Towards a contextual understanding of B2B salespeople's selling competencies – An exploratory study among purchasing decision-makers of internationally-oriented technology firms

ABSTRACT Towards a contextual understanding of B2B salespeople’s selling competencies − an exploratory study among purchasing decision-makers of internationally-oriented technology firms The characteristics of modern selling can be classified as follows: customer retention and loyalty targets, database and knowledge management, customer relationship management, marketing activities, problem solving and system selling, and satisfying needs and creating value. For salespeople to be successful in this environment, they need a wide range of competencies. Salespeople’s selling skills are well documented in seller side literature through quantitative methods, but the knowledge, skills and competencies from the buyer’s perspective are under-researched. The existing research on selling competencies should be broadened and updated through a qualitative research perspective due to the dynamic nature and the contextual dependence of selling competencies. The purpose of the study is to increase understanding of the professional salesperson’s selling competencies from the industrial purchasing decision- makers’ viewpoint within the relationship selling context. In this study, competencies are defined as sales-related knowledge and skills. The scope of the study includes goods, materials and services managed by a company’s purchasing function and used by an organization on a daily basis. The abductive approach and ‘systematic combining’ have been applied as a research strategy. In this research, data were generated through semi- structured, person-to-person interviews and open-ended questions. The study was conducted among purchasing decision-makers in the technology industry in Finland. The branches consisted of the electronics and electro-technical industries and the mechanical engineering and metals industries. A total of 30 companies and one purchasing decision-maker from each company were purposively chosen for the sampling. The sample covers different company sizes based on their revenues, their differing structures – varying from public to family companies –that represent domestic and international ownerships. Before analyzing the data, they were organized by the purchasing orientations of the buyers: the buying, procurement or supply management orientation. Thematic analysis was chosen as the analysis method. After analyzing the data, the results were contrasted with the theory. There was a continuous interaction between the empirical data and the theory. Based on the findings, a total of 19 major knowledge and skills were identified from the buyers’ perspective. The specific knowledge and skills from the viewpoint of customers’ prevalent purchasing orientations were divided into two categories, generic and contextual. The generic knowledge and skills apply to all purchasing orientations, and the contextual knowledge and skills depend on customers’ prevalent purchasing orientations. Generic knowledge and skills relate to price setting, negotiation, communication and interaction skills, while contextual ones relate to knowledge brokering, ability to present solutions and relationship skills. Buying-oriented buyers value salespeople who are ‘action oriented experts, however at a bit of an arm’s length’, procurement buyers value salespeople who are ‘experts deeply dedicated to the customer and fostering the relationship’ and supply management buyers value salespeople who are ‘corporate-oriented experts’. In addition, the buyer’s perceptions on knowledge and selling skills differ from the seller’s ones. The buyer side emphasizes managing the subject matter, consisting of the expertise, understanding the customers’ business and needs, creating a customized solution and creating value, reliability and an ability to build long-term relationships, while the seller side emphasizes communica- tion, interaction and salesmanship skills. The study integrates the selling skills of the current three-component model− technical knowledge, salesmanship skills, interpersonal skills− and relationship skills and purchasing orientations, into a selling competency model. The findings deepen and update the content of these knowledges and skills in the B2B setting and create new insights into them from the buyer’s perspective, and thus the study increases contextual understanding of selling competencies. It generates new knowledge of the salesperson’s competencies for the relationship selling and personal selling and sales management literature. It also adds knowledge of the buying orientations to the buying behavior literature. The findings challenge sales management to perceive salespeople’s selling skills both from a contingency and competence perspective. The study has several managerial implications: it increases understanding of what the critical selling knowledge and skills from the buyer’s point of view are, understanding of how salespeople effectively implement the relationship marketing concept, sales management’s knowledge of how to manage the sales process more