The Buyer’s Experience Before starting, please read these instructions thoroughly. Purpose: To recognize common sales strategies and their effect on the buyer; and analyzes the salesperson’s tactics using material from class. You will be provided with a list of what you are looking for during the interaction. Your Task: Select a product that you have genuine interest in purchasing sometime in the near future. Find a corporation*, big-box store, or a similar retailer in which you can visit to execute this assignment. For example, Nordstrom, Best-Buy, REI, Ben Bridge Jewelers, etc. If you have interest in buying a new car sometime soon, you may also visit a local car dealer although they may not be as amenable to a 'practice sales session'. The goal is to find a business that has well-trained sales staff. *Note: It is recommended that you stay away from busy environments such as an Apple Store that has waiting lists for salesperson unless you intend to actually purchase something that day.) Your assignment is to evaluate the salesperson’s tactics using the material you have learned this quarter. You should begin by expressing interest in the product. Later in the sales dialogue be sure to raise some possible objections to the product (think back to our discussions this quarter & chapter 8). Observe and make mental notes as to how the salesperson responds. Is their reaction effective? Why? Did they answer all of your objections?  Does the salesperson attempt to form a trust-based relationship with you? At the end of the interaction, identify yourself as a student of a sales class. Ask the salesperson about their product and sales training process. In other words, how extensive does their corporation train their employees? Remember to obtain a business card. The Written Assignment:  Your final paper should be approximately five pages in length (allow for approximately two paragraphs per section) and address each of the following items in memo format. The use of in-text citations in APA format is necessary in most sections. Support from the textbook should be evident; however, the overuse of quotes is prohibited. Each set of chapter questions should represent a memo heading. For example, after your memo introduction, your first memo heading should be: Product Information. Do not repeat the questions themselves in your paper. Be sure to include a separate citation page and scanned copy of the business card. Please use Times New Roman font size 12 / double spaced. Here are your questions: Product Information: · In this first section, provide basic information about your visit: · the retailer you visited · the product you were interested in · time and day of your visit · name and position of the sales staff you interacted with Trust-Based Selling (Chapters 1 & 2) · Did the sales representative focus on transitional or trust based selling? Defend your answer using references and material from chapter one. · How did the sales representative creat ...

1. The Buyer’s Experience
Before starting, please read these instructions thoroughly.
Purpose: To recognize common sales strategies and their effect
on the buyer; and analyzes the salesperson’s tactics using
material from class. You will be provided with a list of what
you are looking for during the interaction.
Your Task: Select a product that you have genuine interest in
purchasing sometime in the near future. Find a corporation*,
big-box store, or a similar retailer in which you can visit to
execute this assignment. For example, Nordstrom, Best-Buy,
REI, Ben Bridge Jewelers, etc. If you have interest in buying a
new car sometime soon, you may also visit a local car dealer
although they may not be as amenable to a 'practice sales
session'. The goal is to find a business that has well-trained
sales staff.
*Note: It is recommended that you stay away from busy
environments such as an Apple Store that has waiting lists for
salesperson unless you intend to actually purchase something
that day.)
Your assignment is to evaluate the salesperson’s tactics using
the material you have learned this quarter. You should begin by
expressing interest in the product. Later in the sales dialogue be
sure to raise some possible objections to the product (think back
to our discussions this quarter & chapter 8).
Observe and make mental notes as to how the salesperson
responds. Is their reaction effective? Why? Did they answer all
of your objections? Does the salesperson attempt to form a
trust-based relationship with you?
At the end of the interaction, identify yourself as a student of a

2. sales class. Ask the salesperson about their product and sales
training process. In other words, how extensive does their
corporation train their employees? Remember to obtain a
business card.
The Written Assignment: Your final paper should be
approximately five pages in length (allow for approximately two
paragraphs per section) and address each of the following items
in memo format. The use of in-text citations in APA format is
necessary in most sections. Support from the textbook should be
evident; however, the overuse of quotes is prohibited. Each set
of chapter questions should represent a memo heading. For
example, after your memo introduction, your first memo
heading should be: Product Information. Do not repeat the
questions themselves in your paper. Be sure to include a
separate citation page and scanned copy of the business card.
Please use Times New Roman font size 12 / double spaced.
Here are your questions:
Product Information:
· In this first section, provide basic information about your
visit:
· the retailer you visited
· the product you were interested in
· time and day of your visit
· name and position of the sales staff you interacted with
Trust-Based Selling (Chapters 1 & 2)
· Did the sales representative focus on transitional or trust
based selling? Defend your answer using references and
material from chapter one.
· How did the sales representative create customer value
(selling benefits and answering the ‘so what’ question)?
· Figure 1.4 may help you process through the initial sales
experience.
· Did the salesperson try to gain your trust? Be specific.
· Out of the eight knowledge bases, what two did the
salesperson rely on the most during your interaction?
Communications Skills (Chapter 4)

