Salesperson Customer Research Articles

The impact of salesperson customer orientation on sales performance via mediating mechanism

Purpose– This study aims to address the need to study salesperson’s customer orientation and its effectiveness to explain the efficacy of predispositions and skills at individual level. This study is set in the Indian context and, therefore, offers a detailed insight from an Indian sales force perspective. Also, this study introduces self-leadership into sales literature.Design/methodology/approach– A model was tested using survey data collected from salespeople within a print media company located in India. A structural equation model was used to test the hypotheses.Findings– The results suggest an interesting interplay between salesperson’s customer orientation and his/her sales performance. The relationship between customer orientation is fully mediated by salesperson’s emotion regulation ability and his/her salesmanship skills. Results support the role of natural rewards strategies as driver of individual level customer orientation which will be of great interest in future research in this area.Research limitations/implications– The research suggests that a salesperson’s customer orientation relates positively with sales performance through two process variables – emotion regulation and salesmanship skills. Within an Indian sales force, individual salesperson’s customer orientation is significantly influenced by his/her natural rewards strategies which have important implication for sales force recruitment. Moreover, sales training and other interventions targeted toward building salesmanship skills and emotion regulation abilities may actually enhance effectiveness of customer-oriented sales force. Theoretical and managerial applications are also discussed.Originality/value– This study extends the literature through its examination of an Indian sales force, the incorporation of self-leadership construct (natural rewards strategies) and its argument for an alternative approach toward salesperson’s customer orientation effectiveness.

The Importance of Starting Right: The Influence of Accurate Intuition on Performance in Salesperson–Customer Interactions

Salespeople make two types of judgments about customers in face-to-face interactions: those that are more intuitive and those that are more deliberative. The authors evaluate the influence of accurate intuitive and deliberative judgments on the performance of salespeople. To evaluate this influence, the authors employ matched survey, observational, and objective field data obtained before, during, and after salesperson–customer interactions. The results reveal that accurate intuitive judgments improve selling performance by enabling more appropriate initial sales strategies. These judgments not only help increase the effectiveness of salespeople's selling efforts but also reduce the amount of selling time, resulting in improved selling efficiency. However, performance is compromised when inaccurate deliberative judgments follow accurate intuitive judgments. The findings also identify different antecedents to judgment accuracy. Intuitive accuracy is influenced by domain-specific experience, similarity to the customer, and empathy for the customer, whereas listening skills and customer orientation influence deliberative accuracy.

Market orientation in the banking sector: Measuring the key role of salesperson performance

This paper examines the relationship of customer orientation – at both the organizational and the individual sales level – on salesperson performance for financial products. A survey of 146 sales managers of different Spanish banks was analyzed using structural equation modeling. The results provided here highlight the relevant mediating role of salesperson customer orientation on sales performance and reinforces the role of salespeople in achieving an appropriate organizational market orientation.

Salesperson Customer Orientation as an Antecedent to Customer Loyalty: An Exploratory Study

Customer-orientation of salespeople has a significant influence on sales performance, behavioural intentions of customers and their satisfaction levels. Yet, there have been studies which point towards the fact, that although the SOCO (Saxe & Weitz, 1982) scale has been used by a number of researchers as a measure of customer-orientation, its efficacy in measuring individual sales performance based on salesperson skills or traits is still incomplete (Singh, A. & Koshy, A., 2011, p. 70), reinforced by the fact that customer-orientation is more of an individual level construct being supported by organizational-orientation. Salespersons have a tremendous impact on loyalty exhibited by customers, to the extent that customers may cease to be loyal to a firm when a particular salesperson is transferred or leaves the firm (O'Leighlin, D & Szmigin, I., 2006, p. 285).This paper explores conceptual foundations surrounding salesperson customer-orientation, customer loyalty as its consequence and the role played by personality traits of individual salesperson in influencing these constructs by a thorough examination of literature. Additionally, it is also proposed that the relationship be studied from salesperson perspective as very few researchers have focussed on this side of the relationship, and shall also be helpful for firms to understand key salesperson motivations. Key personality indicators are identified as moderators of the relationship and a model is re - developed by adapting from other models of customer orientation and customer loyalty.

