and adopting the appropriate, adaptive sales processes. Emergent themes such as agile sales management, digital selling, artificial intelligence and trust will be discussed in the book that also embraces the importance of customer relationship management, and how salespeople are aligning their interactions with the marketing function. The text will review recent research to identify how to grow and organise the sales pipeline, manage hybrid sales teams, and the effects of new technologies on selling processes. These discussions will be helpful in highlighting issues and providing some solutions to practitioners who are operating in new environments.

This book will be invaluable to sales researchers as it summarises current knowledge about key sales and sales management topics and indicates possible future research directions.

About the Author

Kenneth Le Meunier-FitzHugh is an Associate Professor in Marketing at the University of East Anglia, UK.

Kieran Sheahan is a Lecturer at Technological University, Dublin, Ireland.

Reviews

"Sales plays a decisive role for firms' performance. Poor sales, poor performance, no business continuity - it's as simple as that. However, it is much more complex to explain what makes a sales organization effective and efficient. This book fills an important gap. It explains why and how sales is so essential. And it does so in a very compact, concise, and understandable way. The authors do a brilliant job in structuring and explaining the most central concepts in sales. And they do so by basing the book on the most important results of academic research. Every sales manager and every sales person should read this book!" Bjorn Ivens, Otto-Friedrich-University Bamberg, Germany

"Sales is the lifeblood of business and the Nr.1. determinant for success. This invaluable book covers theory, research and practice of emerging sales areas in sales including customer relationships, sales and its relationship with marketing, managing the sales pipeline, sales leadership, and the effects of new technologies on selling. Having spent my career, helping people build their businesses and scaling sales globally, I would highly recommend this easy-to-read book to anyone and everyone in academia, commercial business, management and sales." Mark O'Donovan, Airfield Capital Partners

"Striking a healthy balance between theory and practice, this book elucidates the pivotal role of sales in any organization. With due consideration for the rapidly changing AI and digital technology-driven world we live in, it is very forward-thinking in its orientation. Written in highly accessible language, the book is a handy resource for teachers and students alike". Kisito F. Nzembayie, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland

"The opening statement says it all 'No sales - No business' but how do sales leaders adapt to the changing use of technology in an increasingly digital business environment? This book takes the reader through the journey of adaptation, clarifying the criticality of the sales process, describing how it must be modified and showing the [changing] role of the salesperson, who must now become highly digitally literate whilst remaining the personal, human face of the business. A pragmatic expose that any business or sales leader will recognise from his or her own experience, written in a simple, no-nonsense way. Ignore it at your peril." Rod Moore, The A&O IT Group plc.

"At last, the sales profession is getting the attention and research it deserves. The authors make a compelling case for the importance of sales in every organization and the need to fund sales teams, process, and tools as strategic investments. With more than 40 years of business experience, I am inspired by the research and information put forth with respect to the importance of structuring a smart, healthy sales/marketing relationship, recent change dynamics affecting sales and important perspectives on the short-term and long-term implications due to the Covid-19 pandemic. This is a must-read resource for anyone who understands the importance of sales to their organization" Brian Campbell, Pexagon Technology Ind, USA

"'Nothing happens in business until somebody sells something'. There is a big difference between understanding the art of selling and the dark art of sales management. And this is the first book I have read in my career that demonstrates a clear understanding of how one works hand in hand with the other. This book refreshingly manages to promote methods and systems that are adapted to suit the modern commercial world. Highly recommended for any student or practitioner." Paul Mitchell, Mitchell Acoustics Limited, UK

Book Information
ISBN 9781032003825
Author Kenneth Le Meunier-FitzHugh
Format Hardback
Page Count 92
Imprint Routledge
Publisher Taylor & Francis Ltd
Weight(grams) 240g