Social media networks in business-to-business selling: A dyadic customer and salesperson model
Abstract
Buyer–seller relationships are increasingly impacted by competitive intelligence (CI) captured and cultivated via social media networks. For sales organisations, understanding the nuanced processes of acquiring CI via these platforms — and how such intelligence can strengthen or strain the buyer–seller dyad — is essential. This study investigates the role of social capital in shaping both customer and salesperson use of social media to gather CI and the resulting impact on customer purchase intentions. A dyadic model of social media networks is developed and tested using data from both salespeople CI and customers CI at a mid-size business-to-business firm. The results indicate that customer-derived CI exerts a significant effect on salesperson CI, while the density and heterogeneity of a salesperson’s customer networks carry important implications for purchase behaviour. These findings suggest that salespeople building dense and heterogeneous customer networks on social media platforms may have tangible benefits for salespeople, customers and firms more widely. This article is also included in The Business & Management Collection which can be accessed at http://hstalks/business/.
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Author's Biography
Juliana White is an associate professor of marketing at Southeastern Louisiana University. She received her PhD from Louisiana State University and her MS from the University of South Florida. Her current research focuses on sales strategy, social media marketing and the use of artificial intelligence in service contexts. Dr White has presented at various academic and industry conferences across the USA and Europe, and her work has been published in the Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice, Journal of Selling and Advances in Business Research, among others. She is a member of the New Orleans Regional Leadership Institute and frequently consults with business owners to create customer-centric marketing strategies.
Shuya Lu is an assistant professor in the Monte Ahuja College of Business at Cleveland State University. She received her PhD from Louisiana State University and her MS from Clemson University. Her research focuses on social media and sharing economy using econometric and machine-learning methods. Her research has been published in journals such as Information Systems Research, Journal of Interactive Marketing, European Journal of Information Systems, Decision Support Systems, Academy of Marketing Science Review, among others. She has presented her work at various international and national conferences.
Rebecca Rast is an associate professor at Missouri State University, where she specialises in consumer behaviour and retailing. She received her PhD from Louisiana State University and her MBA and BS in marketing management from Missouri State University. Her research explores consumer responses to persuasion techniques, the dynamics of social relationships within social media platforms and innovations in marketing pedagogy. She has been invited as a guest speaker at a conference to discuss her research into social media addiction and has appeared on radio interviews regarding her work on emotional responses to advertising stimuli.
