For the 35 students enrolled in the Advanced Sales Management and Intelligence (SMI) and Advanced Management (MAM) master's programs, the practical collaboration with the southern German company—a hidden champion in the adhesive tape industry—represented an exciting and challenging opportunity to engage with sales strategy development.
The requirement: international market entry between multichannel distribution and digitalization
The focus was on market entries into very heterogeneous global markets – including Australia, Czechia, Turkey, and Poland – each with their own legal, cultural, and market characteristics. Added to this were complex multichannel architectures in which direct and indirect sales had to be combined, for example, via sales organizations, distribution partners, converters, and wholesalers and specialist retailers. Another focus was on the increasing digitalization of sales processes. This required dealing with CRM systems as central platforms for customer relationships, the use of AI-based tools, and the integration of inbound, outbound, and performance approaches in sales. The aim was to develop so-called ambidextrous sales structures, i.e., structures that optimize existing processes while creating space for innovative, digital approaches. The project work was also made more difficult by expert structures that were sometimes difficult to access, requiring targeted research and structured information gathering.
Reaching the goal with extensive market research and methodological precision
The students' approach: a methodologically sound, practical approach. It was based on extensive qualitative and quantitative market research involving more than 200 expert interviews, structured Q&A questionnaires, and systematic online research. Among others, sales partners, potential customers, chambers of commerce, and certification bodies were included. Access to market players was gained through a variety of channels, including trade fairs, telephone interviews, and professional business networks.
The analytical approach was based on a variety of methods: PESTEL analyses were used for market assessment, scoring models for industry selection, and fit analyses for the evaluation of suitable distribution channels. Latent class analyses were used for segmentation, while preferences for product features were determined using the MaxDiff methodology and utility values were determined using hierarchical Bayes analyses. In addition, the Value Proposition Canvas, customer journey mapping to identify key touchpoints, and battle cards for competitive classification were used.
Throughout the project, the students benefited from close support from Astorplast GmbH, which contributed its input in the form of weekly coaching sessions and provided feedback on the progress of the work.
“Surprising, convincing, and feasible”: Project results won over the partner
The project presentations were ultimately very well received by the industry partner: “The approaches developed are convincing in terms of their sales strategies, selected customer segments, channel integration plans, and hybrid sales processes—they can be implemented immediately in all our markets,” emphasized Stefan Stampfer, Managing Director of Astorplast Klebetechnik GmbH, and Adem Baygin, Sales Manager and Authorized Signatory. “We were really impressed by the quality of the results: the students worked at a level comparable to professional consulting services.”
Professors Kracklauer and Fabian thanked the dedicated students for their exceptional results. After the presentation of the results at the Vöhlinschloss University Center, the project was celebrated with a dinner to which Astorplast Klebetechnik GmbH invited all students.
