Does The Sales Strategy Depend On Whether The End User Is Male Or Female

Does the Sales Strategy Depend on Whether the End User is male or female?

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Abstract

Over decades, research has tried to establish the existing relationship between gender

roles and the contemporary sales in organisations. Diverse research proves different attitudes

and concepts based on gender validity in the world today. The primary aim of this research is

to evaluate whether sales strategies in organisations depend on whether the end user is a

female or a male. Qualitative and quantitative research studies conducted on this topic will be

evaluated to gather comprehensive results on the issue. Lately, academic interests have

continued to lay curiosity on this question, whether women or men engage in different social

relationship construction strategies. Researchers have evaluated diverse information

concerning selling products to end users, and hence groups them into gender categories (Wee

et al., 2014). This study uses twelve participants where five are male, and seven are female to

prove the hypothesis that sales strategy depends on whether the end user is male or female.

The results indicate that most of the buying decisions made by women are influenced by

verbal communication, the touch of the product and the pricing. On the other hand, men are

attracted by visual advertisement and prefer precise and straightforward shopping.

Keywords: Sales strategy, Salesperson, Gender, Male, Female, Purchase decision.

Literature Review

Out of the many factors that determine the sales strategy and consumer behavior,

gender is among the major factors. Males and females have a different shopping approach

based on their considerations, rationales, perspectives, and motives. In the last decade, the

world has gradually changed. Women have gained responsibility and greater financial

responsibility (Michon et al., 2015). This is contributed by the high number of women

graduating from college each year, which in some cases is higher than that of men. Thus, this

trend has created a group of women who are financially independent, well educated, and

capable of making purchasing and investment decisions. Currently, statistics show that

women account for more than eighty percent of the consumer purchases in Europe (Wee et

al., 2014). Women have taken over the primary role of the family’s breadwinner; thus, small

and large purchases are often decided by them. Thus, this is an indication that salespeople

should put their focus on women. Research indicate that men and women communicate

differently, in the same manner, their buying decisions are influenced by different reasons.

Men are simply interested in knowing that the buying process is complete, whereas women

other than buying, they are interested in creating a rapport. From the interview, it was

mentioned that in most cases advertisers do not understand women needs (Fang et al., 2016).

Salesperson should look at the potential female buyers specifically, with their individual

needs. Most studies indicate that women consume products after knowing how it will benefit

them or whether it makes their life easier. Other than advertisement information, women also

value word of mouth marketing and prefer listening to stories of women who have used the

same product in the past. They also carry lots of research before purchasing a product (Haj-

Salem et al., 2016).

Wee et al. (2014) argue that most organisations implement the external mindset of

the end user to guarantee that it succeeds in its sales. The authors recommend retailers,

managers, and representatives to understand diverse factors associated with increased sale

performances, given the gender differences among the end users. Other studies have tried to

understand the relationship between sales improvement in the organisation and the associated

gender differences. Research findings have evaluated and classified gender difference

situations through analysing male-female sales scenarios in organisations (Fang et al., 2016).

Indeed, the research proves that sales strategy implemented by an organisation depend on

whether the end user is a male or a female. Different sales strategies have to be incorporated,

given the gender differences of the end users (Wee et al., 2014). The research identifies

distinct gender differences that must be considered by the contemporary sales environment.

The sales strategy of organisations mainly depends on the gender of the end user

(Fang et al., 2016). Diverse aspects of products and the sales representative influence the

decisions of the customer and their behaviour motives towards purchasing a product.

Research proves that women and men approach shopping with diverse ideologies (Fang et al.,

2016). A decade worthwhile of scientific research demonstrates that there exist observable

differences in how women and men behave as they purchase the products at the stores,

market, or through online platforms. Gender differences should be considered by every sales

representative who wishes to make an impact on his/her sales. Scholars’ support that sales

representatives must be willing to recognise distinct gender-specific stereotypes and

tendencies. This guarantees that the final product appeals to the end user.

Research conducted by Kumar, Anand, Mutha proves that men’s brain and women’s

brain are different (Kumar, Anand, and Mutha 2016). Their research present diverse physical

differences between the corpus callosum of their brain structures. Women tend to have a

thicker corpus callosum, whereas men have a thinner one. The women’s corpus callosum

bridges nerve tissues connecting their right and left sides of the brain, unlike the men.

