Paper info

Coexisting Perspectives on the Selling Process When Delivering Complex Solutions

Ebba Laurin and Lars-Johan Åge

The paper was published at the 27th IMP-conference in Glasgow, Scotland in 2011.

Selling processes on B2B markets are complex endeavors characterized by increased collaboration among both several actors on both the selling and the buying side of the deal. Also, the solutions being offered are often based on advanced technology and service concepts that are difficult to define beforehand. The concept of sales culture in extant literature seems to limited to grasp complex selling processes on B2B markets since, in such processes, many actors collaborate and many different perspective and values are interacting. This study aims at determining the extent to which different actors look upon the different stages in a selling process in a different way. Result indicate that there is different perspectives on the different stages in the selling process in terms of artifacts and patterns of behavior, values and beliefs and, finally, assumptions regarding the selling process. Managerial application of these differences are also discussed.
Keywords: sales culture, complex selling, business-to-business, organizational culture