University of Amsterdam
Faculty of Economics and Business MSc Business Studies
Specialization: Marketing
Master thesis by Jessica Kallenberg
ORGANIZATIONAL PURCHASING PROCESS OF DUTCH SMALL- AND MEDIUM SIZED ENTERPRIZES FOR COFFEE MACHINES
THANKWORD
The foundation for this Master thesis lies in a documentary about the Douwe Egberts marketing team at Pinkpop that I watched with my family when I was 14. Iʼm sure that they canʼt recall this documentary, but I still know every detail. This was the first moment I can remember that I was fascinated by the ways of Marketing.
When it was time to start my Master thesis and I decided that I wanted to write it for an organization, I therefore thought about Douwe Egberts straight away. I sent an open sollicitation and a few months later I was lucky to have a marketing department find my motivation and curriculum vitae! With that my internship at DECS was a fact. In the five months that I worked for DECS I have reached exactly what I aimed for: I have experienced a gigantic learning curve and in addition finished my Master thesis!
I would like to thank Ferry Poppegaai, Jan Ronald Waanders and Thijs Ouwerschuur for hiring me as an intern, supporting me with my research and giving me so much responsibilities in my duties as an intern. This was a great way of experiencing the world of marketing and bit by bit transpose my borders. I also would like to thank Vera de Ree with whom I visited clients for my interviews.
My family, Jeroen, Graziella and Natasja, and friends and roommates from the Pauw also deserve a big thanks for supporting me during these 7 years of studies, distracting me with holidays, dining & wining, gossips and a never ending interest in my studies.
A special thanks I would like to give to my father who helped me search online for a Masters study in Business that I could do even with only a Bachelors degree in Psychology. Even though it took me some years to find it out, now I finally dare to admit it: I should have listened to my father in the first place, who told me since I was 14 that he believed that Marketing would fit me best!
Last, but certainly not least, I would like to thank my supervisor Ton Gruijters. Without his help I would propably still be searching for structure in my work! Whenever I needed help or feedback he was able to sit with me and discuss it all straight away and the feedback always put me back on the right track.
With handing in this thesis I have reached the last step of seven years of academic studies and student life and ready for my next adventure!
ABSTRACT
This research is accomplished in partnership with Douwe Egberts Coffee Systems as a Master thesis for the University of Amsterdam. The main topic of the study is the organizational purchasing process. The study uncovers which communication tools are most effective in what stage of the organizational customer journey to attract prospects and to maintain customer satisfaction. A combination of theory, interviews and questionnaires have lead to recommendations.
The increased use of new communication tools, including the Internet and Social Media, and the lack of organizational models that include these tools when describing the customer journey are the main reasons for initiating this research. Knowledge of the most effective communication tools and when and how to implement these may lead to a more effective execution of the marketing strategy.
To optimally research the customer journey of organizational buyers of coffee machines the study was split in two: a qualitative and a quantitative part.
As models that describe the purchasing process did not lead to compelling results, organizational models focussed on highly industrial product categories and it is doubted that a distinction between small business and medium business always needed, interviews (N=4) were abstracted to gain some understanding in the buying process for this specific product category. This lead to a six-staged framework describing the customer journey of organizational decision makers for coffee machines: need, information search, evaluation, purchase choice, purchase and loyalty.
As the recommendations are used for a national marketing strategy generalizability of the results was a necessary characteristic for the research results. Therefore, a questionnaire (N=384) was filled in by range of small business and medium business clients of Douwe Egberts.
Amongst the most important findings is the fact that the sales person is one of the most important information sources of the steps of the customer journey. The role of
the Internet is currently still limited to the use of the websites of the coffee brands to find factual information about the coffee brand, brewing systems and dimensions. Social Media are hardly used at all in the purchasing process.
The recommendations for DECS concerned the most important touch points between the potential buyer and the seller: the sales contact person, brochures, the website, business contacts, experience and closely related to experience the after-sales process. These sources of information were recommended to be optimized by focussing more on the attributes service, reliability of the products and testimonials from other businesses.
LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1. Research model of the current study ... 15
Figure 2. An OBB model by Webster and Wind (1972) ... 26
Figure 2. Factors effecting purchasing decision (Rope, 1998) ... 28
Figure 3. Customer journey for SMEs buying professional coffee machines ... 41
Figure 4. Information sources of influence in the steps of the customer journey of SMEs for professional coffee machines ... 45
Figure 5. Overview of the customer journey for SMEs including the search factors and the information sources in the various stages of purchasing a professional coffee machine ... 54
Figure 6. Knowledge of professional coffee machines in percentages ... 76
Figure 8. The importancy of factors in the evaluation stage ... 78
Figure 9. The importancy of information sources in the evaluation stage ... 78
Figure 10. The importancy of marketing activities in the evaluation stage. ... 79
Figure 11. Schematic overview of the most important touch points in the customer journey for organizational buyers of a new coffee machine ... 98
