Customer relationship management (CRM) experiences of Business-to-Business

(B2B) marketing firms: A qualitative study

The qualitative focus group method was used to investigate the experiences of

business-to-business (B2B) marketing organizations in the Nigerian mobile

telecommunications sector (MTS) in the area of customer relationship management

(CRM). The research was based on the resource-based approach. Companies engaged

in business-to-business transactions in the Nigerian MTS have generated an estimated

5,000 direct and indirect jobs since the sector's liberalization in the year 2000. Currently,

the industry pays to the Nigerian treasury via corporate and employee taxes,

respectively. Nevertheless, due to a lack of commitment on the part of mobile

telecommunications carriers, the service delivery capability of their B2B intermediates

towards both clients and consumers was severely restricted.

This research identifies four elements that have an impact on B2Bs' relationship

management experiences, and these themes serve as a practical foundation for

enhancing business connections between operators and B2Bs in order to provide better

customer and consumer support. If these results are implemented, they will aid in the

reduction of service difficulties experienced by purchasers and users, as well as the

enhancement of users' faith in operators in order to maximize their pleasure.

Specifically, the goal of this research is to look at the customer relationship

management (CRM) experiences of business-to-business (B2B) marketing businesses

and how this experience affects their performance in the Nigerian mobile
telecommunications sector (MTS). The importance of B2B enterprises in supporting

excellent experiences for both producers and ultimate customers, on the other hand,

cannot be overstated. This is evident due to the fact that its origins can be traced back

hundreds of years, when it was established to bridge the supply and purchase gap

between producers and manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers, as well as end

customers.

Following a survey of relevant literature, it was discovered that there is no

universally agreed definition of a B2B organization; rather, scholars have defined B2B

organizations based on their operations and practices. As a result, in the context of

mobile telecommunications, B2B enterprises are defined as channel intermediates that

purchase or distribute goods and services from mobile telecommunications carriers

from the point of production to small buyers (retailers) who in turn buy and sell to

ultimate consumers.

Following the objectives of this study, the significance is to gain an understanding

of the CRM experiences of B2B marketing firms and to identify potential collaborative

customer relationship competencies between B2B marketing firms and their principal

operators, both of which are accomplished through the application of resource-based

theory (RBT). Furthermore, the research aims to contribute to the advancement of CRM

literature by emphasizing the importance of creating pleasant CRM experiences with

B2B intermediates, which is currently lacking.

There are four primary themes that emerge from the research: resource

commitment behavior, product knowledge training programs, customer relations

orientation, and a plan for personalized B2B service delivery. These four keys, in
particular, give answers to study question one, which examines the elements that

influence the CRM experiences of B2B enterprises in the Nigerian market-to-business

sector. Furthermore, a more in-depth examination of each of the major themes reveals

that the nature of the connection between B2B enterprises and their principals was

more focused on product orientation than on client orientation. That's because research

has shown that operators were doing a good job in terms of B2B product knowledge

development and B2B service customization, but were doing a bad job in terms of

resource commitment and client orientation efforts. Answers to study question number

two, which concerns the nature of the connection that exists between main operators

and intermediates, may be derived from this conclusion.

Due to the fact that data from these sources indicated that relationship value had

a good effect on B2B businesses' brand commitment, but our research found that weak

resource commitment had a negative impact on B2B firms' staff capacity development

and productivity. The experiences of B2B marketing organizations in the Nigerian MTS

are mostly attributed to the inadequate deployment of CRM infrastructure by the primary

operators.

Because of this study's results, policy-makers and policy-drivers in the Nigerian

MTS will find it to be of high strategic value in the next years, particularly when the

major themes and suggestions are addressed, albeit the conclusions are not meant to

be generalized. Additionally, it will set the tone for theoretical and operational literature

in terms of expanding the understanding of B2B enterprises' CRM experiences, which

will be beneficial to academics. The suggestions made by this research, on the other

hand, are based on its theme results. As a result, we propose the following: In order to
demonstrate resource commitment, mobile telecommunications companies should

establish strong business/customer partnerships by making resource commitments that

will aid in the development of the human capacity of its B2B counterparts. T

his collaboration will enable staff of B2B marketing companies to provide prompt

customer support, with the goal of minimizing the number of client complaints. In

contrast, a careful study of this proposal about resource commitment will result in

favorable customer orientation behavior from main operators to B2B marketing

organizations. Second, in terms of product knowledge training and development, we

propose that operators build upon their trainings for their B2B marketing businesses by

conducting frequent and comprehensive product and service trainings on existing and

new items in the market.

According to B2B workers interviewed, product knowledge gained via training

was uneven and restricted; nonetheless, it would aid in the development of current B2B

service customization through channel intermediates. The Nigerian MTS is the only one

included in this research, and as a result, the sample size is restricted to ten

participants. Further study on CRM experiences of B2B marketing businesses in other

Nigerian utility industries, using a larger sample size, might serve as a starting point for

future investigations. Moreover, it is critical to investigate the effects of B2B service

customization between B2B marketing businesses and their key partners on B2B

service loyalty via the use of a mixed approach strategy.

Reference:

Wali, A., Uduma, I., Wright, L., & Liu, S. (2016, June 26). Customer Relationship

Management (CRM) Experiences Of Business-to-Business (B2B) Marketing

Firms: A Qualitative Study. Taylor & Francis.

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/23311975.2016.1183555.