So why is a marketing guy writing about “The Death of a Salesman” you ask? Simple; any marketing person worth their weight MUST be the best salesperson within the organization, period. It's not about door to door sales, but maybe it is, only more sophisticated because of all the new "door-to-door" sales tools we have with today's technology.

1. The Death Of A Salesman
Is This My Obituary From The Home Furnishings Industry?
I remember when I watched this iconic play by Arthur Miller. I was just embarking on
a career in sales and it thoroughly scared and depressed me.
It’s a story about Willy Loman; a traveling
salesman whose career is failing, which quickly
infects his relationship with his family. It’s an in-
depth character study that all people should see at
least once. I was so afraid I would become that
person, selling a product using old methods that
continued to fail and becoming detached and sad
as he was. Fortunately, it inspired me to NOT be
that guy back in the day, but sadly, that day is
quickly arriving for many of us, if it hasn’t
already.
So why is a marketing guy writing about “The
Death of a Salesman” you ask? Simple; any marketing person worth their weight
MUST be the best salesperson within the organization, period. It's not about door to
door sales, but maybe it is, only more sophisticated because of all the new "door-to-
door" sales tools we have with today's technology.
Think about it, :
1. They must clearly define and articulate the Brand and its products and services.

2. 1. They must also “sell” this to all stakeholders with vision, passion and
conviction.
2. They must have a thorough understanding of the products and processes to take
a product to market and create the excitement necessary to create leads for the
sales force.
3. They must clearly define the features, benefits and attributes of that product
AND articulate the “selling message”
4. They must continually improve and innovate within the company to keep the
brand, products fresh and relevant and continually sell these insights too.
5. They must be the inspirational leader whose passion is the brand and it must be
infectious!
And a lot more!
All of this is being lost…very quickly.
When I was a kid, I’d go on vacation and I’d get a couple cool mementos to bring
home and show off to my friends. I could do that because back then, you were only
able to buy things that were unique to that area. Not anymore. Go anywhere and
you’ll find the same selection of furniture, clothes, fast food and stuff in general.
There is nothing unique about the products or the messaging to attract a consumer to
your brand or store. It’s all being commoditized and that’s why on-line retailers are
quickly taking away market share…because they have the unique “stuff” people
search for and want.
Back in the day, I was taught that great marketing created the sales proposition
to: “Inspire, educate, motivate and engage.”
All of this is being lost…very quickly, and I’ve
become the Willie Loman of today. Why, because
I don’t know how to commoditize creativity and
passion. No one wants that anymore, they want an
MBA who can manipulate an excel spreadsheet in
47 shades of grey. Today, companies are more
concerned with the educational degree....a
pedigree..., even if that degree, or lack of, was
obtained before computers, the internet, cell
phones, and more. These technological advancements, and other dramatic changes in
our society, has transformed everything in retail today, especially as it pertains to
how to “sell.”

3. So retailers and brands play it safe and the result is so obvious. Today’s marketing
geniuses focus their entire brand platform around the discount or sale; yep, the race to
the bottom; 50%-70% off and more, if they could. Everyone seems to be watching
everyone else at the expense of building a unique sales and marketing proposition. Go
ahead, ask anyone when the last time they were inspired or engaged
with any marketing platform that motivated them to purchase a product…..from an
impassioned salesperson.
This coupled with the “automation” of marketing information…{there’s an APP for
that}…has relegated great marketing to a “gate keeper” rather than a leader. Everyone
wants that MBA leading their team. I’ve always wondered why an MBA is more
important than vision, passion, knowledge and experience. Both would be great, but
I’d take the latter before the former any day. You can teach knowledge….a BA or
MBA…, but you can’t teach vision, passion and the creative execution that consumers
relate to. Everyone knows that a great salesperson has an “infectious passion about
their job/product”, and the marketing guy isn’t giving them anything to be passionate
and excited about anymore.
That is why I believe we are witnessing the death of sales as we know it. The role of
sales has become more of Vendo-Salesperson: show, tell and sell. Why? Because
their best sales leader…the marketing guy…is NOT leading, innovating and creating
the excitement that used to infect salespeople with passion for their brand. Gone are
the days of inspirational creative, taking a chance, differentiating one self from the
competition. Just look at Target. They used to be Tar-zhay. Their same store sales
have started to fall because they aren’t unique anymore. Best Buy commoditized their
brand and that’s causing them to fail miserably in store, and especially on the internet.
Look at furniture stores, all of them are all clamoring for that $399 sofa in 3 different
colors, because the other guy has it too. I have a lot more examples of this happening
everywhere in retail.
The marketing guy is helping to kill the great
salesperson because they aren’t performing their
5 basic functions (above). Any marketing person
worth their weight knows that their customer of
today is NOT their customer of 5 years ago…yet
they haven’t adapted to this new “wired
consumer” with a great internet and social
marketing strategy. They have ignored this
dynamic change and by doing so, they are not
delivering sales opportunities….which is their

4. “primary job!”
Let’s talk about furniture for a minute. I know this industry well, serving as Ashley’s
Chief Marketing Officer for years, as well as many others. Home Furnishing’s has
been severely commoditized.
At retail, most
furniture retailers do
not understand the
power of a great
website, the need for
tons of content,
product
descriptions, and
more. They think
showing pictures
will do it but they
won’t because the
marketing guy isn’t
investing in
inspirational photography that would inspire a consumer to “imagine” what that item
could look like in their home. Most product photography is bland/boring and “done on
the cheap.” Many shots are just plain ugly, shot overseas in China to save money and
it looks like it. That doesn’t help sell the product it hurts it and the poor salesperson is
along for the ride.
They are not writing copy that is unique and relevant and they are not delivering the
number one engaging element: Videos! Think about this for a minute. If you have
“better goods” and you’re selling a name brand leather sofa at $1,999.00, why would
a consumer want to buy that when that same store is selling a “bonded leather – look
alike” for $399.00….and HELLO - it’s NOT real leather – it’s Vinyl. A video
explaining what you’re buying would in fact raise the expectations of the consumer
and the sales ticket. But the chief marketing guy isn’t doing that, so the tickets are
smaller, the commissions less and the sales person is expected to do it all without any
help.
This isn’t just about furniture. This is about all retail. Take an honest inventory and
see if you’re destined to become irrelevant like so many past iconic brands that
stagnated and now are scattered across the junkyards of retail.
There is so much more. Just think about it. Why are you different? What are you

5. doing different to inspire “me”, to engage me? Are you where I want to find you? The
sales person can’t do it all. They need a leader with a vision, a leader with passion, a
leader on a mission and because we as marketers are not leading as we should, we’re
witnessing the death of a salesman.
Today's marketer's must stop thinking themselves into acting...and start acting
themselves into thinking!
I would love some comments please
Want more? Go to http://www.social4retail.com where
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About Bill Napier: www.social4retail.com - About Bill
Napier: Bill is a specialist in creating, guiding and
deploying successful marketing B2B & B2C solutions
integrating traditional marketing strategies with the web and social media. He has
worked in the home furnishings industry for over 12 years, as the chief marketing
officer for some of the industry's largest manufacturers and creating some of the
largest promotions ever launched within the industry.
Comments? Questions?
Contact Bill Napier,
Napier Marketing Group, Inc.
billnapier@napiermkt.com
612-217-1297
www.social4retail.com