MK 330: Professional Selling

Instructor Information

Instructor Name:	Dr. John D. Hansen
Office Location:	CSB 277
Office Hours:	By Appointment
Office Phone:	205-996-2069
Email:	jdhansen@uab.edu

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns. The best and most reliable way through which you can reach me is email. I will make every effort to respond to your email within one business day of it being sent. I will respond to all emails sent over the weekend on the following Monday, at the latest.

If we need to discuss an issue in depth, please send me an email and we will find a mutually agreeable time to do so. I will be communicating with the class through our Announcements link, so please check this on a regular basis.  

Course Purpose

This course focuses on the fundamentals of professional selling and the professionalization of the field. Today, the most effective salespeople are customer- as opposed to product-oriented. They are excellent questioners, and even better listeners. They have an in-depth understanding of the problems their customers face and are able to deliver creative solutions in response to these problems. Through this they create value. This is important as for most salespeople the ability to differentiate on the basis of product or price alone is difficult.

This course combines personal selling theory with actual practice. You will be encouraged to develop your analytical and communication skills for use in future business relationship-building activities. Your analytical skills will be developed through an assignment that requires you to research, design, and present your own comprehensive sales scenario. You will be provided opportunities to practice and enhance your communication skills through virtual role playing.

Learning Objectives

Upon the completion of this course, you will be able to:

• Describe the role of personal selling within the firm.
• Explain how technological advancements are affecting personal selling.
• Describe the evolution of personal selling from transaction-focused traditional selling to trust-based relationship selling.
• Explain the foundational elements necessary for sales success.
• Identify the key characteristics differentiating business-to-business and business-to-consumer purchase situations.
• Summarize the critical factors influential in determining professional buyers' purchase decisions.
• Identify and describe the key elements of a sales call.
• Develop and execute the key elements of a sales call.
• Describe ethical issues in personal selling.
• Determine the desirability of a career in sales.

Prerequisites and Corequisites

• Collat School of Business (CSB) students must have completed MK 303 with a minimum grade of C. There are no prerequisites for non-CSB students pursuing a Professional Sales Certificate. 

Required Texts or Materials

• Hunt, C.S., G.D. Deitz, and J.D. Hansen, "Professional Selling: Because Everyone is a Salesperson," McGraw-Hill. You will need to purchase Connect access, which does include the eBook. You can purchase through McGraw-Hill directly, or through the bookstore. If purchasing through McGraw-Hill, you can purchase the Connect Code only under the "Digital" tab, or the Connect Code bundled with loose-leaf of the text under the "Bundles" tab. Please do not purchase under the "Print/EBook" tab, as none of these options include Connect access. 
• Access to a laptop/desktop computer, reliable internet, a microphone, speakers, and webcam.
• All course assignments will be conducted through Zoom, an online tool for virtual meetings. All UAB students are provided a Zoom license. 

Course Presentation

This is an online course. It contains an introductory (Getting Started) module, and ten content modules. Each module focuses on specific course and module objectives. The course will be conducted entirely online. You will not attend class on-campus. 

You should proceed through each module page sequentially, completing all specified assignments. To ensure that you have done this, the wrap-up page summarizes all assignments that you should have completed. 

Assessment and Grading

Assessment	Points
Role Play Assignments	125
Final Role Play Assignment	100
Exam I	100
Exam II	100
Quiz Average	100
Total	525

A = 90%-100%     B = 80%-90%     C = 70%-80%     D = 60%-70%      F = <60%

While all quiz and exam grades will be immediately available upon completion of the assignment, correct answers will not be released until the assignment window has closed. I will make every effort to have all role play assignments graded within five days of the assignment window closing. As all role play assignments will be completed as a team, feedback will be provided to the entire team. 

Role Play Assignments

Role plays have been used as a learning tool in sales for many years. As the term suggests, in a role play you will assume the role of both a buyer and a seller. You are free to choose the product you sell and the company you represent; however, all students must sell in the business-to-business context - you cannot sell to final consumers.

The role play contains four components: (1) Discovery, (2) Solution Presentation; (3) Gaining Commitment, and (4) Overcoming Objections. You will practice each of these components through a series of four assignments. Each of these assignments is worth 25 points, for a total of 100 points. You will also complete a Role Play Planning Document assignment that will be worth 25 points. 

Final Role Play Assignment:

You will then combine each of these four components into your final role play. Even though you will only be meeting virtually, you must incorporate visual aids into your presentation. You will begin the actual role play with a brief approach and then move through the sales process. You should have it planned so you are attempting to gain commitment in approximately fifteen minutes, as the role-play should last no longer than twenty minutes.

