Sweden Vs. United States - The difference in sales processes in the ad network industry

Abstract

In this thesis we present the management of the sales process within two different ad networks. An ad network is the middle man between an advertiser and a publisher. Since the companies are located in two different countries, Sweden and the United States, the focus will be on the cultural differences that might exist. The fact that the ad network, in order to connect the advertisers and the publishers, perform sales in two directions; both toward the advertiser as well as the publisher, the sales process plays a very important role. What techniques to use when approaching a client will depend on who the client is, and understanding its culture is a vital factor. Our results will enable an illustration of what the two companies can contribute to, and learn from each other. What culture is can be defined in many ways, and the definition will differ from person to person, and from organisation to organisation. Culture is a combination of how people think, act, value and interpret the environment. When it comes to management, authors have stated that Sweden, in general, have flat organisations and wants to make everybody involved in the decision-making, while the United States, in general, are more hierarchical and that they are more action-oriented when it comes to making decisions. Our research was mainly done through interviews at each company. In the United States the interviews were conducted with the sales division, while in Sweden they were conducted with the project managers, which is the corresponding division. Similarities and dissimilarities were found between the two companies. They both had relatively flat organisations and an ad hoc structure. They had comparable approaching techniques, but they valued them differently. Informal activities were preferred when entertaining clients and long-term relationships is an essential part of the business. The company in the United States is more aggressive than the company in Sweden when it comes to approaching their clients. Our opinion is that they have found suitable techniques for their respective country, but that they still can take inspiration from each other. As a conclusion, the differences were not as big as we did expect, so therefore, in this situation, there was no significant correlation between national culture and managing the sales process.