Sales Call Anxiety: Exploring What It Means When Fear Rules a Sales Encounter

Transcription

1 Willem Vebeke & Rihad P. Bagzzi Sales Call Anxiety: Explg What It Means When Fea Rules a Sales Enunte The gal f this study is t develp and test a neptualizat f sales all anxiety (SCA) n the basis f uent sights fm the gnitive appah t sial anxiety. Sales all anxiety is an iepessible fea f beg negatively evaluated and ejeted by a ustme, and it is upled with a desie t avid undetakg speifi funtal ats sellg situats. The auths pesent and test a mdel f SCA tw sellg situats knwn t have theateng nsequenes f salespeple: anvasg and lsg. The auths fd that SCA nsists f fu mpnents: negative self-evaluats, negative evaluats fm ustmes, awaeness f physilgial symptms (e.g., a queasy stmah, shaky vie, blushg), and ptetive ats (e.g., avidg eye ntat, fiddlg with the hands, shunng self-dislsues). The auths shw that these dimenss ae funts f negative affetivity and anxiety-pvkg ntextual ues and that they negatively fluened the pefmane f 189 mtgage salespeple. We have me feas than we need and it seems that u uttely effiient fea nditg system, mbed with an extemely pweful ability t thk abut u feas and ability t ntl them, is pbably at fault. Ttie Emtat Ba, Jseph LeDux 1 elutane" the fea f makg ntat with the ustme has lng been egnized by salespeple as a pblem. Hweve, n eseahes have vestigated the natue f this fequently debilitatg symptm (Ingam, LaFge, and Shwepke 1997; Weitz, Castlebey, and Tanne 1992). Pat f the pblem is that all elutane and fea f makg a ntat have lagely been left undefed. T pvide a basis f the eseah desibed this atile, we defe sates att anxiety (SCA) as the fea f beg negatively evaluated and ejeted by ustmes, whih is ampanied by uges t avid ntat with ustmes, when ntat is made, t efa fm teatg effetively and askg f a mmitment. It is estimated that SCA is pevalent sellg situats and will eah tense levels f up t 40% f salespeple at sme pts thei aees (Ray 1995). A need exists t undestand bette what SCA is, when it us, and hw t manage it. The gal f this atile is t develp a neptualizat f SCA that is gunded uent sights fm the gnitive appah t sial anxiety. Speifially, we fus n hw SCA unflds tw sellg situats (anvasg and Willem Vebeke is SMA Chai Pfess Sales and Aunt Management, Easmus Univesity. Rihad P Bagzzi is J. Hugh Liedtke Pfess f Management and Pfess f Psyhlgy, Rie Univesity, and Dwight F. Bentn Pfess f Behavial Siene Management, Busess Shl, Univesity f Mihigan. The auths expess thei gatitude t the annymus JM eviewes f the many nstutive emmendats they made dug the eview pess and t Miiam Huben f he Insightful suggests. 88 / Junal f Maketg, July 20 lsg) and hw it affets the salespesn's ability t teat with ustmes. In addit, we ppse an peatalizat f SCA and vestigate hw SCA elates t pesnality taits, anxiety-pvkg ntextual ues, and pefmane. Ou neptualizat and empiial vestigat is designed t pvide manages with a way t egnize and undestand why salespeple seek t avid undetakg apppiate ats befe and dug a sales all. We als disuss hw SCA an be ntlled t the benefit f the salespesn and fim. The atile peeds as fllws. Fist, we exple the nept f SCA n the basis f eent neptualizats f sial anxiety develped by Clak and Wells (1995) and thes (e.g.. Balw 1988; Wells and Matthews 1994). We disuss the situat speifiity f SCA, as well as its anteedents and nsequenes. Then, usg a sample f 189 salespeple, we vestigate hw SCA manifests itself dug ld anvasg and lsg a sale, tw pttypial sellg situats knwn t ause fea many salespeple. We then ppse manageial impliats and futue eseah quests. Memy Pesses and Sellg In the field f sales management, thee is ageement that salespeple's use f delaative and pedual memy systems dug ustme teat depends n the amunt f attent esues that a salespesn has available a given situat (e.g., Szymansky 1988). In addit, sme eseahes have pted ut that metaknwledge (e.g., wkg smate the willgness t lean) affets the way salespeple use sellg situat ategies and the ways they apply sipts dug the sales teat (Sujan, Weitz, and Kuma 1994). Hweve, nly a few studies have vestigated the le f memy pesses with egad t emtal behavi makg a sale (e.g., Badvik, Hadaway, and Kamski 1992; Bwn, Cn, and Slum 1997). F example, n the basis f eseah by Bagzzi, Baumgatne, Junat f tvtaketg Vl. 64 (July 20),

2 and Pietes (1998), Bwn, Cn, and Slum (1997) shw that sellg an be egaded as a gal-dieted ativity and that, the pusuit f the sales gal, antiipated emtal eats t suess failue fluene the ats that the salespesn takes. In the wds, gal pusuit and subsequent pefmane an be egaded as unde self-ntl, but gnitive and emtal pesses als itiate and guide gal pusuit (Bagzzi 1992). Impliit the pess f gal pusuit, but nt studied t date, is hw stumental ats suh as sellg tatis dug ustme teats ae mataed abandned at least tempaily, afte they ae itiated, and then pssibly eativated. Simn (1967) was ne f the fist theists t suggest that the gnitive ntl f pupsive at is failitated by what he temed "teupt mehanisms" what psyhlgists nw all "gnitive tefeene" "attental disupt" (Saasn and Saasn 1986). By this, Simn meant that ngg gal-dieted behavis ae ften evaluated, mdified, and even fsaken befe a gal is eahed, but puely gnitive mehanisms annt aunt f suh uenes. Simn (1967) speulated that human emts teupt the gnitive ntl f at, s that new assessments f pgess and gal mmitment an be made and hanges stituted as equied. Hweve, he neve identified the emtal pesses the way they peate. Sial Anxiety and Cgnitive Intefeene Sial anxiety is a stng emt that funts as an imptant teupt mehanism gal-dieted sales behavis. Hw might sial anxiety manifest itself a sales situat? A salespesn may expeiene anxiety antiipat f itiism fm a supevis, ejet by wkes, idiule by pees, nflits between wk and family pessues, n- Ilits between mpany pliies and mal standads. But pbably the mst salient auses f SCA f salespeple ae the fea f failue and the disappval and epudiat by ustmes. Indeed, eseah sales management suggests that when salespeple fail, it negatively affets thei feelgs f self-esteem (Gdw, May, and Hill 1997) and attibuts used t expla failue, whih tun affet mtivat (Jhnstn and Kim 1994) and emts negatively (Badvik, Hadaway, and Kamski 1992). Thus, mpaed with many the upats, pesnal sellg seems t nta date pptunities