Strategic Marketing: Planning and Control, Third Edition

78 Strategic Marketing: Planning and Control

Task Influences (related directly Non-task influences (extends

to the buying problem) beyond the buying problem)

Individual influences Goal of obtaining best price Beliefs, values and needs

of the individual

Interpersonal influences Group dynamics during meetings to Informal off-the-job social interactions

agree specifications

Organisational influences Company policies restricting supplier choice Criteria used for personnel evaluation

Environmental influences Potential changes in prices Economic and political climate in

an election year

Figure 4.19
Examples of task and non-task influences on organisational buying decisions (Source:
Adapted from Webster and Wind, 1972)

Expectations of the members of the DMU

Every individual in the DMU will have their own attitudes and particular

background that shapes the way in which they judge a supplier. An engin-

eer will use different criteria to an accountant. Individuals expectations

will be determined by their educational background, their job or task

orientation and their lifestyle in general.

Individuals will also be influenced by information from a range of

sources. When the purchase being considered contains a high level of risk

to the organisation it is likely that a rigorous process will be undertaken to

identify as many sources of information as possible. This information

search is likely to be undertaken by the professional buyers and can lead

them to play an important gate keeping role by choosing what informa-

tion is passed on to other members of the DMU.

The information provided, as with any communication, will be subject

to perceptual distortion by the individuals in the DMU. Individual’s

expectations will also be influenced by their previous experience of the

product or service.

The factors influencing the buying process

The Sheth model outlines two sets of factors that will determine the par-

ticular buying process for a specific product or service. The first set of fac-

tors relate to the product itself:

● Perceived risk: If the purchase is high risk then a detail search for infor-

mation will take place drawing more individuals into the DMU. This

could occur if the purchase was a major capital expenditure.