salesmanship

[ seylz-muhn-ship ]

/ ˈseɪlz mənˌʃɪp /

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noun

the technique of selling a product: They used a promotional gimmick that was the last word in salesmanship.

adeptness at creating interest in new ideas, products, methods, etc.: The only ingredient lacking in the system was salesmanship.

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Origin of salesmanship

1875–80; salesman + -ship; cf. -manship

Words nearby salesmanship

sales forecast, salesgirl, Salesian, saleslady, salesman, salesmanship, salespeople, salesperson, sales pitch, sales promotion, sales rep

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use salesmanship in a sentence

McMeel, a law school dropout once dubbed “Deals McMeel” for his gift for salesmanship, started his syndicate with friend Jim Andrews in 1970.
John McMeel, newspaper syndicator who brought ‘Doonesbury’ to millions of readers, dies at 85|Emily Langer|July 21, 2021|Washington Post
This is salesmanship, and of the most ingeniously manipulative kind.
David's Book Club: The Souls of Black Folk|David Frum|May 5, 2013|DAILY BEAST
On Wednesday, the president is taking his State of the Union proposals on the road in a bit of campaign-style salesmanship.
Obama’s 2013 State of the Union and the Immigration Reform Moment|John Avlon|February 13, 2013|DAILY BEAST
It is an unconvincing bit of salesmanship that betrays little perspective on himself, let alone the presence of core convictions.
GOP Primary Results: A Suicidal Cage Match|John Avlon|February 29, 2012|DAILY BEAST

But it was WMD, of course, that was the principal tool in the administration's salesmanship of the war.
Rumsfeld, Still Defiant|Howard Kurtz|February 2, 2011|DAILY BEAST
In salesmanship, many subtle psychological principles are involved.
The Science of Human Nature|William Henry Pyle
Such salesmen are no longer categorised with Csar's wife, and the new salesmanship is having its day.
The Building of a Book|Various
Then he makes little or much money from salesmanship, according to his mental capacity.
How to Analyze People on Sight|Elsie Lincoln Benedict and Ralph Paine Benedict
Salesmanship requires mentality plus a pleasing personality.
How to Analyze People on Sight|Elsie Lincoln Benedict and Ralph Paine Benedict
The stage in all its forms is as natural a field to the Thoracic as salesmanship is to the Alimentive.
How to Analyze People on Sight|Elsie Lincoln Benedict and Ralph Paine Benedict

British Dictionary definitions for salesmanship

salesmanship

/ (ˈseɪlzmənʃɪp) /

noun

the technique, skill, or ability of selling

the work of a salesman

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012