Master of Agribusiness / Department of Agricultural Economics / Aleksan Shanoyan / In recent years across the United States, product sales have seen a downward trend when compared to the robust sales figures posted around the 2010 time period across the major players in the product manufacturing space. Due to depressed commodity prices, large product sales have caused a lot of the dealers to shift in its prioritization of sales from a predominant large product business model, to a more diverse large product and small product strategy portfolio to stay profitable amidst economic headwinds. This study will look into ways that the Company A dealer channel could pivot their internal processes around targeting customers who are engaged in the purchase funnel of purchasing small products and how Company A could change the way the company equips their trusted dealer channel to combat competition in this segment. This study will examine new strategies that may be executed through the Company A dealer network and their subsequent retail showrooms to increase sales by focusing on key product differentiating characteristics, unique technical selling points, dealer facility positioning in high potential Metropolitan Statistical Areas, and new retail digital marketing technologies that should be leveraged throughout the sales process to improve market share. Company B is considered to be the primary rival competitor in this small product market, as this firm is one of the fiercest competitors to Company A’s quest for total product sales superiority. This study conducted a mixed method survey to ascertain what areas of marketing and promotional assistance should be prioritized by Company A, to outfit the company’s existing dealer channel with the right tools to combat Company B and other competitors in the U.S. small product market. Additionally new retail showroom technologies and strategies were based upon existing market research studies, focused on which customer’s and product characteristics were the most impactful for positively impacting small product sales in the United States.

Sales is one of the oldest professions and is still a vital part of any business. It keeps evolving because of digitalization and from the impact of covid-19. The covid-19 outbreak has had tremendous influence on multiple levels in organizations and for business all over the world. Consequently, there is also an opportunity in a crisis. Furthermore, the firms have rapidly picked themselves up and continue pursuing for survival. Today, management has started restructuring their business models and including hybrid work models for their employees. In this study, the authors will investigate how this old profession is functioning in a modern and evolving business environment. Digitalization has accelerated at an alarming rate during the pandemic. It benefits and challenges many professions on a daily basis, including the B2B sales process.

<p>Background: Companies and organizations of today spend large amounts of money on IT-based business solutions. Such business solutions normally include business- consulting and software-creation (IT-related services). Due to the rapid development of the technology within this field of business the IT-customers find it difficult to select among potential suppliers on objective grounds. </p><p>Purpose: To increase the understanding for the professionl approach of the people involved in the sales- and purchase process of IT-related services in a business-to-business context. The study is taking the buyers'as well as the sellers'perspective into account when analyzing the process. Method: The empirical findings were collected from eight companies in Linköping and Stockholm. The method used was a qualitative interview survey. </p><p>Delimitation: The study treats business-to-business relationships. The study focuses on IT-services aimed at business development. The study do not include the influence of purely technical apects of IT-related services. </p><p>Conclusions: It appears to exist a"knowledge gap"between the IT-suppliers and the IT-customers concerning how to make use of the opportunities stemming from the newest IT-applications. The customers find it difficult to select among potential IT-suppliers on objective grounds. Trust in the supplier becomes very important. Trust can be achieved by means of personal contacts, the ability to speak the same language, reference projects and general knowledge about the customer's field of business.</p>

Background: Companies and organizations of today spend large amounts of money on IT-based business solutions. Such business solutions normally include business- consulting and software-creation (IT-related services). Due to the rapid development of the technology within this field of business the IT-customers find it difficult to select among potential suppliers on objective grounds. Purpose: To increase the understanding for the professionl approach of the people involved in the sales- and purchase process of IT-related services in a business-to-business context. The study is taking the buyers'as well as the sellers'perspective into account when analyzing the process. Method: The empirical findings were collected from eight companies in Linköping and Stockholm. The method used was a qualitative interview survey. Delimitation: The study treats business-to-business relationships. The study focuses on IT-services aimed at business development. The study do not include the influence of purely technical apects of IT-related services. Conclusions: It appears to exist a"knowledge gap"between the IT-suppliers and the IT-customers concerning how to make use of the opportunities stemming from the newest IT-applications. The customers find it difficult to select among potential IT-suppliers on objective grounds. Trust in the supplier becomes very important. Trust can be achieved by means of personal contacts, the ability to speak the same language, reference projects and general knowledge about the customer's field of business.

