Contributors

Part of an effective sales approach is to build trust with buyers; however, research suggests 70% of B2B salespeople overestimate customers’ trust in them. Our research aimed to evaluate the effects of salesperson trust overestimation on customer account revenue and word of mouth or the likelihood and quality of referrals.

Consumers often believe that salespeople do not have consumers' best interests in mind and, thus, dread the idea of engaging in negotiations with a salesperson. In our research, we focus on the interpersonal relationship between the consumer and the salesperson and examine whether a favor request from a salesperson to the consumer will encourage engagement and the idea of negotiation.

Nearly all business exchanges are built around the practice of reciprocity—or exchanging things with others for mutual benefit—which paves the way for feelings of gratitude and indebtedness. This study specifically focuses on how the salesperson's feelings of gratitude and indebtedness impact seller-buyer relationship quality, relationship satisfaction, and customer word of mouth.

As market turbulence increases, strain occurs that impacts the customer-salesperson relationship. We examine how a strong foundation of both business and personal trust between the buyer and the seller is essential to building a relationship that can withstand unstable times.

Relationships are multidimensional and have external social factors acting on them to make them stronger or break them down. Therefore, it is imperative, especially in buyer-seller relationships, to utilize both similarities and differences between individuals to strengthen the relationship.

Gratitude has immense value to firms and is linked to increases in share of wallet, sales revenue, sales growth, and customer commitment. Our research shows how sales professionals can improve their relational outcomes with customers by fostering more grateful customers through their own expressions of gratitude.