THE INFLUENCE OF RELATIONSHIP TIES ON COMMUNICATION APPROACHES AND RELATIONSHIP OUTCOMES IN INTERPERSONAL SELLING : A CHINESE SOCIO-CULTURAL PERSPECTIVE

Abstract

This study seeks to explore the influence of guanxi (relationship ties) on the communication selling approaches used in a Chinese context. The cross-disciplinary perspective is achieved by integrating the literature on anthropology, socio-psychology and communication of the Chinese, together with the Western prognosis of relationship marketing. The current field of communication is predominantly Eurocentric, and Chinese communication scholars have lamented about the inefficacious use of the North American communication models in explaining the Chinese communication process due to the cultural paradigm differences that prevail in individualistic versus collectivist cultures. As such, this study seeks to address the various knowledge gaps by offering a socio-cultural perspective of the different types of communication selling, approaches used in a Chinese context. Data from a field study of 350 Chinese life insurance buyers were used to validate the theoretical framework. Overall, the results highlight the significance of guanxi in influencing the Chinese communication behaviors in a selling context. This is manifested by the agent being the most interaction-oriented, the least task-oriented and providing the most product and self-disclosure to customers of the expressive ties as compared to the other out-group ties (i.e., the mixed, referred and instrumental ties) that are arranged in a descending order of relationship intimacy. However, a reversal in the socio-cultural communication norms is observed for the sales interaction within the treatment within the three out-groups. One interesting finding is that agents seem to take the mixed ties for granted while they expend more efforts in wooing the customers of the referred and instrumental ties. On the other hand, the findings also suggest the need to adopt different communication selling approaches when dealing with Chinese customers of different guanxi. For instance, it is important for an agent to be interaction-oriented in dealing with customers of the expressive tie and the mixed tie. At the aggregate level, the findings suggest that Chinese clients favor an interaction-oriented agent over a task-oriented agent. As observed in the U.S. context, Chinese clients also stress on the importance of the agent's product expertise which is demonstrated in the form of product disclosure, and also the agent's self disclosure in fostering the understanding and the relationship with the agent. The findings of this exploratory study are encouraging and insightful as they empirically demonstrate the idiosyncrasies of communication selling to Chinese of different guanxi. Furthermore, preliminary evidence suggests that some of the communication behaviors that are prevalent in the social context are also exhibited in the interpersonal selling context as well as possible cross-cultural differences that might exist in communication selling behaviors between the Chinese and the American contexts.