Performance congruence and value congruence impact on sales force annual sales

The separate and joint impact of performance congruence (similarity between salespeople and their sales managers) and value congruence on annual sales are investigated in a field study. Two hundred thirty-nine salespeople and their sales managers from several industries participated in the study. A significant association was found for separate and joint associations between performance congruence and value congruence and annual sales. More specifically, the more similar salespeople and their sales managers are regarding performance congruence measures, “identifying new prospects” and “setting up an initial appointment” and personal values, “warm relationships with others,” and “sense of belonging,” the higher annual sales.     

Creating commitment and loyalty behavior among retailers: what are the roles of service quality and satisfaction?

As a result of weakening brand image/loyalty, little differentiation, and intense price competition, manufacturers are now increasingly pressed to ensure retailers’ shelf space and/or salesperson attention. This research contributes to the literature by empirically examining an underrepresented body of literature in the B2B context—retailer loyalty. Specifically, this study fills a gap by investigating retailer evaluations of the technical and relational dimensions of a manufacturer’s order fulfillment service quality as predictors of retailer satisfaction, affective versus calculative commitment, and ultimately loyalty behavior. Results suggest that both technical and relational order fulfillment service quality influence satisfaction, which in turn positively affects both affective and calculative commitment. By separating the affective and calculative dimensions, loyalty behavior is associated directly only with affective commitment. Further examination reveals that relational order fulfillment service quality has a direct impact on affective commitment. When the sample was split based on “share of wallet,” results suggest that satisfaction impacts both affective and calculative commitment, regardless of “share of wallet.” For “high share” retailers, the positive relationship of calculative to affective commitment creates an indirect route (through affective commitment) by which calculative commitment affects behavioral loyalty.     

Identifying critical problems for mutual cooperation between the private and public sectors: A marketing perspective

The study presented in this article is an application of “futures research.” One objective is to identify some of the more pressing future world-wide problems that require the combined effort of both the government and the private sector to reach a solution. A second objective is to suggest ways in which marketers can become more involved in the solution of them. Prominent problem clusters of particular importance to marketers, including “Social Values,” “Social Institutions,” and “Resources” were uncovered by this research. The authors hope that this article will stimulate marketing research in each of these areas.     

“Learning” and grade expectations: A study of instructor evaluations

This study examines instructor evaluations as used in introducing marketing classes. The report attempts to see if a student's increase in the knowledge of marketing is related to his/her eveluation of the instructor. “Learning” does not appear to be related to the student's evaluation of the instructor, but expected grades for the course and changes in anticipated grades are related to the student's perception of the instructor's effectiveness.     

Reconfiguration of the conceptual landscape: a tribute to the service logic of Richard Normann

This article is a tribute to the late Richard Normann, whose call for a “service logic” (Normann, Reframing Business: When the Map Changes the Landscape, Wiley, Chichester, p. 99, 2001) both parallels and enriches service-dominant (S-D) logic (Vargo and Lusch, J. Mark, 68:1–17, 2004a). Like Vargo and Lusch, Normann shifted the focus of the offering from an output to a process of value creation and perceived the firm as an organizer of this process, with the customer as a co-producer, rather than a receiver of value. He also argued that offerings are “frozen knowledge,” similar to Vargo and Lusch’s contention that the basis of exchange is applied operant resources (service) and suggested that the ‘dematerialization’ of resources increases their ‘liquidity’, which allows increased “density” for value creation. Thus, he suggested that firms need to “reframe business”—rethink the logic of value creation—to reveal opportunities in reconfiguring the value constellations of which they are part. This tribute explores these and other similarities and differences between Normann’s work and the evolving S-D logic.     

Segmenting international industrial markets

This study “links” Japanese purchasing agents’ attitudes of the United States and U.S. suppliers of products to buyer intentions. A Multiple Analysis of Variance procedure (MANOVA) is utilized to detect similar variances between attitudes and homogeneous demographics. The result of the research is a method that defines industrial market segments in Japan.     

Who are your successful salespeople?

Utilizing a systematic sample of 200 sales managers selected from manufacturing and wholesaling firms listed in the Dun and BradstreetMillion-Dollar Directory, a survey was conducted to determine whether or not a general profile of “successful” salespersons and another profile of “unsuccessful” salespersons could be constructed. A seven-point semantic differential scale was used to obtain ratings by sales managers of salespeople on each of twenty-four personal attributes. Profiles of “successful” and “unsuccessful” salespersons were found which showed large differences in ratings on the twenty-four personal attributes. Using factor analysis, a reduced set of personal characteristics was determined to predict “successful” and “unsuccessful” salespersons.     

