A Realistic Sales Experience: Providing Feedback by Integrating Buying, Selling, and Managing Experiences

Abstract

Competition in business continues to intensify, buyer-seller relationships are becoming more complex, and the nature of selling is undergoing dramatic changes. Faced with these challenges, many firms are looking to fill entry-level sales positions with college graduates who possess the requisite skills and knowledge to quickly become a productive member of their firm. This article describes a sales curriculum approach that uses an integrative experience and feedback loop to enhance the learning experience. The class work provides students with a “real world” sales environment by coordinating and integrating classes in sales, purchasing, and sales management. Students' pre- and post-test results indicate the effectiveness of the feedback approach in generating involvement, realism, career understanding and attitudes, and skill improvement.