bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Truth in Marketing Theory and Research: An Alternative Perspective
Authors: Zinkhan George M. , Hirschheim Rudy
Published: November 2018

Numerous authors have discussed the possibility of a marketing science and have presented their visions to describe the characteristics of such a science. Fundamentally, these visions must come to grips with the idea of “truth” and the role truth plays in theory and research. In this article, the authors explore “truth in marketing science” by describing the essential problem of science in general and discussing the issues that shape the notion of a marketing science in particular. They note two limiting factors in viewing marketing as a science: (1) marketing as an applied field and (2) marketing's attempts to explain human behavior—a phenomenon that is mutable, unpredictable, and reactive. They propose a scientific realist perspective, which can be useful for describing some of the “scientific” explanations offered in the marketing literature.
Agency Relationships in Marketing: A Review of the Implications and Applications of Agency and Related Theories
Authors: Bergen Mark , Dutta Shantanu , Walker Orville C.
Published: November 2018

Agency and related theories have proven useful as theoretical frameworks for examining relationships between principals and their agents in many disciplines. However, though marketing involves a wide array of agency relationships, agency-based research has only recently begun to be reported in the marketing literature. The authors therefore attempt to clarify the marketing implications of agency theory by describing its major constructs, the two different types of models embedded within the theory, and some closely related theoretical structures. They also critically review past and potential agency-based research in marketing and suggest ways in which marketers might contribute to improving its validity and usefulness.
An Examination of Reseller Buyer Attitudes toward Order of Brand Entry
Authors: Alpert Frank H. , Kamins Michael A. , Graham John L.
Published: November 2018

A national survey of 145 reseller buyers was used to study how brand entry order into new categories affects reseller buyers’ attitudes toward new items. The literature on pioneer brand advantage is extended by finding empirical support for an advantage to pioneer brands with resellers. Also, an important distinction is found between the first me-too follower brand and second or later me-too follower brands. Specifically, reseller buyers have a very favorable attitude toward pioneer brands, a less favorable but still positive attitude toward first me-too follower brands, and an unfavorable attitude toward second or later me-too follower brands. An adaptation of the multiattribute attitude model (that of “importance-likelihood”) served as the psychological basis in an effort to explain how and why these attitudinal differences occurred. A causal model framework then was applied to the data to investigate the significant interrelationships between brand order of entry and reseller buyer beliefs, attitudes, and behavior. The theoretical and managerial implications of entry order effects are discussed.
The Emerging Role of Women in Industrial Selling: A Decade of Change
Authors: Schul Patrick L. , Wren Brent M.
Published: November 2018

The rapid influx of women into the industrial salesforce over the last decade has created a need to upgrade understanding of the female salesperson. The authors examine gender differences in job-related attitudes and performance outcomes in an integrated salesforce. Results showing few gender differences bring into question anecdotal suggestions that women require special programs to facilitate their assimilation into the salesforce. Specific recommendations are provided about individual treatment for both male and female salespeople.
A Catastrophe Model for Developing Service Satisfaction Strategies
Authors: Oliva Terence A. , Oliver Richard L. , MacMillan Ian C.
Published: November 2018

Customer satisfaction/dissatisfaction has become an important issue for marketing practitioners. The authors examine the issue in terms of customer service. In particular, practitioners and academicians have noted that simply investing in greater service delivery may not return the cost of the additional investment. Part of the problem is that customers’ response to service increments can be nonlinear, and satisfaction and dissatisfaction thresholds may not occur at the same point. The authors propose a method for analyzing this complex behavior in a way that can lead to the development of more accurate service strategies through an understanding of the relationships among customer-transaction costs, satisfaction, and purchase loyalty. They use a catastrophe model to describe a service loyalty customer-response surface. Then, by presenting a “real-world” application with a small service-quality customer dataset provided by General Electric Supply, they show how one actually estimates such a model and interprets the results.
The Development and Test of a Model of Transaction Negotiation
Authors: Rinehart Lloyd M. , Page Thomas J.
Published: November 2018

A model of the negotiation process is developed and tested on a sample of buyers and sellers of contract motor carrier services. Support is found for the relationships that indicate buyers and sellers perceive their actions and behaviors affect the actions and behaviors of the other party in the negotiation. The results suggest that integrative strategies are being used by both parties in these transactions to arrive at a mutually beneficial outcome. Some implications of these findings for managerial practice are presented.
First-Mover Advantage: A Synthesis, Conceptual Framework, and Research Propositions
Authors: Kerin Roger A. , Varadarajan P. Rajan , Peterson Robert A.
Published: November 2018

