Do You Have to Be Aggressive to Make Sales?

I have always been told that in order to make a sale, you need to be aggressive. I've tried this strategy and found it doesn't work well for me. This article discusses why it might not work for you either.

The key word here is “might”; some people may find that being aggressive works for them, but others find that it does not. The article lists reasons why an aggressive strategy might not be the best idea and suggests alternatives such as listening skills or storytelling skills for those who are uncomfortable with being too assertive in their sales pitch.

Source: http://www.forbes.com/sites/ashoka/2011/07/18/do-you-have-to-be-aggressive-to-make-sales/#2e03d820f7a0

Title: The Myth of the Overly Aggressive Saleswoman – Gender Bias in Sales?

Narrative Persuasion Of Gendered Workplace Stereotypes Within the Context of Negotiation and Sales Work

Marc S. Ross, Janice R. Adelman, Timothy J. Judge and Siobhan M. Harrison

A review of the literature suggests that the aggressive salesperson stereotype is a gendered construct, but empirical evidence for these claims is mixed. The current study (N = 414) found support for the existence of a gendered stereotype effect for high-performance sales occupations in general but not for low-performance sales occupations. Moreover, counter to predictions and contrary to findings from previous studies, analyses revealed that men were viewed as more negative on four out of five dimensions than women were, yet neither gender was viewed as more high performance than the other on any dimension. This pattern of results suggests that expectations can be managed by those who pursue success in a sales or negotiation occupation.

Research summary: The aggressive salesperson stereotype is a gendered construct, but empirical evidence for these claims is mixed. The current study of 414 participants found support for the existence of a gendered stereotype effect for high-performance sales occupations in general but not for low-performance sales occupations. Findings were interpreted in light of the gender role stereotypes that underlie this literature and motivations that influence one's perception of how gender operates in our society.

The current study (N = 413) was based on an online survey conducted with two samples. One sample was created to resemble the research literature concerning aggressive behaviors and overconfidence; the other sample was composed of people interested in finding out more about women who pursue high performance careers. Data were collected from university students in an effort to avoid many of the problems that arise when comparing groups based on gender. The results suggest that the aggressive salesperson stereotype does affect how people think about salespeople and that women are judged more harshly than men for this behavior. However, the results also suggest that these stereotypes can be managed by those who pursue success in a sales or negotiation occupation. This research is important in light of the economic downturn and increased attention being paid to women's advancement opportunities, specifically as they relate to gender bias and stereotyping on an institutional level.

Sources:

- http://www.researchgate.net/publication/221697525_The_Myth_of_the_Overly_Aggressive_Saleswoman_-_Gender_Bias_in_Sales

- http://www.womansbehavior.com/genderedterms.htm

- http://www.dollarshaveclub.com/blog/5-ways-to-effectively-influence-people

Title: What is Behavioral Economics? The role of psychological factors in the decision making process.

http://psychologyforbeginners.com/whatispsychology/whatisbehavioraleconomics.html

Why should we investigate the role of psychological factors in the decision making process?. Why should we examine how people make decisions under uncertainty?, What is the psychology of choice and which are the common factors that all rational people would agree on?.

The Purpose of this paper is to present a brief description on what behavioral economics is, what its main findings are, and how it helps us in our daily lives. We will also look at some of the problems that behavioral economics has been able to solve and analyze them with regard to economic theory.

The role of psychological factors in the decision making process.

The importance of understanding and predicting human behavior has been taught in psychology classes since its inception in the late 1800s. There are a number of different reasons for this, but one is to ensure that people make good decisions, whether it be based on short-term or long-term gains (Stevens & Page, 2007). One of the main subfields within psychology that studies how people make decisions is behavioral economics. Behavioral economics is a relatively recent addition to the field of economics itself, with the first academic journal devoted to the topic only being published in 2001 (Gelletly, 2006). The term itself was coined by Richard H. Thaler in the late 1970s (Thaler, 1999).

The field of behavioral economics is an interesting one because it combines economic theory with psychological data. By studying how people make decisions, behavioral economists have been able to paint a clearer picture of how rational people should act as well as prove that there are flaws in standard economic theory (Gelletly, 2006). Much like psychologists tend to study individuals' personalities and common characteristics across groups rather than creating highly theoretical models from individual case studies, behavioral economists examine large groups of people with similar psychological attributes in order to draw more general conclusions about human action. They also use insights from psychologists when possible (Gelletly, 2006).

This field has been able to contribute to a number of different aspects of economics and financial decision-making. Here we will look at three of the most important.

The first contribution is on the role that people play in financial markets. Many people make decisions on their own without considering market conditions, economic factors, or what their peers are doing. This can be referred to as individualistic rationality (Gelletly, 2006). In other words, the rational person is a calculating person who weighs the costs and benefits associated with every action before he or she makes it. The market as a whole is often believed to be a rational entity that acts in accordance with economic and financial data. Behavioral economists also study collective or social rationality, which involves one's perceptions of what others are doing, how they are reacting to certain events and whether or not they are making good decisions (Gelletly, 2006).

This idea has started a number of different movements within the field. One example is the Dow Jones Industrial Average. When the people behind this index decided to include nonprice weighted factors such as dividends, earnings growth, and operating efficiency into calculations for their index, it helped investors make more accurate predictions about the stock market at large than merely looking at price (Gelletly, 2006).

Conclusion

Overall, behavioral economics has come to be a very important part of the field of economics. The field is able to contribute to many different areas in economics, notably financial markets and decisions made by people, which can have a wide range of implications. The ability that it has gained in the past decade to study humans in their natural environment during the decision-making process has been extremely beneficial. It has been able to inform economists as well as investors in many ways and suggests that our understanding of human nature may not be as far off from theoretical models as we once thought.

Sources:

- http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/in-every-market

- http://www.psychologytoday.