Personal selling and sales management are two very lucrative career options for business graduates.

Personal selling and sales management are two very lucrative career options for business graduates. Asking questions and carefully listening to the answers are among the first and most important steps in understanding the needs of business-to-business customers.

Customers may raise reservations pertaining to a variety of issues, but they usually relate in some way to value, such as that the price is too high for the level of quality or service.

Think about a major sales undertaking -- such as Boeing selling airplanes to airlines as discussed in the textbook, or the City of Cleveland selling the RNC (Republican National Convention) on holding the July 2016 event in Cleveland. How would you feel about being a part of these sales teams? What would you do to prepare for these presentations, as well as the required follow-up?

Finally, how would your future job interview for a career-level position be similar to making a major sales pitch? How could you prepare yourself for the interview and "sell your skills" before, during and after you met with your prospective employers? Give us a few ideas based on the steps described in Chapter 19 of the textbook for making sales.