Figure 12. Virtual employee of www.kpn.nl ... 100
LIST OF TABLES Table 2. Overview of organizational buying behaviour models from literature ... 27
Table 4. Crosstable of information factors in combination with information sources ... 77
Table 3. Group characteristics divided into SB and MB ... 80
Table 4. Number of respondents in the need awareness stage divided into SB and MB ... 81
Table 5. Number of respondents in the internal search stage divided into SB and MB ... 82
Table 6. Number of respondents in the information search stage divided into SB and MB ... 83
Table 7. Number of respondents that searched for the various factors in the information search divided into SB and MB ... 84
Table 8. Number of respondents in the evaluation stage divided into SB and MB ... 84
Table 9. Rating of importancy of information factors in the evaluation stage divided into SB and MB .... 85
Table 10. Use of information sources by respondents of SMEs for the purchasing of professional coffee machines ... 86
Table 11. Number of respondents that was brand loyal divided into SB and MB ... 86
Table 12. Score of DECS on information factors on a 7-point scale divided into SB and MB ... 87
Table 13. Most important factors that SME respondents search information about in comparison to the factors that DECS scores highest on ... 88
TABLE OF CONTENTS THANKWORD ... 2 ABSTRACT ... 3 LIST OF FIGURES ... 5 LIST OF TABLES ... 5 1. INTRODUCTION ... 9 1.1RESEARCH FRAMEWORK ... 9
1.2MOTIVE FOR THE STUDY ... 11
1.3PURPOSE OF THE STUDY ... 14
1.4RESEARCH MODEL ... 15
1.5METHODOLOGICAL ACCOUNTABILITY ... 17
PART 1: Qualitative study 2. LITERATURE REVIEW: DECISION MAKING PROCESS ... 19
2.1ORGANIZATIONAL DECISION MAKING ... 19
2.1.1DECISION MAKING UNIT ... 20
2.2THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE CUSTOMER JOURNEY ... 22
2.3CUSTOMER VS ORGANIZATIONAL CUSTOMER JOURNEY ... 29
2.4CONCLUSION LITERATURE REVIEW ... 31
3. METHODOLOGY ... 33
3.1RESEARCH STRATEGY ... 33
3.2DATA COLLECTION ... 34
3.3DATA ANALYSIS ... 36
4. RESULTS ... 38
4.1RESPONDENT GROUP CHARACTERISTICS ... 38
4.2CUSTOMER JOURNEY ... 39
4.3INFORMATION SOURCES ... 42
4.4PRODUCT ATTRIBUTES ... 46
5. DISCUSSION ... 51
PART 2: Quantitative study 6. LITERATURE REVIEW ... 57
6.1CHANGING INFORMATION ENVIRONMENT ... 57
6.2CUSTOMER JOURNEY ... 58
6.2.1PROBLEM RECOGNITION ... 58
6.2.2INFORMATION SEARCH ... 59
6.2.3INTERNAL SEARCH ... 59
6.2.3.1ACTIVELY ACQUIRED MEMORY –PRIOR PERSONAL EXPERIENCE ... 60
6.2.3.2ACTIVELY ACQUIRED MEMORY –PREVIOUS EXTERNAL RESEARCH ... 61
6.2.3.3PASSIVELY ACQUIRED MEMORY –PROMOTIONAL DEMONSTRATIONS ... 61
6.2.4 EXTERNAL SEARCH ... 62
6.2.4.1DIRECT INSPECTION ... 63
6.2.4.2DISINTERESTED THIRD PARTIES ... 63
6.2.4.3SELLER-RELATED SOURCES ... 65
6.2.5EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVES AND PURCHASE ... 66
7. METHODOLOGY ... 70
7.1RESEARCH STRATEGY ... 70
7.2DATA COLLECTION ... 71
7.3DATA ANALYSIS ... 72
7.4CONSTRAINTS OF QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH ... 73
8. RESULTS ... 74
8.1RESPONDENT GROUP CHARACTERISTICS ... 74
8.2RQ1:HOW AND WHERE DO DMUS OF SMES ORIENTATE BEFORE PURCHASING A PROFESSIONAL COFFEE MACHINE? ... 75
8.2.1NEED ... 75
8.2.2INTERNAL INFORMATION SEARCH ... 75
8.2.3EXTERNAL INFORMATION SEARCH ... 76
8.2.4EVALUATION ... 77
8.2.5PURCHASE AND LOYALTY ... 79
8.3RQ2:DO SB AND MB RESPONDENTS DIFFER IN THE WAY THEY MOVE THROUGH THE DECISION MAKING PROCESS? ... 80
8.3.1CHARACTERISTICS ... 80
8.3.2RQ2A:DO SB AND MB RESPONDENTS HAVE DIFFERENT MOTIVES TO PURCHASE A (NEW) PROFESSIONAL COFFEE MACHINE? ... 81
8.3.3RQ2B:ARE THERE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN SB AND MB IN THE KNOWLEDGE THEY HAVE OF PROFESSIONAL COFFE MACHINES BEFORE SEARCHING FOR INFORMATION, IN HOW THEY RETRIEVED THIS KNOWLEDGE AND IN HOW THE SUBJECTS THEY HAVE KNOWLEDGE ABOUT? ... 81
8.3.4RQ2C:ARE THERE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN SB AND MB IN THE INFORMATION SEARCH STAGE:DO THEY SEARCH FOR INFORMATION, WHAT FACTORS DO THEY SEARCH INFORMATION ABOUT AND WHERE DO THEY SEARCH FOR THIS INFORMATION? ... 82
8.3.5RQ2D:ARE THERE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN SB AND MB RESPONDENTS IN THE EVALUATION STAGE? ... 84
8.3.6RQ2E:DO SB AND MB RESPONDENTS DIFFER IN THE WAY THEY ARE INFLUENCED BY PROFESSIONAL COFFEE MACHINE ADVERTISING? ... 85
8.3.7RQ2G:ARE THERE DIFFERENCES ON BRAND LOYALTY BETWEEN SB AND MB RESPONDENTS? ... 86
8.4RQ3:HOW DOES DECS FILL THE INFORMATION NEEDS OF SMES ACCORDING TO THE DMUS? ... 86
9. CONCLUSION ... 89
9.1GENERAL PROFILE OF ORGANIZATIONAL BUYERS ... 89
9.2CUSTOMER JOURNEY FOR ORGANIZATIONAL PURCHASES ... 90
9.2.1NEED AWARENESS ... 91 9.2.2INFORMATION SEARCH ... 91 9.2.3EVALUATION ... 92 9.3ADDITIONAL FINDINGS ... 92 10. DISCUSSION ... 94
11. RECOMMENDATIONS ... 97 11. REFERENCES ... 103
LIST OF APPENDICES
APPENDIX A: GLOSSARY ... 109
APPENDIX B: STRUCTURE OF DOUWE EGBERTS ... 110
APPENDIX C: INTERVIEW QUESTIONS ... 111
APPENDIX D: RESPONDENTS AND RESPONSE ... 112
APPENDIX E: QUESTIONNAIRE ... 115
CHAPTER
1
Introduction
The current research is conducted in cooperation with the University of Amsterdam (UvA) and commissioned by Douwe Egberts Coffee Systems (DECS), leader in the Dutch coffee market. The objective of the study is to provide an insight into the organizational purchasing process for coffee machines of small- and medium-sized enterprizes (SMEs). This objective is examined in the specific context of DECS, meaning that the study is mainly practice oriented. The first chapter is an introduction to the research that is conducted. At first, the research framework is decribed in which the organization, Douwe Egberts Coffee Systems, and the main topics of this study are discussed. Secondly, the motive for the study is stated. This is followed by the purpose of the study and the research question. After that, the research model is rendered and explained. Finally, the methods that are used for the research are accounted for.
1.1 Research framework
To understand the motivation for the current study, it is necessary to know the background of the committent of the assignment, Douwe Egberts Coffee Systems (DECS). This paragraph is aimed to provide an insight into the organization, its main objectives and its position in the market.
