bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Advertising regulation and market drivers
Authors: Parsons Andrew G. , Schumacher Christoph 
Published: November 2012

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the regulation of advertising by considering market‐driven firms (those seeking to keep within the boundaries set by social and industry norms) and market drivers (those seeking to stretch boundaries to gain a competitive advantage). Thought is also given to the costs of regulation and tolerance to the social purse, and the benefits gained by compliance and violation.Design/methodology/approachThe authors develop a conceptual argument for boundary stretching where market drivers are present in a marketplace dominated by market‐driven firms. The authors then apply a game theory model to examine the conditions, the firm responses, and Government responses. In doing so the authors investigate incentives for non‐compliant behavior in a self‐regulated market and show that a firm can achieve a market advantage by stretching advertising boundaries.FindingsResults suggest that when government takes a “wait‐and‐see” approach of partial tolerance, then the market driver can become the focal point for the market‐driven, and a shift will take place in the regulatory boundary. If the government is the boundary shifter then social engineers are taking advantage of artificial boundaries they know will not be enforced, with implications for campaigns such as drink‐driving, smoking, and domestic violence. Also, the market driver will gain a competitive advantage by entering a market‐driven marketplace through boundary shifts, even after incurring an initial penalty.Research limitations/implicationsThe research demonstrates a need for research into marketing regulation to consider firm types, violation types, and tolerance levels. The study contributes to our understanding of marketer activity with two implications; first the firm is shifting the boundaries and redefining the market focal point as themselves, rather than violating the boundaries and setting themselves outside the rules. Second, depending on the level of tolerance that government has with the regulation of advertising, there is a cost to both the social purse and to market‐driven firms associated with boundary shifters.Practical implicationsA market driver, looking for growth opportunities, should try to enter markets dominated by market‐driven firms, and which have self‐regulation, while market driven firms should either look for regulatory protection or act collectively to wield power over third parties – for example forcing media outlets not to carry market driver advertising.Originality/valueBy introducing the concept of boundary stretching and allowing for market drivers and market driven firms, the authors show the effects of regulation (or tolerance) in a realistic setting and allow for the real‐world dynamics of a marketplace where new ideas create new focal points for social acceptance. This study also provides a clear illustration of the usefulness of game theory in marketing studies.
Impact of brand‐building activities and retailer‐based brand equity on retailer brand communities
Authors: Samu Sridhar , Krishnan Lyndem Preeti , Litz Reginald A. 
Published: November 2012

PurposeRetailer brand communities exist between a franchisor brand and individual retailers, with retailer‐based brand equity and brand‐building activities being key drivers of their success. This paper aims to introduce retailer‐based brand equity and examine its relationship with brand‐building activities and retailer brand community.Design/methodology/approachIndividual stores in a variable format franchise from the retail hardware industry were studied at annual conventions in two North American cities. Hypotheses were tested using structural equation modeling and regression.FindingsResults show that retailer‐based brand equity mediates the relationship between brand‐building activities and brand community identification and demonstrates the importance of branding in retailing contexts. The franchisee's continuation as part of the retailer brand community is influenced by the retailer‐based brand equity, with increased identification leading to increased purchase and higher performance.Research limitations/implicationsThe practical demands of the field study constrained the ability to examine other issues relevant to this research. There is also need to develop and refine further the items that measure the relationships.Practical implicationsIncreased brand‐building activities do not automatically translate into higher commitment by franchisees, and franchisors need to increase the value of the brand. Engaging the franchisee as a member of the brand community has important outcomes for both parties. While franchisor brands benefit through increased sales, franchisees benefit through increased profit.Originality/valueThis is the first paper that has applied brand community principles to understand the franchisor‐franchisee relationship. The results from a field study have important implications for both brand building and franchising areas.
Marketing‐orientated pricing
Authors: Jobber David , Shipley David 
Published: November 2012

