Abstract
Orientation: With the advancement of technology and intense competition, many traditional direct selling companies have had to include an online sales channel to their offerings.Research purpose: This study investigated the adoption of technology concerning online selling in the direct selling environment.Motivation for the study: This study investigated whether there is a ‘winner’ between direct selling and online selling, as well as identifying the threats, impact and future of online selling in the direct selling environment.Research design, approach and method: The study adopted a qualitative approach. A postcard-type, open-ended questionnaire was used to collect data from the directors of the direct selling companies. The collected data was analysed using inductive content analysis.Main findings: The main results indicate that online selling is here to stay and there is no winner between these two forms of selling.Practical/managerial implications: Managers should adopt a flexible approach to multichannel retailing as consumers dictate the consumption of sales channels in a multichannel sales arena.Contribution/value-add: Although this paper contributes on three levels – namely, theoretical, methodological and practical – it is the practical contribution that adds the biggest value and there is no golden formula in the structure of this multichannel sales system.
Highlights
With the advancement of technology, as well as an intense competitive environment, many direct selling companies have had to complement their traditional direct selling channel with an online selling channel
The results were analysed from the answers provided in the open-ended questionnaire and were formulated to reflect the main categories that emerged
From the 13 participants, 13 different responses were received and there was no agreed upon formula
Summary
With the advancement of technology, as well as an intense competitive environment, many direct selling companies have had to complement their traditional direct selling channel with an online selling channel. The unique characteristics and functionality of direct selling differentiate it from other retail channels. This form of selling focuses on face-to-face interaction and relationshipbuilding. The online channel in the retailing or sales arena, which is considered impersonal, has become very dominant and can be considered a disruptive development (Verhoef, Kannan & Inman 2015:174). This advent of online selling has dramatically changed the application of direct selling and the business model of direct selling companies. The use of a two-channel process to sell products to consumers – a multichannel sales system – is on the increase (Lewis, Whysall & Foster 2014). Karray and Sigué (2018) and Pu, Gong and Han (2017:1) believe that this multichannel system is not stagnant but rather that it is continuously changing and undergoing dramatic development
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