This thesis deals with the creation of the application for sales process support on Android mobile platform. It describes the application concept and the consequent implementation of solution for Allium Catalogue based on Microsoft Dynamics NAV. It also explains the importance of ERP systems for sales process and includes the familiarization with already existing applications for their support. It analyses the multiplatform development environments and basic principles of the multiplatform development.

Bakgrund: Den pandemi som drabbade världen under 2020 tvingade många organisationer att ställa om till arbete på distans. Denna typ av plötslig omställning skapar många olika utmaningar, två av dessa är hur en säljkår skall styras samt hur själva försäljningsarbetet behöver anpassas. Syfte: Syftet med denna uppsats är att öka förståelsen för hur Covid-19 pandemin påverkade säljprocessen och säljstyrningen i B2B säljkårer samt vilka lärdomar som kan dras från detta. Metod: Studien utgår från den kritiska realismen och har ett abduktivt angreppssätt. Vidare använder studien sig av en kvalitativ metod där fyra semistrukturerade intervjuer har utförts med individer som arbetar med B2B försäljning. Studien är designad som en tvärsnittsstudie där fokus ligger på att hitta mönster och samband mellan de olika fallföretagen. Val av respondenter skedde genom ett målstyrt urval från författarnas professionella nätverk där krav utformades för att säkerställa att relevanta företag ställde upp. Slutsats: Studien mynnar ut i att hur säljkårer förändrar sig beror till stor det på vilken typ av försäljning som bedrivs samt vilka externa och interna faktorer som finns. Samtliga fallföretag genomförde någon form av förändring i styrningen, för att öka mätbarheten eller tydligheten i arbetet. Den sociala styrningen påverkades negativt och är en mycket viktig aspekt i styrningen av en säljkår som behöver hanteras när arbete sker på distans. Digitala möten fungerar bra för de flesta företag och kommer troligtvis vara något de fortsätter med i framtiden, i alla fall till en viss grad. Vid komplex försäljning fungerade digitala möten inte alltid lika bra på grund av den höga grad av tillit som krävs för sådana affärer / Background: During 2020 the world was struck by a pandemic, forcing many organizations to switch to remote work. A sudden change like this creates many different challenges, two of these are how a salesforce should be managed and how the sales-process should be adapted to this new scenario.  Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to increase the understanding of how Covid-19 affected the sales process and sales management control systems in B2B salesforces and what lessons can be drawn from this. Method: This study is based on critical-realism and has an abductive approach. Furthermore, the study uses a qualitative method for which four semi-structured interviews were executed with individuals working with B2B sales. The design of the study is cross-sectional were the focus lies on discovering patterns and connections between the different case-companies. The participants of the study were chosen from the authors professional networks where requirements were formed to make sure the participants were relevant.  Conclusion: The study shows that how salesforces change is largely dependent on what kind of sales they are performing and what internal and external factors are present. All investigated companies went through some type of change to increase the measurability or clarity of the work. Social control was affected in a negative way, it turns out that this is a very important aspect of sales management that needs to be addressed for a salesforce working remotely. Digital meetings worked well for most companies and will most likely be something they will be doing in the future, at least to some extent. However, during very complex sales, digital meetings did not work as well because of the high grade of trust required in that type of business.

Digital commerce is a natural part of our everyday life. To fast and easily be able to make purchases from our home without stress has become a matter of course for us. But the new way to make purchases places new demands on the sales, not least at the important customer meeting. The interaction between customer and seller disappears completely and known marketing methods must be adapted to the new conditions. How does the customer journey change when the step from discovering a product to buying it is just a few clicks away? The study aims to investigate and develop a digital sales process for a mobile game aimed for children. The process is based on the marketing framework See-Think-Do-Care and tries to answer questions like which components are needed in a sales flow? How can a product be adapted to different types of users and can UX design be used to get interested customers to buy the product? The method is divided into two different sections. One section for evaluating the chosen marketing framework and another for the development of the sales process. The development of the sales process was made stepwise by prototypes in different degrees of fidelity. The first part of the result ended up in the implementation of the marketing framework, a developed customer journey, and a compilation of ten guidelines to adhere to for increasing the conversion of new customers. The sales flow was then developed step by step from only showing the routing to be a clickable solution similar to the intended end product. The di↵erent prototypes were evaluated by user testing and it was shown that the largest problem was not to make users understand the sales flow, it was to make them understand the actual product. The hope is that the result of the study will be able to be tested in production and be used in the real sales of the product.

