The main participants of Rising Action can be identified clearly, indicating a well-organized management chain. First up is CEO Anna Gutierrez, followed by Senior Product and Operations Manager Dawn Chiles. Considering the company’s specifics, purchasing manager Matt Simon and store coordination manager Dan Levy are also important figures. When discussing trade relations, these key figures are the main ones for Joe’s business. These key figures will help in the further transaction, and the very presence of normally delegated personnel speaks well of Rising Action.
The first thing Joe should do is contact Chiles, who is responsible for dealing with suppliers and reorganizing the leading supply chains. Further details should be discussed with Dan Levay and Matt Simon, given the specifics of the work of Rising Action. These participants will be interested in the benefits of acquiring Joe’s product, the price, the integration of supply into their chains, and the quality of the product.
A relationship approach to selling is a method that prioritizes connecting with customers and potential buyers to close deals. This is the ideal for coordinating the sale of Joe’s product for Rising Action. This comes from the fact that both companies are small in their field because the interaction is not at the level of offices but the managers’ personalities. Instead of just using price and other details to sell a product or service, a salesperson focuses on interacting with their customers. A partner company is more likely to build loyalty to a product or service when the supplier establishes a personal relationship with them (Steward et al., 2019). This familiarity helps retain regular customers and acquire new ones because they feel the company is a supplier.
The first step is problem recognition, in which Joe establishes the required demand from the buyer. Next, Joe learned about the company’s main activities and management personnel. After that, possible prospects for selling flour to bakeries were found. The decision was made to interact and sell the product to the buyer, although Joe is unsure of meeting the demand. In the end, the product was purchased on compromise terms that satisfied both parties. In the future, we can see the potential development of relations between the two partners, taking into account changes in demand in the bread market.
Reference
Steward, M. D., Narus, J. A., Roehm, M. L., & Ritz, W. (2019). From transactions to journeys and beyond: The evolution of B2B buying process modeling. Industrial Marketing Management, 83, 288–300.