Market orientation, competitive advantage, and performance: A demand-based perspective

This study assesses how customer value affects a firm's market orientation and consequently, competitive advantage and organizational performance in a service industry — the global hotel industry. The findings show that if a firm perceives its customers as valuing service, the firm is more likely to adopt both a customer and a competitor orientation; if the firm thinks its customers are price sensitive, the firm tends to develop a competitor orientation. Moreover, the greater a firm's customer orientation, the more the firm is able to develop a competitive advantage based on innovation and market differentiation. In contrast, a competitor orientation has a negative effect on a firm's market differentiation advantage. Finally, innovation and market differentiation advantages lead to greater market performance (e.g., perceived quality, customer satisfaction) and in turn, higher financial performance (e.g., profit, market share).     

The moderating role of managerial ties in market orientation and innovation: An Asian perspective

This empirical study contributes to the extant literature by investigating the relations among market orientation, managerial ties and innovation simultaneously and interactively, from an Asian perspective. Our findings reveal that customer orientation and interfunctional coordination have a positive impact on innovation. Moreover, managerial ties play a moderation role in the market orientation–innovation linkage. Business ties enhance the relation between customer orientation and interfunctional coordination and innovation. On the other hand, business ties and competitor orientation have a negative interaction effect on innovation. In addition, political ties also dampen the relation between interfunctional coordination and innovation. Such results add new insights to the extant literature and provide implications for future research and marketing practices in Asia.     

STRATEGIC ORIENTATION,CAPABILITIES, AND PERFORMANCE IN MANUFACTURER — 3PL RELATIONSHIPS

This study examines how two dimensions of strategic orientation (customer and competitor orientation) influence logistics and market performance. Two capabilities, operational flexibility and collaboration, are studied. Data were collected from manufacturers working with third party logistics providers. The findings suggest that customer and competitor orientations have different influences upon performance when leveraged through the capabilities. Competitor orientation, while having a detrimental direct effect on logistics performance, appears to be the better strategic approach, when supported with operational flexibility since it results in enhanced logistics (efficiency) and market (effectiveness) performance. Customer orientation, on the other hand, greatly improves logistics performance, i.e., internal efficiency.     

Managing boundary-spanning marketing activities for supply-chain efficiency

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to advance and empirically investigate how perceived organisational support influences marketing managers' boundary-spanning marketing activities (cross-functional communication and customer connections), and how these activities subsequently impact supply-chain efficiency. By analysing survey responses from 348 marketing managers, we demonstrate that a supportive organisational climate provides managerial incentives not only to develop strong allegiance to the welfare of multi-foci groups within the organisation but also to engage in active cross-functional market intelligence exchange and customer servicing, which in turn leads to superior supply-chain efficiencies. The paper offers strategic guides to both academicians and practitioners on how to promote marketing managers' role in strengthening dependencies among various functional departments for cohesive product, service, and financial offerings.     

关系营销导向对商业模式创新的影响机制

基于网络位置理论和企业内部能力理论,本文探讨网络结构和跨职能整合在关系营销导向与企业商业模式创新之间的影响作用。研究结果表明,关系营销导向对网络结构、跨职能整合和商业模式创新均存在正向影响,网络结构和跨职能整合在关系营销导向与商业模式创新之间起到了部分中介作用。     

Fine tuning market oriented practices

Being more market oriented—in other words, getting closer to customers while keeping a wary eye on competitors in order to respond quickly and effectively to changing market conditions—has long been viewed as a key way of improving competitive advantage. However, there is still a lack of understanding about how to optimize the implementation of market oriented business strategies, particularly in the service sector. This article addresses that gap by investigating how customer and competitor focused practices can be fine tuned to create differential advantages. An in-depth qualitative study of professional, financial, and business service firms in New Zealand suggests that how well market oriented practices are implemented is much more important than the range of practices that are adopted.     

