Purpose The purpose of this study is to provide a contextualized understanding how business-to-business (B2B) firms use the sales development function for efficient and effective lead funnel management. Design/methodology/approach authors adopted qualitative field-study approach interviewed 13 people from eight firms. While software as service (SaaS) are most prevalent application context funct...

Autonomous „word of mouth‟, as a channel of social influence that is out of firms‟ direct control, has acquired particular importance with the development of the Internet. Depending on whether a given product or service is a good or a bad deal, this can significantly contribute to commercial success or failure. Yet the existing dynamic models of sales in marketing still assume that the influenc...

This paper investigates a capacity planning strategy that collects commitments to purchase before the capacity decision and uses the acquired advance sales information to decide on the capacity. In particular, we study a profit-maximization model in which a manufacturer collects advance sales information periodically prior to the regular sales season for a capacity decision. Customer demand is ...

Many markets have historically been dominated by a small number of best-selling products. The Pareto Principle, also known as the 80/20 rule, describes this common pattern of sales concentration. However, information technology in general and Internet markets in particular have the potential to substantially increase the collective share of niche products, thereby creating a longer tail in the ...

This essay elaborates on the usefulness of embracing complexity theory, modeling outcomes rather than directionality, and modeling complex rather than simple outcomes in strategic management. Complexity theory includes the tenet that most antecedent conditions are neither sufficient nor necessary for the occurrence of a specific outcome. Identifying a firm by individual antecedents (i.e., non-i...

This paper presents a iheory of multi-period salesforce compensation in which a firm experiences a production learning effect. Firm management uses the salesforce compensation plan to promote current period svles (and production) in order to lower future period production costs. The iirm management (principal)-salespcrron (agent) relationship is modeled as an agency relationship. The model is a...

Amid growing competition, retailers are increasingly interested in more effective aisle and display management strategies. These strategies involve placements of product categories in aisles and displays within each store to facilitate greater sales affinity (demand attraction) between categories to improve the store’s share of customer wallet. The authors investigate the effects of aisle and d...

Dr. Jörg Lübcke has been the managing director of Burda Digital GmbH since 2010. The business area Digital of Hubert Burda Media combines the strategic Internet activities of the Group. It includes e-commerce companies andmarketing platforms, as well as companies in direct marketing, customer management, referral platforms as well as social media and corporate venture investments. The share of ...