Do Ghanaian non-traditional exporters understand the importance of sales management?

Abstract

Sales strategies which firms adopt to enter, penetrate and grow in export markets is an issue pertinent to the export business and yet this has received little empirical attention in management literature. This study sought to investigate the design and implementation of sales management policies and strategies in the non-traditional export sector of Ghana. The study showed that there is a positive relationship between export sales turnover and export sales strategy design and implementation. No relationship was established between the planning of daily sales activities and sales turnover as almost all firms had daily sales plans irrespective of their sales turnover. The older the firm in export business, the more likely it was for management to put in place strategies that will facilitate the growth and profitability of the firm. This might be the case that as firms stay longer in business they are likely to improve on their managerial experience curves and for that matter adopt more pragmatic management strategies that will enhance the success of their businesses. Results show that management of non-traditional export firms in Ghana should be critically concerned with the design and implementation of comprehensive sales management strategies, taking into consideration other factors like internet use and planning of sales presentation in order to achieve enhanced performance results in foreign markets. IFE PsychologIA Vol. 14(1) 2006: 26-39