f sial anxiety beause f its vey natue, whih ludes the pssibility f multiple ejets and failues n a daily basis and the effets f this ptential n feelgs and thughts abut the self. T undestand hw SCA might u diffeent situats, we fus espeially n gnitive theies f sial anxiety, as they have attated nsideable attent eently psyhlgy and lead t patial emedies f peple suffeg fm sial anxiety (Wells 1998). Ealy eseah by Ellis (1962) and Bek (1976) suggests that anxius peple pssess hypevalent gnitive shemas (alled "memy biases") that ntuusly pesent a view f eality as dangeus and the self as vulneable. T the extent that anxius peple pssess these shemata, they will me likely appaise peeive a myiad f situats as theateng, whih tun edues thei belief that they an handle the situats pe with them ppely. Bth appaisals, whih tefee with memy pesses dug nvesats, ae thught t u autmatially and epesent an ngg tegated pess. Althugh Bek has updated his they (e.g.. Bek and Feeman 1990), the eseahes have efed shema they t desibe and teat speifi types f anxiety disdes, suh as sial anxiety. The mst well-knwn theies this egad lude Balw's (1988) anxius appehensih they, Clak and Wells's (1995) gnitive appah t sial anxiety, and Rahman's (1998) anxiety mdel. In ntast t pevius appahes that viewed sial anxiety as a pathlgy, the newe theies egad many anxiety-elated pblems as mmn es f nmal funtg athe than as signs f deep-ted abnmalities (Rahman 1998, p. 64). We tem these theies "attent-based gnitive anxiety mdels" (see the next set). Attent-based gnitive anxiety mdels diffe fm the pathlgial nepts f anxiety the fllwg ways: 1. Ealy theies fused n hw vigilant shemata ntibute t anxiety espnses, wheeas eseahes nw fus n attent biases and gnitive pesses that ae pdued speifi situats that nta theat-elated stimuli. As we disuss subsequently, the attent f peple with anxiety is fused n extemal signals as well as temally pdued signals, suh as physilgial symptms that typify anxiety. As Meka and Nugent (1995, p. 187) suggest, anxiety is assiated with ntuus mnitg f a situat f signals f ptential theat and equies a gnitive system that sans f suh theats. 2. The pesisteny f sial anxiety is efed by haateistis f the anxiety espnse itself That is, the behavial espnses that emege fm dysfuntal appaisals ae ften vlved the matenane f dange appaisals and beliefs abut situats, as well as peple's beliefs abut themselves thse situats. In the wds, if anxius peple avid tlee fm theateng situats, they neve veify whethe the situats wee tuly dangeus and thus mata anxiety and thwat leang. This pespetive has pmted ntempay emedies ted leang hw t ntl attental pesses and beliefs (e.g.. Balw 1988; Rahman 1998; Wells et al. 1995). 3. Sme eseah shws that peple with eta pesnality taits develp situat-speifi feelgs f anxiety (e.g.. Balw 1988; Rahman 1998). Amng these taits ae negative affetivity (NA) and anxiety sensitivity. Althugh sme peple ae pne t develpg sial anxieties ne me sial situats, they d nt d s neessaily all sial situats, whih suggests the need t speify anxiety-pvkg ues any patiula ntext. Attent-Based Cgnitive Anxiety Mdels and the Cmpnents f SCA Peple suffeg fm sial anxiety typially have a stng desie t nvey a patiula favable impess f themselves t thes, yet they have a maked seuity abut thei ability t d s (Clak and Wells 1995). In patiula, when they ente theateng sial situats, they believe they ae dange f behavg an ept and unaeptable fash, and they thk that suh behavis will have negative nsequenes suh as f lss f self wth, status, and ejet (see Clak and Wells 1995, p. 69). Reseahes Sales Call Anxiety / 89

3 stess that these thughts ente peple's mds nly diffiult amhiguus situats, whih the self-dubt eupts me less autmatially. Clak and Wells (1995) and Balw (1988) neive f these anxius thughts as "anxiety pgams," whih ae mplex nstellats f gnitive, smati, affetive, and behavial hanges that ae designed t ptet a pesn fm ham bjetively dangeus envments. When they ae ativated by ues the situat, these anxiety pgams amplify the peeived dange thse situats. Attent t theateng ambiguus aspets f the situat takes piity ve the ues. This nawed fus f attent heightens the ausal f anxiety that subsequently bemes the fus f attent, an effet that auses peple t fd futhe evidene f peeived dange. As a nsequene, attent velad smetimes us, whih negatively affets peple's ability t handle sial teats and the quality f tepesnal mmuniat. In a sellg situat, this may eliit negative eats fm ustmes, whih anxius salespeple tun peeive as pf f thei ability t handle simila situats. Fally, sme f the self-geneated symptms might pdue futhe symptms (e.g., talkg t fast is ften ampanied by hypeventilat and eased heat ate). These self-amplifyg panilike behavis have been bseved by psyhlgists (Clak and Wells 1995) as well as by suh applied shlas as Dudley and Gdsn (1992, p. 77), wh have fund that "dmsayes expeiene pani attaks" pesnal sellg ntexts.' Tw me haateistis must be added t this self-efg anxiety pess. Fist, peple high sial anxiety ae mtivated t seah f fmat that gives them lues abut hw thes thk abut them. But when peple suspet that thes negatively evaluate them, they avid examg the full extent f the negative evaluats, beause they ae afaid that peple might ejet them if they ask f feedbak. Send, afte expeieng negative sial events, peple suffeg fm sial anxiety tend t umate exessively abut what went wng. This umat efes thei feas f the situat and edues thei feelgs f self-effiay f handlg simila situats the futue. Dimenss f SCA Sales all anxiety an be nsideed a speial ase f sial anxiety (Rahman 1998). On the basis f the wk f Clak and Wells (1995), wh vestigate geneal sial anxiety, we ppse the fllwg: H : Sales all anxiety mpises fu dimenss: negative self-evaluats, peeived negative evaluats fm ustmes, imaged physilgial symptms, and uges t pefm ptetive ats. The fu dimenss f SCA ae thught t u dug, and even befe, enuntes with ustmes. The fist dimens f SCA vlves negative evaluats f the self that aise antiipat f a speifi 'Dmsayes, adg t Dudley and Gdsn (1992), ae salespeple wh believe befehand that they will fail. This pmtes a type f all elutane. enunte with a ustme (e.g., ld anvasg lsg a sale). These negative expetats entail umats abut past failues, negative images f the self pevius as well as antiipated sales enuntes, and