Products and services Flashcards
Describe:
Tuli, K. R., Kohli, A. J. and Bharadwaj, S. G. (2007). Rethinking customer solutions: From product bundles to relational processes. Journal of Marketing, Vol. 71(3), pp. 1-17.
The conclusion of the study suggests that a shift from viewing customer solutions as product bundles to understanding them as relational processes can lead to more effective solutions at profitable prices. The authors emphasize the importance of customer-supplier relational processes, which include customer requirements customization, integration of goods and/or services, deployment, and post-deployment support. These processes are aimed at meeting customers’ business needs.
The study also highlights the significance of various customer and supplier variables in determining the effectiveness of a solution. Customer variables include adaptiveness to supplier offerings, operational counseling provided to suppliers, and the development of social capital with suppliers. Supplier variables include contingent hierarchy, documentation emphasis, incentive externality, customer interaction, and process articulation.
The managerial implacations (Tuli & Kohli)
- Shift towards relational processes: Managers should consider moving away from viewing customer solutions as mere product bundles and instead focus on developing and nurturing customer-supplier relational processes. This involves understanding and addressing customer requirements, customizing and integrating goods and services, deploying solutions, and providing post-deployment support.
- Importance of customer variables: Managers should recognize the significance of customer variables, such as adaptiveness to supplier offerings and operational counseling provided to suppliers. By actively engaging with suppliers and providing valuable input, customers can contribute to the effectiveness of the solution.
- Supplier variables under control: Managers should be aware that supplier variables, such as contingent hierarchy, documentation emphasis, incentive externality, customer interaction, and process articulation, largely fall under the control of supplier firms. They should consider adopting practices that enhance these variables to improve solution effectiveness.
- Overcoming challenges: Managers should be prepared to address challenges associated with adopting certain practices. For example, the adoption of contingent hierarchy may require significant organizational changes and could face resistance from managers with vested interests in the existing structure. Piloting new practices in select units, developing success stories, and gradually expanding adoption can be a viable approach.
- Developing social capital: Managers should recognize the importance of suppliers developing social capital with customers. Building strong relationships, trust, and mutual understanding can contribute to more effective solutions and long-term customer satisfaction.
It is important to note that these managerial implications are based on the general understanding of the study’s focus on customer-supplier relational processes. For more specific details and insights, referring to the complete PDF file would be necessary.
The 8 supported propositions
Supplier variables
P1 : The greater the contingent hierarchy in a supplier, the greater is the solution effectiveness
P2: The greater the documentation emphasis in a supplier, the greater is the solution effectiveness.
P3: The greater the incentive externality in a supplier, the greater is the solution effectiveness
P4: The greater the customer interactor stability in a supplier, the greater is the solution effectiveness
P5: The greater the process articulation in a supplier, the greater is the solution effectiveness
**Customer variables **
P6: The greater the customer adaptiveness, the greater is the solution effectiveness.
P7: The greater the customer’s political counseling, the greater is the solution effectiveness.
P8: The greater the customer’s operational counseling, the greater is the solution effectiveness.
Describe:
Ulaga, W. & Reinartz, W. J. (2011). Hybrid offerings: How manufacturing firms combine goods and services successfully. Journal of Marketing, Vol. 75, pp. 5-23.
The PDF explores the concept of hybrid offerings, which refers to the combination of goods and services in the manufacturing industry. The authors, Wolfgang Ulaga and Werner J. Reinartz, aim to identify the key success factors for effectively integrating goods and services in manufacturing firms.
The PDF highlights the importance of resources and capabilities in the successful implementation of hybrid offerings. It identifies four critical resources: product usage and process data, product development and manufacturing assets, an experienced product sales force and distribution network, and a field service organization.
The authors highlight three main contributions of their study towards a better understanding of generating successful hybrid offerings:
- Identification of Distinctive Capabilities: The study identifies five distinctive capabilities that manufacturers must develop to deploy successful hybrid offerings. These capabilities are crucial for manufacturers to effectively combine goods and services and differentiate themselves in the market.
- Advancement in Academic Inquiries: The study challenges the traditional dichotomized view of goods versus services and offers a different perspective on capabilities required for hybrid offerings. It suggests that previous studies focusing solely on service properties may not be sufficient in the context of hybrid offerings. This finding contributes to advancing academic inquiries in service domains.
- Practical Insights for Managers: The study provides practical insights for managers on the factors that drive success when venturing into value-added combinations of goods and services. The authors propose a resource-capability framework that managers can use as a guideline to change their existing practices for selling hybrid offerings. This framework helps managers recognize, secure, and grow the unique resources and capabilities necessary for success in hybrid offerings.
Resources must be?
Firms obtain competitive advantages by developing and deploying resources and capabilities
In order to form the base of a sustained competitive advantage, resources must be
- Valuable
- Rare
- Difficult to Imitate
- Organized to capture value
and they must be transformed into capabilities
Resources are the productive assets of the firm - capabilities are what the firm can do with those assets
Manufacturers have a number of resources that pure service providers lack, which they can leverage by creating the appropriate capabilities
Manufacturer-specific resources
Manufacturer-specific capabilities
Manufacturer-Specific Resources and Capabilities for Successful Hybrid Offerings (Ulaga & Reinhartz)
Types of hybrid offerings
Describe:
Kaski, T., Niemi, J. and Pullins, E. (2018). Rapport building in authentic B2B sales interaction. Industrial Marketing Management, Vol. 69, pp. 235-252.
The key findings of the study regarding the influence of salesperson-initiated actions on rapport building are as follows:
- Building rapport requires responsive and collaborative actions rather than salesperson-initiated sequences of actions or sales techniques
- Salesperson preparatory actions are important, but rapport building also involves actions accomplished together with the customer, requiring a set of interactional skills
- Six typical actions can result in rapport: knowing the customer, clearing one’s own mind, breaking the ice, finding common ground, establishing emotional connections, and maintaining a close relationship
- A lack of rapport can have both immediate and lasting negative consequences, while successful rapport building may even allow for minor interactional or communication mistakes later on
These findings emphasize the importance of collaborative and responsive actions in building rapport, rather than relying solely on salesperson-initiated techniques.
The building rapport process
The building rapport process - Detailed
