Recently asked the above question, and as it was such an interesting topic, I wanted to share my response:
This question would depend if your disappointment is shown directly to the customer or to the company in which the reps work for..
My advice would be if its for the customer benefit, politeness overcomes all, in sales presentations staff learn to conduct themselves professionally, but to be successful one must also show the personal and human side (which disappointment at a lost sale will also come through) – I see this as part of the sales process and one that will not put the customer off, if the sales rep later goes back to continue the sale..
If its for the management team within the company then this also depends on the strictness and running of the office, while tantrums are not acceptable in most cases, there is space for venting and it actually helps with performance in some of the best sales people I have worked with..
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