Rethinking the effect of perceived fit on customers’ evaluations of new products

Prior research has demonstrated that customer evaluations of a new product are directly related to the degree to which a company’s skills are perceived to “fit” with those required to provide the new product. This finding has led to recommendations that firms focus on perceptually close new product areas. However, many firms have successfully entered perceptually distant markets. We reconcile this apparent contradiction by proposing that the effect of perceived fit on new product evaluation is not direct, but is mediated by the certainty a customer has that a company can deliver the proposed new product. Our findings indicate that, by itself, perceived fit has a positive impact on industrial product evaluations. However, the relationship between fit and new product evaluations, previously held to be direct, is instead mediated by customer certainty. That is, when the effect of customer certainty is considered, the direct effect of fit disappears. Implications for theory and practice are discussed. His research interests include management of brand equity, and competitive analysis. His research has been published inJournal of Marketing Research, Journal of Marketing, Journal of Consumer Research, Strategic Management Journal, Journal of Advertising Research, Industrial Marketing Management, Journal of Services Marketing andPlanning Review. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Pittsburgh. Her research interests are in “marketing creativity,” and the management of mature products. Her research has been published in theJournal of Services Marketing and in the proceedings of the American Marketing Association. She received her Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.     

The development of a standardized student evaluation form

The original purpose of student evaluations was to provide feedback to the instructor to improve his/her teaching. However, the use of student evaluations in assessing promotion and tenure decisions is becoming increasingly apparent. Given that students represent one valuable source of evaluation data, the task involves gathering the information so as not to bias or influence the results. Thus, the objectives of this report are to discuss the methodology and pitfalls in the construction of a data collection instrument, and produce a “model” student evaluation form that may serve as the basis for establishing validity by having the academic community put it to the test.     

The effects of a monetary incentive and the ethnicity of the sponsor's signature on the rate and quality of response to A mail survey

The purpose of the current study was to investigate the effects of a monetary incentive and the ethnicity of the sponsor's signature on the rate and quality of response to a mail survey. Six hundred subjects were randomly assigned to four groups. One group received a mail survey from “Leroy Jefferson,” apparently a Black individual, with a 25% monetary incentive included. Group two also received a questionnaire from “Leroy Jefferson,” but without the monetary incentive. Groups three (25 ϕ included) and four (no monetary incentive) were sent questionnaires from “John Richardson,” an ethnically unidentifiable sponsor. The questionnaire was a 16-item attitudes towards Black scale. The results of the study demonstrated the value of a monetary incentive in increasing the rate of response. The name of the sponsor, however, did not affect either the rate of response or the quality of response (i. e. the scores on the attitude scale). The authors wish to thank Manhattan College, School of Business, for the grant which made this study possible.     

Consumer motivation: A developmental self concept approach

Self theory is reviewed and then operationalized as three modes of the self concept—“actual,” “expected,” and “ideal.” Results support hypotheses concerning agreement across subjects for self concept modes within personality and products and services categories, individual consistency among self concept modes, and developmental directionality over time.     

“Add-on” purchasing: Consumer behavior in the trial of new products

The research reported here examines consumer behavior in the trial of new consumer packaged goods. Panel data tracking purchase patterns over the first two years of introduction for seven low-priced consumer goods was utilized to study both the timing and quantity of individual household new product trials. A behavior termed “add-on” purchasing (buying trial brands in addition to regularly purchased brands) was exhibited across all seven new products. Implications of this “add on” behavior are discussed.     

Including the effects of prior and recent contact effort in a customer scoring model for database marketing

Database marketers often use a scoring model to predict the likely value of contacting customers based on their purchase histories and demographics. However, when purchase history has been a partial result of the firm’s own contacting efforts, these contacts should also be accounted for in the scoring model. The current work extends the existing literature to account for the firm’s contacts by focusing on each customer’s most recent purchase. Contacts prior to that purchase are designated “prior contacts” and those after that purchase “recent contacts.” A new latent variables formulation of the customer’s propensity to respond is used to predict the likelihood and time of response as well as the relationship to the independent variables. The methodology also addresses the statistical problems of “selection bias” and “endogeneity,” which have been largely ignored in most customer scoring models. An application to the database of a charitable organization confirms that, in this case: (1) the effect of the firm’s customer contact efforts is associated with a stronger propensity to respond than is the case for the included demographics; (2) the firm’s “recent contact” efforts are associated with larger returns in customers’ propensity to respond than the “prior contact” efforts; and (3) the “recent contact” efforts are associated with an at-first increasing but then diminishing propensity to respond up to a point beyond which actual decreasing returns are observed with further contacts. Clearly, too much contacting can alienate would-be donors. The proposed model is general enough to calibrate such impacts in other database marketing applications where the relative effects might be different.