Therefore, women can solve problems faster and quicker. These biological facts cause

diverse contrast in the sales strategies used by most organisations. In general, the right

hemisphere is dominant in interpreting context and visual imagery, whereas the left region is

responsible for processing facts along with other logical computations. The research also

proves that women have a more organised cerebral cortex, hence enabling them to perform

tasks in a better way. However, men use their larger portions of grey matter in making

decisions (Wee et al., 2014). Given the context of shopping, men brain structures lead them

to be mission-oriented and task-oriented, whereas women tended to be discovery-oriented

shoppers who adjust their goals, tastes, and preferences to guarantee a more satisfying

outcome.

Sales research prove that men tend to be utilitarian, whereas the women shopping

motives are hedonic (Fang et al., 2016). The Mediterranean Journal of Science research

argues that male and female have diverse range of motives underlying their preference for

purchasing a particular product (Claiborne and Sirgy, 2015). The two main reasons for the

diverse shopping behavior is that men are utilitarian. This case, their shopping is motivated

by their needs, hence their conscious pursuit of a specific product. However, women tend to

be hedonic, hence attaching emotional and intrinsic responses to the products they purchase.

Men prefer factual and logical approaches. They need to understand why they have to

purchase a particular product, in preference of another they have been used to over years.

Logical facts and factual information influence their decision to purchase a product. Men

prefer straight to the point sale active statements. Therefore, sales in organizations must

demonstrate value while the end user a male. Contrarily, women are hedonic shoppers. They

will create emotional shopping exercises and experiences through enquiring about the

lifestyle, brand, and other different aspects of the product (Pascual-Miguel et al., 2015). They

also enquire about the product expectations of meeting their emotional needs. Research

considers diverse layouts to be provided by sale representatives when focusing on men and

women. The version of men layouts must be straightforward and have clear navigation for the

product categories. Contrarily, women sales layouts must aim at selling the product from an

emotional approach (Pascual-Miguel et al., 2015). Women are also considered

comprehensive as they take both objective and subjective information concerning a product.

Women’s motivations and reasons for purchasing items are influenced by the external and

internal emotional thoughts about the item, unlike men who are only interested in whether the

product meets their internal needs.

Excellent customer service is critical to the success of every sales strategy (Claiborne

and Sirgy, 2015). Every sales representative is mandated to keep the customer satisfaction

levels high, regardless of the end user’s gender. Researchers argue that all satisfied customers

emerge to be loyal in the end. Research studies conducted over the years prove that men are

always willing to get out of sales conversations faster than women (Claiborne and Sirgy,

2015). For men, excellent service is demonstrated by the sales representative’s ability to help

them find the most suitable product so that they can check out quickly. Women are satisfied

by the representative’s willingness to explore the expert advice on the product, to see that it

meets their needs.

Research conducted over decades proves that women perceive more risk compared

to men when shopping online (Claiborne and Sirgy, 2015). Consequently, they tend to

purchase their products from the stores, rather than online. Men focus on the value gained

and time saved while buying a specific product. Privacy concerns are also major impediments

that affect customer’s trust. Research cites women to be less trustworthy, primarily if they

have not purchased from the particular organisation (Claiborne and Sirgy, 2015).

Recent studies indicate that gender plays a significant role in consumer behaviours

(Haj-Salem et al., 2016). Males and females process information differently. Thus, gender

has become a vital factor in marketing segmentation. Researchers recommend that

salesperson should utilise specific strategies that will be appealing to the different genders

(Haj-Salem et al., 2016). Advertising mediums such as print, radio, and television have been

consistent in using information processing theories which indicate that women respond better

to informative, complex, and verbal ads, while men preferred simple and straightforward

comparative ads (Claiborne and Sirgy, 2015). Women also prefer adverts that reference

themselves and others while men prefer those that reference themselves. Consequently,

research proves that both men and women prefer products and services that correspond to

their gender roles. Consumers have a unique preference of communication styles, which

include touch, verbal, or visual. Touch model communicators prefer items that they can touch

and make choices based on their feelings whether it is comfortable, cosy, or safe. In contrast,

visual communicators prefer marketing through visual materials such as pamphlets, or DVDs.

On the other hand, verbal communicators prefer word of mouth marketing.

Men and women have unique communication style preference, and it is only possible

for the advertisers to target one of these groups (Haj-Salem et al., 2016). It is important for

marketing organisations to understand their target market and know how men and women

differ. For instance, women who prefer verbal communication are softer, more polite, and

responsive compared to men who prefer this same communication style (Haj-Salem et al.,

2016). Men prefer precise and direct contact. Research shows that women can recall 70

percent of what they saw in their environment; this means that women are more intuitive and

contextual on brand messaging as compared to men (Claiborne and Sirgy, 2015). Hence, this

difference in perception is a critical factor for organisations to consider while choosing the

sales strategy to use. The same information can deliver different messages on people of

different genders, and it also influences their purchasing decision. Therefore, by using

appropriate advertising message while market to men and women can contribute to increasing

the number of sales.