The impact of salesperson customer orientation on the evaluation of a salesperson’s ethical treatment, trust in the salesperson, and intentions to purchase

Previous research suggests that salespersons’ customer orientation can impact the effectiveness and outcomes of their selling interactions with customers. The purpose of this exploratory research was to create a foundation (based on prior results) for more comprehensive future work investigating customer judgments of a salesperson based on observed behaviors. Specifically, this study assessed whether a salesperson’s relational customer orientation (compared to a functional orientation) could trigger improved evaluations of a salesperson’s ethical treatment of a customer, increased trust in the salesperson, and stronger intentions to purchase. The relationships among perceptions of ethical treatment, trust, and purchase intentions were also explored. Using data collected from a large sample of working professionals, the results indicated that a relational selling approach resulted in increases in the three indicators of sales effectiveness. Additionally, perceived ethical treatment was positively related to trust in a salesperson and purchase intentions, and trust was positively related to purchase intentions. Implications for sales professionals in general as well as sales organizations and sales leaders in particular are discussed.

Do Salespeople's In-Role and Extrarole Brand-building Behaviors Contribute to Customer Loyalty Transfer?

We examined how, and under what conditions, a customer's loyalty to a specific salesperson (personal loyalty) can transfer over to loyalty to the firm. Participants were 900 salesperson–customer dyads who completed a paired questionnaire. We hypothesized that customer loyalty toward individuals would have a positive influence on firm loyalty. Specifically, we reasoned that the loyalty transfer process would be strengthened by salespeople's in-role and extrarole brand-building behavior (IRBBB and ERBBB). We tested our theoretical model in the context of the Chinese direct-selling industry, using the Amway organization as our research case. Our findings suggest that both IRBBB and ERBBB have a general moderating effect on the relationship between personal loyalty and firm loyalty. Compared with ERBBB, IRBBB had a stronger moderating role in the relationship between customer loyalty to the salesperson and loyalty to the firm. Our findings advance the extant marketing literature on customer loyalty and we offer suggestions for ways to incorporate this knowledge into managerial strategies and practice.

How sales strategy translates into performance: The role of salesperson customer orientation and value-based selling

The role of selling has become increasingly analytical and it is a central topic on senior management's agenda in business markets. Still, sales strategy remains an under-researched topic in the business-to-business marketing domain. Very little is known about how to implement it effectively or about the mechanisms of how sales strategy affects performance, despite its apparent importance for firm success. Drawing on a large-scale sample of 816 salespeople and directors from 30 sales organizations, and employing multilevel structural equation modeling, this study sheds light on the chain of effects that transforms sales strategy as an organizational variable into selling performance captured on the individual salesperson level. The findings demonstrate that a firm's sales strategy is related to market performance and affects salesperson selling performance both directly and indirectly. Further, the results show that each sales strategy dimension affects salesperson performance in a unique way. Of the three dimensions of sales strategy studied, only segmentation directly impacts salesperson selling performance. Prioritization and selling models impact salesperson performance indirectly, via their impact on customer orientation and value-based selling. These results lead to actionable implications for the effective implementation of sales strategy in business markets.

Know Your Customer: How Salesperson Perceptions of Customer Relationship Quality Form and Influence Account Profitability

Firms often utilize salesperson intelligence in marketing strategies to improve sales performance. However, this approach is problematic if the information is based on inaccurate perceptions. In light of this, the authors introduce a theoretical model to study the antecedents and profit impact of salesperson perceptions of customer relationship quality. Dyadic analyses using matched survey responses from salesperson–customer dyads and secondary performance data reveal several insightful findings. Results show that self-efficacious salespeople are upwardly biased, whereas customer-oriented salespeople are downwardly biased in their perceptions of customer relationship quality. However, managers can correct these inaccuracies using a behavior-based control system. Response surface analyses illustrate that the effects of salesperson accuracy and inaccuracy are distinct and curvilinear. During later relationship phases, salespeople profit more from salesperson accuracy in high- and low-quality relationships (i.e., a U-shaped effect). Yet the increasingly harmful impact of salesperson inaccuracy on profit is more severe during earlier relationship phases. Together, these findings highlight the benefits of measuring salesperson perceptions and how to manage them.

Making value co-creation a reality – exploring the co-creative value processes in customer–salesperson interaction

We examine how value co-creation is engendered in transactional and relational interaction in a professional business-to-consumer (B2C) service industry through exploratory interviews with six organisations’ sales personnel and their customers. A dyadic model and propositions conceptualise the process of value co-creation at the interpersonal level. It was found that the customer and salesperson take on very distinct roles in the co-creative interaction, which is driven by characteristics previously unidentified in the context of value co-creation, such as a commitment to achieving common goals, establishing equitable dialogue and sharing interests. Examination of the value dimensions co-created found that reciprocal value realisation is not limited to business-to-business (B2B) contexts, as the involved parties create mutual episode value in discrete transactions, and mutual episode and relationship value in relational exchanges.

