Selling Strategies Research Articles

Unpacking tourism blind boxes: consumer experiences and purchase drivers?

ABSTRACT Tourism blind boxes represent tourism products – typically hotel, airline, and package tours – that are purchased without knowing their exact nature or details. Despite its continuous expansion in size and scope worldwide, little is understood about the overall experiences of consuming tourism blind boxes. This study adopted a qualitative design, combining online comments and in-depth interviews, to obtain a comprehensive understanding. The analysis suggests five features of the consumer experience, including uncertainty, scarcity, functionality, aesthetics, and symbolic meanings. Tourism blind boxes are different from physical blind boxes in terms of functionality-oriented, higher requests for consumer deliberations, and delayed uncertainty resolution. Accordingly, four propositions were presented to explain the mental journey of purchasing tourism blind boxes. Specifically, the expectation for hedonic and utilitarian outcomes enhances purchase intention, whereas the delays in uncertainty resolution exert a negative impact. Trust, perceived control, and embodiment can modulate the effect. Practical implications of implementing the blind box selling strategy in the tourism area were discussed.

Homing Strategies for Asymmetric Sellers on Differentiated Platforms

Homing Strategies for Asymmetric Sellers on Differentiated Platforms

PERSONAL SELLING STRATEGY ANALYSIS ON FUNDING PRODUCTS IN AN EFFORT TO INCREASE THE NUMBER OF CUSTOMER

This research aims to analyze and explain Personal Selling strategies for funding products at PT. BPR Syari'ah Sarana Prima Mandiri KCP Bangkalan in an effort to increase the number of customers. This research uses a qualitative descriptive method. The data analysis process uses data reduction techniques, data presentation and drawing conclusions. The research results show that PT. BPR Syari'ah Sarana Prima Mandiri KCP Bangkalan has carried out all stages of personal selling starting from Prospecting, Pre-approach, Presentation and Demonstration, Overcoming, Objection, Closing to Follow Up. The strategies implemented in an effort to increase the number of customers as follows: 1) Implementing a Savings Festival, 2) Implementing a personal selling strategy system 3) Taking advantage of opportunities, 4) Good service, attractive facilities and easy transactions, 5) Quick response to customer complaints. The conclusion is that efforts to increase the number of customers can be done using a personal selling strategy. This strategy includes comprehensive product marketing, with a focus on personal relationships, comfort, and consistent follow-up. Implementing this strategy will have a positive impact on the financial sustainability of PT. BPR Syari'ah Sarana Prima Mandiri KCP Bangkalan.

The Role of Elements in Visual Merchandising on Impulsive Buying in Retail Stores (Study on SW Market Stores in Bantul)

This study aims to examine the influence of elements in visual merchandising on impulsive buying behavior at a minimarket called SW Market. Visual merchandising, which includes store layout, product display, and employee interaction, is considered important in influencing impulsive buying. We collected data from 190 respondents who had recent shopping experiences at a minimarket using a survey approach and a Likert-scale questionnaire. The results show that a well-structured store layout facilitates consumer navigation, while attractive product displays increase visual appeal and the desire to buy impulsively. In addition, positive interactions with employees create a pleasant shopping atmosphere and encourage spontaneous purchasing decisions. This study also found that the combination of the three elements has a significant synergistic impact on impulsive buying behavior. These findings provide practical implications for retailers to optimize visual merchandising strategies to improve shopping and sales experiences. This study contributes to the literature on consumer behavior with a focus on the unique dynamics of minimarkets in Indonesia.

Application of colour theory and visual merchandising principles in retail spaces

In retail settings, the strategic application of color theory and visual merchandising concepts is essential for influencing customer perception and increasing sales. One of the most obvious visual cues, color has a significant psychological impact on consumers, affecting their mood, perception, and buying habits. Retailers can create aesthetically pleasing spaces that suit their brand identity and client preferences by utilizing color theory concepts like complementary colours, warm versus cold tones, and color harmony. For instance, cool hues like blue and green express serenity and trust, while warm hues like red and yellow are frequently employed to convey a sense of urgency and enthusiasm. The creative placement of goods and displays to maximize consumer interaction and promote sales is known as visual merchandising. The utilization of contrasts, lighting, focal points, and product placement are important guidelines. Together with color theory, these components produce an engaging shopping experience that improves product visibility, makes navigating the store easier, and leads shoppers through it with ease. In addition to drawing in new clients, the strategic use of color psychology and visual merchandising strategies also affects their purchasing habits, increasing sales and building brand loyalty. Retail spaces may be transformed into dynamic, captivating settings that emotionally connect with customers through the use of this comprehensive strategy.