Douwe Egberts was funded in 1753 as a local store in Joure, the Netherlands. During the years that followed the store expanded and Douwe Egberts grew out to be an international coffee brand. After a cooperation with Consolidated Foods, which later became Sara Lee, and some acquisitions the establishment of Sara Lee / DE was a fact in 1984. DECS is a division of Douwe Egberts Nederland (DEN), which is one of the components of Sara Lee / DE. This research is executed in assignment of DECS.
DECS offers its clients a total solution on the area of coffee, tea and water. After a coffee machine or watersystem is delivered, the clients receive free technical service
1.000 people employed. Even though DECS is part of Sara Lee / DE, the subdivision has her own mission. The mission of DECS is:
ʻFrom a rich coffe- and tea – experience we deliver a continous effort to conquer the hearts of our clients and consumers.ʼ
The central objective of DECS is to enlarge the market share by increasing sales of coffee systems. The strategy that is set up to realize the central objective focusses on (1) an increased sales of Cafitesse machines, (2) an increased sales of cross-selling products, (3) an increased sales of products at important clients, (4) increasing the efficiency and effectiveness of the process.
The DECS division of DEN focusses on the “out-of-home” market, including all the sales except for the retail channels. There are different ways to divide the coffee market. This research focusses on the following subdivisions of DECS:
- Small business (SB); organizations with 5 – 49 employees. - Medium business (MB); organizations with 50 – 249 employees.
This is in line with the definitions set by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) from the European Commission.
The SB subdivision of DECS is taken care for by Douwe Egberts Coffee Care (DCC), which in turn is a subdivision of DECS. Even though DCC reports to the headquarters of DE, DCC practically works as an independent organization.
The total market of DECS, including DCC, consists of 102.599 organizations. In this market DECS has a market share of 49,6%2. The most important competitors of DECS currently are Nestlé and Autobar, which have a market share of respectively 8,9%² and 10,4%².
1
Cafitesse is a liquid coffee solution that Douwe Egberts Coffee Systems offers to its customers. It consists of a liquid coffee concentrate that is brewed under controlled conditions so that no oxygen is mixed with the product. It is preserved frozen.
The research that is conducted in assignment of DECS has the organizational consumer journey as its main topic. The consumer journey is a broad topic that is defined in the theoretical research. In the second part of this study the organizational consumer journey is combined with touch points between the buyer and seller. Apart from the traditional touch points, including print, radio and television, the current research also considers new media, including the Internet and more specific, Social Media.
Summarized, the current study researches the consumer journey in Dutch small- and mediumsized enterprizes in a business-to-business environment to attract prospects by the optimal use of communication tools. After completing the study recommendations are done to DECS.
1.2 Motive for the study
The past years are characterized by changes in the information environment; new ways of information search have appeared. One of the fields that is influenced by this change is marketing. The ways in which prospects can be influenced seem to have moved from the more traditional media towards the new media. Traditional media made place for the Internet, in which customers can search for specific information in a cheap, interactive, efficient way (Peterson & Merino, 2003). The Internet has by now become more important than ever, even being adopted by customers for their mobile phones (Kim, Chan, and Gupta, 2005). One of the current researches that backs this proposition is a 2010 research by AdFIRST, a marketing and communications organization from the Netherlands. The findings suggest the relative importance of the Internet in the purchasing process of Dutch SMEs. According to this research 90 percent of the Dutch SMEs start their information search online3. This finding suggests the importance for marketeers to easibly be found online and provide the potential buyer with the information they are searching for.
One of the most striking changes in the information environment is the increased use of the Internet and subsequently of Social Media. Social media are interpersonal media that can be characterized best as a group of new online media formats, which
share the following attributes: participation, openess, conversation, community, and connectedness (Mayfield, 2007). The most important difference between traditional and new media is the active role of the customer (Pascu, 2008). This bottom-up approach is typical for all Social Media technologies (Kolbitsch & Maurer, 2006). Before the introduction of the Internet only the individuals and organizations with access to media channels were able to reach potential customers. The access to these channels was dependent of their knowledge, production facilities, and infrastructure (Mayfield, 2007). The bottom-up approach of Social Media resulted in content created by the user, contradicting to the top-down approach in which a professional team creates the content.
Taking together the previous two alineas, it becomes clear that new ways of information sharing and searching have appeared. Subsequently, there is a possibility that the ways in which organizational buyers search for information has changed too. However, do organizational buyers indeed use the Internet and in particular forms of Social Media when they search for information?
Whereas much academic research has been done on these changes in business-to-consumer (B2C) business-to-consumer models, business-to-business (B2B) models appear to be dated, lacking both the influence of new information tools and compelling models. Popular researches do not seem to agree. Contradicting the findings of AdFIRST (2010), a more recent research conducted by the Boston Consulting Group for Google Netherlands (2011) provides marketeers with findings that show that the Dutch SMEs are behind on online sales, purchases, and marketing in comparison to other countries such as Great Britain. Even though almost 80 percent of the SMEs have a corporate Web site and companies that do intensively use the Internet grow on avarage 3 percent faster, only relatively few use the Internet to extend their sales and purchase channels. The amount of money that currently fluctuates in the Dutch Internet economy is 24 millard, which is to be expected to grow by 9 percent each year. This would result in an expected percentage 6 to 7 percent of the BBP in 2015, opposing the 4,3 percent that it is now. In addition, popular research states that the use of Social Media in the SMEs is still low4. This is considered to be a result of the
ignorance of SMEs. Interestingly, a research of the U.S. SME market presents a massive use of Social Media in SMEs5.
In addition to the lack of B2B consumer models that take into account the changes in the information environment and contradicting research results, it can also be questioned if a separate B2B model is necessary. Two reasons for this are stated. The first reason is more extensively discussed in chapter X, as it is a part of the literature review. The second reason is more closely related to the DECS market. The research is accomplished as a practical case that focusses on the purchasing process for professional coffee systems. Coffee systems, as is the case with many food products, might make the customers move through the decision making process differently than other electronical devices. Coffee, the product that results from the coffee machine, is an experience good. On average, the Dutch drink 3,2 cups of coffee a day, implying that they are professionals in the tasting field themselves. Most research on organizational purchasing behaviour until now has been done in industries and involved industry capital. A study on the organizational buying behavior of a product that is so closely related to the consumer buying process is new to the academic field.
