UPS Chapter 6

Individual Assignment

Chapter 6

Business Markets and Business Buyer Behavior

Business Markets and Business Buyer Behavior

1. Read the opening vignette to the chapter. Think about the answers to the following questions:

a.       How well does UPS cover the business market in both the United States and around the world?

b.      Why would a small company choose UPS over another delivery service? Why would a large corporation choose UPS?

c.       How does UPS use systems selling to win the marketplace?

Share your findings with the class.

Think-Pair-Share

1. Consider the following questions, formulate an answer, pair with the student on your right, share your thoughts with one another, and respond to questions from the instructor.
1. What are the primary differences between the consumer market and the business market?
2. List four primary characteristics of the business market.
3. What are the similarities and differences between the business model of buyer behavior and the consumer buying model? Be specific.
4. What are the differences between the straight rebuy, the modified rebuy, and the new task buy?
5. What is systems buying?
6. What is the key to supplier selection?
7. What are the advantages to business buying on the Internet?
8. Why is the government market an important one?

Outside Example

Thomas Register has long been the industrial buyer’s bible. Its familiar green books lined the shelves of purchasing departments for decades. With the advent of the Internet, like virtually every other business, Thomas Register went online. Their Web site, found at http://www.thomasregister.com/, provides a comprehensive listing of companies in the United States and Canada. You can use the information online for free, or buy CDs, DVDs, and even the familiar green books if you are so inclined.

Visit the Thomas Register Web site to learn about the service and what it offers business buyers. Register for the service—it’s free, and they don’t spam you. Then answer the questions below:

1. One of the characteristics of business markets is that the purchases tend to be large. If a consumer needs a screw, he or she might go to Home Depot or Lowe’s to buy a package of screws. If you are the buyer for Home Depot, you need to have virtually any kind of screw the consumer will come in to buy. How might that buyer use Thomas Register to buy the assortment of screws they need to stock?
2. Business buying decisions can also be very complex. How has Thomas Register enabled the business buyer to ease that complexity?
3. What type(s) of business situation(s) would Thomas Register be best for? Explain your answer.
4. Thomas Register obviously can help the business buying process in terms of supplier search. Are there other stages of the process in which it can help? Be specific.