Enhancing Export Performance for Business Markets: Effects of Interorganizational Relationships on Export Market Orientation (EMO)

Purpose: Drawing on the relationship marketing perspective, this study explores the effects of interorganizational relationship variables on export market orientation (EMO), in turn enhancing the export performance. Furthermore, firm internationalization was included as a moderator between export market-oriented behavior and export performance.

Methodology: The authors tested the hypotheses via a mail survey involving 235 exporting firms. LISREL and regression analysis were used to test the proposed model.

Findings: The results support the hypotheses, which posit that commitment, trust, and social interaction are positively related to EMO behavior, whereas power is negatively related to such behavior. Second, firm EMO behavior is positively related to export performance. Third, the degree of internationalization strengthens the effect of EMO on export performance.

Research implications: This study improves existing theoretical understanding by supporting the relationship marketing perspective and international channel research for performing export market-oriented behaviors.

Practical implications: The leverage of interorganizational relationships appears a solid strategy for performing export market-oriented behaviors. Exporters can focus not only on export market-oriented behaviors being performed but also on expansion to new markets.

Originality/value: This study contributes to the marketing and international business literature and provides insights to exporters by examining the relationships among interorganizational relationship variables, EMO, and export performance. This study also introduces the degree of internationalization from a contingency-based view and demonstrates that internationalization complements EMO, and thus facilitates export performance.     

Service Business Markets: Relationship Development in the Maritime Industry

ABSTRACT

Purpose: Prior literature has acknowledged the growing importance of service business markets (SBMs). However, relatively little research has examined the relationships and the motives for relationship development in SBMs. The aim of this paper is to investigate the nature of relationships and the various motives for relationship development between service provider and customers.

Methodology: This paper adopts a qualitative research strategy and a case study approach. The context is the maritime industry. One of the largest container terminals in China represents a unique and revelatory case study, wherein nine container terminal-shipping line dyads are the units of analysis. The data were mostly collected via 34 semistructured interviews with maritime industry professionals. The data were triangulated by including archival records and industry reports.

Findings: The interdependence and nonidentical nature of service delivery episodes are identified and considered to add to the knowledge on SBMs. This research provides evidence of the applicability of three groups of motives—economic, strategic, and social—for relationship development to SBMs. The motives are found to coexist and to have greater or lesser weight in the actors’ decision making depending on external factors, such as industry and company development stage, and internal factors, including the companies’ common vision and desire to collaborate.

Contribution: Academic papers have usually focused on specific types of motives, associated with a particular theoretical framework (e.g. transaction cost theory). Motives have rarely been discussed from multiple theoretical lenses. When motives are identified it is not clear what they really imply in different contexts, and what factors cause them to appear. This paper provides a number of contributions. First, it integrates several theoretical perspectives and specifies three groups of motives for relationship development in SBMs: economic, strategic, and social. Second, through the analysis of empirical findings the paper provides a deeper understanding of each group of motives, proposing an integrated framework of motives and the factors affecting their appearance. Subsequently, the research is carried out through a dyadic perspective, which is relatively rare in SBM research. A dyadic perspective allows similarities and differences in actors’ perceptions and actions to be illuminated. Finally, the research brings in a relatively new and important context—the Chinese maritime industry.

Practical implications: Knowing the needs and motives of counterparts can greatly assist SBM actors in formulating their strategies and planning their investments. It is also important that actors realize that the extent to which the other side is open to collaboration depends on the interplay of various motives. In general, business professionals should realize that end users increasingly perceive various service delivery stages within a supply chain as interdependent. Thus, to deliver a more integrated and flawless service to the end user, service providers and customers in SBMs should develop communication and collaboration beyond the operational level.     

Open Innovation in Emerging Markets: A Business Model Perspective

There has been significant contribution to the management literature on open innovation and partnership strategy, detailing their nature and impact in a wide range of business environments. However, “strategic positioning” of the business model based on their interactions with other business entities has not received enough academic attention despite its implications for the new generation of start-ups in emerging markets who do not have any prior business models to emulate. This research conceptualizes a framework that would help strategists position their firm in the market by carefully analyzing its interactions with other business and social entities in the business eco-system.     