Numerous conceptual and empirical studies advance the notion that first movers achieve long-term competitive advantages. These studies purport to demonstrate the presence of a systematic direct relationship between order of entry for products, brands, or businesses and market share. However, an objective assessment of the literature suggests that this view must be qualified. A broadened perspective is presented that highlights the complexity of this phenomenon and suggests that first-mover status may or may not produce sustainable advantages because of a multiplicity of controllable and uncontrollable forces. A conceptual framework identifying factors that underlie first-mover advantage and product-market contingencies that moderate the order of entry-competitive advantage relationship is proffered. Several research propositions relevant for marketing theory and practice are presented.
A Model of Marketing Knowledge use within Firms
Authors: Menon Anil , Varadarajan P. Rajan
Published: November 2018

The process of knowledge utilization within firms has come to be viewed as an increasingly important area for research in light of its implications for organizational effectiveness. However, our current understanding of this phenomenon is limited because the process of knowledge use in organizations is complex and difficult to conceptualize and measure. Building on prior research in public policy, sociology, marketing, and other administrative disciplines, the authors first explicate the nature of knowledge utilization and propose a framework for circumscribing the concept of knowledge utilization. Next, using an emerging theoretical perspective on knowledge utilization, the “organizational” view, the authors present a conceptual model and research propositions that provide insights into informational and organizational factors that affect marketing knowledge utilization in firms.
Segmenting Customers in Mature Industrial Markets
Authors: Rangan V. Kasturi , Moriarty Rowland T. , Swartz Gordon S.
Published: November 2018

In mature industrial markets, segmenting customers on size, industry, or product benefits alone is rarely sufficient. Customer behavior in terms of tradeoffs between price and service is an important additional criterion. The authors offer a framework for such buying-behavior-oriented microsegmentation of industrial customers. They apply the framework to segment the national accounts of a large industrial company and show how the results of a segmentation study can be used to redirect the firm's resources and customer segments.
The 4P Classification of the Marketing Mix Revisited
Authors: van Waterschoot Walter , Van den Bulte Christophe
Published: November 2018

McCarthy's 4P classification of the marketing mix instruments has received wide acceptance in past decades. In recent years, however, increasing criticism has been voiced, among other reasons because of its inherent negative definition of sales promotion and its lack of mutual exclusiveness and collective exhaustiveness. The authors evaluate the 4P classification against the criteria proposed by Hunt and present an improved classification.
Theoretical Modeling in Marketing
Authors: Moorthy K. Sridhar
Published: November 2018

Over the last 10 years or so, theoretical modeling has rapidly become an important style of research in marketing. To many people, however, this style is still a mystery. This article is an attempt at explaining theoretical modeling. The author argues that even though theoretical modeling is quantitative, it is closer to behavioral marketing in purpose and methodology than to quantitative decision support modeling. Whereas behavioral marketing involves empirical experiments, theoretical modeling involves logical experiments. Using this framework, the author addresses such issues as the internal and external validity of theoretical models, the purpose of theoretical modeling, and the testing of model-based theories. The agency theory explanation of salesforce compensation is used as a case study.
Market Information Processing and Organizational Learning
Authors: Sinkula James M.
Published: November 2018

Our understanding of how organizations process market information can be advanced substantially on the basis of principles derived from models of organizational learning. Accordingly, the author examines the extant literature on organizational learning, proposes a hierarchy of market sense making, and provides research propositions that will enhance marketers’ understanding of information processing and knowledge creation in organizations.
Does Competitive Environment Moderate the Market Orientation-Performance Relationship?
Authors: Slater Stanley F. , Narver John C.
Published: November 2018

Recent studies have shown evidence of a positive relationship between market orientation and performance. However, some scholars have suggested that competitive environment could moderate this relationship. The authors investigate how competitive environment affects the strength of the market orientation-performance relationship and whether it affects the focus of the external emphasis within a market orientation—that is, a greater emphasis on customer analysis relative to competitor analysis, or vice versa, within a given magnitude of market orientation. Their results provide very limited support for a moderator role for competitive environment on the market orientation-performance relationship. The benefits of a market orientation are long term though environmental conditions are often transient, and thus being market oriented is cost-effective in spite of any possible short-term moderating effects of the environment.
Interorganizational Governance in Marketing Channels
Authors: Heide Jan B.
Published: November 2018