Exploring the drivers of new product success for businesses in Asia: a meta-analysis

Even though a large amount of research has investigated how different factors impact new product performance in different contexts, little attention has been paid to exploring the drivers of new product success for businesses in Asia. This study therefore focuses on this issue by using a meta-analytic approach to aggregate the empirical findings of studies published before 2011. By controlling several contextual factors (product type, unit of analysis and time), the results from generalized least-squared analyses show that the predictor–performance relationships are stronger for Asian firms when the predictors are market orientation, marketing synergy, technological synergy, product advantage, product innovativeness, cross-functional integration, top management support, pre-development proficiency, technological proficiency, market potential and technological turbulence. In addition, the results also reveal that most of the performance effects of the predictors are different between low-technology and high-technology products.     

Entrepreneurial marketing: a comparative study

This paper uses a comparative study to explore entrepreneurial marketing orientation in small software technology firms, in relation to firm growth. Entrepreneurial Marketing (EM) acknowledges the interface between entrepreneurship, marketing and innovation and, pursuance of customer value. Researchers acknowledge that firms adopting other strategic orientations combined with a market orientation are more likely to outperform their competitors. Currently, there are few comparative studies of knowledge-intensive technology firms and no comparative cross-country studies, which consider firm growth and orientation from the EM perspective. This paper addresses these issues by using an entrepreneurial marketing orientation qualitative framework that consists of 15 dimensions, which allow investigation of entrepreneur and employee activities, attitudes and behaviors in such firms. Using a UK and US sample of firms, this research enables assessment of how and why entrepreneurial marketing orientation may lead to sustainable growth for firms in challenging markets and provides a comparison in two different country contexts.     

The Effect of Management Leadership Style on Marketing Orientation,Service Quality,and Financial Results: A Cross-Cultural Study

ABSTRACT

The significance of customer and market orientation has been closely examined in the marketing and management literature. Recent research has focused on how to assess the antecedents of market orientation and the effect of market orientation on business performance via various mediating and situational variables. The present study investigates the impact of management leadership style on market orientation and collaboration between the management and the employees. Their effects on business performance are also scrutinized. The study was conducted on a sample of managers in Taiwan and the United States. A cross-country comparison yields many interesting findings and important managerial implications, as well as future research directions.     

Is the more always better? A comparative study of internal and external integration practices in new product and new service development

This study investigates the relationship between internal and external integration practices and innovation success of new products and new services. Building on the idea that key success drivers in new product and new service development may have implementing costs besides their obvious benefits, this article examines the possibility that a nonlinear relationship in the shape of an inverted U exists between innovation success and the antecedents examined in this research. The present study also addresses scholars' call for research to investigate differences in the drivers of new product and new service success. The findings suggest that differences exist in the nature of the relationship—that is, linear versus nonlinear—between cross-functional integration, customer integration, and interfirm collaboration and innovation success in a new product versus new service setting.     

The role of national institutions in the effects of consumers’ perceived customer orientation and firm innovativeness

Many multinational corporations force global customer orientation and firm innovativeness. However, little is known about how or why they benefit from perceived customer orientation and firm innovativeness in one country but not in another. The authors fill this gap by referring to information processing and institutional theories. They contribute to research by analyzing the roles of country development and dimensions of national culture in the direct and indirect effects of perceived customer orientation through firm innovativeness on consumer product purchase intention across 53 countries. The results of multilevel structural equation modeling show different explained variances of the institutions and varying moderations for the differently strong effects of perceived customer orientation and firm innovativeness. Institutional theory strongly complements behavioral theorizing. The findings have direct implications for managers interested in understanding how perceived customer orientation and firm innovativeness interact and attract consumers in different country contexts.     

