Assignment Topic
Reflect upon the process of sellers satisfying the differing purchasing demands of consumers (B2C) and businesses (B2B) as discussed in your reading thus far (see chapters 3 and 4 in particular); explore the range of marketing and sales strategies that are utilised by companies targeting buyers from these two distinct customer groups.
Explain how the marketing and sales strategies you have learned about can be applied to influence consumer and organisational buyer behaviour; illustrate your response with real-world examples of how sellers persuade purchasers from these different customer groups to buy their products and/or services.
Your assignment response is to be delivered as a written report of 2,000 words, featuring a series of appropriately headed sections and presented in a formal third-person style.
Solution
1.0 Introduction
Consumers are constantly on the search for money-value and the result is deep, evaluated purchase behaviour (Lasalewo, 2016). This report aims at considering extensively the various marketing strategies employed for B2B and B2C supplies. Focusing on sales management, PESTLE, SWOT, 7Ps,etc, there will be a discussion on how suppliers locate and satisfy their customers. Also, to further accentuate the nature of these concepts, a real life scenario shall be used for analysis.
2.0 Business-To-Consumer (B2C) ConsumptionBehaviour
Consumers generally operate on a pedestal of product-money-value experience. To purchase a product or service is to derive maximum value from it. In addressing consumer behaviour, certain factors need to be considered including who buys, why they buy, and their choice criteria (Blackwell et al, 2003).
2.1 Who Buys?
The question of who buys is settled in the fact that consumers in this case are individuals. In this case, the choice is the buyer is eventually made after the roles of the initiator, influencer, decider, buyer, and user. Sometimes, an individual may fulfil all the roles; while at other times, they may be spread across various individuals (Blackwell et al, 2003).
2.2 How Consumers Buy?
According to Blackwell et al (2003), the understanding of how consumes buy is intrinsically linked to the understanding of the basic notion that consumer decision-making process as a problem-solving or need-satisfaction process. The consumer buyer’s journey is arrived at following a series of steps – need identification, information gathering, alternative product evaluation, appropriate solution (product), and after-purchase evaluation (Blackwell et al, 2003).
2.2.1 Needs
All consumers have needs. As explained by Blackwell et al (2003), this is the largely propelling factor that influences a purchase. The need to solve arithmetic better, fast and accurately engenders the need to purchase fast and accurate calculators. The need for getting to destinations in time influenced the need for automobiles and other means of transportation. (Blackwell et al, 2003).
2.2.2 Information Gathering
The next stage often involves gathering sufficient information about the many options open to the buyer to make an informed decision. Many prospective buyers do their research even before entering a store. This is made possible by search engines such as Google, magazines, books, TV shows, etc. as a result, consumers are well armed with the information needed to make a worthwhile purchase (Jobber & Ellis-Chadwick, 2016).
2.2.3 Alternative Product Evaluation
This is done based on a system of factors including, choice criteria, beliefs, attitudes and intentions. The evaluative criteria are tied to a set of options outlined by the consumer to help him assess the extent to which a product among others fits his personal terms. Beliefs arise from pre-self-made assumptions about a particular product such as battery life of a device.
2.2.4 Selection of the best option
Following the evaluative process, it comes down to the decision to buy. At the point of purchase, however, it is the task of the sales person to find out the attitudes and preferences of the prospective buyer and change those to benefit him (Festinger, 1957; Ivens & Pardo, 2007).
2.2.5 Post-Purchase Evaluation
The likely most important stage of the purchase process is the after-purchase evaluation. Companies who rely on repeat purchase make an extra effort to make their customers/consumers satisfied with their initial purchase. Often, sales person and suppliers try to reassure the buyer that they have made the right choice but the numerous factors aside from the reassurance given by the sales person (Festinger, 1957).
Fig 1: The ‘How’ of consumer behaviour. Source: (Miniard & Engel, 2003).
2.2 Choice Criteria
A number of factors are at work in the evaluation of a choice product. Choice criteria may be social, economic, or personal. Social criterion refers to status and the need for belonging. Economic criterion implies the performance, reliability, and price. Personal criterion refers to the feeling generated in the buyer. This appeals to the psychology of the buyer, how the buyer feels about themselves using a certain product or service (Lasalewo, 2016).
3.0 Business-To-Business (B2B) Consumption Behaviour
Organisational or business consumer behaviour differs slightly from that of an individual. In this case, the behaviour is 3-tiered – structure, process and content (Fisher, 1976).
3.1 Structure
It is vital to understand that in an organisation, an individual is not solely responsible for the decision making. A team of individuals often identified as the Decision Making Unit (DMU) are responsible for the consumption decision process (Cline&Sapiro, 1978; Webster, 1995).The roles satisfied by these team members are, initiators, users, deciders, influencers, buyers, gatekeepers.
3.2 Process
There exist some similarities between the consumption process of individuals and of organisation. As with individuals, organisations have a need, determine characteristics and specification search for and qualify sources, acquire and analyse proposals, evaluate supplier proposals, select order routine and, finally, evaluate performance feedback (Robinson, 1967).
3.2.1 Need
These may arise in the company internally or externally. Internally, a need could be a reduction in capacity likely leading to the purchase of new equipment. Externally, the production manager may be satisfied with the way things are done but may be told of a better way of doing things (Riyanto, 2019).
3.2.2 Determination of Characteristics
Here, the DMU draws up a list of specifications needed by a company for a product. The sales person can influence this criterion to his and the company’s advantage by stating to the company features that his own product possess, the deal may have already been closed at this stage (Cline&Sapiro, 1978).