You may not read from a script during your final role play or any role play assignments. There will be an automatic 25-point deduction for reading during the final role play, and a 10-point deduction for reading during a role play assignment. You can, however, use a sales portfolio, an organizer, or any other type of visual aid. All role play exercises will be conducted virtually through Zoom. I expect professional behavior (i.e., the type of behavior one would expect in an industry meeting) from all students during their role plays.

My preference is that you share your screen as opposed to sharing your webcam during all role play activities. I have found, through my experience with the online version of this course, that this adds to the professionalism of the role play. In far too many instances, students just do not have an appropriate setting from which they can conduct the role play. Thus, sharing your screen is the better option. Your final role play submission will be worth 100 points.

You will complete all role play assignments in teams. For the most part, all teams will consist of four students, with two sets of two-student pairs within each team. These pairs will buy and sell together across all role play exercises (e.g., Pair A will sell to Pair B, or vice-versa). If you know of another student in the class that you would like to be teamed with, please let me know this via email by May 14th. I will then set all remaining students to teams. Thus, you should not be concerned if you do not have anyone in the class you would like to be teamed with.

Exams:

Two exams in this course will be proctored using the online proctoring service, ProctorU. You will need to schedule an appointment to take your exam at least three days prior to the exam. See the course schedule for exam dates. View the ProctorU Student Guide for instructions for setting up your account, scheduling your appointment, and taking your exam. You will need to present official identification to take your test. See the Accepted Forms of ID. Read the information on Technical Support and Security. View the ProctorU website for more information.

Students who do not complete the exam within the assigned completion window without first communicating with me, or take the exam outside of ProctorU, will automatically receive a score of zero. 

Quizzes:

Quizzes will be administered within each module. Each quiz will be worth 100 points. Your overall quiz grade will be calculated as the average of your nine highest quiz scores (i.e., I will drop your lowest score). 

Failure to take an exam or quiz within its assigned completion window will result in a score of zero unless a university-approved and documented excuse is provided in advance. There will be no exceptions to this policy. 

Collat School of Business Expectations and Resources

Read about the Collat School of Business resources, policies and expectations for all online courses (netiquette, technical requirements, Code of Conduct, plagiarism, etc.) on the Online Learning - Resources and Expectations for Collat's Online Courses site page.   

UAB Policies and Resources:

Add/Drop and Course Withdrawal

• Drop/Add: Deadlines for adding, dropping, or withdrawing from a course and for paying tuition are published in the Academic Calendar available online. Review the Institutional Refund Policy for information on refunds for dropped courses.
• Withdrawal: To avoid academic penalty, a student must withdraw from a course by the withdrawal deadline shown in the academic calendar and receive a grade of W (withdrawn). Failure to attend class does not constitute a formal drop or withdrawal.

Misconduct:

The University of Alabama at Birmingham expects all members of its academic community to function according to the highest ethical and professional standards. Students, faculty, and the administration of the institution must be involved to ensure this quality of academic conduct. Review the Academic Honor Code and Non-Academic Student Code of Conduct linked below.

• Academic Honor Code
• Non-Academic Student Code of Conduct

DSS Accessibility Statement:

Accessible Learning: UAB is committed to providing an accessible learning experience for all students. If you are a student with a disability that qualifies under Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, and you require accommodations, please contact Disability Support Services for information on accommodations, registration and procedures. Requests for reasonable accommodations involve an interactive process and consist of a collaborative effort among the student, DSS, faculty and staff. If you are registered with Disability Support Services, please contact DSS to discuss accommodations that may be necessary in this course. If you have a disability but have not contacted Disability Support Services, please call (205) 934-4205, visit the DSS website, or their office located in Hill Student Center Suite 409.

Title IX Statement:

The University of Alabama at Birmingham is committed to providing an environment that is free from sexual misconduct, which includes gender-based assault, harassment, exploitation, dating and domestic violence, stalking, as well as discrimination based on sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression. If you have experienced any of the aforementioned conduct we encourage you to report the incident. UAB provides several avenues for reporting. For more information about Title IX, policy, reporting, protections, resources and supports, please visit UAB Title IX webpage for UAB’s Title IX, UAB’s Equal Opportunity, Anti-Harassment, Duty to Report, and Non-Retaliation policies.

Intellectual Property Protection Statement

My lectures and course materials, including PowerPoint presentations, quizzes, exams, outlines, and similar materials, are protected by copyright. You may take notes and make copies of course materials for your own use. You may not and may not allow others to reproduce or distribute lecture notes and course materials publicly, whether or not a fee is charged, without my express written consent.  

Course Schedule:

The schedule below shows when all course activities are due, and links you directly to these activities.