PurposeThe paper aims to test seven marketing‐orientated factors that have the potential to discriminate between the setting of successful high and low prices. The significant factors are then applied by means of a decision support model that can be used by managers to aid their price decision‐making.Design/methodology/approachFollowing exploratory research, a mail survey was conducted using a questionnaire based on the dual scenario technique.FindingsSix marketing‐orientated factors – i.e. ability of customers to pay, brand value, degree of competition, price acting as a barrier to entry, demand compared to supply, and the use of a building market share objective – significantly discriminated between the use of successful high versus low price strategies. Using these variables, a highly statistically significant model was developed based on discriminant analysis.Research limitations/implicationsThe sample excludes services and is based on responses from managers. Cost‐orientated factors were excluded from investigation to provide focus. The study demonstrates the potential for using the dual scenario technique in survey research, provides measures for seven constructs and highlights the dangers of using reverse‐polarity items to measure constructs.Practical implicationsThe decision support model can be used by managers to aid their price decision‐making. The significant factors can also be helpful in market segmentation and targeting analysis.Originality/valueThe study supports a marketing‐orientated theory of price determination based on market, customer and competitor factors. It is the first to provide a systematic and cogent analysis of marketing‐orientated variables that have the potential to affect the high versus low pricing decision. By applying these variables in a decision support model, marketers have access to a tool that can aid their marketing decision‐making.
The effectiveness of casual advergames on adolescents' brand attitudes
Authors: Redondo Ignacio 
Published: November 2012

PurposeDespite the proliferation of casual advergames on web sites, there is relatively little scientific evidence on which product‐placement qualities and individual consumer characteristics allow a positive affect transfer from game to brand. The purpose of this paper was to examine the influence of placement conspicuousness, exposure duration, and player gender in an experiment with Spanish‐speaking adolescents under real‐world conditions.Design/methodology/approachThree versions of a casual advergame were created and posted on the popular web site www.jetix.es. Two of the versions embedded ads for M&M chocolate candy, each of which had a different degree of conspicuousness (less versus more conspicuous), and the third version showed no brand placement at all and was used as the control condition. The versions were randomly assigned to 405 participants, and changes in their attitudes to M&Ms were measured.FindingsThe positive affect induced by the casual advergame transferred to M&Ms when it was not inhibited by negative reactions to the brand placement. The transfer of affect occurred after both a brief exposure to the prominent placement and a long exposure to the subtle placement, but no transfer was observed under the opposite set of conditions. Significant transfer in female adolescents but the absence of transfer in their male counterparts suggests a strong gender bias.Practical implicationsThere are two implications for marketers who want to persuade adolescents through casual advergames. First, these marketers should segment their casual advergames by designing subtle placements for games with lasting appeal and prominent placements for games with brief appeal. Second, to strengthen male adolescents' brand preferences, marketers should not focus on casual advergames but search for more appropriate entertainment vehicles.Originality/valueThe theoretical framework relies on an unprecedented combination of classical conditioning and psychological reactance theories. The results are of interest for marketers trying to persuade adolescents as well as for public policy advocates trying to protect this vulnerable target group.
Cross‐national differences in e‐WOM influence
Authors: Christodoulides George , Michaelidou Nina , Argyriou Evmorfia 
Published: November 2012

PurposeThis paper aims to present a cross‐national study that investigates changes in purchase intentions of UK versus Chinese consumers following exposure to successive e‐WOM comments in the form of positive and negative user reviews for experience versus search products.Design/methodology/approachA 2(e‐WOM valence and order: negative versus positive most recent)×2(product type: experience versus search)×3(purchase intentions at t1, t2, t3) repeated‐measures factorial design is used to test a set of hypotheses developed from the literature.FindingsChinese consumers are susceptible to recent e‐WOM comments regardless of their valence, while UK consumers anchor on negative information regardless of the order in which it is acquired. This holds particularly for experience products.Originality/valueThis cross‐national study contributes to the scarce literature on the impact of e‐WOM on consumer purchase decisions by comparing UK and Chinese consumers. The authors suggest that culture moderates the development of product evaluations following exposure to e‐WOM.
When implicit promises override explicit promises
Authors: Steinhart Yael 
Published: November 2012

