Gourtesy counts on the sales floor

lF IT were possible to put statistics I into a computer and create a profile of the perfect salesperson, the results would be interesting. The paragon of sales would be neither tall nor short, blonde nor brunette, male nor female, but super courteous, most knowledgeable, easily identifiable and readily available.

The fact that courtesY is the No. I expectation of shoPPers todaY was revealed emphatically when people of various ages, ethnic backgrounds, educational levels, sex and regions of the country were interviewed by Research & Forecasts in a study sponsored by Whirlpool Corp. Their revelation of how Americans evaluate the quality of consumer Products and consumer and public services has been documented in "America's Search for Quality."

Those interviewed were overwhelmingly concerned that a salesperson be courteous. Virtually all the respondents (9990) agreed that courtesy is the characteristic that is most important in those working in stores. Nine out of ten (9190) said that it is always important that a salesperson be courteous and another 890 said it is sometimes important. Only l9o felt that courtesy was only a little important and no one would agree that it was not at all important.

Although it was outranked bY courtesy, product knowledge rated high in the survey. While 7290 exPected a salesperson to be knowledgeable about specific products, materials and specification, only 45v/o exPected them to be informed about the advantages of competing brands. Some 3990 expect salespeople to be able to