Finally, there are three factors that stand for the importance of using the information sources in the right and most striking way. At first, organizational markets are internally compact, resulting in the fast movement of word-of-mouth. Secondly, in contrast to consumer markets, organizational markets are limited, meaning that not every lost customer can be replaced easily. Finally, organizational markets are loyal, implying the importance of creating a relationship between buyer and seller (Rope, 1998). These factors emphasize the importance for organizational sellers to target their potential buyers as optimally as possible and the necessity to stay continually informed about new developments before competitors have the chance to reach the potential buyers first.
Summarized, the lack of B2B consumer models that take into account the changes in the information environment, the contradicting research results and the specific
5
aberrant product characteristics made it relevant and interesting for DECS to set up a research on:
1.) Which steps the organizational buyers undertake before making a purchase. 2.) What are the information sources used in the various steps.
3.) What information the organizational buyers search for in the various steps.
This motive for the current study leads to a certain purpose, the goal that this research aims to realize. The following paragraph describes this purpose.
1.3 Purpose of the study
As discussed in the previous paragraph, there are three factors that together lead to an interest for DECS to set up a research. Following the motive for the study, the purpose of the study was accorded on. The purpose describes the goal of the study, that what this study aims to realize.
The purpose of this study is formulated as follows:
To make recommendations to DECS by uncovering which communication tools are most effective in what stage of the customer journey of small- and medium-sized enterprises to attract prospects and maintain customer satisfaction.
This purpose can be defined into the following central questions:
• Which steps do decision making units of small- and medium-sized enterprises undertake before making an actual purchase?
• What are the information sources that are used by the organizational buyers of small-and medium-sized enterprises in each of the steps?
• What information do the organizational buyers of small- and medium-sized enterprises search for in each of the steps?
As was mentioned briefly in the previous paragraph, the SB and MB division of DECS work seperately. It are different departments that develop and implement
strategies. Therefore, it is relevant to look at these two divisions seperately in the current research too.
To realize the above purposes, a research was set up. The form of the research and a description of how the purposes are aimed to be realized are found in the following two paragraphs; the research model and methods.
1.4 Research model
To be certain that the purpose of the study is realized at the completion of the study a research model is developed. This research model follows the grid that was set up by Edelman in 2010. He describes three parts in setting up a strategy based on the customer journey. First, it is essential to understand the consumersʼ decision journey. After that the touch points that are relatively most important need to be determined, just as the best ways in which these can be exploited. Finally, resources should be specified. Subsequently, the upcoming chapters discuss the decision journey, the touch points that are expected to be the priority, and the resources that should be used according to the literature.
Figure 1. Research model of the current study.
To optimally follow this grid, the study is divided into two parts. The first part consists of a literature review followed by a qualitative research. The second part combines a
Introduc)on
• Literature Review • Qualita)ve
Research PART 1
To make recommenda,ons to DECS by uncovering which stages
of the customer journey organiza,onal buyers move through to build the structure for
quan,ta,ve research.
• Literature Review • Quan)ta)ve
Research PART 2
To make recommenda,ons to DECS by uncovering which communica,on tools are most
effec,ve in what stage of the customer journey to aBract prospects and maintain customer
sa,sfac,on.
purchasing model in the academic literature extra research was necessary. The aim of the qualitative research was to control wheter the theory that resulted from the literature was indeed indicative for the purchasing process of SMEs for professional coffee machines. After the theory from the academic literature is subjected to respondents in the B2B coffee market, a quantitative research was conducted to allow for generalizable results for DECS SME customers in specific. This was desired by DECS as the results are used in developing a new marketing campaign by the marketing department. The combination of both researches makes that the final compelling results measure what they should measure an are generalizable.
Chapter 2 discusses the academic literature that currently exists on models of purchasing behaviour. As can be derived from the chapter, no consolidating model on SMEs purchasing behaviour for consumer products has been developed. In addition, the distinction between consumer and organizational purchasing models is still a point of discussion. Thus, chapter 3 forms the basis for a small qualitative research that strives to deepen the knowledge of the SME purchasing process for professional coffee machines. It also provides an insight in the various factors that influence the SMEs during the various stages of their process and in the information they search for and the information sources they use to find it. This information is used as a basis for the quantitative study. The choice for both a qualitative and quantitative study was made, as the research on the customer journey appeared to be inarticulate and lacking important aspects for the current research. Therefore, before the quantitative study could be developed, it was necessary to uncover the behaviour of this specific group. With this information the quantitative study could be developed, which produces a generalizable description of the customer journey for SB versus MB and the gap between the information use by the customer and the DECS information resources. Following the qualitative study, chapter 8 discusses current research on the uncovered steps of the purchasing process of SMEs for professional coffee machines. This chapter elicits expectations on the factors that influence the SMEs in the various stages of their purchasing process. After the quantitative research the results are clarified and interpreted in the discussion, in which is reverted to the theoretical background of this study.
1.5 Methodological accountability
As can be concluded from the research model in paragraph 1.4 the current study makes use of a diverse range of theoretical and practical information sources. The conceptual research in both part 1 and part 2 of the study is conducted by a literature study. Academic articles, academic books and the Internet are used. In the practical research the methods for part 1 and part 2 differed. Part 1 uses interviews, whereas part 2 uses a questionnaire. Due to the lack of relevant academic literature to provide the research with a compelling purchase model, it is hard to respond to the research problem with exclusively quantitative research. By executing a qualitative research prior the the quantitative research a broad exploration can be done first on the process that organizational buyers go through when purchasing a consumer product and on the potential changes in the purchase process. The outcomes of the qualitative research can give more direction to the quantitative research, so that a questionnaire can be developed. The results section also provides an insight into the plan for the quantitative research. The interviews are abstracted from DECS clients and prospects. Based on the findings from the qualitative research a questionnaire can be developed and executed. The advantages of quantitative research are the possibility to execute the research for a large sample in a short amount of time and that they are fully standardized. The results from the quantitative research lead to more specific information regarding the product category that is practically applicable. The questionnaires are filled in by DECS clients.
The combination of theory, practice, qualitative and quantitative research are expected to lead to valid, reliable and generalizable conclusions regarding the customer journey for professional coffee machines in SMEs. The combination of theory, practice, qualitative and quantitative research finally leads to recommendations for DECS.
As the research model indicated this first introducive chapter is now followed by part 1 of the study.
PART 1
Qualitative study
As mentioned in chapter 1.4 the study is divided into two researches. Part 1, that consists of chapter 3 to 6, is the qualitative study. The paragraph on methodological accountability describes the motive for this two split. As there is a lack of a compelling (organizational) buying behaviour model, it is necessary to decide which of the models in the academic literature fits the organizational buying behaviour for professional coffee machines by SMEs best. Therefore, the purpose of part 1 is:
To make recommendations to DECS by uncovering which stages of the customer journey organizational buyers move through to build the structure for quantitative research.
