Barton A. Weitz

The Use of Pledges to Build and Sustain Commitment in Distribution Channels

Commitment in channel relationships is modeled as a function of (1) each partys perception of the other partys commitment, (2) self-reported and perceived pledges (idiosyncratic investments and c...

The SOCO Scale: A measure of the customer orientation of salespeople.

The concept of customer orientation in salespeople is defined, a scale is developed to measure the degree to which salespeople engage in customer-oriented selling, and the properties of the scale a...

Knowledge, Motivation, and Adaptive Behavior: A Framework for Improving Selling Effectiveness

The authors propose that adaptive selling is influenced by salespeoples knowledge of customer types and sales strategies as well as their motivation to alter the direction of their behavior. Perti...

Learning orientation, working smart, and effective selling

Learning and performance goal orientations, two motivational orientations that guide salespeoples behavior, are related to working smart and hard. Working smart is defined as the engagement in act...

Adaptive Selling: Conceptualization, Measurement, and Nomological Validity

A 16-item scale is developed to measure the degree to which salespeople practice adaptive selling—the degree to which they alter their sales presentation across and during customer interactions in ...

Relationship Marketing and Distribution Channels

The interest of practitioners and academics in channel relationship management has shifted from corporate channel structures and relationships in conventional channels governed by use of power to relationships between independent firms involving contractual and normative control mechanisms. In this article, we identify several factors leading to this change of interest, propose a scheme for classifying channel relationship research based on control mechanisms, and suggest areas for future research involving the use of contractual and normative control mechanisms in conventional channel relationships.

Personal selling and sales management: A relationship marketing perspective

The authors examine how the practice of personal selling and sales management is changing as a result of the increased attention on long-term, buyer-seller relationships and identify some implications of these changes. Changes in the traditional personal selling and sales management activities are needed to support the emergence of the part-nering role for salespeople. For salespeople in the part-nering role, the personal selling shifts from a focus on influencing buyer behavior to managing the conflict inherent in buyer-seller relationships. The emphasis on building relationships rather than making short-term sales and the use of sales teams dictates changes in the way firms select, train, evaluate, and compensate salespeople and members of sales teams. In this article, the authors have suggested some issues concerning the emerging partnering role for salespeople that deserve the attention of scholars interested in personal selling and sales management research.

Effectiveness in Sales Interactions: A Contingency Framework

A new approach for research on effectiveness in sales interactions is proposed. This approach is based on considering the moderating effect of the salespersons resources, the customers buying tas...

The Changing Environment of Selling and Sales Management

New developments and trends in selling and sales management are creating demands and opportunities that require adaptation and new approaches on the part of both sales organizations and academic researchers. This paper summarizes critical dimensions of change in the environment that affect the practice of selling and sales management and introduces the papers that follow in this Anniversary Special Issue of JPSSM.

Relationship Quality and Buyer-Seller Interactions in Channels of Distribution

Abstract This study considers how relationship marketing is manifest in actual interactions between buyers and sellers involved in on-going relationships with varying degrees of relationship quality. Seven buyer–seller, interaction encounters were observed, audiotaped, and analyzed. Before observing the encounters, however, in-depth interviews were conducted with the buyers to determine their perceived quality of the relationships within which the interactions would occur. Qualitative and empirically based evidence suggest systematic, behavioral differences across the interactions. Specifically, the results suggest that relatively higher-quality relationships tend to exhibit more friendliness, less question asking, disagreement, and compliance behavior as compared with lower-quality relationships. Buyers in lower-quality relationships tend to dominate the interaction by disagreeing and talking a larger percentage of the time relative to buyers in higher-quality relationships. As the quality of the relationship increases, however, buyers disagree less and allow sellers more latitude in time spent talking.