exaggeated nsideats f what an g wng and hw the salespesn might fail. Examples might lude "I will nt emembe all the sellg pts and will have tuble gettg the wds ut" "I will be nevus and will lse ntl and lk flish." In summay, ne haateisti f SCA is salespeple's seuity abut thei ability t pefm well and nvey a psitive impess t ustmes. The send dimens f SCA is imaged negative evaluats fm ustmes. Peple wh have high sial anxiety have a stng desie t nvey favable impesss f themselves t thes, whih is upled with a stng need t knw what thes thk abut them (Clak and Wells 1995; Pz et al. 1991). Yet thei seuity abut thei ability t pefm and mmuniate a psitive image, whih is exaebated by exessive umat abut past failues and images f futue failue, eates stng antiipaty sial anxiety. Reseah suggests futhe that peple high sial anxiety tend t set unealistially high standads f sial pefmane (Clak and Wells 1995). Examples might lude "I must get evey ustme t like me" "I must nt eve shw signs that I d nt knw my pdut d nt believe my pdut." A thid dimens f SCA is salespeple's physilgial symptms, whih they use t fe ustmes' eats t themselves and t appaise hw well they ae dg veall. Cmmn eats t SCA, whih ae lagely unntllable at least at the utset, ae a pundg heat, an unsteady vie, blushg, sweatg, and shaky hands. Physilgial symptms eflet the fat that sial anxiety is mediated pimaily by the sympatheti nevus system. Hweve, the paasympatheti nevus system smetimes mes t play as well and is manifested by a dp bld pessue and ampanyg feelgs f dizzess weakness. Meve, it has been fund that peple wh have high sial anxiety tend t veestimate hw negatively thes evaluate them tepesnal exhanges (Rapee and Lim 1992; Stpa and Clak 1993), whih amplifies the mmuniats' peepts f thei wn physilgial symptms and futhe eases sial anxiety. A peupat with physilgial symptms auses salespeple t see themselves fm the pt f view f the ustme, and this adds t thei negative self-evaluat (e.g., "The ustme sees that I am nevus and sweatg pfusely and will thk I am mpetent"). The fal dimens f SCA vlves uges t pefm ptetive ats. These ae simila t what lial psyhlgists tem "safety-seekg behavis" (e.g., Clak and Wells 1995; Wells et al. 1995), what psyhlgists all emt-egulaty pesses pg espnses (Baet 1995; Lazaus and Flkman 1984; Thits 1990). Psyhlgists have fund that ne f the symptms nmitants f sial anxiety is an autmati eat that edues elieves the negative effets f anxiety. Ptetive ats enmpass a wide ange f pg espnses, many f whih ae vluntay but sme f whih an be leaned 90 / Junal f Maketg, July 20

4 unleaned t a eta extent as pesnal pliies. Examples f the me vluntay ptetive ats ae gazg away and avidg eye ntat, speakg quikly, and fiddlg with the hands. Ptetive ats me subjet t self-ntl entail avidg self-dislsues, sayg less, ntllg the beathg (e.g., takg deep beaths, beathg slwly), standg still. It als entails salespeple fusg n thei wn and the ustme's vie and feet hldg nt bjets. Withdawal fm ntat and avidane f futue ntat ae exteme and usually dysfuntal ptetive ats. In adane with Clak and Wells (1995), we believe it is fuitful t neive f SCA as funtg tw ways. Fist, SCA manifests itself alng a ntuum fm n sial anxiety t sevee, debilitatg sial anxiety; send, SCA manifests itself a bad ange f situats knwn t pvke sial anxiety. Me netely, ne salespesn might expeiene tense SCA dug ld anvasg but nly mdeate levels f SCA dug the falizg stages sales nvesat, vie vesa, wheeas thes might expeiene high SCA bth situats (e.g., Dudley and Gdsn 1992). Similaly, Sgh and Rhads (1991) suggest that a salespesn might expeiene le ambiguity elated t lleagues but nt t ustmes, and vie vesa. When SCA is examed as a situat-speifi enigma, it appeas less pathlgial and theefe pehaps me manageable if we fus n the self-attentive pesses that ause anxiety thse situats. This situat-speifi pespetive is at the ente f disuss amng speialists wkg n sial phbia (e.g., Hekelman and Shneie 1995; Rahman 1998). Theefe, H2: Salespeple undeg SCA as a matte f degee that anges fm lw t high levels f tensity. Tw mmn ntexts whih salespeple fae SCA ae anvasg (ld allg) and lsg the sale. Anteedents and Cnsequenes f SCA Pesnatity as an anteedent f SCA. Althugh the fus f u eseah is situatal aspets f SCA, we als wish t vestigate ne anteedent t sial anxiety identified psyhlgy and ganizatal behavi eseah. Negative affetivity is a dispsit f md and diates the geneal vulneability f peple t expeieng avesive emtal states: "High-NA dividuals tend t be distessed and upset and have a negative view f self, wheeas thse lw the dimens ae elatively ntent and seue and satisfied with themselves" (Watsn and Clak 1984, p. 465). We thk f NA as a type f tait sial anxiety, a pesnality haateisti that endws pedispses peple t eat emtally a patiula way ass many situats. Watsn and Clak (1984, p. 465) nte that NA is a unidimensal nstut, and peple sg high NA pssess hni subjetive feelgs f nevusness, tens, and wy. Futheme, Watsn and Clak (1984, p. 466, emphasis igal) psit that NA manifests itself even the absene f any vet stess and peple high NA ae, " any given situat, me titety t expeiene a signifiant level f distess." In summay, NA is a dispsit that eflets dividual diffeenes the geneal ppensity t expeiene negative emts and have a negative view f the self. Sme eseah suppts the effets f NA n jb stess and jb sta f pfessal and manageial pesnnel an suane mpany (Bief et al. 1988) and f emplyees ass a wide ange f mpanies (Chen and Spet 1991; see als Watsn and Pennebake 1989). Thus, we ppse the fllwg: H3: Negative affetivity will psitively fluene SCA. That is, we expet NA t ease the salespesn's SCA patiula situats. Suppt f this hypthesis an be fund Watsn and Clak's (1984, p. 466) eview f the liteatue, whih they dument that high-tait anxius peple eat me stngly t stessful situats but, the absene f stess, tend t be n me anxius than thse lw NA. Likewise, given the tendeny f high-na peple t fixate n and magnify mistakes, fustats, disapptments, and theats (Watsn and Clak 1984, p. 466), we expet that NA shuld als aentuate SCA. In addit t ma effets f NA, we exple whethe NA teats with anxiety-pvkg ues t fiuene SCA. Dependene f SCA n situatat ues. Canvasg and lsg ae distt glbal settgs whih sellg us, but the eal detemants f SCA ae patiula anxietypvkg ues that funt with these settgs. Diffeent