Relationship management rapidly is becoming a central research paradigm in the marketing channels literature. A growing body of conceptual and empirical literature addresses different aspects of interfirm relationships, building in part on recent theoretical developments in organization theory, law, and economics. Interestingly, however, some of these theoretical frameworks make radically different assumptions about the nature of interfirm relationships, though these differences to date have not been examined systematically in the marketing literature. The author reviews these theoretical perspectives and develops a formal typology of approaches to relationship management. Specifically, he develops a typology of three different forms of governance, which vary systematically in terms of how specific interfirm processes are carried out. He also discusses the antecendents of different relationship forms and shows the results of a preliminary empirical test.
Expectations as a Comparison Standard in Measuring Service Quality: An Assessment of a Reassessment
Authors: Teas R. Kenneth
Published: November 2018

The author responds to issues raised by Parasuraman, Zeithaml, and Berry (1994) concerning his 1993 article that outlines theoretical and operational problems associated with the SERVQUAL model of perceived service quality. Because theoretical problems and ambiguities must be resolved before operational issues can be addressed effectively, his response focuses on the Parasuraman, Zeithaml, and Berry (1994) comments concerning (1) the theoretical problems associated with the SERVQUAL P – E model and (2) the Teas (1993) evaluated performance (EP) and normed quality (NQ) models. In addition, he assesses the theoretical merit of the Parasuraman, Zeithaml, and Berry (1994) SERVQUAL “mixed-model.” His primary conclusions are that the conclusions reached by Parasuraman, Zeithaml, and Berry (1994) with respect to the Teas (1993) EP and NQ models are incorrect and that the proposed SERVQUAL mixed-model is merely a restricted version of (i.e., a re-expression that is less general than) the Teas (1993) NQ model.
Determinants of Long-Term Orientation in Buyer-Seller Relationships
Authors: Ganesan Shankar
Published: November 2018

Marketing managers must know the time orientation of a customer to select and use marketing tools that correspond to the time horizons of the customer. Insufficient understanding of a customer's time orientation can lead to problems, such as attempting a relationship marketing when transaction marketing is more appropriate. The author suggests that long-term orientation in a buyer/seller relationship is a function of two main factors: mutual dependence and the extent to which they trust one another. Dependence and trust are related to environmental uncertainty, transaction-specific investments, reputation, and satisfaction in a buyer/seller relationship. The framework presented here is tested with 124 retail buyers and 52 vendors supplying to those retailers. The results indicate that trust and dependence play key roles in determining the long-term orientation of both retail buyers and their vendors. The results also indicate that both similarities and differences exist across retailers and vendors with respect to the effects of several variables on long-term orientation, dependence, and trust.
UPC Scanner Pricing Systems: Are They Accurate?
Authors: Goodstein Ronald C.
Published: November 2018

The author empirically examines the efficiency of scanner checkout systems by calculating the rates of underrings and overrings occurring in stores employing scanner systems. Actual purchases were used to calculate error rates across three shopping trips to each of 15 stores. The results reveal that both underring and overring rates are significantly higher than retailers’ expectations. Though these rates are equivalent across regular-priced purchases, they systematically favor the retailer for purchases of advertised specials and items on end-of-aisle displays. The author discusses the implications of these findings for retailers, consumers, researchers, and public policymakers.
Managerial Representations of Competitive Advantage
Authors: Day George S. , Nedungadi Prakash
Published: November 2018

Managers use mental models of markets to simplify and impose order on complex and ambiguous competitive environments and isolate points of competitive advantage or deficiency. In this study of senior managers of 190 businesses, the authors found four different types of mental models or representations of competitive advantage, varying in the emphasis placed on customer or management judgments about where and how competitors differ. These representations were influenced equally by pressure points in the environment and choice of strategy. The type of representation was also strongly associated with constrained patterns of information search and usage, raising the possibility that the necessary simplifications and narrowing of perspective may come at the cost of myopia and insensitivity to challenges from unexpected directions. There was also a strong association between the completeness of the managerial representation and relative financial performance, which supports related studies on the profitability of a market orientation.
The Effect of Effort on Sales Performance and Job Satisfaction
Authors: Brown Steven P. , Peterson Robert A.
Published: November 2018

The authors address a fundamental gap in understanding how sales performance and job satisfaction are determined in an investigation of the sales force of a direct-selling organization. Results indicate a direct positive effect of work-related effort on job satisfaction that is not mediated by sales performance. This is inconsistent with commonly accepted theoretical models and suggests that the perspective of work as a “terminal value” (i.e., an end in itself, rather than strictly a means to an end) has been underemphasized in models of work behavior. As such, either (1) measures of sales performance should be broadened to encompass the terminal value perspective on the psychological value of work or (2) conceptual models should be revised to reflect that narrowly defined measures of sales performance do not completely mediate the effect of effort on job satisfaction. The authors conclude with a discussion of managerial implications of these findings.
Learning Orientation, Working Smart, and Effective Selling
Authors: Sujan Harish , Weitz Barton A. , Kumar Nirmalya
Published: November 2018

