Back A1 case study_Reali... Accotding to Alex, the biggest challenge in his business is getting in front of people. This challenge stems from many possible sources: lack of time for the prospect, perceived price/value imbalance, lack of experience in in-office clothing shopping. and being perceived as a "suit" company rather than an all-inclusive clothing provider. Especially for repeat clients, who represent 80 percent of the company's annual business, Alex Homer describes solid call preparation as key for successful selling. If the salesperson is unprepared and shows up in the client's office with bag-in-hand and a "what-are-you-buyingtoday?" attitude, clients can sense this and become frustrated. They understand that prafessional. unprepared and shows up in the client's office with bag-in-hand and a "what-are-you-bayingtoday?" attitude, clients can sense this and become frustrated. They understand that professional clothiers provide a service and expect them to be prepared as a partneriproblem solver regarding their wardrobes. As Alex puts it, "Stores provide clothing. Toen James provides a service." When it comes to understanding the needs of a prospect, Alex follows a certain sales process: He first asks his clients what is most important to them when they go elothing shopping. For most of his clients, it is one of four things: price, quality, fit, and trend-sensitivity, Based on that, he determines what clothing the clients wear during the vital parts of their business (client meetings, board meetings, trial, close-the-sale presentations, speaking engagements, etc.). Then he asks bow they would evaluate their closet (excellent, good, fair, of poot). Finally, if applicable, he finds out what it would take to make a slight improvement in their closet. (See the chapter opener on page 4 and Reality Selling Today Role-Play 1 in Appendix 1 for more information.) Qucstions 1-14 Does it appear that Tom James and Alex Homer hame a personal-seiling philosophy like that described in this chapter? Provide examples that support each of the three prescriptions. 1-15 Put yourself in the position of Alex Homer. What might be the most rewarding and the most adverse aspects of his sales job? 1-16 Deseribe how Alex ases personal-selling skills in utiluing existing knowledge and gathering new information from the customer in order to advance the sales prosess. 1-17 Discuss different ways in which Alex can actively generate good customet referrals. 1-18 What skills are particularly important for Alex's sales job? Which of the four major sources of sales training outlined in this chapter would you recommend for acquiring those skills