anxiety-pvkg ues an be identified f anvasg and lsg. This tepetat is nsistent with mden defits f sial anxiety that egad it as "a pesistent fea f ne me sial pefmane situats whih a pesn is expsed" (Ameian Psyhiati Assiat 1994, pp ; see als Wells and Mathews 1994). F anvasg, ne sue f anxiety aises when salespeple must itiate ntats with pspets wh ae f a highe ank sial status. The salespeple ae put an awkwad psit beause f diffeenes expetats and ustms that might aise as well as the unetaty whethe defeene must be shwn, and if s, hw, when, and hw muh. A send sue f anxiety anvasg settgs is the nea-univesal eat peple have t meetg new peple. Withut pi knwledge f the needs, style, and the haateistis f a pspet, the salespesn is asked t fae a set f unknwns that uld thwat the itial enunte. A thid sue f anxiety stems fm the need t eate a favable fist impess and nvey speifi psitive qualities f the sellg ganizat and its ffegs. In summay, anvasg pesents a vague and ambiguus situat whih thgs an g wng and the salespesn is vulneable t ejet and failue. The antiipat f nens abut the unknwn ativates SCA pgams. In summay, we suggest the fllwg: H4: Sales all anxiety will be pvked t the extent that salespeple ae sensitive t diffiulties dealg with new ustmes, highe status ustmes, and the nveyane f psitive qualities f thei fim and its pduts, thee faets f anvasg. F lsg, the stngest sue f anxiety is the antiipat f askg f a mmitment and beg ejeted. S muh ides n btag a mmitment that the dead f failue is a eal and feaed nsequential utme. Antiipaty anxiety hee an lead t yles f appah-avidane, pastat, and stng appehens. Anthe sue f Sales Call Anxiety / 91

5 anxiety is the thught f admittg failue t a supevis and explag why a failue ued. Theefe, we submit the fllwg: H5: Sales all anxiety will be pvked t the extent that salespeple ae sensitive t diffiulties assiated with askg f a mmitment and disussg thei pefmane this egad with thei supevis, tw aspets f lsg sales. Pefmane-elated nsequenes f SCA. Sales all anxiety tudes t gal-dieted ativities and ptentially fiuenes pefmane negatively. Hw might this happen? One way that pefmane might be negatively affeted is thugh the tefeene that sial anxiety pdues ustme-selle exhanges. Paallel t psyhlgial eseahes, we expet sial anxiety t da limit salespeple's attental esues and s tefee with thei ability t pess sial ues (Clak and Wells 1995; Rahman 1998). Related t this is the geneal tendeny peple high sial anxiety nt t "hek ut what is eally happeng" tepesnal enuntes (Clak and Wells 1995, p. 72). Peple wh have high sial anxiety "ae nt data diven but funt athe like an autmati pgam whih is ativated a sial situat," and this leads them "t un thugh a epetie f negative thughts withut eally payg attent t what is happeng the situat" (Stpa and Clak 1993, p. 264). This behavi is dysfuntal f pesnal sellg, whih mplex mmuniats f needs and ffes and unteffes ae neessay f suess. But nt nly failues attent u as a nsequene f sial anxiety tepesnal mmuniat. Exessive self-fus, negative self-evaluats, and veestimat f hw negatively thes view the self an lead t ptetive ats that make the salespesn high SCA me ass as unfiendly and unespnsive. This, tun, an eliit simila eats fm ustmes. The esult an be a beakdwn mmuniat and lweed pefmane. Likewise, when sial anxiety dues is ampanied by negative self-evaluats by salespeple, they may beme disuaged and avid eta teats. Even if they d nt give up mpletely, salespeple high SCA may beme distated by thei feelgs and physilgial symptms, whih makes them wk nevusly and display less attent t the task at hand. Disuptive sial anxiety may als tefee with wkg smat (Sujan, Weitz, and Kuma 1994). All these eats an depess pefmane. As a nsequene, we ppse the fllwg: Hg! The geate the peeived SCA, the pe is the pefmane tems f mmuniat effetiveness and sales vlume. Methd Salespeple and Pedue A ttal f 5 questnaies was sent t salespeple fm a subdivis f a lage Duth bank. The salespeple sell mtgages t nsumes. Of these salespeple, 196 etuned the questnaies. Afte elimatg mplete questnaies, we ended up with a fal sample f 189 salespeple. f a 38% espnse ate. On the basis f mpaisns f sidemgaphi haateistis and length f tenue, n signifiant diffeenes wee fund between espndents and the entie sales fe. Mtgage selles ae ideal subjets f a study f SCA beause they engage extensive ld anvasg, fae many ejets the use f a day, wk a mpetitive envment, ae mpensated n the basis f mmiss, and undeg nstant pessue t sell t ustmes ass a wide spetum f status and the diffeenes. The sample an be desibed as fllws: A majity f the salespeple wee men (appximately 60%), mst wee yunge than 35 yeas f age (appximately 52%), and a few salespeple (appximately 9%) wee me than 50 yeas f age. With espet t expeiene, appximately 10% f the sample had been with the ganizat less than 2 yeas, and almst 55% had been with the mpany between 6 and 20 yeas. Fally, mst salespeple had fished basi and advaned vatal studies, but nly 1 % had a univesity llege degee. This pfile is typial f mtgage salespeple ass Eupe. Questnaie Design T nstut a pl f items f measug eah f the vaiables unde study, fus gup teviews wee ganized, and seveal tests wee admisteed stages, as DeVellis suggests (1991). Manages wee asked t identify situats whih thei salespeple enunte appehens pblems when sellg. The manages identified anvasg and lsg as the mst anxiety-pvkg ntexts f sellg mtgage-elated pduts. The identifiat f anvasg and lsg as geneal anxiety-pvkg ntexts is nsistent with basi eseah psyhlgy n anxiety. Indeed, a key defg element f sial anxiety is that it us situats that imply itial enuntes (e.g., new ustmes), nsist f peple wh ae egaded as havg pwe status, plae the pesn a nspiuus psit that is diffiult t esape physially (Beatty 1988, Buss 1980; Leay and Kwalski 1995). Thus, analgus t when a pesn stands befe an audiene t give a speeh, anvasg and lsg demand that the salespesn make atual ntat with a ustme and pvide speifi fmat and equests. T avid dg this t flee fm suh enuntes, whih is an uge salespeple with SCA fequently feel, wuld be dysfuntal f the salespesn and the fim. Canvasg and lsg ae als tw ativities that upy muh f the time f mtgage salespeple the settg at hand and ae amng the mst imptant tasks they pefm. Theefe, quests pesented t subsequent fus gups wee tailed t addess these tw pttypial ntexts t geneate items f the fal questnaie. Fist, items that efiet the fu dimenss f SCA typial f anvasg and lsg wee geneated f pesentat fus gups (as ppsed by Clak and Wells 1995; Leay 1991; Pattesn and Ritts 1997; Salkvskis 1991; Twe and Gilbet 1989). Send, f eah f the tw situats, we geneated speifi anxiety-pvkg ues by askg salespeple t speify patiula events and expeienes that eated the mst anxiety f them. Five anxiety-pvkg ues wee identified: thee f ld anvasg (i.e., dealg with highe-status ustmes; pepag f and mmuniatg 92 / Junal f Maketg, July 20

