The transformation of industrial selling: Causes and consequences

Wotruba, Thomas R.

doi:10.1016/0019-8501(96)00035-1

Cited by 53 publications

(69 citation statements)

References 32 publications

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“…Extant literature argues that relationship selling and advances in communications technology are transforming industrial selling (Greenberg, 2010b;Järvinen et al, 2012;Michaelidou et al, 2011;Wotruba, 1996). The role of the customer is changing from one of passive recipient to one of content creator and participant in marketing communications activities (Constantinides & Fountain, 2008;Godfrey et al, 2011;Hennig-Thurau et al, 2010;Kerrigan & Graham, 2010;Weinberg & Pehlivan, 2011).…”

Section: Implications For Industrial Marketing Communications Literaturementioning

confidence: 99%

The role of digital channels in industrial marketing communications

Karjaluoto

Mustonen

Ulkuniemi

2015

Journal of Business &Amp; Industrial Marketing

124

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Purpose -The purpose of this research is to investigate industrial marketing communications tools and the role of digital channels. The research draws from the literature on industrial marketing communications to examine its goals and intended utilization in industrial firms.Design/methodology/approach -A n e m pi r i c a l m ul t i pl e c a s e s t u dy co n d u c t e d a m o n g s i x industrial firms examines the current state of digital marketing communications (DMC). Findings -The study gleans three research insights. First, although DMC is one of the most important industrial marketing communication tools, firms have not yet used it to its full potential. Second, firms use DMC to enhance customer relationship communications, support sales, and create awareness. Third, firms have not employed social media tools as a part of DMC as widely as traditional digital tools.Research implications -Although the findings mirror those in DMC literature in general and industrial marketing communications in particular, they put more emphasis on the role of DMC in customer relationship communications and sales support.Practical implications -DMC provides an opportunity to deliver various marketing objectives, such as creating brand awareness, increasing and supporting sales, and improving communication with existing customers. Different DMC tools are required for each of these objectives.Originality/value -This study is among the first to examine the rapidly changing communications landscape and the spread of digital channels in industrial marketing communications.Keywords Digital marketing communications, industrial marketing communications, tools, case study, branding, social media Article classification Research paper 2In general, industrial companies are not at the forefront of adopting new instruments and channels for marketing communications. However, the growing number of stakeholders and the fragmentation of the media landscape have led to a rethinking of marketing communications in industrial firms. Digital marketing communications (DMC), particularly when linked to corporate branding and in support of personal selling, has begun attracting the interests of both practitioners and academics (Deeter-Schmelz & Kennedy, 2002;Foster, 2005;Järvinen et al., 2012;Michaelidou et al., 2011). For example, research has recently examined ways to combine DMC with traditional marketing communications to communicate with industrial customers (Foster, 2005; Michaelidou et al., 2013), likely because traditional marketing communications (e.g., industrial advertising) play a lesser role than customer relationship management, personal interaction, and other variables in the industrial marketing mix-namely, product, price, and place Gilliland & Johnston, 1997; Jackson et al., 1985). Every company faces the question of how to maximize the potential gains from digital media channels. As a result, effective marketing communication has become a strategic management objective for successful firms (Cornelissen, 2004).Not only have m...

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Section: Implications For Industrial Marketing Communications Literaturementioning

confidence: 99%

The role of digital channels in industrial marketing communications

Karjaluoto

Mustonen

Ulkuniemi

2015

Journal of Business &Amp; Industrial Marketing

124

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“…For this reason, enhancing the performance of salespeople is one of the most urgent tasks managers face (Boles, Brashear, Bellenger, & Barksdale, 2000). However, the notion of salespeople's performance is changing because several external challenges are affecting the commercial function in modern firms: Customers have more information, competition is stronger due to market globalization, and technology is continually becoming more advanced (Ingram, 2004;Román et al, 2002;Wotruba, 1996). In the Spanish context, the commercial function in companies is also facing increasing customer demands, microsegmentation of domestic markets, advances in information technologies and telecommunications, direct-marketing alternatives, and higher competition (Kuster & Canales, 2006).…”