Learning and performance goal orientations, two motivational orientations that guide salespeople's behavior, are related to working smart and hard. Working smart is defined as the engagement in activities that serve to develop knowledge of sales situations and utilize this knowledge in selling behavior. It is found that a learning goal orientation motivates working both smart and hard, whereas a performance goal orientation motivates only working hard. The goal orientations also are found to be alterable through supervisory feedback. Furthermore, self-efficacy, salespeople's confidence in their overall selling abilities, is found to moderate some of the relationships with the goal orientations.
The Interface between Competitive Market Signaling and Antitrust Law
Authors: Heil Oliver P. , Langvardt Arien W.
Published: November 2018

The authors examine the antitrust implications of certain market behavior, using recent findings from research on competitive market signaling. They show that certain behavior of a firm that is sometimes thought to raise antitrust concerns should be viewed as a natural and permissible facet of competitive interplay in the market. Conversely, they identify other market behavior that should be viewed with much more caution due to the antitrust risks of such behavior. The authors offer new perspectives on the motives and intentions that drive market behavior but may or may not raise antitrust concerns. They also show how competitive signaling research holds considerable promise for a better understanding of when serious antitrust issues are or are not triggered by particular market actions.
Dyadic Business Relationships within a Business Network Context
Authors: Anderson James C. , Håkansson Håkan , Johanson Jan
Published: November 2018

In business-to-business settings, dyadic relationships between firms are of paramount interest. Recent developments in business practice strongly suggest that to understand these business relationships, greater attention must be directed to the embedded context within which dyadic business relationships take place. The authors provide a means for understanding the connectedness of these relationships. They then conduct a substantive validity assessment to furnish some empirical support that the constructs they propose are sufficiently well delineated and to generate some suggested measures for them. They conclude with a prospectus for research on business relationships within business networks.
Performance, Attribution, and Expectancy Linkages in Personal Selling
Authors: Johnston Wesley J. , Kim Keysuk
Published: November 2018

The authors examine the relationships among performance, causal attribution, and the expectancy component of sales force motivation through the measurement and manipulation of components of a proposed conceptual framework. They conducted one field survey, two laboratory experiments, and one field experiment to test hypothesized effects. The results generally support the hypotheses, indicating that causal attributions can either raise or lower expectancy, depending on certain underlying conditions. The results also suggest that salespeople's prior experience may moderate the effect of attribution on expectancy change. These findings have important implications for sales managers as coaches and trainers.
Critical Service Encounters: The Employee's Viewpoint
Authors: Bitner Mary Jo , Booms Bernard H. , Mohr Lois A.
Published: November 2018

In service settings, customer satisfaction is often influenced by the quality of the interpersonal interaction between the customer and the contact employee. Previous research has identified the sources of satisfaction and dissatisfaction in service encounters from the customer's point of view; this study explores these sources in service encounters from the contact employee's point of view. Drawing on insights from role, script, and attribution theories, 774 critical service encounters reported by employees of the hotel, restaurant, and airline industries are analyzed and compared with previous research. Results generally support the theoretical predictions and also identify an additional source of customer dissatisfaction—the customer's own misbehavior. The findings have implications for business practice in managing service encounters, employee empowerment and training, and managing customers.
Long-Term Manufacturer-Supplier Relationships: Do They Pay off for Supplier Firms?
Authors: Kalwani Manohar U. , Narayandas Narakesari
Published: November 2018

Recently, there has been a growing trend toward long-term relationships between manufacturers and their suppliers. Although much as been written about the benefits of this shift to manufacturers, little is known about the benefits to supplier firms. In this study, we empirically assess the impact of long-term relationships with specific customers on the performance of supplier firms using cross-sectional and longitudinal information available in the Compustat collection of data bases and the Compact Disclosure data base. Our results indicate that maintaining long-term relationships with select customers does not come at the expense of the rate of sales growth. Suppliers in long-term relationships are able to achieve the same level of growth as firms that employ a transactional approach to servicing their customers. These suppliers are able to reduce costs over time through better inventory utilization; however, this reduction in cost seems to be bargained away by their customers through lower prices over time. Finally, the supplier firms in long-term relationships achieve higher profitability by differentially reducing their discretionary expenses such as selling, general, and administrative overhead costs to a greater extent than their counterparts who use a transactional approach to servicing their customers.
Software Piracy: Estimation of Lost Sales and the Impact on Software Diffusion
Authors: Givon Moshe , Mahajan Vijay , Muller Eitan
Published: November 2018