effectively and efficiently, and the knowledge of how sales management should develop a salesperson’s selling competencies when managing and developing the sales force. Keywords: selling competencies, knowledge, selling skills, relationship skills, purchasing orientations, B2B selling, abductive approach, technology firmsTIIVISTELMÄ Kohti B2B-myyjän myyntikompetenssien tilannekohtaista ymmärrystä − eksploratiivinen tutkimus kansainvälisesti suuntautuneiden teknologiayritysten ostopäätöksentekijöiden keskuudessa Nykyaikaisen myynnin tunnusmerkkejä ovat: asiakaspysyvyys- ja uskollisuus- tavoitteet, tietokannan hallinta ja tiedonhallinta, ongelmanratkaisu- ja järjestel- mämyynti, asiakastarpeiden tyydyttäminen ja arvon luominen. Menestyäkseen tässä ympäristössä myyjät tarvitsevat monipuolisia kompetensseja. Myyjien myyntitaitoja on hyvin dokumentoitu myyjien keskuudessa kvantitatiivisilla menetelmillä tehdyissä tutkimuksissa. Sitä vastoin myyjän tietoja, myynti- taitoja ja -kompetensseja on niukasti tutkittu ostajan näkökulmasta. Myynti- kompetenssien kontekstiriippuvaisuuden ja dynaamisen luonteen takia niiden ymmärrystä tulee laajentaa ja päivittää laadullisella tutkimusotteella. Tutkimuksen tarkoitus on lisätä asiantuntijamyyjien myyntikompetenssien ymmärrystä teollisuuden ostopäätöksentekijöiden näkökulmasta suhdemyyn- nin kontekstissa. Tässä tutkimuksessa kompetenssit koostuvat myyjän tiedois- ta ja taidoista. Tutkimusala käsittää tavarat, materiaalit ja palvelut, joita yrityk- sen ostotoiminto hallinnoi ja joita yritys käyttää päivittäin. Tutkimusstrategiaksi valittiin abduktiivinen lähestymistapa (”systematic combining”). Tutkimuksen aineisto luotiin käyttämällä puolistrukturoitua hen- kilökohtaista haastattelumenetelmää. Tutkimus suoritettiin teknologiateol- lisuusyritysten hankinnoista päättävien henkilöiden keskuudessa Suomessa. Yritykset edustivat elektroniikka-, sähkötekniikka-, koneenrakennus- ja metallien jalostuksen toimialaa. Tutkimuksessa käytettiin harkinnanvaraista otantaa ja siihen valittiin tarkoituksenmukaisesti kolmenkymmenen yrityksen ostopäätöksentekijät. Yritykset vaihtelivat kooltaan ja yritysmuodoltaan sekä jakautuivat omistussuhteiltaan kotimaisiin ja kansainvälisiin yrityksiin. Ennen aineiston analyysia se organisoitiin ostajien osto-orientaatioiden mukaisesti osto-, hankinta- tai toimittajahallintaorientaatioon kuuluvaksi. Aineiston analyysissä käytettiin teema-analyysimenetelmää. Analyysituloksia verrattiin aikaisempaan teoriaan systemaattisesti. Empiirisen aineiston ja teorian välillä oli jatkuva vuorovaikutus. Tutkimustulosten perusteella voitiin tunnistaa ostajan näkökulmasta 19 ylätason tietoa ja taitoa. Ostajan osto-orientaatioittain tunnistetut spesifiset tiedot ja taidot luokiteltiin geneerisiksi ja kontekstuaalisiksi tiedoiksi ja tai- doiksi. Geneeriset tiedot ja taidot pätevät kaikkiin kolmeen osto-orientaatioon, kun taas kontekstuaaliset riippuvat ostajan nykyisestä osto-orientaatiosta. Geneeriset tiedot ja taidot liittyvät pääasiallisesti hinnanasetanta-, neuvottelu-, kommunikointi- ja vuorovaikutustaitoihin ja kontekstuaaliset liittyvät tiedon jakamisen ja ratkaisun esittämisen taitoihin sekä suhdetaitoihin. Osto-orientaa- tiota edustavat ostajat arvostavat myyjiä, jotka ovat ”toiminnallisia asiantun- tijoita säilyttäen pienen etäisyyden”. Hankintasuuntautuneet ostajat arvostavat myyjiä, jotka ovat ”syvällisesti asiakkaaseen ja asiakassuhteeseen omistautu- neita asiantuntijoita”. Toimittajahallintaorientaatiota edustavat ostajat arvos- tavat myyjiä, jotka ovat ”yritystason asiantuntijoita”. Lisäksi ostajien näke- mykset myyjän tiedoista ja taidoista eroavat myyjien ja myynnin johdon näkemyksistä. Ostajat painottavat substanssiosaamista kuten asiantuntijuutta, kykyä ymmärtää asiakkaan liiketoimintaa ja tarpeita, kykyä luoda asiakas- kohtaisia ratkaisuja, kykyä luoda arvoa, luotettavuutta ja kykyä rakentaa pitkäaikaisia asiakassuhteita. Sitä vastoin myyjät ja myynnin johto korostavat kommunikointi-, vuorovaikutus- ja myyntiprosessitaitoja. Tutkimus yhdistää myyntitaitojen vallitsevan kolmen komponentin mallin koostuen teknisestä tiedosta, myyntiprosessi- ja ihmissuhdetaidoista sekä asiakassuhdetaidot ja ostajien osto-orientaatiot myyntikompetenssimalliksi. Tutkimustulokset syventävät ja päivittävät myyntikompetenssit B2B-ympäris- tössä ja luovat uusia näkökulmia niihin ostajien perspektiivistä lisäten täten myyntikompetenssien kontekstuaalista ymmärrystä. Tutkimus luo uutta tietoa myyjän kompetensseista suhdemyynnin, henkilökohtaisen myynnin ja myyn- ninjohdon kirjallisuuteen. Se lisää myös tietoa osto-orientaatioista ostokirjalli- suuteen. Sillä on useita seuraamuksia myynnin johdolle. Se haastaa myynnin- johdon näkemään kriittiset myyntitiedot ja -taidot nykyistä syvemmin sekä kontekstuaalisesta että kompetenssinäkökulmasta myyntitoiminnan johtami- sessa ja myyjien kehittämisessä. Tutkimustulosten avulla myynninjohto voi tehostaa suhdemyynnin vaikuttavuutta ja parantaa myyntiprosessin hallintaa ostajalähtöiseksi. Avainsanat: myyntikompetenssit, tieto, myyntitaidot, suhdetaidot, osto- orientaatiot, B2B-myynti, abduktiivinen lähestymistapa, teknologiayrityksetsiirretty Doriast

