Social media technology use and salesperson performance: A two study examination of the role of salesperson behaviors, characteristics, and training

Abstract Extending the literature on sales technology, we use two studies to develop and test a model involving salesperson-customer shared technology tools, referred to as Social Media Technology (SMT). Specifically, we demonstrate the impacts of SMT in B2B sales contexts on customer relationship performance and objective sales performance through key mediating behaviors and characteristics. Empirical findings from two studies, cross-company and within-company data, demonstrate the effects of SMT on salesperson product information communication, diligence, product knowledge, and adaptability. Moderating effects suggest that the integration of SMT in the absence of training on the technology may not yield the best results. Findings suggest that firms must allocate the resources necessary to properly implement SMT strategies. The framework tested provides a foundation for integration of SMT into buyer-seller interactions.

[1]  Jakki J. Mohr,et al.  Communication Strategies in Marketing Channels: A Theoretical Perspective , 1990 .

[2]  M. Haenlein,et al.  Managing Customer Relationships in the Social Media Era: Introducing the Social CRM House , 2013 .

[3]  Richard A. Rocco,et al.  Sales technology: Help or hindrance to ethical behaviors and productivity? , 2007 .

[4]  Nick Lee,et al.  Revolution in Sales: The Impact of Social Media and Related Technology on the Selling Environment , 2012 .

[5]  Lukas P. Forbes,et al.  The Sales Force Technology–Performance Chain: The Role of Adaptive Selling and Effort , 2008 .

[6]  Darrell K. Rigby,et al.  CRM done right. , 2004, Harvard business review.

[7]  Robert W. Palmatier,et al.  Factors Influencing the Effectiveness of Relationship Marketing: A Meta-Analysis , 2006 .

[8]  C. Speier,et al.  The Hidden Minefields in the Adoption of Sales Force Automation Technologies , 2002 .

[9]  Kevin J. Trainor,et al.  Performance implications of customer-linking capabilities: Examining the complementary role of customer orientation and CRM technology , 2010 .

[10]  Adam Rapp,et al.  Moving Beyond the Direct Effect of SFA Adoption on Salesperson Performance: Training and Support as Key Moderating Factors , 2005 .

[11]  Arun Sharma,et al.  Mature relationships: Why does relational orientation turn into transaction orientation? , 2003 .

[12]  Mary Jo Bitner,et al.  Service Customization Through Employee Adaptiveness , 2005 .

[13]  Raymond W. LaForge,et al.  Selling in the new millennium: A joint agenda , 2002 .

[14]  Deva Rangarajan,et al.  The role of overload on job attitudes, turnover intentions, and salesperson performance ☆ , 2007 .

[15]  Barton A. Weitz,et al.  Adaptive Selling: Conceptualization, Measurement, and Nomological Validity: , 1990 .

[16]  Jean C. Darian,et al.  Perceived salesperson service attributes and retail patronage intentions , 2001 .

[17]  Eli Jones,et al.  High Touch Through High Tech: The Impact of Salesperson Technology Usage on Sales Performance via Mediating Mechanisms , 2008, Manag. Sci..

[18]  S. Hunt,et al.  The Commitment-Trust Theory of Relationship Marketing , 1994 .

[19]  Kevin J. Trainor,et al.  Relating Social Media Technologies to Performance: A Capabilities-Based Perspective , 2012 .

[20]  Kevin J. Trainor,et al.  Social media technology usage and customer relationship performance: A capabilities-based examination of social CRM , 2014 .

[21]  L. Ryals,et al.  Managing Key Business-to-Business Relationships , 2007 .

[22]  Dwayne A. Ball,et al.  The role of communication and trust in explaining customer loyalty: An extension to the ECSI model , 2004 .

[23]  John Hulland,et al.  Customer-directed selling behaviors and performance: a comparison of existing perspectives , 2009 .

[24]  R. Bagozzi,et al.  On the evaluation of structural equation models , 1988 .

[25]  C. Fornell,et al.  Evaluating structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error. , 1981 .

[26]  Bruno S. Silvestre,et al.  Social Media? Get Serious! Understanding the Functional Building Blocks of Social Media , 2011 .

[27]  J. Mathieu,et al.  A Longitudinal Examination of Individual, Organizational, and Contextual Factors on Sales Technology Adoption and Job Performance , 2006 .

[28]  M. Ahearne,et al.  Examining the effect of salesperson service behavior in a competitive context , 2007 .

[29]  Todd J. Arnold,et al.  Combining Service and Sales at the Point of Customer Contact , 1999 .

[30]  Dale Goodhue,et al.  Task-Technology Fit and Individual Performance , 1995, MIS Q..

[31]  Mary Jo Bitner,et al.  The Service Encounter: Diagnosing Favorable and Unfavorable Incidents: , 1990 .

[32]  David M. Szymanski,et al.  Customer satisfaction: A meta-analysis of the empirical evidence , 2001 .

[33]  Michael Y. Hu,et al.  Social media: Influencing customer satisfaction in B2B sales , 2016 .

[34]  George J. Avlonitis,et al.  Selling and sales management: An introduction to the special section and recommendations on advancing the sales research agenda , 2010 .

[35]  Wayne D. Hoyer,et al.  An attitude-behavior model of salespeople’s customer orientation , 2005 .

