Activity
▪ Introduction: Most people know GE for its consumer products, ranging from light bulbs to
appliances. But GE also engages in business–to-business (B2B) marketing. For example, GE sells jet
engines to Boeing and lighting systems to museums. One very successful GE division is GE
Healthcare, which sells a wide variety of products and services to hospitals and other health care
providers. GE is known for innovation, and GE Healthcare is no exception to this. As the following
video illustrates, GE Healthcare has very successfully innovated in its B2B marketing efforts.
▪ Concept Review: Business-to–business (B2B) marketing refers to the process of buying and selling
goods or services to be used in the production of other goods and services, for consumption by the
buying organization, and/or resale by wholesalers and retailers. B2B markets include manufacturers
and service providers, institutions, resellers, and governments. The B2B buying process is typically
more formalized and structured than the B2C process. In large organizations, several people are
usually involved in purchase decisions. These stakeholders can fill six roles in the buying center:
initiator, influencer, decider, buyer, user, and gatekeeper. The organizational culture can also affect
how the buying decision is made. Finally, technology is affecting the B2B marketing and B2B
relationships as social media, blogs, and other methods are changing the way buyers and sellers
interact.
▪ Video: The video is presented to the student below the introductory information. The video plays
embedded on the page, after which questions are presented.
Follow-Up Activities
Suppose that a small company that provides secretarial services to other small businesses needs to buy
or lease a copier. In small groups, have the students identify individuals in the company who would
probably fill various roles in the buying center for that decision.
Staples: The Big Box Retailer That’s Really a B2B Powerhouse
▪ Activity Type: Case Analysis
▪ Learning Objectives: 07-01, 07-02, 07-03, 07-04, 07-05
▪ Difficulty: Medium
▪ Activity Summary: Students read a case discussing the importance of B2B marketing at Staples,
and then answer questions applying chapter concepts to the case.
Activity
▪ Introduction: Most of us think of Staples as a retail chain selling office supplies to consumers;
however, as the case explains, the company also caters to business customers. This activity is
important because so much of the marketing activity in the business would take place in a B2B
context.
Follow-up Activity
Visit the Staples Advantage website (http://www.staplesadvantage.com/) and learn more about the
programs Staples offers for its business customers.