Semester

Spring

Date of Graduation

2026

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Type

DBA

College

Chambers College of Business and Economics

Department

Marketing

Committee Chair

Xinchun Wang

Committee Co-Chair

Jody L. Crosno

Committee Member

Yuerong Liu

Committee Member

Annie Peng Cui

Abstract

Value propositions are essential to the success of personal selling in the Business-to-Business (B2B) context. While earlier studies have offered valuable insights into the roles of value propositions in driving B2B sales, they have often regarded value propositions as uniform. In this dissertation, I argue that value propositions vary in their levels of innovativeness. The dissertation introduces the concept of innovative value proposition (IVP) and proposes that IVP indicates greater future growth potential to buyers, leading to more favorable reactions such as responsiveness and willingness to engage than less innovative ones. Additionally, the dissertation explores the moderating effects of buyer price orientation and risk perception. Using survey data from 189 B2B buyers, the study finds that IVP encourages buyer responsiveness and willingness to engage. However, these effects are influenced by buyers’ price orientation and risk perception. The findings offer valuable insights into how buyers interpret salespeople’s value propositions and their decision-making processes.

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