Investigating consumer confusion from a cultural perspective : evidence from the Saudi Arabian smartphone market

This thesis was previously held under moratorium from 3rd December 2019 until 3rd December 2021.With the increase of digital media, there is an excess of information about products and services in the marketplace. In addition, products are becoming more complex. These factors are contributing to consumer confusion, which is an uncomfortable psychological experience caused by exposure to marketing information that could be similar, misleading, ambiguous, or unnatural. Such a problem could increase in the future, as rapid developments in technology are contributing to multiply sources of information. In recent years, many studies have concluded that consumer confusion proneness, as it has several influences on behavioural outcomes, is a topic in need of ongoing investigation. With this in mind, the present study seeks to shed light on the phenomenon of consumer confusion in the Saudi Arabian smartphone market by identifying and analysing the cultural factors contributing to consumer confusion. The overall aim of this thesis is to explore the impact of cultural dimensions on consumer confusion in the Saudi Arabian smartphone market. Furthermore, the research objectives of this study are fourfold: (1) to explore the aspects of consumer confusion influencing consumers in the Saudi Arabian smartphone market; (2) to investigate the effect of consumer confusion proneness on three behavioural outcomes: customer satisfaction, word-of-mouth behaviour, and brand loyalty among consumers in the Saudi Arabian smartphone market; (3) to examine the moderating role of cultural dimensions on the relationship between consumer confusion proneness and its consequences; and (4) to identify the main strategies for minimising consumer confusion based on cultural factors. A conceptual model based on consumer confusion and the culture literature was developed in order to form hypotheses to predict the causality between the selected variables. A quantitative research approach was adopted in this research, reflecting a postpositivist philosophical framework. A self-administrated questionnaire was generated to collect the data, and the analysis technique employed to test the research hypotheses was structural equation modelling (SEM). As one of this first studies in this area to examine a Middle East society, it was found that incertitude confusion (overload/ambiguity) is the most influential aspect on consumer confusion for consumers purchasing smartphones in Saudi Arabia. The findings also highlight that customers in Saudi Arabia do not perceive the similarity of smartphones as contributing towards confusion. In addition, customers prone to incertitude confusion are likely to be dissatisfied and engage less in word-of-mouth behaviour, but they are more likely to display brand loyalty. The findings outline a role for previously unexplored cultural variables, i.e. social interaction, language barriers, and risk aversion, and their probable moderating influences on consumer confusion proneness and its behavioural consequences. This study has responded to previous calls for research to explore the cultural elements impacting on the construct of consumer confusion (Shukla, Banerjee and Adidam, 2010; Walsh et al., 2016) and to establish the cultural variables influencing consumers proneness to confusion while purchasing smartphones. By exploring the role of cultural dimensions in consumer confusion and its consequences, this research provides key managerial implications as well as theoretical contributions by extending the understanding of consumer confusion in relation to the role of cultural variables, thus enriching the construct of consumer confusion. Consequently, a number of theoretical, marketing, and consumer implications have been identified from this study’s empirical results. This thesis also opens the door for fellow researchers to expand upon the concept of consumer confusion by calling for future consumer confusion-based research from the perspective of other cultural dimensions, B2B consumer confusion, or the impact of social media.With the increase of digital media, there is an excess of information about products and services in the marketplace. In addition, products are becoming more complex. These factors are contributing to consumer confusion, which is an uncomfortable psychological experience caused by exposure to marketing information that could be similar, misleading, ambiguous, or unnatural. Such a problem could increase in the future, as rapid developments in technology are contributing to