3.3.3 Source search and qualification
More searches actually takes place in organisational purchase. When there is more information on a variety of prospective products, the less searches take place (Robinson et al, 1967).
3.3.4 Proposal acquisition and analysis
Following the search for possible suppliers that fi the specifications of the company, proposals are collected and assessed for the possible eventual supplier (Robinson et al, 1967).
3.3.5 Supplier proposal evaluation
Based on the set of criteria used by the different members of the DMU, proposals are evaluated. Although this may cause problems, the end result is the selection of the eventual supplier of the product (Robinson et al, 1967).
3.3.6 Routine order selection
At this stage, the details of order, supply, and payments are drawn up; often done by the purchasing officer (Robinson et al, 1967).
3.3.7 Feedback performance evaluation
There is always a feedback stemming from a period of product use to ascertain money value and possible future purchase. The purchasing department may draw up a survey for the users’ department to get the extent of benefits derived front he product (Robinson et al, 1967).
Fig. 2: Evaluation process of organisational behaviour Source: (Miniard & Engel, J.F. (2003)
3.3 Content
This aspect of consumption behaviour is characterised by choice evaluating factors. As with individual buyers, organisation purchase is influenced by both functional (economic) and psychological (emotive) criteria. Functional considerations may be cost savings, return on investment (ROI) and reliability. Emotive factors may include a liking for the product or the sales person (Adiputra& Mandala, 2017).
4.0 Marketing and Sale Strategies Employed by Suppliers
4.1 PESTLE Analysis in Determining Supplier Choice
PESTLE stands for Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Legal, and Environmental factors used in assessing the capabilities of an organisation and its ability to proceed with a certain purchase (Srdjevic et al, 2012; Vorthman, 2008).
Political • Establishment of guiding policies.
• To what extent is the government of the day attuned to their activities.
Economic • The net worth of the company comes in to account.
• How much does the company hope to invest in the purchase of the product?
• What are the cost effective procedures of the organisation?
Social • How are the citizens taking the company and its products and/or services?
• The treatment of its staff and general stakeholders.
Technological • How open is the organisation’s technological approach.
• What tendency is there for delving into new advancing technology?
• What existing technology base does it have?
Legislative • Compliance with existing local regulations and policies.
• Any existing injunction against it or legal inhibition?
Environmental • How functional is it environmental pollution eradication measures?
• To what extent is the health of people catered to in relation to its activities?
• Any external assessor in place?
Table 1: PESTLE Analysis Source: (Srdjevic et al, 2012; Vorthman, 2008).
Fig. 2: Graphical Representation of PESTLE Analysis Source: (Srdjevic et al, 2012; Vorthman, 2008).
4.2 SWOT Analysis in Determining Supplier Choice
A market-analysing tool SWOT stands for Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunity, and Threat and is used in assessing the capabilities of an organisation and its ability to proceed with a certain purchase.
STRENGTH WEAKNESSES
• What are its leading products, if any?
• In what areas is it doing better than its competition? • In what areas is it lacking? Production? Personnel? Work environment?
OPPORTUNITIES THREATS
• What areas of the market can be exploited for further maximisation?
• What internal areas require coverage? • What threats are posed by competition?
• What new industry players are springing up and how will those be addressed?
Table 2: SWOT Analysis Source: (Srdjevic et al, 2012; Vorthman, 2008).
4.3 The Role of Marketing Mix in Determining Choice Consumer
Marketing mix involves a number of factors as they relate to the determination of potential customers and consumers. These factors include the 7Ps – Product, Price, Place, promotion, Packaging, Positioning, and People. They are dissected below.
Product • Is the product needed by the company
• How beneficial would it be to the company and the public in the long run?
Price • What price will be comfortable for both parties?
• How relevant is the price to the current market
Promotion • What promotional strategies are employed by the organisation
• How does advertisement reflect on the supplier?
Place • The location of the target organisation.
• What other locations will foster the sales of the products? E.g., festivals, carnivals, etc.
Packaging • How recognised is the company’s brand?
• What visual elements make the product? Do they resonate with the target prospect?
Positioning • How is the product viewed by the public?
• What opinion is formed in the minds of the public?
People • Who are those on the company’s marketing and sales team?
• How does the company recruit and maximise human resources in marketing its products?
Table 3: Marketing Mix.
(CIM, 2015. Marketing and the 7Ps: a brief summary of marketing and how it works.)
Fig. 3: Graphical Representation of Marketing Mix. Source (Author, 2021).
B. Case Studies Analysis of Supply and Consumer Behaviour
• Business-To-Consumer (B2C)
Infinix Mobile uses packaging, demographic, and economic factors to determine its audience. For its packaging, the brand employs captivating visuals combined with astute captions to ignite the beliefs and thoughts of its audience. More so, with its demographic sets as young adults and youths, it’s able to appeal to their senses and interests.
• Business-To-Business (B2B)
For companies, the parameters are slightly different. Infinix Mobile focuses on the firm’s ability to boost the supplier’s brand through economic strength and competition. Marketing a product such its smart TV, Infinix Mobile targets organisations that largely utilise video-conferencing and in-house ads and entertainment. Infinix Mobile pushes its excellent product visuals and features to these organisations, knowing that compared to its competition and price, they are affordable, and knowing that its brand is already in the minds of the public as a reputable one, it becomes easy to market items such its smart TV to these organisations.
Conclusion
In conclusion, there has been a consideration of the different marketing and sales strategies – SWOT, PESTLE, and marketing mix – in ascertaining how this influences eventual supply. In conclusion, real life situations were used to illustrate the process of B2C and B2B sales strategies.
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