Industrial selling is considered to be one of the highly challenging tasks and sales personnel are exploring new strategies and tools to stay ahead of the competition to achieve organizational objectives. The study has focused on adding to the academic knowledge of the use of an innovative and creative sales tool to enhance the performance of the function. For this purpose, with the professional experience of research team members, the use of Life Cycle Cost Analysis (LCCA) is taken into the account as the tool. Though the LCCA is generally accepted as an instrument used by organizational procurement departments, it has been observed that there is a strategic and functional importance of academically studying the role of the during the industrial sales process, how it has been utilized during the interaction with various members in the organizational decision-making process and the role of the other internal departments in applying it. It was our utmost faith, it would be an interesting and insightful area of academic exploration while addressing relatively considerable the drought in academic studies on industrial sales. The topic was selected based on the researchers’ previous experience followed by thorough literature research in identifying the knowledge gap on the topic. The empirical data collection was carried out over two industries, namely, Protective Coatings (Industrial paints) and Luxury bathroom fixtures and fittings in India Subcontinent. Data was gathered using semi-structured interviews with sales professionals who have been selected based on the researchers’ personal contacts. The gathered data were analyzed using qualitative techniques.  The study showed that the LCCA plays a significant role in different stages of the Industrial sales process as a sales tool and it has helped the sales personnel to a greater extent during their interaction with various members of the organizational buying unit. Unanimously, it was accepted by the members of the sales department that the other departments are instrumental in the effective use of the LCCA. The LCCA is a tool that can be utilized in the industrial sales process and that other industries can use as well. The idea might be used by sales teams in other companies, such as those that build bridges, railways, and roads, recycle, enforce traffic laws, manufacture building materials, and so forth. The study found that LCCA is used by enterprises as a tool in the industrial sales process. In the Presentation and Demonstration phase of the sales process, the instrument is heavily utilized. The sales team's satisfaction with LCCA has increased due to its proactive role in lowering DMU objections.

This study is based on Partner X's challenges in launching an innovative replacement for rebar on the Swedish market. Swedish Construction Sales AB is working to introduce the product and the study aims to help Swedish Construction Sales AB develop an effective sales process to spread this innovation. Many companies face similar challenges, often due to a lack of sales experience. This research has focused on the application of diffusion of innovation theory in a sales process to see how it can help spread innovative products. To answer this question, one experiment with two parts was conducted and then analyzed and compared with each other. It turned out that offering the customer the opportunity to test the product, highlighting its benefits in a clear way, and demonstrating that the product is compatible in the customer's area of use and that it is not complex to use increases the commitment to the product. However, more research is needed to see if the increased response actually leads to increased sales over time. The researchers' study illustrates how theories can be applied practically to improve the sales process, contributing to a deeper understanding of how diffusion of innovation theories can be used to promote commercial success in spreading innovative products to new markets. / Denna studie grundas i Partner X:s utmaningar med att lansera en innovativ ersättning till armeringsjärn på den svenska marknaden. Swedish Construction Sales AB arbetar för att introducera produkten och studien syftar till att hjälpa Swedish Construction Sales AB utveckla en effektiv försäljningsprocess för att sprida denna innovation. Många företag står inför liknande utmaningar, ofta på grund av brist på försäljningserfarenhet. Denna forskning har fokuserat på tillämpningen av diffusion of innovation teori i en försäljningsprocess för att se om det kan hjälpa till att sprida innovativa produkter. För att få svar på denna fråga blev ett experiment genomfört med två delar som därefter analyserades och jämfördes med varandra. Det visade sig att genom att erbjuda kunden möjligheten att testa produkten, lyfta upp dess fördelar på ett tydligt sätt, visa att produkten är kompatibel i kundens användningsområde  och att den inte är komplex i användningen ökar engagemanget för produkten. Dock behövs det mer forskning för att se om den ökade responsen faktiskt leder till ökad försäljning över tid. Forskarnas studie ger en bra överblick för att se om teorier kan tillämpas praktiskt för att förbättra och underlätta försäljningsprocessen, vilket bidrar till att fördjupa förståelsen av hur teorier om diffusion of innovation kan användas för att främja kommersiell framgång för att sprida innovativa produkter till nya marknader.