从企业经营理念的演变看企业竞争优势的塑造

本文认为,随着中国经济市场化转型的发展,买方市场已经形成,企业的竞争策略正在悄然发生着转变,从比较优势向竞争优势转变。这要求企业的经营不能让市场牵着鼻子,而是要主导市场和创造市场即驱动市场。文章提出,竞争优势是可以被创造的,它强调市场竞争的需求导向,其核心是创造市场;竞争优势在成本收益比较上更强调机会成本,看重对信息的驾驭和对机会的把握;企业要形成自已的竞争优势,关键是创造市场,而创造市场首先要创新观念、提出新概念,然后让人们接受这一新概念,最后再进行恰当的市场营销。     

An Investigation on Incentive Strategies in Community Building in Business-to-Business Electronic Markets

ABSTRACT

Purpose: Community building is recognized as an important governance mechanism in business-to-business (B-to-B) electronic markets by enhancing firms’ participation in these platform markets. However, little research has been done regarding the role of incentive strategies in community building. The main purpose of this paper is to understand how to motivate merchants to participate in a merchant community with incentive strategies.

Methodology: Data were collected in a community of a large B-to-B electronic platform market in China. We randomly chose a sample of 605 participants from among all merchant firms registered in this community, and track their behaviors for 2 weeks. Their behaviors are recorded based on our research design.

Findings: With the empirical analysis from a community of a large B-to-B electronic platform market in China, our results show that (1) both platform and peer incentive strategies can significantly enhance community participation, while platform incentives is more effective in general; (2) platform incentive strategy is a more effective strategy as seller firm uncertainty increases; (3) peer incentive strategy is a more effective strategy as buyer firm uncertainty increases.

Originality: This paper is among the first to investigate two types of incentive strategies in community building, platform level and peer level. We also investigate the moderating role of market uncertainties due to market participants from seller and buyer when examining the effectiveness of these two incentive strategies.     

The Role of Market Orientation In Business Dyadic Relationships: Testing an Integrator Model

Over the last decade market orientation and relationship marketing have been huo of the most outstanding fields of research within Marketing discipline. However, little at tention has been devoted towards the investigation of the interface existing between both concepts. The aim of this study is to overcome this deficiency. Thus, the paper begins with a review of the existing literature into relationship marketing and market orientation as well as their main constructs. The result of this analysis is the proposal of a theoretical causal model in which the cultural market orientation that buyer firms show appears as a conditioning factor of their loyalty towards a supplier. Next, the methodology followed as well as the empirical contrast of the model proposed are thoroughly presented. R e empirical data was obtained from huo personal surveys conducted on the same sample of 141 industrial companies. Finally, results, conclusions and practical implications are discussed. In this way, the research proves that a buyer firm’s cultural market orientation acts as an indirect antecedent to the degree of loyalty shown to its main supplier.     

Preliminary Investigation of Entertainment Strategies Involving Alcohol: Implications for Professional Sales Education and Training in Business Markets

Purpose: With increased numbers of business to business (B to B) firms hiring professional sales students, it is important that both sales educators and sales managers understand entertainment’s influence and its potential consequences in the professional sales environment. This study examines the perceived role entertainment plays in today’s sales process and the importance of integrating entertainment topics into sales education and sales training. The purpose of this study is to update the sales entertainment literature, record its current importance in the age of sales systemization, and propose entertainment strategies and guidelines that can be shared in both corporate sales training programs and university professional sales curricula.

Methodology/approach: Partial least squares (PLS) methodology (SmartPLS 2.0) was used to examine the model and assess the relationships between the constructs and their indicators. Data was first gathered via online and in person surveys distributed to a total of 59 sales executives. To determine whether there were significant differences between path coefficients, PLS multi-group analysis was used (PLS-MGA) to compare sales practitioners’ response to sale educators and sales students. This method was used because conducting pair-wise group comparisons can result in family-wise error.

Findings: Results indicate significant positive relationships exist between entertainment orientation, internal bonding activities, and sales performance. The results confirm the path coefficients for the 3 groups, sales practitioners, sales educators, and sales students, did not differ significantly. Therefore, all groups rated external entertainment as being important to achieve sales performance and internally for bonding with co-workers.

Originality/value/contribution: The responses of B to B sales professionals, sales educators, and sales students are compared regarding their perception of entertainment in developing and managing sales relationships. Based upon the findings, sales professionals are provided with insight about the perceived role entertainment plays

in today’s selling environment and offered recommendations for collegiate classrooms and corporate on-boarding sessions that improve the knowledge of and ability to successfully manage entertainment of internal and external customers.     

创业板中小企业商业模式创新效率评价

随着网络经济的飞速发展,有关商业模式的研究成为企业家和学者共同关注的焦点,特别是商业模式创新在全球商界已经引起前所未有的重视。作为高成长中小企业的代表,创业板中小企业在商业模式创新方面有明显的特点,同时商业模式的创新性也成为中小企业保持高成长性的基础和保障。     

Relationships between Entrepreneurs in Business Incubators. An Exploratory Case Study

Purpose: Business incubators are areas created to help firms find their feet and are devised to promote entrepreneurial initiatives. From the relationship marketing approach, the present study seeks to identify the key differentiating variables involved in relations between entrepreneurs located in the same incubator.