Explore the Transformation Mode of Perforation Research Results by Brand Leading

This paper discusses how China National Logging Corporation (CNLC) promotes the transformation of perforation technology research achievements through brand building. As perforation technology is a key link in oil and gas exploration and development, CNPC Logging has effectively enhanced the popularity, recognition and influence of perforation technology in domestic and international professional fields through the establishment of the “CPPerf” brand, which has continuously improved the value of scientific research achievements in terms of production and efficiency. The article analyzes the background of the brand creation, including the challenges since reorganization and the difficulties and confusions in the process of brand building, as well as how CNLC Logging has successfully enhanced its brand awareness and market competitiveness through the “Best Seller Strategy” and the “1+3” brand transformation strategy of scientific and technological achievements in the “Three Transformation Strategies”. In addition, the article discusses the sustainability of brand building and the necessity and must benchmarkbuilding an international first-class brand, objectively analyzes the challenges faced by CPPerf, and expects that the brand will continue to make progress, which will provide experience and inspiration for other enterprises in the transformation of scientific and technological achievements.

Persuasive Speech Act Strategies of Online Fashion Sellers in Live E-Commerce: A Cyberpragmatics Approach

Through cyberpragmatics outlook, this study explores the persuasive speech act techniques utilized by online fashion vendors during live e-commerce sessions. The study investigates how sellers utilize persuasive strategies in digital communication to influence consumer behavior and increase revenue. A mixed-methods approach is employed so that the research combines qualitative content analysis of live selling sessions with quantitative measures of engagement and conversion rates. Important discoveries show that sellers frequently use a combination of assertive, expressive, directive, commissive, and phatic speech acts, which are adapted to the dynamic and interactive nature of real-time e-commerce platforms. The implications for both sellers and digital marketing strategists underscore the importance of adaptive communication techniques in enhancing consumer engagement and optimizing sales outcomes. Furthermore, the persuasive strategies emphasize the importance of using visual aids, real-time client engagement, and personalized marketing tactics. This research contributes to the understanding of digital persuasion in e-commerce and offers insights into the evolving landscape of online retail communication.

TEXTILE MERCHANDISING IN THE FAST FASHION ERA: ADAPTING TO RAPID CHANGE IN CONSUMER DEMANDS

Rapid changes in consumer preferences, technology breakthroughs, and mounting sustainability concerns have all had an impact on the fast fashion sector. This study investigates how textile merchandising is changing in this fast-paced world, with a particular emphasis on how companies are adjusting to meet customer expectations while maintaining speed and cost-effectiveness. By examining how these characteristics affect merchandising tactics, the study hopes to shed light on how fast fashion retailers can effectively negotiate the challenges of contemporary retail. The main goal of this study is to find out how fast fashion companies can handle sustainability issues and quickly adapt to changing consumer preferences by optimizing their merchandising strategies. The goal of the study is to comprehend how consumer behavior, sustainability, and technology interact to shape textile marketing techniques. To find new trends and best practices, this study uses a qualitative methodology to analyze secondary data from document analysis and scholarly literature. According to key results, technology is essential for enabling more individualized and flexible merchandising strategies, which enables firms to react swiftly to changing consumer expectations. Companies must manage this issue because the fast fashion model's emphasis on speed and inexpensive production frequently clashes with environmental objectives. Additionally, inventory management and coordination across many sales platforms are made more difficult by the omnichannel retail environment. The dependence on secondary data, which might not adequately reflect the subtleties of current customer behavior or the internal tactics of certain brands, is one of its limitations. Nonetheless, the results have important ramifications for theory and practice. The study theoretically advances our knowledge of how technology, sustainability, and consumer behavior interact in fast fashion merchandising. Practically speaking, it offers fast fashion companies’ useful information to improve their tactics, especially in the areas of inventory control, sustainability, and technological integration. Businesses can improve their competitiveness and long-term viability in a market that is changing quickly by implementing more adaptable, customer-centric strategies.