6 with new, unknwn ustmes; and nveyg psitive haateistis f the bank and its ffegs) and tw f lsg (i.e., askg f a mmitment and disussg pefmane with the sales manage). All items ntibuted t the itial item pl wee evaluated f elevane and undestandability by salespeple and sales manages. It shuld be nted that the salespeple wh patiipated fus gup teviews wee nt pat f the fal samplg. Quests pesented n the fal questnaie fllwed standad patie the liteatue. The atual questnaie was admisteed Duth, but a ugh English tanslat is pesented hee (f a list f all items disussed subsequently, see the Appendix). T avid ayve effets, the questnaies wee pted thee diffeent vess whee diffeent sets f the questnaie wee untebalaned (Bikat 1993). The SCA items wee tdued with an stut that attempted t put the salespesn the psit f antiipatg engagg a sales teat. Speifially, the items wee tdued with the fllwg quest f ld anvasg: "Yu ae havg a fist nvesat with a new and unknwn ustme. Yu will have t ask many pesnal and signifiant quests abut the pesn's me, fanial situat, and family situat... A suessful nvesat is imptant t yu. What is gg n yu md?" These stuts wee fllwed by items designed t measue the fu dimenss f SCA anvasg situats. F negative self-evaluats, six items wee used (e.g., "I hpe I will nt shut dwn/lam up"). F negative evaluats fm ustmes, ten items wee used (e.g., "The ustme will thk that I d nt me ass nvgly"). Physilgial symptms wee measued by seven items (e.g., "I am nevus," "I annt sit still dug peids f saliene"). Fally, ptetive ats wee measued with six items (e.g., "I adpt a passive attitude"). Respnses f these SCA measues wee eded n seven-pt, "mpletely disagee" t "mpletely agee" sales. F sales lsg, the SCA items wee tdued with the fllwg stuts: Afte the ientg disuss with ustmes, yu engage the ustme nvesat. Yu want t make tlnal tiie sale. Dug this phase, yu need t mmuniate sme details abut the ffe befe the mtgage ntat an be signed. Yu have mmuniated t yu manage that yu will attempt t make fal the sale, and nw yu ealize that btag the ffe is imptant t yu. What is gg n yu md? Simila t thse f ld anvasg, the fu dimenss f SCA wee measued sepaately f lsg. Speifially, f negative self-evaluats, six items wee used (e.g., "I hpe I will nt attle ff my wds"). F negative evaluats fm ustmes, eight items wee used (e.g., "He will laugh at me aftewad"). Physilgial symptms wee measued by seven items (e.g., "I beme paniky"). Fally, ptetive ats wee measued with five items (e.g., "I ffe the ustme t many extas"). T measue ues with the fu ntexts that pvke SCA, we asked salespeple t espnd t 24 items tdued by the fllwg stuts: "In the fllwg situats, yu might expeiene a eta amunt f tens and uneasy feelgs. Please diate the extent t whih yu expeiene tens." Then the fllwg items wee pesented: 4 f meetg with ustmes f a highe status, 5 f pepag f and mmuniatg with new pspets, 4 f beg assetive abut themselves and the ganizat, 7 f appahg and askg f a mmitment fm ustmes, and 4 f disussg pefmane with a manage. Respnses wee eded n seven-pt, "neve expeiene tens" t "always expeiene tens" sales. Pefmane was measued with a sale based n eseah by Behman and Peeault (1984). One mpnent f pefmane efeed t sales vlume and was measued with five items (e.g., "exeedg all sales tagets and bjetives," "geneatg sales f new mpany pduts"). The send mpnent f pefmane addessed mmuniat quality the sales teat and was measued with fu items (e.g., "nvg ustmes that yu undestand thei unique pblems and nens," "wkg ut sluts t ustmes' quests bjets"). Fally, NA was measued with a sale fm Tellegen (1982). Twenty items wee used. Sale Develpment Explaty fat analyses wee pefmed n the items f eah sale. Maximum likelihd estimat with blim tat was dne with SPSS (1993). The diffeent dimenss f sales wee analyzed, and items nt satisfyg the fllwg iteia wee deleted: (1) dmant ladgs geate than.40 and (2) ss-ladgs less than.25. Citeia f aeptg fats elied n spet f the see plt (Biggs and Cheek 1986; DeVellis 1991). The eliabilities f items f dimenss f eah sale wee als assessed by means f Cnbah's alpha. In Table 1, we summaize the esults f fat analyses f eah sale: Kaise-Meye-Olk f all the fat analyses ae substantial. In addit, the fat ladgs ae geneally high, and the lwest ladg is equal t.41. Nte espeially that tw fats espndg t ld anvasg and lsg wee fund f negative self-evaluats and f peeived negative evaluats fm thes. The items measug physilgial espnses and ptetive ats eah laded n ne fat. Nt supisgly, physilgial espnses and ptetive ats eflet eats that ae gvened by the autnmi nevus system and thus tend t be vaiant ass diffeent anxiety-pvkg situats. We als pesent the eliabilities f eah sale Table 1. The eliabilities ae high and exeed the mimum f.70 emmended by Nunnally (1978). Fally, means and standad deviats f measues ae pvided Table 1. Regess mdels T take measuement e t aunt fmally and avid pblems f multilleaity, we used LISREL (Jeskg and Sbm 1996) t pefm egesss. One set f egesss tested the effets f anxiety-pvkg situats and NA n SCA: SCAj = f(anxiety pvkg uesj, NA); fu egesss wee un, ne f eah dimens f SCA (i.e., negative self-evaluat, negative evaluat fm ustmes, physilgial symptms, and ptetive ats). Thee anxiety-pvkg ues (i.e., dealg with highe- Sales Call Anxiety / 93

7 CJ> a u a I Q E a n V) a a t" a > U if U ~ i U U J O5 t 1 O CJ) t > 0 0 q q i n ay vi CJ> CJ vi 05 Oi Cvi t CD i n i n lu a a. < 2 0) a> iu.e g UJ g, I? U ii CVj d ^ '^ u (J) d CJ) d a 2 Q. X UJ (A T5 0) > CC g q t i T- O q ~. q lai t q i n q Oi 4i n 4 i n CJ) i n I Ui (U.a E if U g > > <u B _3 gative m d) LUO a. I g g CJ.. 2 E E1 _ ^ ^ tw 0. O il. E vl high us a. 0) *5 tus new nes?2 d) U C liati O O g ".? CD D) ' O " ^ < 1 a> Q. b 94 / Junal f Maketg, July 20

