International business-to-business selling and the COVID-19 pandemic: The changing role of personal selling

The objective of this paper is to analyze how international business-to-business selling was conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020-21 when lockdowns and travel restrictions hindered sales executives to visit their customers in foreign markets. In our exploratory research we focus on the role of personal selling in the sales model for capital goods and complex solutions before, during and after the pandemic. Semi-structured interviews were conducted online with global sales and marketing managers of 21 Austrian “hidden champions” and world market leaders in the summer of 2021. The findings show that a sales model with a diminished role of personal selling as it happened during the pandemic is not sustainable. In complex sales projects with high investment stakes the building of trust and a functioning relationship between the involved key persons in the selling and buying centers is crucial for the conclusion of a contract. The study stimulates future research on the effectiveness of the evolving hybrid sales model that combines personal selling with digital methods.