Sales managers survey identifies challenges

Buyers increasingly treat almost everything as a commodity products that can be easily substituted for one another and that spells trouble for sales professionals, says a study by a Reno-based company.

The study by Miller Heiman, a sales training and consulting firm, found 64 percent of the sales leaders it surveyed believe that buyers are treating their specific industry as a commodity purchase.

That belief cut across industries ranging from traditional commodities such as steel to strongly branded products in technology, said Jeff Brunings, director of marketing for Miller Heiman.

Nearly 2,300 sales managers and sales professionals in Fortune 1000 companies were surveyed.

That means, Brunings said, that buyers increasingly are making decisions based purely on price rather than their perception of the benefits of a product.

Other findings in the study:

* Fifty-two percent of sales leaders believe their sales staffs don't consistently reach decision-makers.

* Sixty percent say their companies don't sufficiently qualify leads.

* Two-thirds say their sales staffs don't make enough calls to continually keep the pipeline filled with clients.

* Fifty-three percent believe they'll achieve growth by increasing their share of existing markets, but more than half say that selling new products and services is a major challenge.

Sam Reese, president of Miller Heiman, noted that sales organizations are under pressure as the national economy recovers but corporate resources devoted to sales haven't come back into place as quickly.

Brunings said Miller Heiman undertook the survey to provide solid data about the subjects that worry sales professionals the folks who attend the company's training sessions around the world.

"We found there was little statistically valid research out there," he said.

Reno-based m3 Planning helped Miller Heiman analyze the survey results.