Industrial market segmentation on buying center purchase responsibilities

This exploratory study focuses on the use of buying center purchase responsibilities as a basis for industrial market segmentation. Analysis of buying centers revealed differences between organizations with “overlapping” versus “position-dominant” patterns of purchase responsibility. Hypotheses supporting overlapping versus position-dominant buying centers are discussed, and implications for industrial marketing management are proposed.     

Factors affecting the acceptability of advertisements among professionals

Since restrictions were eliminated by the Supreme Court in 1977, it was to be expected that advertising would increase among professionals in all fields. Both within and across various professions, however, practitioners have been found to advertise their services in markedly varying ways and degrees. The present study attempts to analyze those factors which relate to differentials in the acceptability of various advertisements by three groups of professional practitioners: accountants; dentists; and, lawyers. Utilizing Guttman scaling techniques and multiple regressions analysis, three of five components of professionalism, “collegial maintenance of standards.” adherence to a “code of ethics” and “professional identification,” all emerged as significant differentiators of practitioners’ use of advertisements. In addition, several background factors, years in practice, specific occupation, and location of practice, also were found to be significantly related to professionals’ use of advertisements.     

Why “service”?

“Service-dominant logic” appears to have found resonance in the marketing community since its introduction as the evolving, “new dominant logic” in the Journal of Marketing (Vargo and Lusch 2004a, Journal of Marketing, 68, 1–17 (January)). But, on occasion, so has the question of whether the concept “service” captures the essence of the new logic. This article addresses the role of “service” as the heart of value-creation, exchange, markets, and marketing, as well as its considerable implications for research, practice, societal well-being, and public policy. The purposes are both to clarify the issues and to foster the continuing dialog around the service-dominant logic for marketing, as well as for other disciplines.     

Gender,income differences,and marketing: Examining the “earnings gap” in three areas of marketing

This research explores empirically a socioeconomic/equity issue that has been extensively investigated in many areas, but never marketing—the so-called “earnings gap.” Specifically, the study investigates income differences between men and women in marketing, while controlling for differences in business experience, level of education, corporate level, type of industry, and size of firm. The research focuses on three areas in marketing: (1) marketing management, (2) marketing research, and (3) advertising agency management. Findings indicate that there is an “earnings gap” for marketers. Importantly, however, the data show that a substantial portion of the gap can be explained by variables other than sex.     

An examination of the effects of perceived difficulty of manufacturing the extension product on brand extension attitudes

This paper examines the relationship between extension difficulty, defined as the perceived difficulty of manufacturing the extension product, and attitudes toward brand extensions. Although extant literature has hitherto modeled this relationship as a simple monotonic relationship, a study by Bottomley and Holden (Journal of Marketing Research, 38(4):494–500, 2001) has questioned its empirical generalizability. We suggest that the relationship between extension difficulty and extension attitudes may be far more complex than a simple linear relationship. Based on theoretical evidence drawn from the concept of evaluation difficulty, we suggest that the relationship between extension difficulty and extension attitudes is best modeled as a curvilinear (inverted U-shaped) relationship. Further, we explore the specific role of perceived transferability as a moderator of this curvilinear relationship. Empirical tests conducted using two studies provide support for both the theoretical mechanism and the proposed hypotheses. Entry into “easy” or “extremely difficult” extension categories carries its own penalties while entry into “moderately difficult” categories appears to garner high consumer attitudes for brand extensions.     

Marketing and the multinational: extending internalisation theory

Introducing marketing explicitly into the internalisation theory of the multinational enterprise considerably extends the power of the theory. In particular, it enables a comparison of marketing-led and technology-led multinationals and highlights the benefits of collaboration between them. It facilitates the analysis of outsourcing, and in particular of R&D. It highlights the importance to marketing-led firms of owning product rather than facilities. The analysis addresses key issues relating to “hollow firms”, “flagship firms” and the “global factory”.     

Rethinking marketing: Peter Drucker’s challenge

Just as Peter Drucker pointed out the importance of assessing whether a company’s “theory of business” is relevant, marketers need to consider whether the current “theory of marketing” still fits in a world of rapid change. The author examines how Drucker challenged the theory of business at financial services firm Edward Jones, helping to identify new market opportunities. For example, he urged the company to move into metropolitan areas, which now account for 60 percent of the firm’s business. The article then considers how the field of marketing needs to reexamine its own mental models. Finally, the article considers how Drucker’s seminal insights on marketing, particularly his emphasis on an interdisciplinary approach, might point the way to new approaches.