This purpose of part 1 can be defined into the following subquestion:
• Which steps do DMUs of SMEs undertake before making an actual purchase?
Chapter 3 provides a literature review concerning research on the decision making process, followed by the research questions that arised from this literature review. After that chapter 4 discusses the methodology. Chapter 5 and 6 subsequently contain the results and conclusions from the first study.
CHAPTER
2
Literature Review: Decision Making Process
Before a study is developed it is recommended to search in the academic literature to find what other researchers have found in their studies regarding the topic of interest. Even though it is hard to find information on the exact same topic, the B2B purchasing process of coffee machines, a lot of research has been done on the purchasing process per se. In academic literature this is mostly cited as the decision making process or the customer journey. These concepts relate to the steps that the potential buyer undertakes before and after reaching the purchase stage.
This chapter provides an overview of the most important previous researches on the customer journey and their findings. One important distinction that is cited in most academic literature is in consumer and organizational models. Thus, this chapter seperately describes each type of model seperately. The first paragraph focusses on organizational decision making, followed by a second paragraph describing consumer decision making models. The third paragraph discusses the relevance of the distinction between consumer and organizational models.
2.1 Organizational decision making
Organizational decision making with the objective to purchase a product is often referred to as organizational buyer behaviour (OBB). This process towards a purchase decision is defined as “the myriad of activities that take place from the time at which a need arises for a product or service, to the purchase decision and its subsequent evalution” (Wind & Thomas, 1980, p. 242). In its basis OBB is highly comparable to consumer behaviour. Only, it has one enormeous difference: the number of employees involved in the decision process. Whereas in consumer behaviour this number is regularly one - the buyer himself -, organizations are expected to have more than one person involved. The compilation of influencers is called the decision making unit.
2.1.1 Decision making unit
As was mentioned previously, the existence of the decision making unit is the greatest distinguishing factor between organizational and consumer purchasing behaviour. A decision making unit (DMU) is defined as “a subset of the organizational actors […] consisting of five roles: users, influencers, deciders, buyers, and gatekeepers” (Webster & Wind, 1972, p. 17). Another appelation for DMU is buyer center. Whereas Webster and Wind (1972) argue that the DMU is a group of individuals, the purchase decision for an organization can also be made by an individual. This type of organizational decision making is defined as an autonomous decision (Dwyer & Tanner, 2002).
The first ones to acknowledge the existence of a decision making unit were Robinson, Faris and Wind (1967). In contradiction to prior research, such as Weignand (1966), and later research, including Silk and Kalwani, Choffray (1977), Grashof and Thomas (1976) and McMillan (1973), they predicted the importance of conducting multi-participant studies. The number of persons involved in the decision making process is influenced by the degree of centralization of the organization. Centralization stands for the concentration of decision making power in an organization, implying that the more centralized an organization is, the less of the decision making is delegated to others by the managing board (Wally & Baum, 1994). Previous researches argue that small businesses often have a centralized structure (DʼAmboise & Muldowney, 1988). Not only does a fully centralized structure imply the expected presence of an autonomous decision maker, research has also shown its effect on the time span of the decision making process (Wally & Baum, 1994).
Dwyer and Tanner (2002) discuss two motivations for a buyer center to arise; either as a part of the organizationsʼ policy or as a result of the level of risk that is associated with a certain decision. There are different types of risk that can arouse the need of a buyer center:
(1) Financial / Economic: The benefits of the purchase may be humble in comparision to the costs, which leads to a financial loss.
(2) Performance: The risk of performance describes the possibility that the product may not perform as expected, resulting in financial losses.
(3) Social / Ego: Other influencers may not approve with the purchase, leading to a social risk for the purchaser.
These risks can be diminished by a more extensive information search, spreading the potential risk over more decision makers and / or suppliers, or by loyalty to current brands and suppliers (Dwyer & Tanner, 2002). It is therefore expected that if organizational purchasing is done by a one-person decision making unit, the information search is more extensive and / or the organization repurchases the product from the same brand or supplier as they already have.
Following the commencement, the buying center typically consists of three key structural aspects: (1) size, (2) hierarchical level, (3) participation in procurement stages (Osmonbekov, Bello & Gilliland, 2002, p. 155). However, this classification may not always be applicable. The characteristics of a buying center are highly influenced by the structure of the organization and the type of buying situation, meaning if the buy is a new buy, modified rebuy or a straight rebuy (Bonoma, 1981, as in Osmonbekov et al., 2002), just as the type of product that is purchased (Lillien & Wong, 1984, as in Osmonbekov et al., 2002).
As already mentioned, perceived risk can be descreased in three ways. As an autonomous decision a spread of risk over more people involved is not the case, supplier or brand loyalty and a more extensive information search are left to decrease the risk. Thus, autonomous decisions are particularily made in when the customers are brand or supplier loyal and in modified rebuy situations meaning that the buyer has experience with the purchasing process, resulting in a decrease of complexity (Patton et al., 1986). The three types of buying situations are also defined as the buy-class (Robinson et al., 1967). They are characterized as:
- New buy: The request is new to the firm, buying alternatives are unknown, and suppliers are to be considered. Therefore many information is required.
- Modified rebuy: The requests remain the same as in the previous purchase and the buying alternatives are known, but have changed. Therefore additional information is needed.
- Straight rebuy: The requests remain the same as in the previous purchase, the buying alternatives are known, and no new suppliers are to be considered. Therefore only little new information is needed (Robinson et al., 1967). This is also called brand loyalty.
The introduction of new media, such as the Internet, have not left the decision making unit untouched. As Osmonbekov et al. (2002, p. 158) put it, “adoption of e-commerce tools for business procurement alters the structure of buying centers in the following ways: (a) decreases the size of the buying center, (b) decreases the number of hierarchical levels, (c) decreases the number of functional areas, and (d) increases the individual participation of buying center members”. As the expected change in buyer center structure is in the direction of the individual purchasing process, the differences between the two types may become smaller and smaller. Thus, the distinction might not longer be necessary.
As the current study describes a practical case in which the seller lacks information concerning the buyer center structure, an extensive research on the variety in these structures is omitted. However, for the current research it is of interest to check wheter there is a difference in buyer center structure between SB and MB that could be of influence on their decision making process.
2.2 The foundations of the customer journey
The basics for OBB was founded more than fifty years ago by researches of Webster (1965), Robinson, Faris and Wind (1967), Webster and Wind, (1972) and Sheth (1973). Whereas throughout the years many adjustments to the original models have been done, these researches are often still used as a reference.