8 status ustmes, meetg new ustmes, and nveyg qualities f the ganizat) plus NA wee enteed as dependent vaiables f anvasg, and tw anxiety-pvkg ues (i.e., askg f mmitment and antiipatg disuss f pefmane with manages) plus NA wee enteed as dependent vaiables f lsg sales. The send set f egesss tested the effets f SCA n pefmane: pefmane^ - fcscaj); tw egesss wee un, ne f eah dimens f pefmane (i.e., mmuniat pefmane and vlume pefmane). T test f teats between NA and anxietypvkg ues n SCA, we pefmed tw analyses. Fist, we used lassial egess analysis whih the ma effets f NA and anxiety-pvkg ues, as well as thei teat, wee enteed. This appah uses full fmat but des nt take t aunt measuement e. Send, t take t aunt measuement e, we split the sample at the median based n SCA and used stutual equat mdels t d the egesss. This appah des nt use full fmat the sense f lassial egess analysis. Thus, thee is a tade-ff between the tw pedues. Unftunately, beause f sample size estits and the need t epesent fu teats and five ma effets, stutual equat mdels with latent vaiables annt be used bth t take t aunt measuement e and t use full fmat undelyg the teats. Results In Table 2, we summaize the fdgs f the egess analyses. In the tp panel, lw t mdeately high amunts f vaiane SCA ae explaed, and all anxiety-pvkg ues fluene the fu dimenss f SCA dug bth anvasg and lsg. Nevetheless, seveal teestg pattens f esults an be pted ut. Dug bth anvasg and lsg, the effets f anxiety-pvkg stimuli ae geatest n physilgial symptms and ptetive ats. Yet stng effets ae fund n negative self-evaluats and negative evaluats fm ustmes f mst anxietypvkg stimuli. F eah dimens f SCA, the effets f the anxiety-pvkg stimuli ae ughly equal dug bth anvasg and lsg. When lsg and anvasg ae mpaed, the effets f anxiety-pvkg stimuli n SCA ae geate f the fme. This us as well the highe levels f explaed vaiane f the dimenss f SCA dug lsg mpaed with anvasg. Fally, NA fluened all fudimenss f SCA dug bth anvasg and lsg. The effets f NA wee geneally highe n physilgial symptms and ptetive ats than n negative self-evaluats and negative evaluats fm ustmes, and highe effiients ued f lsg than anvasg. In the bttm panel f Table 2, elatively small but signifiant ppts f vaiane ae explaed pefmane by SCA. F bth anvasg and lsg, me vaiane is explaed vlume than mmuniat pefmane. Physilgial symptms and ptetive ats have the lagest effets n pefmane, yet the effets f negative self-evaluats and negative evaluats fm ustmes ae substantial. The tests f teat evealed that NA des nt mdeate effets f anxiety-pvkg ues n SCA. N signifiant teats wee fund unde eithe anvasg lsg. Theefe, the esults f the diet effets f NA n anxiety-pvkg ues an be tepeted as ma effets. Disuss Sales all anxiety an be neived as an tusive and pesistent appehens abut dealg with ustmes patiula sellg situats and is tiggeed by speifi ues thse situats. Rathe than beg a simple glbal fea espnse, hweve, SCA was fund t nsist f fu mpnents: negative self-evaluats, imaged negative evaluats fm ustmes, physilgial espnses, and ptetive ats. The expeiene f SCA, whih is believed t happen lagely autmatially and unnsiusly, was fund t diffe between ld anvasg and lsg f negative self-evaluats and imaged negative evaluats fm ustmes. Anxiety-pvkg ues had lage effets n negative self-evaluat and negative evaluat fm ustmes f lsg than anvasg. In ntast, SCA with egad t physilgial espnses and ptetive ats was vaiant ass the tw types f sellg situats (i.e., simila physilgial espnses and ptetive ats, as a funt f anxiety-pvkg ues, ued dug anvasg and lsg). Negative self-evaluats vlve seuities with espet t situatal appeaanes haateistis, ats sales enuntes, utmes theef. These ae espeially manifested umats abut past failues shtmgs and images f diffiulties and failue antiipated sales enuntes. The dange f a peupat with negative self-evaluats is that it an disuage and immbilize the salespesn, limit attental esues needed t ema alet as well as be adaptive, and disupt the pessg f sial ues and the aspets f tepesnal mmuniat when ustmes ae engaged. An imptant haateisti f SCA is that salespeple geneate anxiety pgams autmatially. The data this study suggest that SCA ptentially makes salespeple vulneable t dysfuntal sial anxiety ass a vaiety f sellg situats, and this tun negatively elates with the salespesn's pefmane. Many salespeple wh d nt suffe fm stng SCA may be able t hide thei anxiety, beause they hse t fus n less theateng sellg ativities nsiusly unnsiusly avid situats that pvke anxiety. Cnsequently, they may be elatively unawae that they expeiene anxiety a detimental way. Sales manages shuld lean t detet signs f SCA thei salespeple. In many ases, sales manages will ntie send-de effets f anxiety when sales fe stategies hange when salespeple hange aunts. F example, image a hange fm a defende stategy t a pspet stategy, whih salespeple ae stuted t ease thei quta f new ustme ntats (Miles and Snw 1978). Suh a hange may be diffiult f salespeple wh feel anxius and theatened by suh envmental and task disupts. Innvats autmated sellg and management might be able t pate ways t mnit SCA hee. Cuent deis suppt systems enable manages t detet useful atis (e.g., sales fm new ustmes vesus existg Sales Call Anxiety / 95

9 1 C O C O CNJ t 0) > M 11 > 0) 3 U 2 I. C atb i C O C O > 2 C >. >>.) a. Il l 1.-2 CVl LO CD ' > (fl '.? U O O 22 S? E > > LO. S. s Q-.^5 l O u _ ifl.iii, 5 LO O f S «0) a l C O 3 C O O.2 «iluat me (u O 3 > _ egati fm " hysi ympt It u > te n 0) O E t: a> Q. < "5 tn ffeti UJ ««3 i ^ UJ ii II a> CD Is i i» E 5 w" V 96 / Junal f Maketg, July 20

