Introduction
The iWatch, one of the latest smart products from Apple Corporation, is about to be launched at the company’s headquarters in California as well as China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, India, Singapore, Australia, Europe, and South Korea. With the launching of the product, the company expects to gain about 12% of the American market within one year and an annual market increase of 4% in the subsequent years. To achieve this, the company needs to develop a comprehensive selling proposal that will enhance sales. It will emphasize understanding the selling function applied to the consumer text, application of personal selling, and appropriate methods for sale management, communication, and motivation.
The purpose of this paper is to develop a sales proposal that integrates these techniques as well as knowledge to enhance sales of the new product and improve the company’s competitiveness in the global market.
The target market
Within the company’s market structure, individual users will be the main customers of the iWatch product. The product is designed for personal use, with a number of technology-enhanced aspects that build a customer a friendly gadget. For instance, it has a number of features of a Smartphone. It communicates with the user’s smartphone via Bluetooth technology. The user can access and use the phone through the iWatch, provided the distance between the two gadgets is not more than 5 meters (Schmidt 2013). In addition, it has a number of other features such as a compass, thermometer, camera, altimeter, calculator, GPS navigation, accelerometer speaker watch, and others. It is operated through a touch screen, giving it the features of Smartphone technology.
These customizations imply that the product targets individual users (Miyake 2012). Nevertheless, the company targets end-users through intermediaries, including importers, wholesalers, and retailers. Thus, the company will sell its products through online and store retailers, including Amazon, the PC World, Curry’s, and Comet companies.
Application of personal selling
Theoretically, personal selling is a marketing technique that involves direct contact between the seller and the prospective buyer (McCarthy 2000). The most important aspect of the technique is the contact between the two parties (Leigh & Marshall 2011). Customer relationships, discovering and communicating customer needs, and matching these needs with the appropriate products are vital tasks for the marketer (Rackham & DeVincentis 2009). The salesperson acts as a catalyst in the ‘marketing reaction’.
In the case of Apple’s iWatch, personal selling is particularly important but will be applied between the company and the resellers. As mentioned above, the company will deal with resellers rather than the end consumers. As such, the company will launch the product through a televised and electronically broadcasted program in order to target the resellers.
The selling function in the consumer context
Theoretically, a comprehensive understanding of consumer behavior and perception towards a product or service is a vital tool in developing effective marketing and sale strategies. Consumer behavior is influenced by personal attitudes, tastes and preferences, social and cultural factors, and level of education, age, and economic status (Beverage 2011).
In the case of iWatch, social and economic status, level of education, and age are expected to be the prominent determinants of Apple’s marketing success (Moncrief & Marshall 2005). When resellers are convinced to purchase the product in bulk in order to leverage its advantages over the competitors’ products, they will be in a position to convince their customers (Apple’s end consumers). The end-users will also have a chance to watch the launch on televised programs in order to know the potentials of the product in meeting their needs.
References
Beverage, M, 2011, “Contextual influences and the adoption and practice of relationship selling in a business-to-business setting: an exploratory study”, Journal of Personal Selling and Sales Management, vol. 21, no. 4, pp. 207–15.
Leigh, TH & Marshall, GW, 2011, “Research priorities in sales strategy and performance”, Journal of Personal Selling and Sales Management, vol. 21, pp. 83–93.
McCarthy, EJ, 2000, Basic Marketing: A Managerial Approach, Irwin, Homewood, IL.
Miyake, K, 2012, Is That a PC on Your Wrist?, PC World, New York, NY.
Moncrief, WC & Marshall, GW, 2005, “The evolution of the seven stages of selling”, Industrial Marketing Management, vol. 34, pp. 13–22.
Rackham, N & DeVincentis, J, 2009, Rethinking the Sales Force: Redefining selling to create and capture customer value, McGraw-Hill, New York.
Schmidt, W, 2013, “Wearing digital introduces an open platform smartwatch for developers and students“, Tech Cocktail, Web.