3. · Review Learning Objective 4-2. What types of questions did
the salesperson use to engage you in the conversation? How
were these questions helpful in engaging you in the sales
interaction? Be specific. ? Use references from the text as
support.
· How did you see the ADAPT questioning system used during
the sales interaction?
· Did the salesperson use the SIER Hierarchy of Active
Listening? List each of the four sequences and how the
salesperson used it. Cite the chapter for support.
Sales Dialogue: Creating & Communicating Value (Chapter 7)
· How did the salesperson encourage buyer feedback? What type
of “check-back” questions did they use?
· What type of sales aids did the seller use? Were they
effective? Why or why not? What value did they bring to the
overall presentation/experience?
· What “proof providers” did the salesperson provide? Be
specific. ? Use references from the text as support.
Addressing Concerns & Earning Commitment (Chapter 8)
· What objections did you present to the salesperson?
· Using each of the acronyms in LAARC, how did the
salesperson react to EACH of your objections? Use references
from the text as support.
· From Exhibit 8.8, what techniques did the salesperson use to
answer your resistance/objections? Was their selected
techniques effective? Why or why not?
· Did the salesperson gain your commitment? If so, how? If not,
what could have changed throughout the sales presentation to
gain commitment to purchase?
Overall Reaction to Experience
· Provide your overall reaction to this experience.
· After you identified yourself as a student, what did the
salesperson reveal about their training in sales, how corporation
trains their employees, and their specific tactics uses to close a
sale?

4. RESEARCH-BASED POSITION PAPER
Essay Topic: Contemporary (current) Global Issue
For the group presentation all groups did their research on a
global issue that threatens the world as
a whole. For this essay assignment you can either work on the
same issue and conduct more
research, or you can pick an entirely new topic to write a well-
researched paper that meets the
requirements listed below.
This is not a group assignment. All students are required to
complete this assignment individually.
Assignment Overview
Write a well-developed argumentative research paper on a
contemporary (current) global issue. The
paper should be a work of critical analysis, meaning that it
should formulate an original and
compelling argument about the subject matter and should
support that argument with relevant
evidence and sound reasoning. The central argument of the
paper should correspond clearly to one
of the five argument types described in Chapters 8-12 of the
textbook: Everything’s an argument –
Argument of Facts, Argument of Definition, Evaluation
Argument, Causal Argument, and Proposal
Argument.

5. Some topic ideas you can consider are:
-wage labor
tion
Source Requirements:
You are required to use minimum six sources to support your
paper. At least four of these sources
should be academic, peer reviewed articles from the University
databases.
The paper must demonstrate effective summary, paraphrase, and
quotation using signal phrases and
parenthetical citations for attribution.
The paper must include a properly formatted reference list.
Rhetorical Situation: You are writing to scholars within a
particular field of study of your own
choosing. Your goal is to make an original and compelling
contribution to the discussion of a
particular issue within that field of study. The argument that

6. you formulate should be situated in
relation to arguments put forth by other scholars within the
field.
Assignment Outcomes
and compelling for a specific audience
of academic readers.
a well-constructed thesis statement that responds to
the issue and corresponds to one
of the five argument types described in Chapters 8-12 of the
textbook.
expectations of the academic audience for
the paper.
paper’s argument.
-academic sources and
use different types of sources in
appropriate ways.
signal phrases (attributive tags)
and parenthetical in-text citations (APA format).

7. ormatted reference list using APA
guidelines.
Paper Structure:
I. Introduction: Your introduction should consist of a
substantial paragraph that adequately defines
the issue, establishes the importance of the issue, and set up the
thesis statement. The thesis
statement should give your reader a clear sense of what your
argument will be.
II. Body: The body paragraphs should develop supporting
claims that build off of each other in
ways that contribute to the development of the paper’s larger
argument. Within the body of the
paper, you should demonstrate the ability to use sources
effectively, respond to opposing
viewpoints, and use relevant evidence to support your
arguments.
III. Conclusion: Your conclusion should consist of a substantial
paragraph that explain the paper’s
fully developed argument and reflect on the implications of that
argument for the paper’s audience:
scholars within a particular field of study.
Style and Tone: This paper requires you to work closely with
multiple sources, which means that
you will need to use signal phrases and in-text citation
consistently and properly (accordingly to APA
guidelines) in order to effectively manage your source material
without allowing it to overpower your
own voice. In describing and responding critically to your
source material, you will need to maintain

8. a scholarly tone (objective and respectful) and avoid
unintentional plagiarism.
Write your paper in third person. Avoid using first and second
person speech.
Essay#3 is due in two separate locations:
Through Turnitin by Nov. 30th – Wednesday morning before
6:00 am
And through Taskstream by Nov. 30th – Wednesday morning
before 6:00 am
In-order to receive full credit for the submission, it is required
that you submit essay # 3 (same file)
through both turnitin and through taskstream. Links will be
made available on eCourses.
Length Requirement: The paper should be at least 2,000 words
and should not exceed 2,600
words. (One double-spaced page of 12-point Times New Roman
font is about 300 words.) The
paper must be formatted according to APA guidelines and
include a references page (but no
abstract).
Accessing Library Databases:
Go to the PVAMU University homepage
Click on Library – or use the following link:
http://www.pvamu.edu/library/

9. Then choose: A-Z Database List | By Subjects (located in the
middle of the page). Here you can
choose a database you would like to explore.
Always check the full text box.
List of commonly used Databases:
JSTOR
LEXIS NEXIS: Full-text database (covering current events).
ProQuest
Britannica Online
CQ Researcher
EBSCOhost: Includes citations and abstracts from journals in
most disciplines
ERIC
GailNet
Academic search complete
Once in the database, just like any other search engine, you will
be able to search for articles and
information of your interest.
Another non University database option is Google Scholar:
https://scholar.google.com/
http://www.pvamu.edu/library/
https://scholar.google.com/