Outsourcing the Sales Function: The Real Costs of Field Sales [Hardcover]

Erin Anderson (Author), Bob Trinkle (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0324207484 | ISBN-13: 978-0324207484 | Publication Date: February 10, 2005 | Edition: 1

This book sheds new light on the personal selling function in business-to-business markets. Well versed in the area of manufacturer's reps, the authors equip managers with the tools to determine the true costs and benefits of both in-house and outsourced forces. They explain in detail the differences between manufacturer's reps and company owned, tips for when to use them, how to most effectively work with them to optimize company return, and how to build strategic long-term alliances. The authors offer detailed information about the true costs and benefits of running a sales force and discuss how to effectively work with a manufacturer's representative to optimize your return. The book includes a CD-ROM with a cost calculator.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This book is the first that I have seen that reveals ALL of the real costs of any outside field sales force and offers a realistic evaluation of the outsourcing of that function to professional sales representatives."

"Great stuff! I could have saved myself a lot of 'learning' over the yers had I read it in 1990 versus 2004!"

"This book is for anyone who wants better results from their sales efforts. Getting more out of sales spend requires being open minded, challenging your own assumptions-starting with the assumption that having your own employees do all the selling is the best way to do business. Erin Anderson has been doing research on vertical integration in sales for over two decades. Bob Trinkle is a leader in the world of outsourced field sales forces. Their book is a thorough, balanced, authoritative handbook hat gives sound guidelines on when to outsource field selling, how much field selling should cost no matter who is doing it), and how to work with the people who carry your name to the market who are not your employees."

"We found this work provided a very thorough treatment of the important issue of a Direct versus Representative Sales Force. While we have a 50+ year history of selling through Representatives, we regularly test that decision as we evolve and found the Real Cost of Field Sales Calculator to be helpful and very consistent with our own data."

"Outsourcing the Sales Function is the first book that I have seen that clearly defines the issues related to sales management's decision to field a sales team to or to partner with a professional sales force. Sales managers can evaluate this strategic decision with real numbers (yours) so you can analyze the bottom line expense that (only) reflects the real expenses of the sales force you employ. The value of the Cost Calculator alone exceeds the purchase price."

About the Author

Erin Anderson teaches Executive Ed courses all over the world. She is on staff at INSEAD and consults regularly with companies dealing with selling issues. She is very well-known for her work and research in the area of manufacturer’s reps. Erin currently lives in Hericy, France.

Bob Trinkle formerly owned a manufacturer’s representative firm. He served two years as president of the Electronic Representatives Association International and two years as its Chairman. Currently, he is on the speaking circuit talking with groups of manufacturing reps all over the country. Bob currently resides in Cherry Hill, NJ.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: South-Western Educational Pub; 1 edition (February 10, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0324207484
• ISBN-13: 978-0324207484
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #429,921 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent -carefully written and thoroughly researched, July 14, 2005

By 

John J. Kurtas (Pennsylvania) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Outsourcing the Sales Function: The Real Costs of Field Sales (Hardcover)

This ranks as one of the best written books and a must have. I recommend this to anyone in marketing and sales, from entry level sales people to marketing and sales managers and even CEOs/CFOs. I have over 20 years in establishing new markets, recruiting and managing the sales force and this book is a treasure that I could have utilized throughout my career. Why learn by trial and error when you have so much knowledge in a book? It is apparent to me, that this book is written from "boots on the ground" real-life experience. Concepts are clearly presented and backed up by real world examples. The included CD is a remarkable utility allowing one to caculate true cost of sales and compare business models. Compare current busines practices to a benchmark. An independent sales representative could use this to negotiate commission rates on new contracts with principals.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars New Tool Aids Decision-Making about Outsourcing, August 2, 2005

By 

Tessa M. Hill (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Outsourcing the Sales Function: The Real Costs of Field Sales (Hardcover)

These comments by Chicago PR consultant Laurence Kaufman, excerpted from a longer review, are right on the money.

Clearly directed at corporate executives with the responsibility for determining how their companies' goods are brought to market - CEOs and CFOs as well as their top sales executives - this book equally deserves careful scrutiny by manufacturers' representatives and their organizations, and by those who interface regularly with field sales people, i.e., distributors and other resellers, commercial and industrial end users.

A number of factors make this book noteworthy, but perhaps the most important is its authorship - a unique collaboration between an academic (Erin Anderson) who has been studying manufacturers' representatives and the decision to employ them for a quarter-century and a field sales professional (Bob Trinkle) who spent close to half a century practicing what he now preaches. And what Trinkle preaches, along with his professorial collaborator, is not that you should choose the rep route to market, but that you should make the choice intelligently - based not only on economic factors but also in full realization of the impact of corporate culture and product idiosyncrasies - and if you choose to outsource, the factors you need to consider in making the strategy work. Trinkle and Anderson do not say that outsourcing is the right thing to do - it may or may not be. But if you decide it is the right thing to do, they also tell you how to do it right.

Another noteworthy feature is the inclusion with the hard-cover book of a CD-ROM Cost Calculator©, that allows those responsible for making dollar comparisons between in-house and outsourced field sales to plug in their own numbers, reminding them along the way of the "soft costs" that go away in tandem with the decision to outsource.

Anderson and Trinkle have created a tool not only for making strategic decisions about how to take products into the field, but for creating a better understanding of the role of the rep as an advocate for buyers and for sellers. If you are a rep who wants to be thought of as an OSP (Outsourced Sales Professional), first read this book; and then make sure each of your principals reads it as well. If you are a customer or reseller, it will remind you of the benefits the OSP brings you in efficiency, advocacy, and continuity. If you are a manufacturer, it will help you analyze when to outsource, when to go or stay direct, and when to field a hybrid sales force, and prevent a decision from being made capriciously.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Good Read!, April 25, 2005

By 

Rolf Dobelli "getAbstract" (Switzerland) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Outsourcing the Sales Function: The Real Costs of Field Sales (Hardcover)

Outsourcing has become an accepted business practice because it can deliver demonstrable savings and improved services. However, while sales outsourcing is common, it has not been widely adopted by companies accustomed to having dedicated in-house sales staffs. Authors Erin Anderson and Bob Trinkle make a powerful case for the benefits of using outside sales reps, asserting that they cost less and sell more, particularly when they use the tactic of "portfolio selling." The authors explain how the two types of sales forces can co-exist and augment each other. Die-hard sales managers will find interesting material here, though the book belabors a few obvious points and lacks enough real-world examples to juice up the dry text. The authors include a CD with software for analyzing sales costs. Since this is a very specific book for anyone investigating whether to use reps, we recommend it to sales directors and executives who are facing that question. However, front line salespeople and reps should just keep to their appointment books - this text is not designed for you.