A customer selection strategy for business markets

The attainment of corporate objectives of profitability depends fundamentally on the allocation of limited resources to the generation of revenue in the most cost‐effective way. Customers, or groups of customers, provide revenue—consequently the selection of a “portfolio” of customers is of major importance as an element of corporate strategy. However, customers, or potential customers, vary by size, by market position, by the degree of understanding of suppliers’ offerings and in many other ways. This paper attempts to outline a systematic approach to the development of a portfolio of customers and market segments taking into account a number of the above factors.