Software piracy by users has been identified as the worst problem facing the software industry today. Software piracy permits the shadow diffusion of a software parallel to its legal diffusion in the marketplace, increasing its user base over time. Because of this software shadow diffusion, a software firm loses potential profits, access to a significant proportion of the software user base, opportunities for cross-selling, and marketing its other products and new generations of the software. However, shadow diffusion may influence the legal diffusion of the software. Software pirates may influence potential software users to adopt the software, and some of these adopters may become buyers. A diffusion modeling approach is suggested to track shadow diffusion and the legal diffusion of a software over time. The approach enables management to estimate (1) the pirated adoptions over time and (2) the percentage of legal adoptions due to the influence of pirates. The modeling approach is applied to study the diffusion of two types of software (spreadsheets and word processors) in the United Kingdom. The results suggest that although six of every seven software users utilized pirated copies, these pirates were responsible for generating more than 80% of new software buyers, thereby significantly influencing the legal diffusion of the software. The implications of these results are discussed.
The Evolution of First Amendment Protection for Commercial Speech
Authors: Boedecker Karl A. , Morgan Fred W. , Wright Linda Berns
Published: November 2018

During the past 15 years, the U.S. Supreme Court has used Central Hudson Gas v. Public Service Commission (1980) to expand significantly the power of the government at all levels to regulate advertising and other promotional activities. As a result, first amendment protection for commercial speech has steadily diminished. In this article, Supreme Court decisions subsequent to Central Hudson are reviewed to provide an update of Cohen's (1978) work. In addition, the current standard for identifying commercial speech is analyzed, and managerial recommendations are made to guide managers who are responsible for making promotional decisions in this increasingly restricted area.
Organizing for Effective New Product Development: The Moderating Role of Product Innovativeness
Authors: Olson Eric M. , Walker Orville C. , Ruekert Robert W.
Published: November 2018

Marketing and sales personnel are frequently called on to work with—and sometimes to lead—specialists from other functional areas in the development of new products and services. Such cross-functional interactions can be structured and coordinated in a variety of ways, from bureaucratic approaches to more decentralized participatory mechanisms. Recently, cross-functional team structures have received a great deal of positive press. However, this paper questions whether teams are a universal panacea for shortening development times and improving success rates across all types of projects. It presents a contingency model based on resource dependency theory, which suggests that more participative structures are likely to improve the effectiveness and timeliness of the development process when the product being developed is truly new and innovative. However, the model also predicts that more bureaucratic structures may produce better outcomes on less innovative projects, such as those involving line extensions or product improvements. An empirical test involving 45 projects from 12 firms in widely varying industries substantially supports the model's predictions. The findings indicate that the better the fit between the newness of the product concept and the participativeness of the coordination mechanism used the better the outcomes of the development process in terms of (1) objective measures of product and team performance, (2) the attitudes of team members toward the process, and (3) the efficiency and timeliness of the new product development process.
Stock Market Reactions to Brand Extension Announcements: The Effects of Brand Attitude and Familiarity
Authors: Lane Vicki , Jacobson Robert
Published: November 2018

Brand equity components, brand attitude and brand name familiarity, influence not only the positive benefits but also the adverse consequences that follow brand leveraging. Making use of event study methods, the authors assess whether and how the stock market return—a measure of the change in expected future cash flows—associated with a brand extension announcement depends on these brand equity components. The empirical analysis indicates that stock market participants’ responses to brand extension announcements, consistent with the trade-offs inherent in brand leveraging, depend interactively and nonmonotonically on brand attitude and familiarity.
Exonerating Unethical Marketing Executive Behaviors: A Diagnostic Framework
Authors: Mascarenhas Oswald A. J.
Published: November 2018

Although unethical marketing behaviors of corporations have been studied and some normative frameworks suggested for judging their ethicality, no research has focused on assessing individual responsibilities of marketing executives for the consequences of their unethical actions. The author identifies major factors that exonerate executive responsibility and those that enhance. He derives ten testable research propositions that constitute the framework for the diagnostic model. The model challenges marketing executives to go beyond legal and attributional responsibilities to appropriational responsibilities of commitment to consumers they serve.
Customer Switching Behavior in Service Industries: An Exploratory Study
Authors: Keaveney Susan M.
Published: November 2018