Unpacking the Black Box of Multifocused Customer Loyalty

Many scholars and managers have raised concerns that customers' personal loyalty to a salesperson may be a risk to their loyalty to the firm. We tested our theoretical model, which was based on the theories of psychology and organizational behavior, in the context of the direct selling industry, using a sample of 900 salesperson–customer dyads from Amway in China. It was found that customers' personal loyalty toward individuals can work positively and cooperatively toward loyalty to the firm. Specifically, we identified and examined 4 concurrent underlying mechanisms: affect transfer, social influence, behavioral sensemaking, and perceived entitativity. Our findings enrich the marketing literature on customer loyalty and we offer suggestions for managerial strategies and practice.

Approach or avoid? The effect of regulatory focus on consumer behavioural responses to personal selling attempts

While salespeople use adaptive influence tactics in interactions with consumers, consumers can act as goal-oriented individuals attempting to manage those interactions. Prior research has documented a repertoire of consumer response behaviours, but little is known about the motivational forces. The present research examines the effects of regulatory focus on consumer behavioural tendencies in response to personal selling attempts. The findings suggest that the more promotion-focused consumers are more likely to engage in goal-seeking behaviours. This research not only addresses a void in the literature, but more importantly, sheds light on motivational antecedents driving consumer behaviours in customer–salesperson interactions.

Salesperson's listening in buyer–seller service relationships

Research has consistently shown that salesperson's active listening behavior leads to strong sales performance. Yet the influence of management policies on listening has received very limited attention, and prior research linking listening to customer retention has led to mixed findings. This study examines how listening is enhanced through control systems and the influence of listening on customer retention in a service context. Dyadic data from salespeople and their customers show that a behavior-based control system (measured as a second-order construct) positively influences listening and the salesperson's customer orientation totally mediates the influence of listening on customer commitment to the salesperson and loyalty to the service company. Our findings indicate that listening is a necessary but not sufficient condition for assuring relationship development. More specifically, customer orientation is the generative mechanism through which listening is able to influence customer retention. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Manager–salesperson congruence in customer orientation and job outcomes: The bright and dark sides of leadership in aligning values

To create customer-oriented organizations, managers are often asked to promote a values-based vision. Yet, many managers struggle with transferring their values to employees making strategic value changes difficult. Despite this challenge, research has yet to demonstrate how managers effectively align values within the sales force, or the impact alignment has on job outcomes. Therefore, we develop and empirically test a conceptual framework to examine the role of transformational leadership in aligning salesperson customer orientation (CO) values. We find that transformational leadership is a strong mechanism in creating perceived value congruence, yet may have a surprising dark side. Results suggest that transformational managers achieve congruence by raising or, contrary to conventional wisdom, lowering salesperson CO values to meet the perceived values of the manager. Response surface modelling results support the importance of perceived manager values. Customer-oriented salespeople have higher job satisfaction and sales performance when they perceive their manager to also have high CO. When values are misaligned, job satisfaction increases more for low CO salespeople as perceptions of manager CO increase. Exploratory findings show that performance was higher under situations of perfect alignment but also under severe misalignment suggesting that values generate performance under complementary or supplementary conditions.

Boosting customer orientation through coaching: a Canadian study

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate to what extent bank manager's coaching, a managerial relationship behavior based on mutual trust, openness and quality of exchanges, affects front-line employee's performance through the mediating effect of salesperson's customer orientation. Design/methodology/approach – The paper conducted a non-experimental, cross-sectional study; a Canadian bank agreed to participate in the study and 122 financial advisors with sales responsibilities answered a web-based survey; data were analyzed using structural equation modelling. Findings – The paper found support for the hypotheses that managerial coaching behavior can help bank employees develop their customer orientation and increase their performance, as well as reduce opportunistic behavior (sales orientation). The paper found that the direct link between coaching and performance, plus the mediating effect of sales orientation and customer orientation (SOCO) can potentially explain a significant variation in employee's performance (r2=0.23). The paper also found that the hypothesized model provided better explanations of the phenomenon when compared with two rival models, one considering SOCO as a full mediator between coaching and performance, and the other one considering only the effect of coaching on performance. Originality/value – In the banking sector, practitioners and scholars are paying increased attention to the role of trust and relationship behaviors in the development of market orientation and customer relationships. The paper identified a key relationship behavior (customer orientation) and tests its impact as a mediator between a relationship managerial behavior (coaching) and business outcomes (performance) in an international banking setting (Canada).