Methodology/approach: The research process is grounded on an exploratory qualitative analysis, based on in-depth interviews with entrepreneurs who belong to two Spanish public business incubators, which form part of the Chamber for Business Creation and Development (INCYDE) network of incubators.

Findings: Findings allow us to highlight aspects such as complementarity of resources, awareness and shared values, frequent contact, and a psychological commitment, as well as certain specific aspects of the relations to emerge in such contexts.

Originality/value/contribution: The article contributes to the literature on business-to-business relationships by developing a conceptual framework of relations among entrepreneurs located in incubators. Moreover, it provides an agenda for future research on the process whereby value and social capital is created through business incubators.     

西方公司经营战略创新的理论分析与思考

在当今充满不确定性和市场竞争不断加剧的全球化变革时代,西方公司经营战略在不断进化,一种基于核心竞争力和关键客户资源的市场经营战略脱颖而出,这种战略在IT行业内称为主流化竞争战略,主流化竞争战略既能使公司赢得竞争优势,也能真正为用户增加社会福利。     

Interfirm Relationships in Emerging Markets: The Importance of Relationships and Cultural Sensitivity

While interfirm relationship value has attracted considerable attention in a domestic market context, little research has examined international buyer-seller relationships. This is surprising, as interfirm relationships across national borders have become increasingly important due to growing liberalization of world trade. Even less research is found including emerging markets. This study use cases with Norwegian seafood export to Turkey as illustrations of the importance of relationship value and cultural sensitivity when conducting business with an emerging country such as Turkey. The data is based on in-depth interviews of Turkish importers.     

Operationalizing Trust,Reliance, and Dependence in Business Relationships: Responding to the Ongoing Naming and Cross-Level Problems

Purpose: This article is to test the proposition that the 3 conceptually related constructs of trust, reliance, and dependence are distinct from each other and to test the proposition that the quality of business relationships can be measured with a formative index incorporating trust and reliance.

Methodology/Approach: The authors' propositions are tested with a survey sample of 221 firms in the U.K. construction industry. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses are used to analyze the survey data.

Findings: The independence of the 3 focal constructs of trust, reliance, and dependence is confirmed. The formative index is found suitable for evaluating the level of relationship quality in which reliance carries more significant weight than trust.

Research Implications: The separation of the overall construct of “trust” into trust at interpersonal level and reliance at interorganizational level, as found in this study, overcomes the problem existing in past studies that researchers rarely specify at which level trust operates. The clear conceptual distinction between reliance and dependence as found in this study implies that although both operate at the organizational level, they do not have overlapping boundaries. The finding that reliance is a more important impact factor than trust in constructing the formative index supports the notions that reliance is a necessary and sufficient condition for developing sustainable business relationships, and trust is an insufficient condition to sustain an ongoing business relationship.

Practical Implications: Reliance sets the keynote of the business relationship. In contrast, trust as the interpersonal variable only acts as the facilitator to create a favorable social environment. Nevertheless, both trust and reliance have a significant and positive weight in the relationship quality index formed. This means that a business relationship with high levels of both trust and reliance is particularly resilient and stable and is the most successful and desirable one which is frequently oriented toward the long run.

Originality/Value/Contribution: The confirmation of the difference between trust and reliance makes an important contribution to the study of trust in business to business marketing by showing that what has traditionally been treated as theoverall construct of trust can and should be regarded as being made up of two separate constructs: interpersonal trust and interorganizational reliance. The difference between reliance and dependence as an additional finding makes another important contribution by providing conceptual clarity of the two constructs and confirming that there is no overlapping boundary between them. The formative index and the relative importance of its components are another important contribution of this study.     

Market Development Determinants for Corporate Bonds in National Currencies: Emerging Markets Review

Our paper offers analysis of tendencies and determinants of development of local currency corporate bond markets in the period from 2006 to 2015. We consider a wide range of macroeconomic and institutional factors for 15 bond markets. The sample consists of 600 country-quarter observations. Multifactor linear regression models and the generalized method of moments are applied for the balanced panel data. Our analyses reveals that inflation and its stability, exchange rate, and market capitalization have a significant influence on the share of local currency bonds. Financial and macroeconomic instability stimulates the growth of local currency bond markets.     

