BRANCHES OF SALES DEPARTMENT
The sales department is logically divided into two branches—mail order and personal salesmanship. The mail order branch is that part of the organization which has to do with the promotion of sales by mail. The personal salesmanship branch is the division which makes sales by personal contact with the customer.
The work of the mail order branch is conducted by correspondents—letter salesmen—assisted by clerks to look after the routine of the department.
The personal salesmanship branch is conducted, primarily, by salesmen who visit the customers and personally sell goods. In many lines, the personal salesmanship branch is supplemented by agencies, who come in direct contact with the customer.
There are businesses in which the dealers, who carry the goods in stock, are assisted by both the mail order and personal salesmanship branches in making the sale to the customer. An example is the piano business in which inquiries are referred to dealers, the dealer and prospective customer followed up by mail, and the traveling salesman sent to assist the dealer to close the sale.