Webster (1965) was the first one to describe the organizational purchasing process. As many researchers of that time Webster focussed mainly on industrial purchasing. According to his research the industrial purchasing process consisted of four
consecutive stages. The first stage he describes is problem recognition, which is followed by the organizational assignment of buyer responsibility. As can be concluded from the second stage, Webster (1965) assumes decentralization to take place. The last two stages described include search procedures for identifying product offerings and the establishment of selection criteria, and choice procedures for evaluating and selecting from the alternatives offered. Apart from the ʻassignment of responsibilityʼ, ʻselection criteriaʼ, and ʻchoice proceduresʼ, this organizational model does not differ much from the original customer journey for individual customers as developed by Strong in 1925.
One of the most cited models of the B2C customer journey is the AIDA model by Strong (1925). This four-staged model describes the stages a customer moves through with the objective to make a purchase. The stages described are awareness, interest, desire, and action. Later researches have cited, adapted and specified the AIDA model. Barry (1987) was one of the researchers that extended the model with two extra stages, conviction and satisfaction, which resulted in the AICDAS model.
As previously mentioned, the model by Webster (1965) and Strong (1925) describe in its core the same process. It has to be noted though that both models are written from a different perspective. The AIDA model by Strong (1925) is used as a guideline for salespersons, as it contains stages that sales should guide their customers through. However, the model by Webster (1965) is a description of the stages the buyer himself moves through, without sales as a push factor. Nonetheless, both the researches argue the necessity of the buyer knowing that he needs the product, which is followed by an interest in (re)purchasing the product. In the organizational model the interest is expressed by assigning one or more of its employees on resolving the problem. The third stage in both models discusses the gathering of information. Strong (1925) labels this stage as desire, implying that in this stage sales should create a desire for the product by providing information on desirable futures of the product. The conviction stage, that was later added to the ADIA model by Barry (1987), relates to the fourth stage of Webstersʼ model (1965) in which he describes the evaluation and selection of alternatives. Both models conclude with the final purchase.
Following the research of Webster (1965), other researches on industrial buying were conducted (Robinson, Faris & Wind, 1967; Webster & Wind, 1972; Sheth, 1973). Robinson et al. (1967) developed the buy-phase / buy-class model. Even though this classification has been developed many years ago, it is currently still used by researchers (Dwyer & Tanner, 2002). The buygrid framework, the label given to the model, combines eight phases of the purchasing process with three types of purchasing situations, the new buy, modified rebuy and straight rebuy. The eight buy-phases provide an insight into how the purchasing process proceeds: (1) problem recognition and need awareness, (2) product attributes, (3) description of product attributes, (4) search for and qualification of potential suppliers, (5) acquisition and analysis of proposals, (6) evaluation of proposals and selection of suppliers, (7) selection of order routine, and (8) performance feedback and evaluation.
The buy-phases described by Robinson et al. (1967) describe the organizational purchasing process in more detail than the models previously described in this paragraph. The original steps by Webster (1965) and Webster & Wind (1967) are seperated into more individual steps. The most important difference with the two previously described models is the last step, performance feedback and evaluation. Whereas the models by Strong (1925), Webster (1965), and Webster and Wind (1967) conclude with the purchase, Robinson et al. (1967) take the model one step further by evaluation the performance of the product bought. It can be argued of this model is applicable to a wide range of organizational purchasing decisions, as not all purchases might need such an extensive search. The steps followed and the extensity of each of these steps is dependent on type type of purchase (Robinson et al., 1967). Thus, the researchers set up a classification based on the type of purchasing situation too.
As was mentioned in the previous paragraph, the risk of a purchase decision could be diminished by a more extensive search, a spread of the potential risk over more decision makers and / or suppliers, or by brand or supplier loyalty (Dwyer & Tanner, 2002). Thus, brand or supplier loyalty, in the model of Robinson et al. (1967) classified as a straight rebuy, is expected to act according to the autonomous decision maker, also related with company size and time in the process.
The practice of the buygrid framework is widely challenged. “Of all the models of organizational buying behavior that have been developed, the buygrid has been the most enduring” (Haas, 1995). Unfortunately, other researchers such as Ghingold (1986) found that the buygrid framework is not applicable to all types of purchases or might not even be significantly related to OBB (Bellizzi & McVey, 1983).
Webster and Wind (1972) developed a model by distinguishing between four variables: (1) the evironment, (2) the organization, (3) the buying center, and (4) individual participants. The model, including all the variables and possible steps of the industrial decision making process, is shown in figure 2.
Figure 2. An OBB model by Webster and Wind (1972).
The figure shows how the four stages, as described in the previous alinea, eventually lead to industrial buying decisions. Webster and Windʼs stages (1972) describe a hierarchy from influencers on the buying decision, starting at the broad environment and ending at the individual participants influencers. As described in the paragraph on DMUs, Webster and Wind (1972) also acknowledge the existence of an
autonomous decision maker in industrial purchasing. By taking into account influencers of the organizational buying process such as individuals in the organization and familiarity, the researcher acknowledges the fact that not all OBB is as rational as the early models presume (Webster & Wind, 1972; Sheth, 1973). In practice the decision making may be more complex than a structured order of activities due to habitual, intuitive, and experiental behaviour of purchasing managers.
Subsequently, the figure shows that OBB depends on the goals that the organization has set and that OBB is influenced by the organizationʼs financial, technical, and human resources. The research discusses four subsets that interact with eachother and that “define the information, expectations, goals, attitudes, and assumptions used by each of the individual actors in their decision making” (Webster & Wind, 1972, p. 16): tasks, structure, technology and people. Subsequently, the research describes the specific tasks that the decision makers go through before solving the buying problem: (1) identification of need; (2) establisment of specifications; (3) identification of alternatives, (4) evaluation of alternatives, and (5) selection of suppliers.These stages are defined as the decision making process.
The stages in the decision making process for an industrial purchase by Webster and Wind (1972) are closely related to the original model of Webster (1965). Opposed to the original model the establishment of specifications and the identification of alternatives, and the evaluation of alternatives and supplier selection have been seperated into two stages and the assignment of buyer responsibility has been included in the establishment of specifications, resulting in one extra stage.
Table 1. Overview of organizational buying behaviour models from literature.
argues that organizational buying and –marketing is influenced by a variety of factors including (1) the product itself, (2) companies and competitors in the market, (3) the buying organization, and (4) the purchase situation. The attributes that belong to the various categories are included in figure 3.