Effectiveness of Live Selling Marketing Strategies as a Key Tool to Enhance Sales in the Fashion Business

This research examines how live selling marketing strategies can boost sales for a fashion brand. Data was gathered through a questionnaire on the brand’s Instagram, and Smart PLS was used for statistical analysis to understand the relationships between different factors. The results show that live selling significantly enhances customer engagement, sales conversion rates, and brand loyalty. The study confirms the reliability of the research model and highlights key factors that contribute to successful live selling, along with the challenges faced. Practical recommendations are provided to help optimize live selling strategies in the fashion industry. While the findings are specific to the selected brand, they offer valuable insights for other fashion brands looking to implement similar strategies.

The Influence of Iconnet Product Personal Selling on the Purchase Interest of Housing Residents in Medan City

This study aims to analyze the influence of ICONNET product personal selling on the purchase interest of housing residents in Medan City. The research method used is quantitative with a survey approach. Data were collected through questionnaires distributed to 150 respondents who are housing residents in Medan City. Data analysis was conducted using simple linear regression to test the influence of personal selling on purchase interest. The results of the study indicate that personal selling has a positive and significant influence on the purchase interest of housing residents. Effective personal selling increases consumer purchase interest in ICONNET products. These findings have implications for marketing management that personal selling strategies can be an effective tool to boost sales, particularly in the telecommunications industry in residential areas. Recommendations for future research include adding other variables such as product quality and price to see their effects on purchase interest more comprehensively.

The Advance and Spot Selling Strategy Under Quality Information Asymmetry

ABSTRACTWe study firms' optimal pricing and quality selection in the advance period and the spot period under the information asymmetry. Our study theoretically demonstrates that the advance price as a signal of quality information can affect the separating and pooling equilibrium. Importantly, we find that separating equilibrium is more favorable for high cost‐efficiency if consumers have low prior probability that the firm is high cost‐efficiency. For the firm with low cost‐efficiency, the benefit of the separating equilibrium is the same as information is common sense. But no matter which equilibrium firms choose, they will target all consumers during the spot period.

Don’t put all the eggs in one basket: examining adaptive selling behavior in salespeople’s performance

In a B2B selling context, salespeople are encouraged to perform adaptive selling strategies to attend to diversified customer needs and achieve sales performance (i.e., market share) and relational performance (i.e., trust, loyalty, and satisfaction) by performing adaptive selling behavior or showing the ability to recognize customers’ emotions. However, based on the resource allocation theory, the current research proposes that the two aforementioned factors seem to interfere with each other to affect the final performances. Results show that from Study 1, adaptive selling behavior, which is consequential of salespeople’s interpersonal mentalizing skills, is positively associated with relational performance, and the relationship is moderated by emotional intelligence. From Study 2, perceived service climate, a consequence of perceived transformational leadership is positively associated with sales performance. There was a significant interaction between adaptive selling behavior and service climate on sales performance, indicating that salespeople who do not perceive that firms emphasize services, they have sufficient resources to apply adaptive selling strategies. Conversely, if they were encouraged to focus on providing service, this might affect their adaptive selling on sales performance. Based on the results, we provide insights for B2B salespeople and managers to focus on one salient goal to achieve the best outcome.

ENHANCING CUSTOMER ACQUISITION THROUGH CREATIVE COMMUNICATION IN PERSONAL SELLING: A CASE STUDY OF PT TIRTA ASASTA DEPOK (PERSERODA)

This research aims to explore the role of communication creativity in personal selling strategies to increase the number of customers in the Marketing Team of the Regional Water Company Tirta Asasta Depok in 2024. The method is an exploratory case study. Primary data was collected through interviews and direct observations, while secondary data was gathered from literature, company documents, and previous research. The theoretical framework includes Computer-Mediated Communication, Social Exchange Theory, and Media Convergence Theory. The research findings show that communication creativity in personal selling involves utilizing media convergence tools such as laptops, WhatsApp, email, and Zoom to interact and negotiate with customers. This strategy is further enhanced by offering rewards, providing gifts, and using motivational narratives to build relationships. It also includes delivering more comfortable services with improved negotiation management and collaborating with local authorities to expand outreach. As communicators, neat and polite appearances, along with the use of "lip service" to create comfort and trust play significant roles. However, communication barriers were negative customer perceptions regarding new connection fees, public corporate image, and the skepticism toward government-owned enterprises. The findings indicate that creativity in communication can effectively enhance customer acquisition.