10 ustmes) that might diate salespeple's pefeenes f dealg with existg as ppsed t new ustmes. Imbalanes esultg t many sales fm existg ustmes might signal a pblem SCA f management t addess. Sales manages shuld be aeful nt t jump t the nlus that a salespesn this ase neessaily suffes fm SCA. It is pssible that the salespesn laks eta sellg skills and this defiit auses avidane f new aunt pspetg. When a sales manage detets symptms f SCA ne me salespeple, the next task is t make the salespeple awae that thei pefmane suffes fm SCA. Manages then shuld quie why thei salespeple, f example, fd it diffiult t ahieve lsue dug teats with ustmes. By dg s, the salespeple and thei manages make the SCA pgams expliit (e.g., "I nw ealize that I d nt visit new ustmes beause I fea negative nsequenes f anvasg"). When they ae made expliit, suh dislsues an help bth salespeple and sales manages stat jt pblem slvg t veme SCA. Thus, the sales manage shuld take a ahg attitude when salespeple ae pne t develp anxiety. One ahg suggest f sales manages is that they shuld avid any stigmatizat abut SCA. This an be dne by suggestg t salespeple that anxiety is ntgent n situatal ues that an be antiipated and ped with and that eveybdy will expeiene SCA t a eta degee nw and then. In the wds, SCA is nt neessaily a pathlgial pblem (Rahman 1998). When salespeple egnize that they ae vulneable t anxiety eta iumstanes, this sets the stage f vaius etive effts by management and selfegulat by salespeple. We ppse that ne me f six diffeent pgams an be used t addess SCA: Feeg up memy spae ttiugh disnneted nidfutness. One appah t unteatg negative self-evaluats is t help salespeple eengee thei anxiety pgams. This might vlve helpg the salespesn disnfim untepdutive thughts and negative selfappaisals dug a sales visit. Cnstutive self-analyses an be pmted by tag the salespesn t ask suh quests as "What evidene d yu use t fe that the ustme might nt like yu?" and "What signals d yu lk f when visitg ustmes?" Suh quests might help salespeple develp self- and task-elated metaknwledge (knwledge abut thei self-knwledge f SCA) that enables them t beak thugh the yle f esalatg antiipaty feas nsiusly (e.g., Clak and Wells 1995). By teahg salespeple t fus n ues that eflet psitive fmat and avid ues that nmally tigge vewhelmg feas, whih tend t upy the salespeple's memy and pevent the ativat f adaptive esues, the salespeple an lean t fee up attental esues. Key adaptive esues t emphasize lude the mathg f ustme needs t the selle's ffegs and mathg the sellg stategy and speifi appeals t ustme type. This entails the adaptive sellg tatis f "knwg what" and "knwg hw" (Weitz 1978, 1981). Only by managg anxiety will it be pssible f salespeple t patie adaptive sellg behavi and wk smate (e.g., Spi and Weitz 1989; Sujan, Weitz, and Kuma 1994). Redut f appval seetg. Imaged negative evaluats fm ustmes will be tensified t the extent that salespeple have an exessive need f appval but ae afaid f askg f it (Baumeiste and Leay 1995; Stikland 1977). Theefe, it is advisable t (1) help salespeple bette undestand what thei self-wth is based n, s as nt t veemphasize the need f appval ( t nt be disappved) f its wn sake, and (2) euit salespeple wh ae nt bsessive the need f appval and help them develp impess management tehniques that fus me n ustme and pdut knwledge than n appval seekg and the need t belng, pe se. This is nt t suggest, hweve, that thugh the sales jb is heently stessful, sales manages shuld nt seek t edue, f example, le stess. Rle stess has been knwn t evke feelgs f jb tens and dysphi gnits (Sgh 1993; Kame 1994), and thse levels f jb tens and dysphi gnits might make salespeple vulneable t ejet by the ustme and s bg abut the develpment f SCA. Relaxat. Sales all anxiety is als exhibited thugh physilgial symptms. Exessive self-fus n shaky hands, sweatg, a quive the vie, an upset stmah an aggavate sial anxiety and tefee with tepesnal mmuniat. One way t ffset the effets f physilgial symptms is t nentate n elaxg the musles dug a sales teat. Indeed, thugh patie, elaxat tehniques an have genealized, lng-tem effets n edug anxiety. In me exteme ases f SCA, suh as befe lsg a big deal that has been wked n f mnths, phamalgial agents suh as beta-blkes may be alled f (Liebwitz et al. 1988). Enuagement t engage spts eeat utside wk might pmte elaxat and enewal (Zillman, Jhnsn, and Day 1974). Sme fims have -huse athleti failities and unselg sevies and spns peidi eduatal and eeatal pgams designed t elieve tens and sial anxiety. Fally, with patie sellg and the develpment f tepesnal skills and pdut and ustme knwledge, the negative effets f physilgial symptms shuld beme easie t ntl. Regutaty tatis. Ptetive ats, the futh mpnent f SCA, ae ptentially the mst damagg tw senses. At the pt f salespesn-ustme teats, suh ptetive ats as avetg eye ntat, speakg quikly, avidg self-dislsues, pematuely withdawg an efft t esape embaassment an beak dwn tust and lead ustmes t quest the mpetene f the salespesn. Even befe salespeple engage with ustmes, suh ptetive ats as puttg ff allg a ustme the fms f pastat, efusg t answe a telephne all fm a ustme, planng t avid eta tpis an antiipated exhange an lead t lst sales. Pbably the mst imptant emedy f vemg dysfuntal ptetive ats is t develp self-egulaty tatis. T the extent that salespeple an develp sipts t ativate when ustmes aise quests bjets when the salespeple feel an uge t avid enuntes disuss issues an exhange, they will be bette able t handle SCA and Sales Call Anxiety / 97

11 funt effetively. F example, when salespeple expeiene setbaks afte a ustme asks a pdut-elated quest t whih they have n answe, they an espnd by sayg smethg t the effet f "I annt answe yu quest fully nw but will all yu bak this aftenn afte I vestigate u pliies me mpletely." Othe self-management tatis an be develped t selet altenative ways t make a sale, mnit gal stivg, mata mmitment, and veme impediments t gal ahievement. Pfessal teatment. On as, SCA may beme vewhelmg, and pfessal help may be equied. In suh ases, it is likely that salespeple will display anxiety ass a bad ange f sellg situats, whih makes thei suessful funtg the sales fe me dubtful. F sme salespeple, seveal theapies ae available f pg with sial anxiety (Heimbeg et al. 1995), and vaius selfhelp pgams may be useful (e.g.. Cheek 1989; Makaway etal. 1992). Selet iteia. The data this study shw that the pesnality tait NA is elated with the develpment f SCA. The NA sale may thus be used as an addital ite the selet f salespeple and pehaps as a hek late a salespesn's aee t veify whethe yniism has develped ve time. Reseah shws that the pesnality taits, suh as fea f negative evaluat and anxiety sensitivity f whih sales exist, may be assiated with sial anxiety (Petesn and Reiss 1987; Rahman 1998). Futhe Reseah A tpi nt nsideed the pesent study but wthy f futhe eseah is the pssibility that, at least f sme salespeple, anxiety an spu them n t geate ahievements. Sme athletes and pefmes ause themselves pepaat f a pefmane thugh anxiety-pvkg thughts t enegize thei pefmanes (e.g.. Matens 1977). It is pssible