multiply sources of information. In recent years, many studies have concluded that consumer confusion proneness, as it has several influences on behavioural outcomes, is a topic in need of ongoing investigation. With this in mind, the present study seeks to shed light on the phenomenon of consumer confusion in the Saudi Arabian smartphone market by identifying and analysing the cultural factors contributing to consumer confusion. The overall aim of this thesis is to explore the impact of cultural dimensions on consumer confusion in the Saudi Arabian smartphone market. Furthermore, the research objectives of this study are fourfold: (1) to explore the aspects of consumer confusion influencing consumers in the Saudi Arabian smartphone market; (2) to investigate the effect of consumer confusion proneness on three behavioural outcomes: customer satisfaction, word-of-mouth behaviour, and brand loyalty among consumers in the Saudi Arabian smartphone market; (3) to examine the moderating role of cultural dimensions on the relationship between consumer confusion proneness and its consequences; and (4) to identify the main strategies for minimising consumer confusion based on cultural factors. A conceptual model based on consumer confusion and the culture literature was developed in order to form hypotheses to predict the causality between the selected variables. A quantitative research approach was adopted in this research, reflecting a postpositivist philosophical framework. A self-administrated questionnaire was generated to collect the data, and the analysis technique employed to test the research hypotheses was structural equation modelling (SEM). As one of this first studies in this area to examine a Middle East society, it was found that incertitude confusion (overload/ambiguity) is the most influential aspect on consumer confusion for consumers purchasing smartphones in Saudi Arabia. The findings also highlight that customers in Saudi Arabia do not perceive the similarity of smartphones as contributing towards confusion. In addition, customers prone to incertitude confusion are likely to be dissatisfied and engage less in word-of-mouth behaviour, but they are more likely to display brand loyalty. The findings outline a role for previously unexplored cultural variables, i.e. social interaction, language barriers, and risk aversion, and their probable moderating influences on consumer confusion proneness and its behavioural consequences. This study has responded to previous calls for research to explore the cultural elements impacting on the construct of consumer confusion (Shukla, Banerjee and Adidam, 2010; Walsh et al., 2016) and to establish the cultural variables influencing consumers proneness to confusion while purchasing smartphones. By exploring the role of cultural dimensions in consumer confusion and its consequences, this research provides key managerial implications as well as theoretical contributions by extending the understanding of consumer confusion in relation to the role of cultural variables, thus enriching the construct of consumer confusion. Consequently, a number of theoretical, marketing, and consumer implications have been identified from this study’s empirical results. This thesis also opens the door for fellow researchers to expand upon the concept of consumer confusion by calling for future consumer confusion-based research from the perspective of other cultural dimensions, B2B consumer confusion, or the impact of social media

Commercial communication in the digital age : information or disinformation?

In today’s digital age, online and mobile advertising are of growing importance, with advertising no longer bound to the traditional media industry. Although the advertising industry still has broader access to the different measures and channels, users and consumers today have more possibilities topublish, get informed or communicate – to “co-create” –, and toreach a bigger audience. There is a good chance thus that users and consumers are better informed about the objectives and persuasive tricks of the advertising industry than ever before. At the same time, advertisers can inform about products and services without the limitations of time and place faced by traditional mass media. But will there really be a time when advertisers and consumers have equal power, or does tracking users online and offline lead to a situation where advertisers have more information about the consumers than ever before? The volume discusses these questionsand related issues

Crafted, wrapped, and attracted: Love letter packaging that captured the hearts of land of the Rising Sun. Case Goodio.