Customer switching behavior damages market share and profitability of service firms yet has remained virtually unexplored in the marketing literature. The author reports results of a critical incident study conducted among more than 500 service customers. The research identifies more than 800 critical behaviors of service firms that caused customers to switch services. Customers’ reasons for switching services were classified into eight general categories. The author then discusses implications for further model development and offers recommendations for managers of service firms.
Seeking the Ideal Form: Product Design and Consumer Response
Authors: Bloch Peter H.
Published: November 2018

The physical form or design of a product is an unquestioned determinant of its marketplace success. A good design attracts consumers to a product, communicates to them, and adds value to the product by increasing the quality of the usage experiences associated with it. Nevertheless, the topic of product design is rarely, if ever, encountered in marketing journals. To bring needed attention to the subject of product design and enable researchers to better investigate design issues, the author introduces a conceptual model and several propositions that describe how the form of a product relates to consumers’ psychological and behavioral responses. After presenting this model, the author describes numerous strategic implications and research directions.
Vendor Consideration and Switching Behavior for Buyers in High-Technology Markets
Authors: Heide Jan B. , Weiss Allen M.
Published: November 2018

High-technology markets represent unique problems for organizational buyers and, in turn, for their existing and potential vendors. These problems are due to high levels of uncertainty and the presence of switching costs tied to existing technologies or vendors. The authors focus on two aspects of buyer decision making in such markets: (1) whether buyers include new vendors at the consideration stage of the process and (2) whether they switch to new vendors at the choice stage. Using survey data from organizational buyers’ purchases of computer workstation equipment, the authors present a joint test of the antecedent conditions that influence the two processes. Based on a sequential logit model, they show that individual antecedents have different effects on consideration and switching behavior. The authors then discuss the implications of their study for the literatures on high-technology markets and organizational buyer behavior.
A Framework for Entry Deterrence Strategy: The Competitive Environment, Choices, and Consequences
Authors: Gruca Thomas S. , Sudharshan D.
Published: November 2018

On the basis of an extensive review of the literature, the authors have developed a framework of entry deterrence strategy. The major aspects of this framework are the interconnected elements of the competitive environment, the choice of entry deterrence strategy, ranging from strategies involving a single element of the marketing mix to corporate-level strategies; and the consequences that both the strategy choice and subsequent entry decision have for the incumbent. The authors’ framework explicitly acknowledges the role of perceptions in signal detection, interpretation, and decision making in the development of entry deterrence strategy. With their framework as a focal point, they review the extant literature to make it accessible to a wider audience and provide guidance for further research.
Entry Strategy and Long-Term Performance: Conceptualization and Empirical Examination
Authors: Green Donna H. , Barclay Donald W. , Ryans Adrian B.
Published: November 2018

A product entry strategy—the timing of entry, the magnitude of investment at entry, and the area of competitive emphasis at entry—affects long-term performance in the marketplace. The authors develop the Entry Strategy Performance Model (ESPM) and propose an encompassing framework for product entry strategy research. They empirically test a research model derived from the ESPM through an examination and replication in the microcomputer software market. The authors’ significant findings are that initial competitive positioning and media coverage (an atypical market characteristic) drive long-term performance.
An Empirical Investigation of Consumer Memory, Attitude, and Perceptions toward Pioneer and Follower Brands
Authors: Alpert Frank H. , Kamins Michael A.
Published: November 2018

The authors’ study provides the first survey-based approach for examining consumer cognitions, affect, and reported behavior toward pioneer brands. Prior consumer research on pioneers has largely focused on automatic learning effects that are based on order of exposure. An entirely different issue is whether it matters to consumers to know, years after the product's introduction when follower brands are also available, that a particular brand was the product pioneer. The authors test six hypotheses, focusing on this issue as well as on new consumer behavior explanations for pioneer brand advantage. They find consumers to have a positive attitude toward pioneer brands in general, which is partially explained by their favorable perceptions of pioneer brands. In addition, a similarity is found between pioneer brand image and individual ideal self-image, which suggests that an association or desire for consistency between the two may be another explanation for favorable attitude and positive purchase intentions toward pioneer brands. The authors’ findings support the idea that a potentially enduring, relatively inimitable competitive advantage may be created by the act of “pioneership.”
Understanding the Bond of Identification: An Investigation of its Correlates among Art Museum Members
Authors: Bhattacharya C. B. , Rao Hayagreeva , Glynn Mary Ann
Published: November 2018

