Stories and metaphors in retail selling

Emerald - Tập 46 Số 6 - Trang 545-559 - 2018
David A. Gilliam1, Casey Rockwell1
1Department of Marketing, University of Arkansas at Little Rock, Little Rock, Arkansas, USA

Tóm tắt

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to propose future directions for research into stories and metaphors as concise communication tools that are particularly salient for the fast pace of today’s retail sales environment.Design/methodology/approachA cross disciplinary approach is taken to propose new avenues for sales communication research.FindingsThis work highlights research possibilities into the contextually sensitive constructs of stories and metaphors with associated theoretical approaches. This could improve research into stories and metaphors as communication techniques for retail selling.Research limitations/implicationsThe findings indicate that stories and metaphors are highly engaging sensemaking tools that salespeople can use in retail sales encounters. The lack of existing literature within the sales domain suggests a significant learning curve in demarcating the use of these tools.Practical implicationsStories and metaphors are presently used by salespeople but without the benefit of extensive scientific understanding. This paper builds a foundation for research that could bring clarity to the use of these tools in retail selling.Originality/valueResearchers will benefit from a finer grained conceptualization with which to examine sales communication. The proposed research should get sales practitioners a clearer understanding of using stories and metaphors in sales encounters.

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Emerald

Tập 46 Số 6

545-559

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