MARKETING OF DAIRY PRODUCTS 229 



presenting his selling talk should be brief but convincing. He 

 should watcli the one he is talking to in order to observe the 

 interest he takes in his arguments. He will thus be able to de- 

 termine which points he needs to dwell upon and which he 

 should pass lightly over. The financial interest of the. mer- 

 chant should always be kept in the background for a selling 

 talk, for if it is not apparent to the merchant that he will gain 

 something by handling that brand of goods then it is unlikely 

 that he will become interested. The salesman should know 

 when to talk and when to let the other person talk. Some 

 buyers prefer to do most of the talking themselves while others 

 will quietly listen to the arguments of the one who has the 

 goods to sell. He should also know when it is the proper time 

 to withdraw. 



7. He Should be Persistent. — Because a few attempts fail 

 that should not cause discouragement, but should call for re- 

 newed energy. He should take advantage of each failure as 

 well as of each success by reviewing each selling talk, singling 

 out the mistakes as well as the strong points of the talk. A 

 permanent record should be kept of such analysis; a card file or 

 a loose-leaf book is convenient for such information. A card or 

 a leaf for each customer may be filed with information about 

 former impressions, former conversations, and other facts of 

 value. Such a report should be fully studied before calling on 

 the person later. Such information is most conveniently filed 

 geographically and alphabetically. 



The salesman should furthermore keep a permanent daily 

 record of the number of calls made, number of selling talks, and 

 number of sales made. This should be summarized monthly. 

 The purpose of this is for increased eflaciency. 



n. The Manager in His Relation to the Salesman. — 



I. He Should he Able to Impart Enthusiasm to the Salesman. 

 — This cannot be accomplished unless the manager himself 

 has enthusiasm. Before the salesman starts to work the 

 manager should take charge of him for the purpose of stirring 

 his enthusiasm to the greatest extent. A manager should never 

 send out a salesman before that has been done, for without 



