The impact of a professional selling course on student perceptions : a before and after look

For decades, (going back to the 1950s) the negative attitudes students hold towards salespeople and sales careers have been of concern to university educators and to employers seeking to recruit well-trained sales people. While the increasing demand for university educated salespeople continues to grow, employers are struggling to meet that demand. This study reports the impact of a professional selling course on changes in student perceptions regarding (a) the desirability of a professional selling career, (b) the usefulness of a professional selling course for developing selling skill sets in entry-level salespeople, (c) the customer orientation of salespeople, and (d) societal perceptions of salespeople. Participants were university students enrolled in a semester-long (15 weeks) professional selling course at four separate United States universities. Results show that both male and female college students perceived the selling profession and salespeople more positively after taking the sales course, and that these students had positive perceptions regarding the skill set gained through such courses. [Author abstract, ed]