Market Orientation Among Small to Medium Sized UK Charitable Organisations: Implications for Fund-Raising Performance

ABSTRACT

A mail questionnaire was distributed to a sampling frame of 613 small to medium sized UK charities in an attempt to ascertain the extents of their fund-raising market orientation. Three major dimensions of market orientation were identified: donor orientation, competitor orientation, and 'influence of marketing personnel.' These factors substantially explained respondents' perceptions of their charities' recent fund-raising performances. Organisations scoring high in market orientation appeared on average to have increased their incomes by significantly higher percentages over the previous five-years than charities low on market orientation. Overall, the results suggest that the importance of effective marketing is widely recognised by smaller UK charities.     

SME Internet use and strategic flexibility: the moderating effect of IT market orientation

Abstract

One of the most important topics in the marketing literature has been the concept of market orientation. However, questions remain as to the dynamics of how market orientation translates into intermediate capabilities. This study explores relationships among different types of Internet usage, IT market orientation (the extent to which IT is aligned to manage customer and competitor information and internal activities), and strategic flexibility (firm capability to respond to the need for change). Specifically, use of the Internet for communication with relevant stakeholders, owing to its market-sensing potential, should be positively and significantly related to strategic flexibility for SMEs with more IT market-oriented alignment. The market-sensing potential of Internet communication to impact strategic flexibility positively for SMEs is likely to be lost under low IT market-oriented-alignment conditions. In contrast, IT market orientation should not moderate the relationship between Internet use for transactions with relevant stakeholders and strategic flexibility, given that the typical order taking and processing is a static, routine function for SMEs. Results supported hypothesised relationships. By delineating the type of Internet usage and required IT alignment that contribute to leveraging the Internet effectively, findings hold implications for future research by clarifying boundary conditions for Internet effects. Specifying how and when Internet use promotes strategic flexibility, an important enabler of competitive advantage, helps small business owner/managers better utilise their limited resources.     

Leadership Style as Driver of Salespeoples' Customer Orientation

The topic of customer orientation has increasingly attracted interest in both academic marketing research and practice. One factor which has been increasingly discussed as an important driver of a sales person's customer orientation is that of leadership style. If a sales person's supervisor expresses a strong customer orientation this should have a strong impact on the behavior of his or her subordinates. However, this aspect has not received much research attention. In this study, we propose a theoretical framework of leadership style which identifies three key dimensions: initiation of structure, consideration, and initiation of customer orientation. Hypotheses which relate these dimensions to customer oriented attitudes and behaviors are then developed and empirically examined. Results support the presence of three dimensions of customer oriented leadership style. Findings also indicate differential effects of the three dimensions on customer oriented attitudes. The academic and managerial implications of these findings are then discussed.     

Relating strategic market orientation and market performance: role of customer value types

A service provider achieves competitive advantage by configuring appropriate strategic orientation and customer value type. This paper addresses three important issues: (i) which customer value type (economical, relational or technical) is important for bank customers? (ii) which strategic market orientation (customer or competitor) helps in achieving the desired value type? and (iii) which value type significantly predicts market performance? We propose that a strategic market orientation pursued by a firm shall influence the customer value it intends to offer so as to maximize the market performance. Using data collected from 538 bank customers, this study reveals that when there is a perfect match between strategic market orientation and value being perceived by its customers, a firm shall achieve strategy-value fit and realize optimal market outcomes in the form of customer satisfaction, acquisition, retention, cross-selling, and up-selling. Furthermore, a bank shall realize maximum level of market performance if it pursues both customer and competitor orientation and endeavors to deliver technical/functional value to its target customers. The paper concludes with managerial implications and future research directions.     

