Party time: recreation rituals in the world of B2B

Abstract

We examine the role of business parties in business markets: why do B2B companies spend such large amounts of money to sponsor events meant for public consumption, such as sporting events, when most of their activity involves selling to other organisations? Drawing from extensive qualitative fieldwork in the world of tennis tournaments, we detail the specific universe of parties that happen backstage, between companies sponsoring these events. This context helps illuminate the critical role of business parties in business networks. Far from being mere recreation at the company’s expense, business parties are important opportunities for executives to develop and manage their relationships. We show that a business party functions as a particular kind of ritual by creating a distinct universe with its own language, gestures, and other modes of interaction.

Summary statement of contribution Our theoretical contribution to the literature on relationship marketing is to detail the unifying function of business parties in local business markets, where relationships with a variety of organisations are key to a company’s success. Our methodological contribution is to illustrate the relevance of anthropological approaches and concepts, such as rituals, to the world of B2B.

Keywords:

• anthropology
• parties
• personal contact
• relationship marketing
• ritual
• socialisation

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Erratum

Acknowledgements

We want to acknowledge the kind participation of our research informants, who shared their experiences and continue to make the business world a more festive place. We also want to thank Jean-François Caujolle for his help, mentorship and great vision.

Notes

¹The major companies partnering with the Open 13 tournament are BNP-Paribas (bank and finance), Bombardier (aircraft and rail vehicles), Onet (cleaning multiservices, extreme environment technologies, security, safety), Peugeot and Seat (cars and vans), Sodexo (catering services, facilities management), and Veolia (water and waste management services). The major institutional partners of the Open 13 are the Conseil général des Bouches-du-Rhône (council of the Bouches-du-Rhône area), Marseille Provence Métropole (an urban community grouping together the city of Marseille and its suburbs), and Ville de Marseille (city of Marseille). Amongst the major companies which support the GPTL are the Banque Rhône-Alpes (bank and finance) and Perrier-Vittel (soft beverages).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Julien Cayla

Julien Cayla, Assistant Professor of Marketing at Nanyang Business School, Singapore, Research Fellow at the Institute on Asian Consumer Insight, Singapore, and Visiting Professor at Euromed Management Marseille.

E [email protected]

Bernard Cova

Bernard Cova, Professor Euromed Management Marseille and Visiting Professor Bocconi University Milan.

E [email protected]

Lionel Maltese

Lionel Maltese, Maitre de Conférences Aix-Marseille University and Associate Professor Euromed Management.

E [email protected]