Sales remains a massive engine of the American economy. One in eight jobs in the United States is a full-time sales position, and companies spend over a trillion dollars annually on their sales forces. Despite the economic opportunity, the people behind these numbers often face a bleak reality. Reports indicate that sales representatives rate their career happiness in the bottom 5% of all occupations.
The profession is widely recognized as a significant source of psychological strain. In business-to-business (B2B) exchanges, the pressure is particularly intense. Salespeople must navigate complex products, long sales cycles, and high-stakes relationships. Success in this arena often requires managing one’s own feelings to influence the client’s behavior.
This emotional management is known as emotional labor. It involves regulating internal feelings and outward expressions to meet job expectations. While necessary for closing deals, this constant regulation can lead to burnout, depression, and social anxiety.
Grace Holyfield and William B. Locander investigate this dynamic in a study published in the Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing. Their research examines how a salesperson’s fit with their job and their commitment to company rules influence how they manage emotions. The study also tracks how these emotional strategies affect turnover and sales performance.
Identifying the Emotional Strategies
Holyfield and Locander, researchers from the Department of Marketing and Analysis at Louisiana Tech University, sought to fill a specific gap in sales literature. Previous research largely focused on two ways employees manage emotions: surface acting and deep acting. The authors argue that a third category, naturally felt emotions, is equally important but often overlooked.
To understand the investigation, one must first understand these three concepts. Surface acting happens when a salesperson fakes an emotion they do not feel, like smiling at a rude client while feeling angry. Deep acting involves a salesperson trying to change their internal state to match the required emotion, such as actively generating empathy for a customer’s problem.
Naturally felt emotions occur when the salesperson’s genuine feelings align with what the situation requires without any effort. The researchers proposed that how a salesperson views their own abilities and how strictly they follow company rules would determine which of these three strategies they used.
Analyzing the Drivers of Emotional Labor
The researchers developed a conceptual model to test these relationships. They hypothesized that a salesperson’s “perceived ability-job fit”—how well they feel their skills match the job—would predict better emotional regulation. Conversely, they looked at “commitment to display rules,” or how dedicated a salesperson is to following the company’s emotional scripts.
The team gathered data from a panel of 312 B2B salespeople across various organizations in the United States. To ensure accuracy, they included screening questions to verify that respondents were employed full-time in B2B sales for at least a year. The demographic data showed an average age of 46 with significant professional experience.
The analysis used structural equation modeling to process the survey responses. This statistical method allowed the researchers to see how the different variables interacted with one another. They looked for chains of events where one factor, like job fit, influenced an emotional strategy, which then influenced an outcome like quitting or selling more.
The Impact of Job Fit
The data revealed a clear link between how capable a salesperson feels and how they behave. When salespeople perceived a high fit between their abilities and their job, they were less likely to engage in surface acting. Instead, these confident employees were more likely to use deep acting or display naturally felt emotions.
This suggests that competence reduces the need for pretense. When a salesperson feels equipped to handle a challenge, they do not need to fake their reactions. They can either summon the appropriate emotion through deep acting or simply express their genuine confidence and concern.
The Double-Edged Sword of Rules
The analysis of “commitment to display rules” produced different results. The study found that salespeople who were highly committed to following their company’s emotional guidelines increased their emotional labor efforts. These individuals were more likely to engage in deep acting.
However, they were also significantly more likely to engage in surface acting. By prioritizing the company’s mandated emotions, these salespeople frequently found themselves faking their reactions to comply. The study found no significant link between commitment to rules and the display of naturally felt emotions.
Consequences for the Salesperson and the Firm
The researchers then analyzed how these three emotional strategies affected the salespeople’s careers. The results showed that surface acting came with a high cost. Salespeople who frequently faked their emotions reported a significantly higher intention to leave their jobs.
Interestingly, surface acting did not have a significant relationship with behavioral performance. Faking it might help a salesperson survive the interaction, but the data did not show it led to better sales behaviors. This creates a scenario where the salesperson suffers the stress of turnover intention without providing a performance benefit to the company.
Deep acting showed a surprising lack of impact on outcomes. The analysis found no significant relationship between deep acting and turnover intention or behavioral performance. The authors suggest this might be because deep acting can be achieved through various mental strategies, some healthy and some draining.
The Power of Authenticity
The most positive findings centered on naturally felt emotions. The study showed that when salespeople displayed genuine emotions that aligned with the job, they were less likely to want to quit. Additionally, this authenticity was strongly linked to higher behavioral performance.
This indicates that the most effective salesperson is one who genuinely feels the emotions the job requires. Authenticity reduces the psychological tax of the role. It appears that customers respond better to genuine interactions, leading to better sales outcomes.
Actionable Insights for Management
These findings offer specific directions for sales managers. The data suggests that strictly enforcing emotional display rules may be counterproductive. When managers emphasize specific emotional scripts, they may inadvertently push employees toward surface acting, which drives turnover.
Instead, the research points toward focusing on “ability-job fit.” Managers can influence this perception through better hiring practices, mentoring, and training. If a salesperson feels competent and supported, they are more likely to react naturally and effectively to customer situations.
Directions for Future Inquiry
The study opens several avenues for future investigation. The researchers note that the null results regarding deep acting warrant a closer look. Future studies could break down the specific cognitive strategies salespeople use to deep act, distinguishing between positive reappraisal and mere distraction.
Additionally, the authors suggest exploring how these dynamics play out from the customer’s perspective. Future research could use matched pairs of salespeople and customers to see if clients can accurately detect when a salesperson is faking it versus being genuine. Understanding that dynamic could further clarify the financial value of authenticity in the sales profession.
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