This article may contain improper use of
non-free material. (March 2020) |
A buying center, also called decision-making unit (DMU), [1] brings together "all those members of an organization who become involved in the buying process for a particular product or service". [2]
The concept of a DMU was developed in 1967 by Robinson, Farris and Wind (1967). [3] A DMU consists of all the people of an organization who are involved in the buying decision. [4] The decision to purchase involves those with purchasing and financial expertise; those with technical expertise and of course the top-management. McDonald, Rogers and Woodburn (2000) state that identifying and influencing all the people involved in the buying decision is a prerequisite in the process of sales. [4]
The concept of a buying center (as a focus of business-to-business marketing, and as a core factor in creating customer value and influence in organisational efficiency and effectiveness) formulates the understanding of purchasing decision-making in complex environments.
Some of the key factors influencing a buying center or DMU's activities include:
In some cases the buying center is an informal ad hoc group, but in other cases, it is a formally sanctioned group with a specific mandate. American research undertaken by McWilliams in 1992 found out that the mean size of a buying center mainly consisted of four people. [8] The range in this research was between three and five people. The type of purchase that has to be done and the stage of the buying process influence the size. More recent research found that the structure, including the size, of buying centers depends on the organizational structure, with centralization and formalization driving the development of large buying centers. [9]
When the DMU wants to purchase a certain product or service the following steps are taken inside the buying center:
In this process of making decisions different roles can be given to certain members of the center of the unit depending on the importance of the part of the organization.
Robinson et al.'s "Buygrid Framework" saw new task activities, dealing with a problem which has not arisen before, as more complex than the other buy classes, and closer to achieving a general solution applicable in future rebuy activities. [3] Co-author Yoram Wind, looking back at the Buygrid Model 25 years after its publication, held that the model had provided "a very useful framework" whose "underlying dimensions [were] valid", but "its generalizability under a variety of market situations [was] not yet completely understood". [10]
This section needs to be updated. The reason given is: This section should cover buying center research (if any) undertaken since 1986, which may have addressed these issues.(September 2023) |
There are several issues concerning buying centers which in 1986 were thought to need additional research. [11] These issues can be divided into:
Distinguishing the buying center from its environment, also defining and delimiting the activities of a particular buying center.
Understanding how organizational structure may differ from or may shape the structure of the buying center and examining how a particular buying strategy may serve to mediate the effects of environmental uncertainty on the structure of the buying center.
Power and conflict issues within the buying center.
One stream of research focuses on the number of decision phases and their timing and the other emphasizes the type of decision-making model (or choice routine) utilized.
The informal interactions that emerge during the buying process.
The buying center is sometimes referred to as the decision making unit (DMU) or buying group. The buying center or decision making unit is a useful tool which answers the question—Who are involved in buying decision in an industrial organization? It is defined as a body of all the individuals or groups participating in the buying decision process and who have interdependent objectives and share common risks.
This article may contain improper use of
non-free material. (March 2020) |
A buying center, also called decision-making unit (DMU), [1] brings together "all those members of an organization who become involved in the buying process for a particular product or service". [2]
The concept of a DMU was developed in 1967 by Robinson, Farris and Wind (1967). [3] A DMU consists of all the people of an organization who are involved in the buying decision. [4] The decision to purchase involves those with purchasing and financial expertise; those with technical expertise and of course the top-management. McDonald, Rogers and Woodburn (2000) state that identifying and influencing all the people involved in the buying decision is a prerequisite in the process of sales. [4]
The concept of a buying center (as a focus of business-to-business marketing, and as a core factor in creating customer value and influence in organisational efficiency and effectiveness) formulates the understanding of purchasing decision-making in complex environments.
Some of the key factors influencing a buying center or DMU's activities include:
In some cases the buying center is an informal ad hoc group, but in other cases, it is a formally sanctioned group with a specific mandate. American research undertaken by McWilliams in 1992 found out that the mean size of a buying center mainly consisted of four people. [8] The range in this research was between three and five people. The type of purchase that has to be done and the stage of the buying process influence the size. More recent research found that the structure, including the size, of buying centers depends on the organizational structure, with centralization and formalization driving the development of large buying centers. [9]
When the DMU wants to purchase a certain product or service the following steps are taken inside the buying center:
In this process of making decisions different roles can be given to certain members of the center of the unit depending on the importance of the part of the organization.
Robinson et al.'s "Buygrid Framework" saw new task activities, dealing with a problem which has not arisen before, as more complex than the other buy classes, and closer to achieving a general solution applicable in future rebuy activities. [3] Co-author Yoram Wind, looking back at the Buygrid Model 25 years after its publication, held that the model had provided "a very useful framework" whose "underlying dimensions [were] valid", but "its generalizability under a variety of market situations [was] not yet completely understood". [10]
This section needs to be updated. The reason given is: This section should cover buying center research (if any) undertaken since 1986, which may have addressed these issues.(September 2023) |
There are several issues concerning buying centers which in 1986 were thought to need additional research. [11] These issues can be divided into:
Distinguishing the buying center from its environment, also defining and delimiting the activities of a particular buying center.
Understanding how organizational structure may differ from or may shape the structure of the buying center and examining how a particular buying strategy may serve to mediate the effects of environmental uncertainty on the structure of the buying center.
Power and conflict issues within the buying center.
One stream of research focuses on the number of decision phases and their timing and the other emphasizes the type of decision-making model (or choice routine) utilized.
The informal interactions that emerge during the buying process.
The buying center is sometimes referred to as the decision making unit (DMU) or buying group. The buying center or decision making unit is a useful tool which answers the question—Who are involved in buying decision in an industrial organization? It is defined as a body of all the individuals or groups participating in the buying decision process and who have interdependent objectives and share common risks.