Business Commons^™

Sales Buy-In Of Marketing Strategies: Exploration Of Its Nuances, Antecedents, And Contextual Conditions, Avinash Malshe, Ravipreet S. Sohi

Department of Marketing: Faculty Publications

This study uses a qualitative research design with the Grounded Theory method, to explore the multifaceted nature of sales buy-in, i.e. the sales function’s belief that marketers’ proposed strategy is appropriate and has merit. Based on 49 in-depth interviews with sales and marketing professionals, the findings indicate that obtaining sales buy-in consists of four key components: (a) objectivity and rational persuasion (b) sensitivity and responsiveness to reality (c) involvement in strategy creation, and (d) positioning for success. The findings also show that three organizational-level factors play an important role in determining sales buy-in: (1) eliminating interfunctional walls, (2) bridging the …