The Japanese market is renowned for its uniqueness - a one-of-a-kind in the world, and Japanese consumers are known for demanding and having some of the highest product quality standards in the world. Therefore, the localization process of a brand or products has been the key feature in dictating whether the product will succeed in attracting Japanese consumers. The purpose of the research was to study the packaging as a part of product adaptation in Japanese consumer market. The objective of this study was to generate information for companies, using the perspective of the Japanese consumer market, so that they can understand Japan’s cultural requirements and consumer market expectations regarding product packaging design in the context of product adaptation. The Japanese cultural context was raised in the study for special consideration. The study also utilized a case company, a Finnish raw chocolate manufacturer, whose product packaging has aroused interest in the Japanese consumer market The qualitative data of the research was carried out mainly by qualitative methods. Empirical data were collected in two ways. First, semi-structured interviews were conducted with three expert interviewees, all of whom are connected to Goodio and the Japanese consumer market. Second, structural consumer interviews were conducted with thirty interviewees to map the consumer market perspective of the study. Based on the findings, product packaging played a pivotal role in consumer’s purchase decision. Packaging was expected to be attractive, high-quality and go hand-in-hand with the price. Product packaging was expected to contain elements such as use of colour codes, imagery, high-quality material, and functionality. Furthermore, adaptation tools in product adaptation were identified. In addition, the study provided significant new insights into cultural characteristics of the Japanese consumer market. The results of the study can be applied more extensively to different product groups that are interested in the Japanese consumer market. In addition to the practical benefits of the research will provide completely new information on the expectations of the Japanese consumer market for product packaging and product adaptation, as well as to present potential topics for further research.Japanin kuluttajamarkkinat ovat tunnettuja ainutlaatuisuudestaan, jossa tuotteiden laatustandardit ovat korkeimpia maailmassa. Lokalisointi sekä tuoteadaptaatio ovat nousseet avainasemaan, pohdittaessa, onnistuuko tuote houkuttelemaan japanilaisia kuluttajia puoleensa. Japanilaisten kuluttajien suuren maksukyvyn, sekä tuotteiden massiivisen tarjonnan vuoksi, tuotepakkauksesta on tullut merkittävä markkinointiviestinnän väline kuluttajan ostopäätöksessä. Tutkimuksen tarkoituksena oli analysoida tuotepakkausta osana tuoteadaptaatiota Japanin kuluttajamarkkinoilla. Tutkimuksen tarkoitus jaettiin kolmeen osaongelmaan: mitkä ovat Japanin kuluttajamarkkinoiden kulttuuriset ominaisuudet, mitkä ovat Japanin markkinoiden kulttuuriset vaatimukset tuoteadaptaatiolle sekä millaisia odotuksia japanilaisilla kuluttajilla on tuotepakkauksen elementeille. Tutkimuksessa hyödynnettiin tutkimustapauksena suomalaista raakasuklaayritys Goodiota, jonka pakkaus on kerännyt kehuja Japanin kuluttajamarkkinoilla. Ilmiötä lähestyttiin ensin aikaisemman tieteellisen kirjallisuuden ja tutkimuksen avulla. Teoriakatsauksessa perehdyttiin Japanin kulttuurikontekstiin, tuoteadaptaation kilpailuvälineisiin, japanilaisten kuluttajakäyttäytymiseen ja tuotepakkauksen elementteihin. Tämän jälkeen tehtiin laadullinen tutkimus, jossa tapausyrityksenä toimi Goodio ja tämän Japanin markkinat. Aineisto kerättiin haastatteluin: kolme puolistrukturoitua asiantuntijahaastattelua sekä kolmekymmentä strukturoitua kuluttajahaastattelua 25–40-vuotiaiden japanilaisten parissa. Tutkimuksen mukaan tuotepakkaus on erittäin tärkeä osa kuluttajan ostopäätöstä. Pakkauksen oletetaan olevan korkealaatuinen ja viehättävä, sekä sen oletetaan ’kävelevän käsi kädessä’ tuotteen hinnan kanssa. Tuotepakkauksessa oletetaan olevan myös japanilaisille tärkeitä elementtejä, kuten värien ja kuvien asianmukainen käyttö, korkealaatuinen materiaali ja toiminnallisuus. Lisäksi tässä tutkimuksessa määriteltiin kulttuuristen vaatimusten ohella kilpailukykyiset työkalut. Näiden lisäksi tutkimus tarjosi merkittävää uutta tietoa kuluttajamarkkinoiden kulttuurisista ominaisuuksista. Tämä tutkimus luo uutta tutkimustietoa tulevaisuuden käyttötarkoituksia varten. Jos ulkomaalainen yritys osaa käyttää näitä kulttuurisidonnaisia pakkauselementtejä oikein tuotepakkauksessaan, tämän katsotaan olevan hyödyksi tuoteadaptaatiossa Japanin kuluttajamarkkinoilla

