Authors: Hugh Pattinson; Suresh Sood
The IMP interaction model (Håkansson 1982, p.24) survives academic and managerial scrutiny for over three decades. Simultaneously, a techno-economic revolution emerges reshaping B2B communication and interaction while digitising the global economy. In the 21st century, mobile devices directly connect with people and businesses via the exemplary social media of Facebook, Google Plus, LinkedIn and YouTube. This pervasiveness of social media technologies and applications enables not just the generation of online conversations but generates B2B collaboration activities atop business to business and intra business conversations. On this basis, consideration of social media within the context of the IMP Interaction model (ibid) is essential when undertaking any worthwhile contemporary study of B2B marketing.
This paper reviews the original IMP Interaction Model (ibid), a range of current socia media and collaborative applications and activities appearing in B2B Sales and Marketing interactions. The researchers map the social media interactions to a select set of Interaction model (ibid) variables generating an IMP Social Media Interaction Framework. This framework focuses the original model (ibid) on social media applications, exchange activities (4 variables of product/service, information, social and financial), cooperation and adaptations. Additional insights include the use of social media for signalling interaction for Information and Social Exchange, and for parallel and extended use of both social media and conventional communication methods in Cooperation and Adaptations. The IMP Social Media Interaction Framework places social media and online conversations environments centre stage of the Interaction Process increasing the relevancy of the IMP approach well into the second decade of the 21st Century.
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Conference: Glasgow, Scotland (2011)