An Examination of Frontline Cross-functional Integration during Retail Transactions

This research investigates cross-functional integration in contexts where customers interact with multiple frontline functions during a retail transaction. Specifically, this study: (1) proposes and empirically tests a framework for frontline cross-functional integration, (2) shows that joint reward valence alters the effects of other integration mechanisms in ways that can sometimes be detrimental, and (3) demonstrates the effects of cross-functional integration on individual sales performance and job satisfaction. The proposed framework is empirically tested in the automobile sales context with sales and finance as the frontline functions. Results indicate that cross-functional training and cohesion influence quality of communication, which in turns leads to more effective relationships. As joint reward valence increases, the positive impact of cross-functional training on communication quality is enhanced; however, the positive impact of cohesion on communication quality is reduced. Similarly, as joint reward valence increases, relationship effectiveness leads to higher individual sales performance but the positive benefits of relationship effectiveness on job satisfaction diminish. Thus, this study improves the understanding of frontline cross-functional integration and the process by which integration mechanisms influence employee outcomes.     

Organizational Learning and CRM Success: A Model for Linking Organizational Practices,Customer Data Quality,and Performance

A high quality customer database is a cornerstone of successful interactive marketing strategies and tactics. Based on the notion that customer data quality is not only a technical but also an organizational problem, this study develops and tests an organizational learning framework of the relationship between organizational processes, customer data quality and firm performance. The findings show that high quality customer data impact both customer and business performance and that the most important driver of customer data quality comes from the executive suite. A large portion of the impact of organizational culture on performance is mediated by customer data quality and data sharing. The results support the presence of a hierarchy of effects for enhancing data quality that runs from organizational learning (committed to a shared vision for CRM data), to cross-functional learning (marketing/IT cooperation, marketing/IT integration) to functional learning (data sharing).     

Challenging the "integration imperative": A customer perspective on omnichannel journeys

Omnichannel literature largely assumes that retailers should integrate touchpoints across channels to promote seamless experiences. This paper challenges this assumption by exploring how perceived journey integration affects customer experience in omnichannel retailing. A qualitative study reveals that two dimensions of journey integration—consistency and connectivity—interact to form four patterns of omnichannel journeys, each prompting distinct experiences. When looking at this phenomenon through the customer’s perspective, we find that there are cases in which low consistency or connectivity can trigger positive experiences, contradicting extant literature. We then formulate research propositions that challenge the “integration imperative” in the omnichannel literature and provide managerial implications for retail firms that want to improve their customers’ experiences.     

Exploring the Role of Product Development Capability for Transforming Marketing Intelligence into Firm Performance

ABSTRACT

Purpose: This study examines the role of product development capability for transforming marketing intelligence activities into firm performance on industrial markets.

Methodology/Approach: The authors apply structural equation modeling to analyze survey data from 342 industrial manufacturing companies.

Findings: Results reveal that sales integration and holistic macroeconomic view are particularly important features of the marketing intelligence capability on industrial markets to gain additional insights in order to develop products successfully. Results also reveal that product development capability transforms the marketing intelligence activities into firm performance on industrial markets.

Research Implications: This study offers new insights on marketing theory by extending and concretizing the concept of market orientation to a broader concept of the marketing intelligence capability for industrial markets. Further, this research reveals that the product development capability serves as a mediator to business performance.

Practical Implications: This study’s systematic and tangible outline of the dimensions of marketing intelligence and its link to the product development capability helps firms to better understand how to capitalize on market orientation’s potential values.

Originality/Value/Contribution: This research (a) reveals the relevant dimensions of marketing intelligence on industrial markets and (b) shows how the product development capability tranforms marketing intelligence activities into firm performance on industrial markets.     

Information Technology and Customer Orientation: A Study of Direct,Mediated, and Interactive Linkages

This study investigates whether and how information technology (IT) is linked to a firm's ability to understand and fulfil customer needs, i.e. customer orientation. IT alone or in tandem with other strategic resources may enable businesses to process market intelligence and coordinate organisational responses to meet evolving buyer preferences. Based on a survey of senior marketing managers and PLS path model analyses, we learned that greater IT capabilities are associated with higher customer orientation but in mediated and interactive ways with marketing information quality and organisational trust. These and other findings largely supported the conceptual model. An implication is that while IT capabilities can help firms be more customer-focused, other critical resources must also be present.