Possible Responses

Question

Dan was smiling to himself and feeling rather smug as he approached his next customer. After slaving away in a mediocre territory, he had been rewarded with a promotion to a more lucrative area. Today Dan was meeting with Billy Bob, the purchasing agent for a large company in Dan’s new territory. Billy Bob had always been a loyal customer, and although this was their first meeting, Dan fully expected a large order would result from the sales call today.

Smiling, Dan entered, offered Billy Bob his hand, and said, “Hello, I’m Dan from Manfred Enterprises. How are you…”

Before Dan could even get the words out of his mouth, Billy Bob broke in.

“Who the hell are you? Where’s my buddy Irvin? You know we’ve been doing business together for almost 12 years now. I just don’t deal with anybody else, much less a greenhorn. Where the hell is Irvin? We spent a lot of time together—hell, we darn near shut down Sam’s Saloon one night. I’ll just have to call Irvin at home and see what the hell is going on.”

Dan recalled Irvin bragging about the order he received one night at Sam’s Saloon. Dan also knew that Irvin had been fired for drinking on the job.

Dan was struck with a sense of panic. How could he respond to Billy Bob’s comments without risking the account?

Answer 1

1. Dan could tell Billy Bob the truth, i.e., that Irvin had been fired for drinking on the job.

Consequence: If Dan tells Billy Bob the truth about Irwin, he will violate employee confidentiality and open up his company to a possible liability lawsuit. Students should be reminded that a sales rep cannot discuss confidential company information with customers.

2. Dan could offer to buy Billy Bob a drink.

Consequence: This is an inappropriate and possibly unethical response. Billy Bob may also have a drinking problem, and Dan’s company will not want to encourage this behavior. Good sales relationships are built on trust, not liquor.

3. Dan could refer Billy Bob to his sales manager.

Consequence: This option is probably the best given this scenario. However, Dan’s sales manager may not want to be caught off guard on the phone—his best bet may be to go back to the office, alert the sales manager about the situation, and then get the customer and sales manager together. It is worth noting that a good sales manager would have helped Dan pave the way for the first sales encounter by announcing the change of sales representatives to Billy Bob and perhaps accompanying Dan on his first sales call to this customer.