Market Segmentation and Product Differentiation in Political Campaigns: A Technical Feature Perspective

The perceived importance of five technical service qualities (Gronroos 1984) or features (i.e. national and local policies, leaders, values and candidates), and voters’ ratings of the Labour and Conservative Parties’ competence on each of these parameters, were investigated during the 2001 British General Election using an a priori segmentation method and the classification tree statistical technique for data analysis. Voter ratings of the technical service features were found to be indicators of intention to vote. A product differentiation approach is most likely to influence voting intention, because the technical service features are more readily manipulated through marketing programmes than demographic and customer characteristics (Bucklin and Gupta 1992). Ratings of technical service features are stronger indicators of voting intention than voter demographics and characteristics. A product differentiation approach, based around technical service features, would be the most effective focus for strategy development in future political marketing campaigns.     

Organizational Innovation Capability: A Driver for Competitive Superiority in Marketing Channels

This paper investigates the interplay between innovation and competitive superiority in the context of channel management by adopting a capabilities view. The relevance for channel marketing and management scholars is that we developed an environment-strategy-value contingency model to address the focal phenomenon. Our empirical results clearly support the key argument that managerial and technological innovations play an essential role in understanding of how competitive superiority is achieved in constantly evolving marketing channels. As such, our contingency factors involved have a significant intermediate role in each of the research contexts examined, indicating that the innovation capability has a channel specific profile.     

The Transitioning of Marketing Practices from Segment to Customer-Centric Marketing in the African Business Context: Toward a Theoretical Research Framework

ABSTRACT

Although marketing has long been posited to be shifting from segment marketing to customer-centric marketing, there is little theoretical insight into the status of such transformation, especially in emerging African economies. Therefore, this paper develops an integrated theoretical framework for assessing (a) the extent to which firms in African economies use the segment marketing mix (4Ps) versus the customer-centric marketing mix (4As) as well as (b) their antecedents and performance outcomes. Propositions drawn from qualitative data and theoretical tenets in strategic management and in institutional theory are offered to guide systematic empirical research.     

Industrial Recruitment and Economic Development: A Comparative Analysis of Competing Midwestern States Using Perceptual Mapping

ABSTRACT

In this study, perceptual mapping was used to identify the collective and individual positions of 10 competing midwestern states. The perceived position of the “ideal” state also was captured by the study's findings. Industrial real estate executives who were surveyed indicated that some states have positioned themselves strategically in terms of quality of life, whereas others are recognized because of their resources or pro-business environment. Some states appear better able to take advantage of their position, whereas others face development obstacles.     

战略管理新趋势:基于商业生态系统的竞争战略

以网络经济、知识经济、全球化竞争为特征的当今世界，企业环境的动态不确定性日益增强。在此背景下，以“商业生态系统”思考方式来应对环境动态的战略管理理论，正在拓展和超越传统的竞争战略分析框架。本文通过对竞争环境和传统竞争战略分析框架的回顾，在已有商业生态系统竞争研究基础上，提出了基于商业生态系统的竞争战略分析框架。该分析框架围绕价值理念、关键驱动因素形成商业生态系统，通过价值创造、价值分享机制，吸引支持驱动因素、辅助驱动因素来巩固生态系统，并不断审视环境变化和关注价值理念与关键驱动因素变动，以重组或重构商业生态系统来创造持续的竞争优势。最后本文用SONY公司和JVC公司商业生态系统竞争的案例对此框架进行了说明。     

Regional Competition in the International Market for Services: A Shift-Share Analysis

ABSTRACT

The volume of services marketed across national borders in recent years has dramatically risen due to increased liberalization and market globalization, on the one hand, and rapid advances in telecommunications and information technology, on the other. The author analyzes the competition among the seven regions of the world for a share in this expanding sector of the international market, doing so over a 15-year period from 1997 to 2012. A shift-share analysis was carried out to identify the winners and the losers in the market during the study period. Results show that six of the seven regions gained some market share. However, the lead winner was the region of Europe and Central Asia that saw its 1997 share grew more than 7-fold by 2012! On the other hand, the North America region, the only loser of all, lost three-fourths of its 1997 market share by 2012. Policy implications of these results for the regions are discussed.     

市场营销行为的决策技术研究与应用——购物篮分析

目前,市场营销决策技术已成为商家获得成功的关键因素之一。数据挖掘是一种新的商业信息处理技术,其主要特点是对商业数据库中的大量业务数据进行抽取、转换、分析和其它模型化处理。结合数据挖掘技术,一种称之为购物篮分析方法,对市场营销行为决策具有重要的意义,已越来越受到零售企业的重视。