Channeling influence: The impact of downstream salesperson solution orientation within a business-to-business channel

Abstract

Upstream manufacturers selling through downstream multi-line dealers are tasked with motivating dealer salespeople to sell their products rather than competitive products. To do so, they often attempt to reduce dealer salespeople's perceived risk by sending personable representatives into the field, showcase the quality of their products, and/or increase dealer salespeople's familiarity with the products; however, these costly and time-consuming tactics may be for naught if downstream dealer salespeople are solution oriented when searching for and proposing products of the highest value to a unique customer. Thus, the extent to which salespeople are solution oriented alters the impact of manufacturers' tactics toward increasing dealer salespeople's effort. The findings of this three-source, multi-level study reveal that dealer salespeople's solution orientation has nuanced effects on the ability of upstream manufacturer tactics to influence their focused effort. More specifically, there is a negative interaction effect between salesperson solution orientation and both liking of a manufacturer field representative and manufacturer product quality on a salesperson's focused effort. However, there is a positive interaction effect between salesperson solution orientation and familiarity with a manufacturer's products on a salesperson's focused effort. In turn, a salesperson's focused effort directly affects both objective and subjective performance measures.