Identification is defined as the “perceived oneness with or belongingness to an organization” of which the person is a member. The authors propose that customers, in their role as members, identify with organizations. They use social identity theory to propose and test a model that relates members’ identification with the focal organization to (1) organizational and product characteristics, (2) members’ affiliation characteristics, and (3) members’ activity characteristics. Their empirical setting consists of the members of an art museum. Their survey findings show that members’ identification is positively related to perceived organizational prestige, donating activity, tenure of membership, visiting frequency, and confirmation of member expectations with the organization's services. However, members’ participation in similar organizations is negatively related to identification with the focal organization. The authors discuss how this study can be extended to other marketing contexts and how managers can use the notion of identification in implementing marketing strategies.
The Relationship between Cartoon Trade Character Recognition and Attitude toward Product Category in Young Children
Authors: Mizerski Richard
Published: November 2018

The author reviews and tests the effect of cartoon trade characters on product recognition and attitude on a sample of children three to six years of age. High levels of product and trade character recognition were found, including that of Joe Camel and the Marlboro Man with cigarettes. The recognition of select trade characters tended to increase with the age of the child. The level of recognition and favorable attitude toward the product were positively associated with age except for cigarettes. The attitude for cigarettes and matches were negatively associated with age. Because the possibility of demand artifacts cannot be ruled out, these findings must be interpreted with caution.
The Relationship between Retail Price Promotions and Regular Price Purchases
Authors: Mulhern Francis J. , Padgett Daniel T.
Published: November 2018

Retailers offer temporary price promotions to attract shoppers to stores and encourage them to purchase regular price merchandise. Existing research has found little evidence that price promotions affect regular price sales, possibly because published studies have not directly examined individual purchase baskets to determine if shoppers buying promoted items also purchase regular price items. The authors match actual purchases of individual shoppers with an in-store survey to determine the relationship between regular price and promotion purchasing. The results show a significant, positive relationship between regular price and promotion purchases. Among shoppers who identify the promotion as one of their reasons for visiting the store, three-fourths make regular price purchases. On average, these shoppers spend more money on regular price merchandise than on promotion merchandise. Also, the results show that shoppers visiting the store for the promotion are no less profitable to the store than other shoppers.
Advertising Strategies to Increase Usage Frequency
Authors: Wansink Brian , Ray Michael L.
Published: November 2018

Interest has been shifting from how consumers choose brands to how they use brands. The authors focus on how advertising can best encourage consumers to use a mature brand in a new situation. They develop a schema congruity framework that integrates comparison advertising with substitution-in-use research. The framework suggests that situation comparison ads favorably affect usage attitudes, but have no advantage over product comparison ads in enhancing a person's ability to recall the target brand in the target situation. The authors’ empirical study shows increases in brand usage. The authors conclude with implications for brand managers and researchers.
Emerging Role of Technology Licensing in the Development of Global Product Strategy: Conceptual Framework and Research Propositions
Authors: Kotabe Masaaki , Sahay Arvind , Aulakh Preet S.
Published: November 2018

In the context of mode of entry into new markets, existing theory tends to identify technology licensing as a step toward or an alternative to wholly owned subsidiaries. However, recent trends in technology licensing indicate that technology licensing is used increasingly as a conscious, proactive component of a technology-based firm's global product strategy. The authors present a conceptual framework from the licensor's perspective on technology licensing by combining the existing literature and licensing practices in industry to identify the antecedent product market, industry level, and resource-based factors that lead to technology licensing. They also present propositions on how these factors affect technology licensing and conclude by linking technology licensing to different dimensions of a firm's product strategy.
The Last Straw? Cigarette Advertising and Realized Market Shares among Youths and Adults, 1979–1993
Authors: Pollay Richard W. , Siddarth S. , Siegel Michael , Haddix Anne , Merritt Robert K. , Giovino Gary A. , Eriksen Michael P.
Published: November 2018

The authors test the hypotheses that parameters of advertising sensitivity for adolescents are significant and perhaps larger than those for adults. Cigarette brand shares of advertising voice are found to be significantly related to realized market shares, with advertising sensitivity being about three times larger among teenagers than among adults. This result is robust to various analytic assumptions and converges with strategic analysis, consumer behavior theory and research, econometric metanalyses, historical research, and corporate documents. The authors argue that cigarette competition between firms is predominated by the battle of brands for market share among the young, and assertions to the contrary, without supporting evidence, should be treated with scholarly skepticism.
The Behavioral Consequences of Service Quality
Authors: Zeithaml Valarie A. , Berry Leonard L. , Parasuraman A.
Published: November 2018