Under de senaste fem åren har e-handlare börjat att outsourca sina lager och sin logistik till tredjepartslogistiker. E-handlarna vill kunna skräddarsy en lager och logistiklösning som uppfyller verksamhetens krav tillsammans med bolag som är experter på lager och logistik. Uppgiften är däremot komplicerad på grund av att e-handlare inte alltid vet vilken lösning som är bäst för deras verksamhet och har svårt att specificera vad som är deras behov. Dessutom har e-handlare ofta svårt att lära sig om tredjepartslogistikers roll i verksamheten och dra maximal nytta av samarbetet när tredjepartslogistiker väl har tagit över. E-handlares önskan om skräddarsydda lösningar ställer dock stora krav på tredjepartslogistiker på grund av att de måste anpassa sina verksamheter till många unika kunder, vilket kräver mycket kunskap och resurser. Uppgiften kompliceras ytterligare på grund av att tredjepartslogistiker, som är vana vid industrikunder, är osäkra på vad e-handelsföretag egentligen värdesätter och hur de skall arbeta värdeskapande från den initiala kontakten tills dess att någon part väljer att avsluta samarbetet. I dagsläget ställs det således stora krav på tredjepartslogistiker som arbetar mot e-handlare och författarna har därför valt att undersöka processen. Mer specifikt handlar examensarbetets syfte om att besvara med vilka aktiviteter som tredjepartslogistiker kan öka e-handelsföretagens upplevda värde, i försäljningsprocessens olika faser.   För att besvara syftet används först och främst teori kring värde, värdeskapande och försäljningsprocesser, vilket ligger till grund för en analysmodell och examensarbetets huvudstudie. Genom att konstruera en workshop där e-handlare får placera ut kort som representerar fördelar i en försäljningsprocess med fem faser, får författarna underlag för att kunna sluta sig till vilka fördelar e-handlare anser vara värdeskapande i de olika faserna. Varje fas analyseras sedan var för sig för att matcha fördelarna till aktiviteter hämtade från teorin om försäljningsprocesser. Genom att justera aktiviteterna med hänsyn till underlaget från huvudstudien resulterar varje analys i aktiviteter som en tredjepartslogistiker kan utföra för att öka e-handelskundernas upplevda värde. Analyserna har resulterat i ett ramverk av aktiviteter som strukturerar upp hur tredjepartslogistiker bör fokusera sina resurser och strukturera sina aktiviteter i försäljningsprocessens faser. Tillsammans med författarnas rekommendationer ger ramverket en struktur för hur tredjepartslogistiker bör arbeta om de vill öka e-handelskunders upplevda värde. / During the past five year online retailers have started to outsource their warehouse and logistics to third-party logistic providers. Online retailers’ reason for outsourcing are the possibility to develop a tailored solution, with regards to their businesses’ needs, as well as doing it together with a partner whom is an expert on warehouse management and logistics. However, outsourcing is a problematic and major decision for online retailers to make. Especially since they do not necessarily know how to specify their needs and select the best possible solution for their businesses. Additionally, online retailers find it challenging to incorporate third-party logistic providers and use their abilities and expertise optimally. Online retailers’ demand for tailored solutions stresses third-party logistic providers’ operations since they have to adapt their offering to multiple customers, which requires flexibility, resources, and knowledge. In addition, third-party logistic providers are accustomed to traditional industries. Therefore, they lack understanding of online retailers’ preferences and does not know how to create value in the process from an initial contact to an ongoing relationship.   In summary, there are huge demands on third-party logistic providers that have chosen to focus on online retailers. Therefore, the authors of this thesis have decided to investigate the process. More specifically the purpose of this thesis is to investigate by which activities third-party logistic providers can effectively increase online retailers perceived value in the sales process’ phases.   In order to achieve the purpose of this thesis the authors have applied theory of value, value-creation, and sales processes to design a model of analysis and develop the main study. With respect to the model of analysis a workshop was used, where online retailers got to place cards (representing benefits) in a sales process with five phases (representing the relation between online retailers and third-party logistic providers) to give the authors a basis for analysis. The online retailers had to select if they perceived a benefit to be of importance during different phases. Thereafter, each phase was analysed to pair benefits with activities that was found in theory about sales processes. By adjusting each activity with respect to data from the main study, each analysis resulted in activities that can be performed by third-party logistic providers in order to increase online retailers perceived value. Conclusions from the assays were then used to build a framework, structuring how third-party logistic providers should focus its resources and organize its activities in the phases of the sales process. Along with the authors’ recommendations the framework provides a structure for third-party logistics providers to be used in order to increase online retailers perceived value.