Adaptive Selling—Insights from Social Cognition

Based upon considerable evidence reported and discussed in the social cognition literature, it is quite probable that there are many basic perception and information use problems surfacing during a sales interaction. These problems basically stem from the manner in which the prior expectations individuals hold affect reactions to newly presented information or situations. Until now, only the facilitative aspects of this knowledge have been recognized, primarily within the context of the adaptive selling framework. Given the view of limited and biased cognition present in the social cognition literature, several implications need to be considered. The views expressed present a necessary supplement to the adaptive selling framework, and several practical and research issues are identified.