Transactions of the First International Conference on Health Information Technology Advancement vol. 1, no. 1

Full proceedings of The First International Conference on Health Information Technology Advancement held at Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, Michigan on October 28, 2011. Conference Co-Chairs: Dr. Bernard Han, Director of the Center for HIT Advancement (CHITA) at Western Michigan University Dr. Sharie Falan, Associate Director of the Center for HIT Advancement (CHITA) at Western Michigan University Transactions Editor: Dr. Huei Lee, Professor in the Department of Computer Information Systems at Eastern Michigan Universit

Get ready for your first job interview

Навчальний посібник містить комплекс навчально-методичного забезпечення для практичних індивідуальних та групових занять, різноманітні вправи, блок матеріалів для організації навчального спілкування студентів та практики перекладу, а також список рекомендованих джерел. Зазначені навчальні матеріали дозволять читачам поглибити уявлення про процес працевлаштування, ґрунтовно підійти до питань, пов’язаних з підготовкою та проходженням робочої співбесіди з потенційним роботодавцем, а також удосконалити набуті навички спілкування англійською мовою.The manual is made up of a set of materials for practical individual and group classes, various exercises, a module for teaching students communication and translation, as well as a list of recommended references. The present teaching materials enable the readers to have a deeper insight into their knowledge of a job application process, tackle the problem solution dealing with their preparation and behaviour during a job interview, and improve the acquired skills of communication in English

Algorithmic business and EU law on fair trading

This thesis studies how commercial practice is developing with artificial intelligence (AI) technologies and discusses some normative concepts in EU consumer law. The author analyses the phenomenon of 'algorithmic business', which defines the increasing use of data-driven AI in marketing organisations for the optimisation of a range of consumer-related tasks. The phenomenon is orienting business-consumer relations towards some general trends that influence power and behaviors of consumers. These developments are not taking place in a legal vacuum, but against the background of a normative system aimed at maintaining fairness and balance in market transactions. The author assesses current developments in commercial practices in the context of EU consumer law, which is specifically aimed at regulating commercial practices. The analysis is critical by design and without neglecting concrete practices tries to look at the big picture. The thesis consists of nine chapters divided in three thematic parts. The first part discusses the deployment of AI in marketing organisations, a brief history, the technical foundations, and their modes of integration in business organisations. In the second part, a selected number of socio-technical developments in commercial practice are analysed. The following are addressed: the monitoring and analysis of consumers’ behaviour based on data; the personalisation of commercial offers and customer experience; the use of information on consumers’ psychology and emotions, the mediation through marketing conversational applications. The third part assesses these developments in the context of EU consumer law and of the broader policy debate concerning consumer protection in the algorithmic society. In particular, two normative concepts underlying the EU fairness standard are analysed: manipulation, as a substantive regulatory standard that limits commercial behaviours in order to protect consumers’ informed and free choices and vulnerability, as a concept of social policy that portrays people who are more exposed to marketing practices

Advertising as Epideictic Rhetoric and Its Implications for Ethical Communication

In the ancient sense, epideictic rhetoric was considered as a simple opposition to pragmatic discourse, which predominantly was involved with public business. Public business refers to the matters of the polis and the political setting. On the other hand, epideictic does not address to the political or deliberative situations. It addresses the celebrative situations of a community or a society in which values are created and commemorated. Epideictic is also different from deliberative public discourse in means of approach toward to audience. Deliberative rhetoric asks audience to decide to take a course of action in a public/political business, whereas epideictic asks audience to observe about what is commendable in the speaker\u27s logos--that is speculation or contemplation (theoria). Therefore, audience is to form ideas in response to the discourse presented, not to make a ruling. Epideictic, in Ciceronian sense, also is a form of rhetoric that molds and encourages certain values, beliefs and presuppositions by which that society or culture lives and exists. It creates some fundamental grounds on which other forms of rhetoric may function. In this cultivation process, as a reinforcement discourse, it is possible to relate epideictic rhetoric to the ethical formation of one\u27s communicative action in a community. In understanding of one\u27s moral character and its relation to habituation and development of habits, epideictic appears to have a significant effect. Therefore, one may argue that advertising appears to have a similar function as epideictic rhetoric in democratic and capitalistic societies when investigated as the totality of the marketplace practices of commercial communication and its ethical implications