Exploring the Influence of a Salesperson's Selling Approach on Buyer-Seller Relationship Outcomes

It is widely recognized that a salesperson's selling approach is of crucial importance to buyer-seller relationship development. This study examines the influence of a salesperson's selling approach on buyer-seller relationship outcomes. A model was developed and tested via structural equation modeling (SEM). Data collected from a dealership network in the blue jeans industry was used to test the model. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) were used to purify the measurement scale. Results indicate that a salesperson's customer orientation positively influences customer commitment. Surprisingly customer satisfaction does not affect customer commitment. Results also indicate that culture specific measurement scales of satisfaction, trust and commitment will lead to a better understanding and comparison of these constructs in international markets. Theoretical and managerial implications of these findings are also discussed.

More Than Meets the Eye: The Power of Emotional Ability Convergence

The authors propose a new approach for understanding the development of effective relationships in personal and commercial contexts. Beyond traditional measures of interpersonal similarity and attractiveness, we demonstrate that when both members of a dyad are similarly effective at processing emotional information, they have emotional ability convergence, which allows them to form strong connections, and reached enhanced decisions. The authors conduct three studies showing how and why emotional ability convergence impacts relational outcomes and decision making. Study 1, a longitudinal social-network analysis, demonstrates that convergence generates greater liking within the first week, subsequently leading to enduring close friendships seven months later. Study 2, a lab-based speed-dating design, demonstrates that emotional connections mediate emotional convergence and relational outcomes. In study 3, dyadic customer–salesperson longitudinal field data demonstrated how relational outcomes (e.g., customer satisfaction) flourish or falter when emotional connections mediate convergence. The authors highlight several implications for enhancing relationships and well-being.

Salesperson CLV orientation's effect on performance

Previous studies show how strategies based on the customer lifetime value (CLV) can lead to an increase of profitability for a firm. In this context, marketing serves the purpose of maximizing CLV and customer equity (the CLV of current and future customers). For most types of service firms, salespeople are direct participants in implementing the CLV concept. However, prior research does not answer the question of whether or how salesperson CLV orientation can enhance profits. Using data on salespeople in a large Chilean retail bank, this study shows that the effect of salesperson CLV orientation on salesperson performance follows an S-shaped function (which is first convex and then concave). Additionally, data does not support the idea that the optimum level of CLV orientation depends on salesperson customer orientation, salesperson adaptive selling behavior, or salesperson experience (i.e., CLV-oriented behaviors could be effective across a wide range of salespeople). As such, this study addresses an important concern among researchers and managers that is related to how to increase the salesperson performance. The findings of this study suggest that firms need to monitor individual salesperson CLV orientation more closely.

Adaptive to customers: The roles of learning climate and customer knowledge

Based on the theory of organizational socialization, the present study evaluates the effect of learning climate on salespeople's adaptive selling behaviors by reviewing and incorporating their knowledge of customers. The study also explores the mediating role of customer knowledge for learning climate and adaptive selling behaviors. A total of 350 salespeople in 35 consumer electronics and appliances stores located in Taiwan were analyzed using hierarchical linear modeling (HLM), producing results that support the proposed model. More specifically, learning climate was positively related to customer knowledge and adaptive selling behaviors, and customer knowledge was directly related to adaptive selling behaviors. In addition, learning climate was associated with adaptive selling behaviors through customer knowledge. These findings highlight the importance of enhancing the learning climate and salespeople's customer knowledge to enable retailing organizations to improve salespeople's adaptive selling behaviors.

The Impact of Customer Satisfaction Based Incentive Systems on Salespeople's Customer Service Response: An Empirical Study

There is increasing recognition that customer satisfaction should be an important objective of sales organizations. For example, 40 percent of the incentives of IBM's salesforce are based on customer satisfaction ratings. In a series of three studies, this paper investigates the relationship between different bases of salespeople's incentives and their customer service response behavior. The results provide evidence that incentive systems based on customer satisfaction increase salespeople's customer service response compared to salespeople whose incentives are based on sales volume. An interesting and important result of the studies is that mixed incentives (incentives based on a combination of sales volume and customer satisfaction) reduce the customer service response of salespeople. Thus, firms that are introducing mixed customer satisfaction incentives need to study the impact of the incentive structure on salesperson behavior. Finally, training positively influences salespeople's customer service be...

Effects of Customer Gender and Mode of Dress on Service Response Received in Retail Establishments

The field investigation reported in this article addresses whether the gender of the shopper has an effect on the service response received in retail establishments, as evidenced by both the speed and the type of service rendered by the salesperson. The shopper's mode of dress, the gender of the salesperson, and the type of store are also considered as contributory factors. Results of the study reveal that shopper gender, mode of dress, and store type are related to service response indicants. However, the relationships are more complex than were expected based on prior research and theorizing. Customer–salesperson gender congruence was not found to influence service response. Implications of the study for retail management are discussed and research directions provided.