Research shows that products can be androgynous or sex-typed (Pascual-Miguel et

al., 2015). This means that they can take feminine or masculine characteristics or both. A

study carried out in the family decision-making role indicated that this process has three

phases which include the search for information, problem recognition, and final decision

(Pascual-Miguel et al., 2015). It further proved that men and women played different roles in

the decision-making stages and product choice. Recent research indicates that the task of

making purchasing decision of household commodities such as televisions, automobiles, as

well as financial planning is shifting from being male-dominated. Both husbands and wives

now make such choices, and women add more weight in the decision making process

(Claiborne and Sirgy, 2015). According to researchers, women make 85 percent purchase

decisions of the household items; they also influence more than 70 percent of the total

household spending. Thus, as part of the sales strategy, companies should develop products

that appeal to the habits and buying needs of women. One of the qualities that women look

for while making a purchasing decision is the satisfaction of long-term needs while men look

at satisfying immediate needs.

Method

This research methodology will use qualitative methods such as depth interviews as

its basis for primary data collection. The study will also use secondary sources such as

companies’ sales analysis report to evaluate how purchasing decisions influenced by gender

influence the number of sales. The participants for this research paper were male and female

consumers of products such as clothing, household items, and cars, among others. The study

was made up of twelve respondents where five were male, and seven were female. The mean

age of the participants was 35 with most of them ranging between 25 and 40. The data

collection process involved both telephone and face to face interview. Five sales

representative were recruited to conduct the interviews. The participants were guaranteed

confidentiality and only those who consented to the terms and conditions were allowed to

participate.

The population study selected three companies selling electronics, automotive, and

clothing. They were populated by whites, blacks, and Spanish residents. The main aim of the

research was to collect data on whether the gender of the end user affected the sales strategy

of the organisation. Three sales representatives including men and women shoppers at retailer

stores were accessed concerning their perspectives on the research question. Quantitative data

was also collected on stores, regarding customer feedback after visiting the premises.

However, confidentiality on individual names and addresses was guaranteed through

alteration of these factors.

Some of the questions asked during the study to help in defining whether the sales

strategy depended on whether the end user is male or female include;

1. Do you prefer online shopping for clothing, if yes/no explain?

2. What are the specific factors that influence your final decision while buying a

product?

3. Before purchasing a product do you compare with other retail stores first?

4. What changes would persuade you to buy a product that you initially did not

have interest in?

5. What are the barriers that keep you from choosing a particular product?

The results of this study proved that female and male shoppers held diverse

stereotypes and actions concerning the sales representatives, associates, and a message from

the experts. Potential demographic differences were noticed between the blacks, whites, and

Spanish residents. Customer ratings from the companies prove that women were concerned

with issues relating to the sales, compared to the men. 73% of the females were dissatisfied

with the sales representatives as they did not get help when needed, compared to 27%

represented by male shoppers. Lack of advice for most women customers was considered the

top problem with sales representatives and their team associates. Company analysis showed

that 6% of female shoppers were lost in cases where sales representatives failed to meet the

client’s expectations. The research results proved that men complained more about the

availability of parking space as they required to purchase specific products from the retail

stores. Each organisation lost 5% of men shoppers due to lac packing space.

The results of the interview questions proved that the end user is always critical in

the sales strategy of all organizations willing to create an impact to its customers. Concerning

the first question, 70% of the men preferred online shopping compared to 27% of the women.

Price factors of end products also influenced the customer’s decision to make purchases. 40%

of women avoid purchasing products whose prices had risen, considered to 54% of the men

interviewed. The study identified that women are more sensitive to product prices compared

to men, with a rate of 48% and 27% respectively. Women cited more variables that influence

their decision to purchase a product including price of the product, word of mouth

advertising, price of related products, and its emotional effects compared to men. Men had

fewer barriers influencing their decision to purchase a product, compared to 68% of the

women who cited diverse variables depending on the product’s shipment period, warrants,

safety of the payments, delivery schedules, touch of products, and refund policies of the sales

organization, among other variables.

Face to face interviews conducted among female and male consumers of electronics,

clothing, and automotive products proves that women were more emotional, analytic, and

descriptive when purchasing their products. Female consumers always cited that the sales

associated were very significant as they provided and described different styles and product

samples. 70% of women explained that they prefer purchasing a product with useful,

attractive, and exciting features as defined by the sales representative. The survey proves that

men behave contrarily. 80% of the men explained that they prefer a sales representative who

explains to them about the product straightforward. 67% of the men also preferred not to talk

to the sales representatives at all.

