Источник: b2bresearch (http://b2bresearch.ru/)
Industrial marketing is the marketing of goods and services from one business to another. The word "industrial" has connotations of heavy machinery, mining, construction etc. but "industrial marketing" is not confined to these types of business activities. Broadly (and inadequatly) marketing could be split into consumer marketing (B2C "Business to Consumer") and industrial marketing (B2B "Business to Business").
Typical examples of a B2B selling process are
1) An organization is seeking to build a new warehouse building. After carefully documenting their requirements, it obtains three proposals from suitable construction firms and after a long process of evaluation and negotiation it places an order with the organization that it believes has offered the best value for money.
2) An organization has significant need for legal services and obtains submissions from two law firms. Analysis of the proposals and subsequent discussions determines that there is no price advantage to placing all of the work with one firm and the decision is made to split the work between the two firms based on an evaluation of each firm's capabilities.
3) A sales representative makes an appointment with a small organization that employs 22 people. He demonstrates a photocopier/fax/printer to the office administrator. After discussing the proposal with the business owner it is decided to sign a contract to obtain the machine on a fully maintained rental and consumables basis with an upgrade after 2 years.
The main features of the B2B selling process are
1) Marketing is one-to-one in nature. It is relatively easy for the seller to identify a prospective customer and to build a face-to-face relationship.
2) High value considered purchase.
3) Purchase decision is typically made by a group of people ("buying team") not one person.
4) Often the buying/selling process is complex and includes many stages (for example; request for expression of interest, request for tender, selection process, awarding of tender, contract negotiations, and signing of final contract).
5) Selling activities involve long processes of prospecting, qualifying, wooing, making representations, preparing tenders, developing strategies and contract negotiations.
Industrial marketing often involves competitive tendering (see tender, tendering). This is a process where a purchasing organisation undertakes to procure goods and services from suitable suppliers. Due to the high value of some purchases (for example buying a new computer system, manufacturing machinery, or outsourcing a maintenance contract) and the complexity of such purchases, the purchasing organisation will seek to obtain a number of bids from competing suppliers and choose the best offering. An entire profession (strategic procurement) that includes tertiary training and qualifications has been built around the process of making important purchases. The key requirement in any competitive tender is to ensure that
1) The business case for the purchase has been completed and approved.
2) The purchasing organisation's objectives for the purchase are clearly defined.
3) The procurement process is agreed upon and it conforms with fiscal guidelines and organisational policies.
4) The selection criteria have been established.
5) A budget has been estimated and the financial resources are available.
6) A buying team (or committee) has been assembled.
7) A specification has been written.
8) A preliminary scan of the market place has determined that enough potential suppliers are available to make the process viable (this can sometimes be achieved using an expression of interest process).
It has been clearly established that a competitive tendering process is the best method for meeting the objectives of this purchasing project. If (for example) it was known that there was only one organisation capable of supplying; best to get on with talking to them and negotiating a contract.
Because of the significant value of many purchases, issues of probity arise. Organisations seek to ensure that awarding a contract is based on "best fit" to the agreed criteria, and not bribery, corruption, or incompetence.