Product factors: Company and competition factors: - Physical factors of the product - Familiarity
- Image character - Image
- Usability - Market positioning
- Amount of supply
Organizational factors: Occasion factors:
- Business field - Product meaning to organization - Size of organization - Buying situations repetition - Individuals in organization - Geographical factors
- Purchase team - Physical environment
- Roles in purchasing process - Technology - Organizational culture
- Purchase policy
Figure 3. Factors effecting purchasing decision (Rope, 1998).
Many more consumer and organizational models have been developed. However, many of these researches have found contradicting results concerning the various factors that influence the customer in its purchasing process, which makes the generalizability of the conclusions and implications low (Ghingold & Wilson, 1998).
Additionally, organizational marketing has only recently changed its focus from major industrial complexes to other forms of organizations. For this reason research on SMEs, non-western organizations, family organizations, and charities is still in relatively early stages. The result is that organization buyer theories that are developed and used in current research are conducted by research on only large, western, profit-driven organizations (Wilson, 2000).
Another factor that has not been taken into account in past organizational decision making models is the Internet. Web 2.0 features encourage the interaction between its users, resulting in a change of behaviour (Constantinides & Fountain, 2008). The
Internet has opened up opportunities for SMEs, as the limitations of size can be overcome and even the smallest firms can compete more effectively and in larger markets (Dholakia & Kshetri, 2004). Overall, the Internet can be a critical factor in enlarging the business reach and operational efficiency (Porter, 2001).
The combination of the findings of Rope (1998), Wilson (2000) and Dholakia and Kshetri (2004) implies the impossibility to apply research findings of the past on the product category and organizational size that DECS focusses on. In addition, a lot of the research done on OBB has found contradicting results concerning the factors that influence the customer firm in its purchase process, generalizable conclusions, and implications concerning the dynamic nature of the decision making unit (Ghingold & Wilson, 1998). These findings make it hard to build on past research but provide great opportunities for new insightful academic research too (Sheth, 1996). In addition, the increase in resources due to the rise of the applications of the Internet might cause changes in the traditional purchasing process.
2.3 Customer versus organizational customer journey
As this study focusses on SMEs, it is expected that the traditional OBB models that were mostly developed by research on larger industrial purchases are not applicable the current study. Consumer behavior is described by Belch and Belch (2007, p. 105) as ʻthe process and activities people engage in when searching for, selecting, purchasing, using, evaluating, and disposing of products and services so as to satisfy their needs and desiresʼ.
After the AIDA model, which was discussed in the previous paragraph, many other models for consumer decision making have been developed. Whereas in the 1980s many different extensive models were used, in the years following those a more basic variant of the customer journey seems to be receiving most popularity (Mitchell, 1993; Peterson & Merino, 2003). One of the most recent models is the Fish Funnel model by Mooney (2009). The purchase funnel is a theoretical model that describes the customer journey; the process a customer goes through before, during and after making a purchase decision. Purchasing is regularly seen as a process where separate steps, stages and/or phases are identified. The process is considered to
start long before and end long after the actual purchase, and to take place over a longer period of time and consist of multiple touch points (Voss and Zomerdijk, 2007). The Fish Funnel model changed an existing model into a ʻnew ageʼ model, including the influence of the Internet on the information search. The traditional purchase funnel described a great amount of information search during the first few stages of the purchase process, which diminished when the customer moved further throught the funnel. Whereas this model was highly applicable when traditional media were the case, the rise of the Internet has made some changes into the traditional funnel. The internet provides the seller with opportunities to approach its customers in a more personal way, therefore narrowing the starting point of the funnel. After that the customer has many opportunities to search and compare in a low-cost online setting. Also, the internet provides more opportunities for after-sales.
OBB is closely related to CBB but even though researchers distinguish between the two types of decision making and have developed different models for each one of them, other reseachers question if the distinction is justly. As was described previously, neither the consumer nor the organizational buying behavior model suffices on itself. Not only is there insufficient evidence to support the distinction that has been made between OBB and CBB (Fern & Brown, 1984), all companies are also directly or indirectly part of networks which include both organizational buyers and individual consumers (Gummesson & Polese, 2009).
Some researchers believe that a ʻconsumer behavior treatmentʼ of organizational buying behavior serves the industry best. They state that as long that there is no convincing alternative found, we should focus on the similarities instead of the differences between consumer behavior and OBB, and learn from them (Wilson, 2000). The theoretical and practical overlap in B2B and B2C marketing is supported by a lot of researchers (Sheth, 1979; Gummesson & Polese, 2009). Gummesson and Polese (2009) describe this overlap as B2B purchasing behavior starting and ending in B2C/C2B.
It is expected that the process is less complex than that of purchasing large industrial goods. Also, it is expected that the journey is more related to CBB than to OBB, because of the experience of the buyer with the product and the personal interest in
the end result. However, there are still some organizational factors that play a role in the final decision, including the company size and the responsibility of the decision maker (autonomous versus DMU). The basic customer journey and the touch points between customer and seller are discussed in the following chapter.
2.4 Conclusion literature review
Putting a compelling conclusion on this paper that concludes the literature review is not such an easy task as it seems. It can be concluded that there are many models that describe the decision making of organizations and individuals. However, these differ substantially. Organizational models show the involvement of many different attributes on the decision making, whereas consumer models remain less complicated. This might be the result of the product categories described in the organizational models. Large industrial purchases required a large amount of variables that had to be taken into account. However, it can be questioned if a decision making unit is indeed influened by so many factors or if the current organizational purchasing models take a more consumer model form.
Not only do models differ for organizations and individuals, they also differ between one category. An overview of some of the most well-known industrial models as in table 2 shows that a lot of the models have in their basis the same structure. Only some organizational models take into account more steps and variables than others.
Finally, it can be concluded from the literature review that many researches on organizational buying behaviour are dated. None of the researches that have been conducted prior to this research consider the influence of new media on the purchasing process. Also, organizational purchasing is in most researches still considered as industrial purchasing. Unfortunately, these theories can not be copied and applied to the professional coffee market as the product category differs.
To make the uncertainties and unclearnesses that have appeared from the literature review disappear, a research on the target market is necessary. Concluding, a research is necessary to answer the subquestion of the purpose of part 1:
• Which steps do DMUs of SMEs undertake before making an actual purchase?
Even though finding an answer to this subquestion is the main purpose of part 1, questions are also asked regarding the other subquestions of the total study. Questions about the topics product attributes and information sources used are asked to make sure that the interviewees tell the whole story from need awareness to the final purchase and do not accidently leave parts out.