Discrimination Against Non-native English Speakers in the English Language Teaching Profession: Evidence from Internship Advertisements

Despite the non-native English-speaking teachers’ (NNESTs) movement, the literature documents widespread discrimination against NNESTs particularly in hiring discourse in English as a foreign language (EFL) contexts. The present study aims to shed light on another aspect of this discrimination in EFL internship advertisements by investigating the ideal interns’ qualifications and requirements as well as the characteristics of internship locations and fringe benefits attributed to the internship positions. To this aim, 13 international advertisements were chosen as the corpus of the study from the Premier TEFL website and were thematically analyzed. The results pointed to the native speaker fallacy in internship advertisements as all the programs required the candidates to be native speakers of inner-circle English-speaking countries or hold academic degrees from these locations. Additionally, a variety of selling strategies and marketing tactics such as the description of landscapes and outdoor activities along with a diversity of fringe benefits were utilized to attract native speakers. The results are discussed in the light of native speaker dominance in the profession and the ways to fight against this legacy. Finally, the paper ended with the implications the study has for various stakeholders including native English-speaking teachers (NESTs) and NNESTs themselves.

Untangling the Performance Impact of E-marketplace Sellers’ Deployment of Platform-Based Functions: A Configurational Perspective

Platform-based functions (PBFs) serve as indispensable tools for enhancing sellers’ performance within the e-marketplace. However, the complexity of their interaction and the determination of optimal configurations pose ongoing challenges. Employing fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis on a robust data set comprising 3,300 apparel sellers, our study delves into the intricate interplay of PBFs, revealing the nuanced combinations that exert significant influence on sales outcomes. In our investigation, we underscore the pivotal role of two key elements: the meticulous assessment of seller reputation and the strategic alignment of product positioning. These factors emerge as crucial determinants in shaping effective PBF configurations. Surprisingly, our research uncovers unforeseen drawbacks associated with pricing and marketing functions, particularly for reputable sellers offering high-priced products. Beyond theoretical elucidation, our findings offer pragmatic, actionable insights. We provide concrete strategies for sellers and platform operators to optimize their approaches, fostering a more vibrant and competitive e-marketplace ecosystem.

Effects of online-to-offline spillovers on manufacturers’ online sales mode selection

Numerous studies have confirmed the existence of two types of spillover effects (i.e., negative or positive spillover) from online sales to offline sales. The manufacturer’s chosen strategy for sales mode can be challenging and complex when considering online sales efforts and spillover effects. With positive spillover, enhancing online sales efforts not only increases online demand but also stimulates offline demand. Conversely, with negative spillover, an increase in online sales efforts boosts online sales while simultaneously cannibalizing offline sales. This paper analyzes the manufacturer’s choice between reselling and agency selling modes and investigates how both positive and negative spillover effects influence the manufacturer’s choice when considering online sales efforts. We demonstrate that, with a significant positive spillover, agency selling is the manufacturer’s optimal strategy. Counterintuitively, we show that the larger the negative spillover, the more the manufacturer prefers reselling. Furthermore, when the negative or positive spillover is relatively low, the manufacturer’s decision regarding the sales mode depends on the commission rate. Moreover, our study highlights that the optimal selling strategy for the manufacturer is affected by consumers’ sensitivity to online sales efforts. We also find that when considering online sales efforts, in scenarios where there is a significant positive spillover, the manufacturer is better off adopting agency selling. Meanwhile, the manufacturer may obtain negative profits from the online channel but can be compensated by the profits made from the offline channel. We extend the model to consider online sales efforts provided by the online platform in two selling modes, demonstrating the robustness of our main outcomes.

Brands’ Livestream Selling with Influencers’ Converting Fans into Consumers

Livestream selling is booming in the digital economy era. In practice, for the benefits such as consumer utility enhancement and the reduction of supply-preference mismatch, many brands are adapting their strategies to livestream selling, wherein some brands cooperate with top influencers to livestream as they can exert efforts to convert the fans into consumers. By contrast, some other brands choose to livestream by themselves to save the commission cost for the influencer, even at the expense of losing fan consumers. In this study, we characterize brands’ key tradeoffs between top influencer-livestream and self-livestream selling strategies. We find that a higher commission rate can incentivize the influencer to exert more efforts to convert fans, but also harms the brand by reducing the proportion of the livestream profit allocated to it and inhibiting it from transferring commission cost to consumers. Therefore, the brand may (not) be suggested to cooperate with the influencer when the commission rate is at a moderate (either low or high) level such that the twofold impacts of the commission rate are balanced (imbalanced). For consumers, their surplus may first decrease and then increase with the influencer commission rate. Our study deepens the understanding of the roles of top influencers and their fans in livestream e-commerce operations.