Section: Data Collectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although this is a relevant group of employees in modern firms (Slater & Olson, 2000), these analyses should be replicated in other organizational areas. The increasing challenges that employees in the commercial function have to face in their daily tasks (Ingram, 2004;Román et al, 2002;Wotruba, 1996) can justify the finding that HPWS only influence performance through HR flexibility (i.e., that a total mediating effect of HR flexibility exists). By assessing the proposed relationships in different functions within the firm, researchers could determine whether the relevance of HR flexibility as a mediator mechanism depends on employees' positions in the firm or the characteristics of their job.…”

Section: Limitations and Directions For Future Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

Human Resource Flexibility as a Mediating Variable Between High Performance Work Systems and Performance

Martín

Roca‐Puig

Tena

et al. 2008

Journal of Management

244

309

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“…As a consequence of these different sales performance types, it is suggested that "the knowledge, skills and abilities of traditional salespeople differ from those of relationship managers" (Weitz and Bradford 1999, p. 242). Indeed, scholars have argued that the strength of determinant-sales performance associations vary for traditional-type vis-à-vis relational-type sales performance outputs, because the two selling paradigms differ in what they require from salespeople (Crosby et al 1990;Wotruba 1996). Salespeople working in a context wherein performance entails developing and maintaining relationships use more selfinitiative, are good communicators and can cope with different role expectations from both the internal and external role set.…”

Section: Hypotheses For Sales-type Moderatorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Drivers of sales performance: a contemporary meta-analysis. Have salespeople become knowledge brokers?

Verbeke

Dietz

Verwaal

2010

J. of the Acad. Mark. Sci.

485

423

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It has been 25 years since the publication of a comprehensive review of the full spectrum of salesperformance drivers. This study takes stock of the contemporary field and synthesizes empirical evidence from the period . The authors revise the classification scheme for sales performance determinants devised by Walker et al. (1977) and estimate both the predictive validity of its sub-categories and the impact of a range of moderators on determinant-sales performance relationships. Based on multivariate causal model analysis, the results make two major observations: (1) Five sub-categories demonstrate significant relationships with sales performance: selling-related knowledge (β=.28), degree of adaptiveness (β=.27), role ambiguity (β=−.25), cognitive aptitude (β=.23) and work engagement (β=.23). (2) These sub-categories are moderated by measurement method, research context, and salestype variables. The authors identify managerial implications of the results and offer suggestions for further research, including the conjecture that as the world is moving toward a knowledge-intensive economy, salespeople could be functioning as knowledge-brokers. The results seem to back this supposition and indicate how it might inspire future research in the field of personal selling.Keywords Sales performance . Salespeople . Meta-analysis . Knowledge-economy . Knowledge-brokering An understanding of the factors that drive sales performance and how these vary across different contexts is essential for both managers and researchers in sales and marketing. Twenty-five years ago Churchill et al. (1985) published a seminal paper on the antecedents of sales performance that has shaped academic and managerial thinking on sales management and become one of the most cited articles in marketing research (Leigh et al. 2001). Applying a classification scheme of antecedents of sales performance developed previously by Walker et al. (1977), Churchill et al. (1985) found six predictive categories to explain marginal variance in sales performance (in order of predictive validity): role perceptions, skill levels, aptitude, motivation, personal characteristics, and organizational/ environmental variables. In addition, their meta-analysis demonstrated that the type of products sold moderated the predictive power of these categories for sales performance. Most empirical research thus far had been looking at enduring personal characteristics as determinants for sales performance. The basic message of this meta-analysis was that these variables were not the most important predictors (Churchill et al. 1985, p. 117). Instead, Churchill et al. (1985 suggested that researchers should investigate "influenceable" determinants of sales performance. Another key focus they proposed was the dynamic nature of the sales Mark. Sci. (2011) 39:407-428 DOI 10.1007 conversation that indeed has become a crucial research topic (p. 116). This call sparked a plethora of new research streams on the determinants of sales performance. Twentyfive years have passed ...

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The transformation of industrial selling: Causes and consequences

Cited by 53 publications

References 32 publications

The role of digital channels in industrial marketing communications

The role of digital channels in industrial marketing communications

Human Resource Flexibility as a Mediating Variable Between High Performance Work Systems and Performance

Drivers of sales performance: a contemporary meta-analysis. Have salespeople become knowledge brokers?

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