that SCA an be funtal f sme salespeple unde eta ndits. T unve these pssibilities, it may be neessay t mdel the elatships f SCA t its elates nnlea pattens. F example, SCA might itially stimulate salespeple, but when a theshld is eahed, it will nt have an effet. Yet sme pt late, unde tense SCA, pefmane may be negatively affeted. This will be diffiult t study the field and may equie speial labaty testg with salespeple unde ntlled ndits. It is mst likely that SCA emeges dug the sales aee. Jhnstn and Kim (1994, p. 78), f example, suggest that "Many new salespeple quit thei jb with a few mnths beause they ae nt suited f it afte a few stanes f failue." As sales beme me autmated and sellg pattens me easily deteted, the sales envment is a gd pptunity t study ausal elatships between failue and the nset f SCA. In u study, we fus n anxiety salespeple that stems fm elatships with ustmes (nly ne dimens talkg with a manage abut pefmane did nt dietly eflet elatships with ustmes). Anxiety might als be expeted t esult fm teats with the salespeple, sales manages, fiends, and family membes. These pssibilities deseve futhe study. Fally, it wuld be fmative t vestigate the fms f self-nsius emts pesnal sellg. Shame, embaassment, guilt, and pide ae likely andidates f study, but they have nt been studied systematially pesnal sellg t date. APPENDIX Sales and Items Used the Study I. Negative self-evaluat A. Cld anvasg 1. I hpe this nvesat des nt flp. 2. I hpe I will nt shut dwn/lam up. 3. I hpe I will nt me ass as an unfiendly pesn t the ustme. 4. I hpe I will nt get the idea aga that I am nt able t have a nstutive nvesat. 5. I hpe it will nt tun ut that adviss fm the banks will be able t nve the ustme bette than I will. 6. I hpe the ustme will nt tun away fm me when I keep askg quests. B. Clsg 1. I hpe I an listen aefully t what the ustme says. 2. I hpe I will nt stat stutteg. 3. I hpe I will nt fumble f wds. 4. I hpe I will be alet. 5. I hpe I will nt give t the ustme. 6. I hpe I will nt waffle my wds. II. Peeived negative evaluat fm ustmes A. Cld anvasg 1. The ustme will thk the fllwg f me: a. thee yu have aga anthe "salespesn." b. that I d nt me ass as a edible salespesn.. that I d nt get ass nvgly. d. that I have dubts. e. that I adpt a kd attitude t pevent efusal. f. that bad expeienes lie ahead f him with this salespesn. 2. I will thk f the ustme: a. that he nly smiles t get id f me. b. that he des nt like me.. that he will tell the peple that I am nt a mpetent pesn. d. that he will tell the peple that I am a vey ammdatg pesn. B. Clsg 1. The ustme will thk the fllwg f me a. that I d nt have authity. 98 / Junal f IVIaketg, July 20

12 APPENDIX Cntued b. that I am nt pfessal.. that I am an seue pesn. d. that I am nt able t sell. e. that I am nt eliable. f. that adviss fm the banks ae bette salespeple than I. 2. I will thk f the ustme: a. that he will laugh at me aftewad. b. that he will nt d any me busess with me at a late stage. III. Physilgial symptms A. I am nevus. B. I talk less quikly. C. I epeat myself. D. My thughts ae wandeg ff. E. I suddenly stat t stutte. F. I lk away fm the ustme. G. I set ut t talk lude nw. H. I beme paniky. I. I am aleady gettg tied nw. J. I annt bseve a silene. K. I dae nt lk the ustme the eyes. L. My hands ae temblg. M. I am gg t say t muh. N. I am lsg ntl ve the nvesat. IV. Ptetive ats A. I avid diet quests like "Please will yu sign the ffe?" B. I quikly hange the subjet. C. I adpt a passive attitude. D. I thk "I shuld nt ask this... I fd this tpi ielevant." E. I ffe the ustme t many extas. F. I say, "Yu d nt have t deide nw; yu may thk it ve." G. I say t the ustme, "Yu need nt answe all quests." H. I ften aplgize quikly t the ustme. I. I talk less pesuasively t the ustme. J. I dae nt ague with the ustme. V. Cues situats that pvke SCA A. Meetg ustmes with highe sial status 1. I talk t a ustme with a highe me. 2. I talk t smene wh has a highe pfessal status than I have (e.g., the diet f a fim). 3. I talk t a well-knwn Duthman. 4. I talk t a ustme with an impessive appeaane and self-assued manne. B. Pepag f and mmuniatg with new pspets 1. I pepae f a sales nvesat with a new and unknwn pspet my sales ffie. 2. I pepae f a nvesat with an unknwn pspet. 3. Unexpetedly, I have t meet an unknwn pspet beause my lleague is exused. 4. I pepae myself f a sales nvesat with an unknwn pspet at his hme. 5. Unexpetedly, I have t meet a pspet wh walked t the sales ffie. VI. C. Beg assetive abut self and ganizat 1. I have t tell the ustmes, "We ae the best bank." 2. I have t expla t the ustmes what we have t ffe t them mpaed with the mpetg banks. 3. I have t expla t the ustmes what they might expet fm me dug and afte the nvesat. 4. I have t expla t the ustmes what I nw expet fm them dug the sales nvesat. D. Disussg pefmane with the sales manage 1. I have t shae my sales esults with my manage. 2. I have t talk with my manage abut my sales esults. 3. I have t disuss my sales esults with my manage, and it appeas I did nt ahieve my sales qutas. 4. I have t tell my sales manage hw I g abut sellg mtgages t ustmes. E. Appahg and askg f a mmitment fm the ustme 1. The ustme tells me that my ffe is t expensive, and I have t efute this. 2. The ustme shws me the ffe fm a mpetit, and I have t eply t this. 3. I ask ustmes whethe they knw smene else wh wuld be teested buyg mtgages fm my bank. 4. I ask ustmes if they ae teested In buyg a mtgage fm my bank. 5. Beynd my expetats, ustmes appea t be well fmed abut mtgage ffes fm mpetits. 6. I ask ustmes whethe they will sign the mtgage ntat. 7. Custmes speak t me abut smethg that I d nt d well (e.g., I did nt shw up at an apptment). Pefmane A. Sales vlume 1. Pdug a high maket shae f yu mpany yu teity. 2. Geneatg high levels f dlla sales. 3. Quikly geneatg sales f new mpany pduts. 4. Identifyg and sellg t maj aunts yu teity. 5. Exeedg all sales tagets and bjetives f yu teity dug the yea. B. Sales teat 1. Listeng attentively t identify and undestand the eal nens f yu ustme. 2. Cnvg ustmes that yu undestand thei unique pblems and nens. 3. Wkg ut sluts t a ustme's quests bjets. 4. Undetakg ats when ustmes have pblems. Ntes: The items pesented hee ae lse tanslats fm the igal Duth vess used the study. Sales Call Anxiety/99

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