Strategi Personal selling dalam Komunikasi Pemasaran: Upaya Meningkatkan Brand awareness di Production House Tryma Creative

The marketing strategy paradigm shift from conventional to digital has brought significant changes to the economic sector. The use of digital platforms as a marketing tool causes competition between companies to become increasingly fierce. To survive and develop, companies need to have an effective marketing communications strategy to increase brand awareness. Brand awareness is one of the key factors influencing consumer purchasing decisions; The higher the brand awareness of a product or service, the more likely consumers are to choose it. This research aims to explore personal selling strategies in marketing communications at the Tryma Creative Production House in order to increase brand awareness. The research method used is qualitative with a descriptive approach. Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) theory is used as a framework for understanding and analyzing the strategies implemented. The research results show that the personal selling strategy used by Tryma Creative includes: 1) Conducting face-to-face meetings or via Zoom to build personal relationships with clients, 2) Providing high-quality service at the initial meeting to give a positive and professional impression, and 3) Utilizing communication via social media and WhatsApp to maintain continuous interaction with clients. This approach has been proven to significantly increase Tryma Creative's brand awareness, making the company better known and trusted by consumers. These findings provide important insights for other companies looking to optimize their personal selling strategies in the digital era.

A Hybrid Forecasting Model for Electricity Demand in Sustainable Power Systems Based on Support Vector Machine

Renewable energy sources, such as wind and solar power, are increasingly contributing to electricity systems. Participants in the energy market need to understand the future electricity demand in order to plan their purchasing and selling strategies. To forecast the electricity demand, this study proposes a hybrid forecasting model. The method uses Kalman filtering to eliminate noise from the electricity demand series. After decomposing the electricity demand using an empirical model, a support vector machine optimized by a genetic algorithm is employed for prediction. The performance of the proposed forecasting model was evaluated using actual electricity demand data from the Australian energy market. The simulation results indicate that the proposed model has the best forecasting capability, with a mean absolute percentage error of 0.25%. Accuracy improved by 74% compared to the Support Vector Machine (SVM) electricity demand forecasting model, by 73% when compared to the SVM with empirical mode decomposition, and by 51% when compared to the SVM with Kalman filtering for noise reduction. Additionally, compared to existing forecasting methods, this study’s accuracy surpasses LSTM by 63%, Transformer by 47%, and LSTM-Adaboost by 36%. The simulation of and comparison with existing forecasting methods validate the effectiveness of the proposed hybrid forecasting model, demonstrating its superior predictive capabilities.

The New Fishing Technique With Lighted Gillnets in Lake Kivu: Panacea or Pandora's Box?

ABSTRACTA new fishing technique has been introduced in Lake Kivu, across the Congo side. It consists of gillnets on which light‐emitting diode (LED) lamps are attached. Traditional fishermen have introduced the fishing technique without any studies related to the positive and drawback effects of this fishing technique. We sought to understand whether the gillnets with LED lamps fishing technique improve fishing catches and can be regarded as sustainable for the Lake Kivu ecosystem, or is it just only a marketing strategy for gillnets and LED lamp sellers. Two complementary approaches have been used in this study. Experimental fishing campaigns were conducted from June 2021 to June 2022 and monitoring of fishing team in the field coupled with surveys of fishermen about the effectiveness use of this new fishing technique. We observed that (i) 88% of fishermen using gillnet in the Bukavu sub‐basin have already adopted the recently introduced fishing technique; (ii) the average catch per unit effort of gillnets with LED lamps is higher than those without LED lamps (3.84 ± 1.95 kg/net vs. 2.69 ± 2.04 kg/net); (iii) these gillnets retrieve larger specimens (79.88 mm vs. 76.69 mm) and generate monthly a higher average profit to fishermen ($916.35) than the fishing technique lacking the LED ($807). However, (iv) the gillnets with LED lamps generates a lot of plastic trash: around 2130 kg of plastic bags/month under fishing conditions in the Bukavu sub‐basin. So, this new fishing technique is a real panacea for its practitioners, but a veritable Pandora's box generating plastic pollutants in Lake Kivu. Instead of banning this new fishing technique, we need to adapt it by using submersible LED lamps.