This research proves that male and female motives differ in contexts of online

shopping for clothing. This integrates with scholar researches perceiving that women have

higher risks while making purchases online. Female customers claimed to be more sensitive

to risk compared to the male customers while making their online payments for products.

This study proved that women considered more privacy concerns compared to males while

providing e-vendors with their financial details. However, the rate of purchasing online

clothing for the female was higher compared to that of men, being represented by 72% and

68% respectively (Claiborne and Sirgy, 2015). This was perceived to result from fewer

customised male clothing available at online stores compared to women.

The study proves that diverse factors influence the decision of the final user on

whether to purchase a product. Males and females have contrasting factors that influence

their purchasing decisions, as demonstrated in the results section. Research argues that

women tend to attach emotional experiences to their shopping, guaranteeing that it is highly

satisfactory, as compared to men who do their shopping searching for a specific

product/brand.

The findings prove that many females shop online compared to men. Additionally,

women are bargain hunters and always prefer the cheapest products in the stores, given that it

guarantees their satisfaction. Thirdly, men are tech-based, whereas women are fashionable.

This influences the overall decision of sales strategies to be implemented by representatives

of organisations.

The findings also indicated that women do prior research before buying a product as

they want to know specific details of the products. For instance, they look information on

how these items have impacted other people to know how it will make them feel, the age of

the product, in case of a new product they compare its uses with other products in the market.

Women also compare prices of the same product on different stores. On the contrary, men do

not research on the products before purchasing them. They prefer an effortless and quick

buying process. Research also shows that women are visual buyers (Haj-Salem et al., 2016).

For instance, a lady may enter the store to buy a pair of sunglasses, on her way in she spots a

beautiful scarf, chances of buying this item are high as compared to a man who will go

straight to the sunglasses shelf. Women are also impulsed buyers who may make them buy

products that they were not interested in initially. Buying decisions are also influenced by

word of mouth advertising for women unlike for men which is a mindset.

The purchasing decision can be affected by unique barriers for both men and women.

For instance, women consider the long-term value of the product; therefore, they are more

likely to at the claims and warranty and refund policy as compared to men who may not even

look at the warranty. Additionally, the texture or colour of the product and brand conscious

may also determine whether to buy the good or not for women (Michon et al., 2015). On the

other hand, men are time conscious thus they are concerned about the delivery schedules,

shipping period, as the availability of the product in the stores.

Conclusion

Conclusively, it is right to say that the sales strategy of organisations much depend

on whether the end user is a female or a male. Research results and scholar arguments prove

that gender differences play vital roles in influencing the sales strategy to be utilised by

organisations. The research outlines most noticeable gender differences between the male and

female customers. The results prove distinct factors influence sales strategy including the

means of purchase, waiting time, advertising, communication, and pricing of the product

among other factors. Marketers have to devote their time and efforts while dealing with

female clients, unlike male clients who prefer a straight to the point sales approach.

Underlying attitudes of both genders must be accessed to guarantee that sales representatives

understand and interpret the customers correctly and make changes where necessary. Any

organisation with the vision of increasing its market share must put into consideration the

factors of gender differences of customers and their influence towards purchasing their

products. However, organisations must understand that customer satisfaction is the only

strategy to guarantee increased sales at all times, despite the gender of the end user.

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Appendix

Interview No 1

Interviewer: What is your name, age, and gender?

Interviewee: I am Caroline, a 23-year-old female student.

Interviewer: When was the last time you shopped for a product online?

Interviewee: Last month, I prefer purchasing all my clothes online.

Interviewer: What factors influence your decision to buy at your favorite store?

Interviewee: The clothes are of high quality and due to the delivery services offered by the

organization.

Interviewer: Do you compare the prices of the product at different stores before deciding

where to purchase it?

Interviewee: Sure, I compare a number of websites before choosing where to purchase my

products.

Interviewer: What changes in the sales strategy do you think that your favorite store must

change to avoid losing its customers?

Interviewee: Once more fashionable and high quality products are introduced in the market at

a discount, I would prefer making larger purchases than normal.

Interview No 2

Interviewer: What is your name, age, and gender?

Interviewee: I am James, a 35 year-old male.

Interviewer: When was the last time you shopped for a product online?

Interviewee: I rarely shop online. I prefer vising the store at the nearest city to purchase the

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