Continuous techno-training and business-to-business salesperson success: How boosting techno-efficacy enhances sales effort and performance

• Published in: Journal of business research 2021-09, Vol.133, p.66-78
• Main Authors: Rayburn, Steven W., Badrinarayanan, Vishag, Anderson, Sidney T., Gupta, Aditya
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Business schools; Business-to-business market; Sales effort; Sales performance; Sales personnel; Sales technology; Sales-efficacy; Selling; Techno-efficacy; Techno-training; Training
• ISSN: 0148-2963; 1873-7978
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2021.04.066

Changes in technological and sales environments necessitate organizations to constantly invest in equipping salespeople with newer technological knowledge and tools. However, the success of investments in technological transformation hinges on salespeople’s beliefs regarding technology, in general, and their recognition that enhancement of technological skills results in better sales outcomes. This study develops and tests a framework that illustrates how continuous techno-training can serve as an important resource for influencing critical technology-related and sales-related outcomes. Specifically, drawing from job demands-resources theory and research on technology training in the sales context, we demonstrate that continuous techno-training can help in developing techno-efficacy directly as well as indirectly through fostering techno-expectancy and suppressing techno-stress. In turn, we show that techno-efficacy is positively related to sales-efficacy, which enhances both sales effort and sales performance. Based on our findings, we offer several meaningful implications to sales research and practice.