If service quality relates to retention of customers at the aggregate level, as other research has indicated, then evidence of its impact on customers’ behavioral responses should be detectable. The authors offer a conceptual model of the impact of service quality on particular behaviors that signal whether customers remain with or defect from a company. Results from a multicompany empirical study examining relationships from the model concerning customers’ behavioral intentions show strong evidence of their being influenced by service quality. The findings also reveal differences in the nature of the quality-intentions link across different dimensions of behavioral intentions. The authors’ discussion centers on ways the results and research approach of their study can be helpful to researchers and managers.
Improving the Store Environment: Do Olfactory Cues Affect Evaluations and Behaviors?
Authors: Spangenberg Eric R. , Crowley Ayn E. , Henderson Pamela W.
Published: November 2018

The popular press has recently reported that managers of retail and service outlets are diffusing scents into their stores to create more positive environments and develop a competitive advantage. These efforts are occurring despite there being no scholarly research supporting the use of scent in store environments. The authors present a review of theoretically relevant work from environmental psychology and olfaction research and a study examining the effects of ambient scent in a simulated retail environment. In the reported study, the authors find a difference between evaluations of and behaviors in a scented store environment and those in an unscented store environment. Their findings provide guidelines for managers of retail and service outlets concerning the benefits of scenting store environments.
What to Tell Consumers in Waits of Different Lengths: An Integrative Model of Service Evaluation
Authors: Hui Michael K. , Tse David K.
Published: November 2018

The authors conduct an experimental study to examine the impact of two types of waiting information—waiting-duration information and queuing information—on consumers’ reactions to waits of different lengths. The authors test a model that includes three different constructs—perceived waiting duration, acceptability of the wait, and affective response to the wait—as mediators between waiting information and service evaluation. Results show that though acceptability of the wait and affective response to the wait have a significant mediating effect on the relationship between waiting information and service evaluation, perceived waiting duration does not. Moreover, neither type of information has significant impact in the short-wait condition, whereas waiting-duration information has greater impact than queuing information in the intermediate-wait condition and a smaller impact in the long-wait condition. The authors conclude with a discussion of research and managerial implications.
Price Search in the Retail Grocery Market
Authors: Urbany Joel E. , Dickson Peter R. , Kalapurakal Rosemary
Published: November 2018

The literature has produced an incomplete understanding of factors explaining the variance in price search in markets in which search is a regularly occurring activity. The authors develop a model of price search in the retail grocery industry by expanding the classic cost-benefit model and integrating psychosocial returns and concepts from human capital theory. The results indicate that prior investment search and market mavenism explain significant amounts of variance in price- and specials-related search, respectively, beyond that accounted for by economic costs and returns. The authors further explore the habitual nature of price search in this industry, consider the implications of the social value of price-specials information, and discuss the indirect impact of demographic characteristics. They consider implications for pricing strategy and competition, including reasons why previous research has found that executives overestimate consumer price search.
Marketing Controls and Dysfunctional Employee Behaviors: A Test of Traditional and Contingency Theory Postulates
Authors: Ramaswami Sridhar N.
Published: November 2018

The author examines two different theories—traditional and contingency—of negative employee responses to marketing control systems. Traditional control theory draws on the humanistic perspective to suggest that controls have negative consequences because they limit employee autonomy and signal a lack of trust in employees. Contingency theory, on the other hand, posits that employee response depends on the degree to which the control used fits the job context. The author examines two types of job contexts, namely, task and supervision. Tasks are characterized along two dimensions, namely, performance documentation and procedural knowledge. Supervision is captured by three factors—the degree to which employees perceive that they are allowed to participate, that supervisors are knowledgeable about their performance, and that supervisors are considerate. Using dysfunctional behaviors as the focal negative response, the author finds stronger support for the traditional perspective compared with the contingency perspective.
Can Package Size Accelerate Usage Volume?
Authors: Wansink Brian
Published: November 2018

Packaging influences usage behavior long after it has influenced purchase. Managers of consumer packaged goods and public policy officials have, therefore, questioned whether a package's size influences usage volume. Although often assumed, it has never been supported. Four laboratory studies and a final study in a Laundromat identify circumstances in which larger package sizes encourage greater use than do smaller package sizes. Unit cost is a key factor mediating this relationship. After noting useful implications for decisions regarding package size portfolios, sales promotions, and public policy, the author concludes by identifying other important but overlooked factors that increase usage volume and provide research opportunities.