[36]  Raj Agnihotri,et al.  Conceptualizing Salesperson Competitive Intelligence: An Individual-Level Perspective , 2011 .

[37]  Jeong-eun Park,et al.  How does CRM technology transform into organizational performance? A mediating role of marketing capability☆ , 2010 .

[38]  Douglas N. Behrman,et al.  Measuring the performance of industrial salespersons , 1982 .

[39]  Ramendra Singh,et al.  Bringing “Social” Into Sales: The Impact of Salespeople’S Social Media Use on Service Behaviors and Value Creation , 2012 .

[40]  Gautam Ray,et al.  Information Technology and the Performance of the Customer Service Process: A Resource-Based Analysis , 2005, MIS Q..

[41]  Sue E. Neeley,et al.  Implementing service recovery through customer relationship management: identifying the antecedents , 2011 .

[42]  James A. Narus,et al.  A Model of Distributor Firm and Manufacturer Firm Working Partnerships , 1990 .

[43]  J. Sheth,et al.  A Framework of Technology Mediation in Consumer Selling: Implications for Firms and Sales Management , 2010 .

[44]  A. Rangaswamy,et al.  The Impact of New Media on Customer Relationships , 2010 .

[45]  R. Erffmeyer,et al.  An Exploratory Study of Sales Force Automation Practices: Expectations and Realities , 2001 .

[46]  P. Patterson,et al.  The impact of communication effectiveness and service quality on relationship commitment in consumer, professional services , 1999 .

[47]  W. Dunlap,et al.  Testing Interaction Effects in LISREL: Examination and Illustration of Available Procedures , 2001 .

[48]  J. Chébat,et al.  The Impact of Empowerment on Customer Contact Employees’ Roles in Service Organizations , 2000 .

[49]  George W. Bohrnstedt,et al.  The Reliability of Products of Two Random Variables , 1978 .

[50]  Wynne W. Chin,et al.  Technology use on the front line: how information technology enhances individual performance , 2007 .

[51]  V. Zeithaml.  Service quality, profitability, and the economic worth of customers: What we know and what we need to learn , 2000 .

[52]  Raj Agnihotri,et al.  Competitive intelligence collection and use by sales and service representatives: how managers’ recognition and autonomy moderate individual performance , 2015 .

[53]  Felicia G. Lassk,et al.  The Future of Sales Training: Challenges and Related Research Questions , 2012 .

[54]  Mary Jo Bitner,et al.  Technology infusion in service encounters , 2000 .

[55]  J. Scott Armstrong,et al.  Estimating nonresponse bias in mail surveys. , 1977 .

[56]  Vincent Onyemah,et al.  A Social Learning Perspective on Sales Technology Usage: Preliminary Evidence from an Emerging Economy , 2009 .

[57]  Michael Ahearne,et al.  The Role of Technology at the Interface Between Salespeople and Consumers , 2010 .

[58]  S. Vickery,et al.  The effects of an integrative supply chain strategy on customer service and financial performance: an analysis of direct versus indirect relationships , 2003 .

[59]  Scott B. MacKenzie,et al.  Common method biases in behavioral research: a critical review of the literature and recommended remedies. , 2003, The Journal of applied psychology.

[60]  J. Mathieu,et al.  Influences of Individual and Situational Characteristics on Measures of Training Effectiveness , 1992 .

[61]  Jan Wieseke,et al.  Social influence on salespeople’s adoption of sales technology: a multilevel analysis , 2010 .

[62]  Michael Ahearne,et al.  Effect of Technology on Sales Performance: Progressing from Technology Acceptance to Technology Usage and Consequence , 2004 .

[63]  Raj Agnihotri,et al.  Social media use in B2b sales and its impact on competitive intelligence collection and adaptive selling: Examining the role of learning orientation as an enabler , 2017 .

[64]  David J. Faulds,et al.  Social media: The new hybrid element of the promotion mix , 2009 .

[65]  David W. Gerbing,et al.  An Updated Paradigm for Scale Development Incorporating Unidimensionality and Its Assessment , 1988 .

[66]  Barton A. Weitz,et al.  Learning Orientation, Working Smart, and Effective Selling , 1994 .

[67]  Zachary R. Hall,et al.  Know Your Customer: How Salesperson Perceptions of Customer Relationship Quality Form and Influence Account Profitability , 2014 .

[68]  Peter R. Dickson,et al.  Getting Return on Quality: Revenue Expansion, Cost Reduction, or Both? , 2002 .

[69]  Barton A. Weitz,et al.  Knowledge, motivation, and adaptive behavior : a framework for improving selling effectiveness , 1986 .

[70]  Niels Schillewaert,et al.  Why Sales Reps Should Welcome Information Technology: Measuring the Impact of CRM-Based IT on Sales Effectiveness , 2007 .

[71]  Gary K. Hunter,et al.  Making Sales Technology Effective , 2007 .

[72]  Robert M. Peterson,et al.  Social Media’s Influence on Business-to-Business Sales Performance , 2012 .

[73]  Subhash Sharma,et al.  The Role of Relational Information Processes and Technology Use in Customer Relationship Management , 2005 .

[74]  Olivier Toubia,et al.  Deriving Value from Social Commerce Networks , 2009 .

[75]  James ‘Mick’ Andzulis,et al.  A Review of Social Media and Implications for the Sales Process , 2012 .