Following this paragraph, the methodology section describes how this research is conducted by explaining the research strategy, data collection and data analysis of this part of the research.
CHAPTER
3
Methodology
As was mentioned in the previous chapter, it is currently still a matter of discussion if CBB and OBB are indeed in need of distinctive models. In addition, coffee machines for the B2B market are closely related to the consumer market, possible making the CBB and OBB models even more intertwined. As the customer journey model is the basis of this research, first individual interviews are conducted to gain an in-depth insight into the steps that organizational buyers of professional coffee machines follow before they actually purchase the product. The central question for the design and execution of the interviews was: “What phases do DECS customers move through when purchasing a new coffee machine?”
The objective of the interviews is to uncover patterns in the SME decision making process of professional coffee machines. The literature review and the activities at DECS provide an input for the plan of the interview. The interview structure, as used in the final interviews, is added in appendix C.
This chapter addresses to the following subjects: the research method, including an explanation of the research type, strategy and procedure, data collection, data analysis, and constraints of quantitative research.
3.1 Research strategy
A lot of the research on B2B marketing is deducted from concepts and models that have been found in B2C marketing. As many researchers find themselves in the discussion if B2B and B2C marketing indeed need a different approach or if they are comparable, it can be assumed that in some cases the B2C marketing concepts and models may, and in other cases may not fit the B2B environment (Gummesson, 2003). Thus a deductive research approach, without any input of the actual B2B environment, can have misleading results (Gummesson, 2003).
In general a distinction can be made between two research strategies: qualitative and quantitative research. Qualitative research strategies strive to give meanings, concepts, characteristics, and descriptions, while quantitative research strategies focus on measuring things. This research has decided on both a qualitative and quantitative research strategy, as the combination provides insight into the research questions best.
Models used in B2B marketing have in many cases been derived from B2C marketing. Subsequently, the researches that have found significant differences between B2B and B2C marketing and that have conducted special B2B concepts and models appear to have different conclusions. Thus there is no compelling model to follow and input from live B2B activity is necessary to prevent the research leading to deceptive results (Gummesson, 2003). This is best assembled by qualitative research. Interviews have many advantages. For example, with an individual interview more time is available for understanding the opinions and experiences of this one person. As the option that all interviewees describe a totally different process can not be excluded by literature, it is most interesting for the current study to the individual processes of the respondents. Advantages of the qualitative research also are that the interviewer has the ability to change the questions conform to the progress of the interview. In addition, the answers of the respondent were not subject to a 1 to 7 scale but substantiated and came from the respondent himself.
3.2 Data collection
For the qualitative research interviews were conducted. The interviews (Appendix C) were semi-structured. The questions were formulated previously to the interview and were similar for every participant. However, the interviewee had the possibility to change the order of the questions, formulate them in a different way, and ask additional questions. Patton (2002) argues that there is no fixed order in which questions have to be proposed in an interview. However, distinguishing between different types of questions can provide more structure to the interviewer and can be helpful for the interviewee when answering the questions. Patton (2002) proposes a sequence that starts the interview by asking questions about current behaviour,
activities, and experiences to make the interviewee feel comfortable. Thus enlarging the likelyhood that the interviewee will answer all questions in a descriptive way.
The objective of the interviews is to collect descriptive answers from which many data can be distracted. Therefore the interview starts of with questions concerning the interviewee, such as their daily activities, and their previous experiences with purchasing coffee machines (Patton, 2002). These questions can be answered by the interviewee without any effort and provide the interviewer with an insertion for more personal questions, questions about the past and the future, and demographic questions. Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill (2009) add two suggestions for the format of the interview: (1) to reduce the tendency of the respondent to answer according to the wishes or social norms of the interviewee, it is of great importance to mention that the answers will remain anonymous previous to the interview, and (2) by introducing the topics of discussion with the interviewee, the respondent is more motivated to answer the questions faithfully.
Following the guidelines of Patton (2002) and Saunders et al. (2009) the research structure was edited to its current format (Appendix C). Following the edited format the interviewees had the possibility to ask for reformulation of unclear questions and to openly anwer to the questions, without being restricted to preformulated answering categories. This made it possible to uncover the most important attributes and information sources in the customer journey for a professional coffee machine of organizational decision makers in SMEs. By asking questions about all the product attributes and used information sources too the chance was highest that the interviewees did not forget any step in the process. As appeared from the literature review on the customer journey, it was found that especially in organizational buying behaviour models an enormous amount of variables were expected to be of influence on the process. Therefore, diminishing this number of attributes from literature is relevant, so only the most important attributes can be included in the questionnaire.
The interviewees were gathered from the Douwe Egberts Coffee Systems customer database. The account managers of small (5 to 49) and medium (50 to 249) businesses were to provide information on which sales employee could help with the data gathering. Interview questions were prompted during and after the sales
conversation. All interviewees were at some stage of the decision making process, as they were actively searching for a new coffee machine. An advantage of conducting the interview with the customer during the decision making process is that the customer is actually undergoing the process and does not have to think about past processes of which parts may be forgotten.
The customers were contacted before the actual sales meeting and approval or an interviewer to come along and ask questions following the sales meeting was asked. In total three customers were interviewed during a sales meeting with their sales contactperson from DECS. Even though in some cases the interviewer asked questions during the sales conversation, most questions were asked when the sales contactperson and the customer had finished their agreements. Two of the interviewees were interviewed at their own office, one interview was on the telephone and one was observed and answered the questions in the Douwe Egberts Experience Center in Utrecht.
The interviews took place in the last two weeks of March 2011. Four customers of DECS were asked to cooperate and they all agreed on the interviews, resulting in a response rate of a 100%. The total time at the offices took on average an hour, of which the interview took thirty minutes. The conversation with the third interviewee – which took place at the Douwe Egberts Experience Center in Utrecht – took fifteen minutes longer, due to the tasting sessions of the different machines and the fact that there were two interviewees as the DMU took a colleague that was known as the coffee-expert of their office.
3.3 Data analysis
With permission of the interviewees the interviews were recorded on a mobile phone. After the interview the questions and answers were typed out in Microsoft Word. This was done straight after each interview. The type of data analysis that was used was the direct content analysis. In this type of analysis the study starts with theory from which codes are defined. The strength of this type of data analysis is that “existing theory can be supported and extended” (Hsieh & Shannon, 2005, p. 1283). For the current qualitative study this is important as the existing literature does not provide a