PurposeThe current research aims to explore the differential effects of bundling products with guarantees (explicit promises of product performance) or with diagnostic kits (kits that allow the user to measure actual product performance) on pre‐purchase product evaluations. It is proposed that when product performance evaluation relies on external sources of information, the effect of a guarantee exceeds the effect of a self‐diagnostic kit. However, when product performance evaluation relies on internal information or self‐reports, product evaluations are better leveraged by an offer of a diagnostic kit than by a guarantee.Design/methodology/approachThe first study examines the differential effects of guarantees and of diagnostic kits on pre‐purchase evaluations of hypothetical products as a function of the mode of evaluation of product performance (internal versus external information sources). The second study explores these effects on pre‐purchase evaluations of actual products, and further includes a control condition.FindingsThe findings confirm the hypothesis that a guarantee (diagnostic kit) leads to higher product evaluations than a diagnostic kit (guarantee) when product performance evaluation relies on external (internal) sources of information.Originality/valueThe relative benefits of bundling guarantees or diagnostic kits to product offers have not been examined to date. The current research not only demonstrates this relative effect and its underlying mechanism, but also identifies the product attributes that contribute to this effect.
The relative performance of TV sponsorship versus television spot advertising
Authors: Olson Erik L. , Mathias Thjømøe Hans 
Published: November 2012

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to compare the relative performance of TV sponsorships with the industry standard 30‐second TV spot advertising on achieving common communication goals.Design/methodology/approachThe two media are tested with an experiment using realistic stimuli and target market representative samples and employing six brands as both TV sponsors and TV advertisers.FindingsTen seconds of TV sponsoring works almost equally as well as 30‐second spots across all measures and brands. While the outright performance differs by type of brand (i.e. high fit versus lower fit, known versus unknown), the relative performance between media does not vary.Research limitations/implicationsThe stimuli only gave subjects a brief exposure to each medium. The six stimuli brands, four effect measures, and the Norwegian sample may also not be representative for all types of TV sponsoring/advertising contexts.Practical implicationsMarketing managers can use the results to better allocate their communication spending between TV spot advertising and TV sponsorships, by determining which medium offers better value in achieving communication goals.Originality/valueTo the authors' knowledge, the comparison is the most realistic and controlled experiment in this area, with high levels of internal and external validity.
European football teams' CSR engagement impacts on customer‐based brand equity
Authors: Blumrodt Jens , Bryson Douglas , Flanagan John 
Published: November 2012

PurposeBrand management is a central issue for the sports industry in general, and professional football clubs (usually called soccer teams in the USA) are the archetypal branded sport in that industry; the brand is their most important asset. Match attendance equates with financial return; patently it is a preoccupation of senior management. Metrics of brand performance need be up to date, and include contemporary issues such as corporate social responsibility (CSR) as a reflection of consumer expectations. This paper aims to address these issues.Design/methodology/approachThe methodology aims to evaluate consumers' perceptions and purchase behaviours. A sample survey of consumers' brand evaluations has been collected and factor and regression analyses have been employed.FindingsRecent models based on Keller's conceptual approach have not emphasized the evolution of societal concerns. Brand management in the football industry has to change to meet customer expectations better.Practical implicationsThis research demonstrates that professional football clubs may be different from other businesses. The research method used enables the evaluation of customer‐based brand equity. Findings suggest clubs' involvement in community activities influences brand image and customer behaviour. The sport entertainment industry requires a specific type of brand management and customer perceived ethicality has to be an integral part of the approach.Originality/valueBrand theories tend to stem from marketing and they are inclined to emphasize the same kind of product‐oriented concerns. However, customers expect more than watching an exciting game in a pleasant environment; they are affected by clubs' community involvement which impacts on the affect towards the brand. This is demonstrated through purchase behaviours of spectators. This research determines and evaluates these issues for the cases of two professional football clubs.
Thirty years of information technology
Authors: Seadle Michael 
Published: November 2012

PurposeThis issue of Library Hi Tech aims to offer a retrospective over the last 30 years of information technology as used in libraries and other memory institutions, particularly archives and museums. This Editorial will add the Editor's reflections.Design/methodology/approachThe method uses historical documentation and relies heavily on personal recollection.FindingsThirty years ago information technology in libraries largely had to do with ways in which libraries could make their ordinary operations more efficient. Today the information science frontier has broken out of the comfortable institutional paradigm of the past and made libraries aware that they need to redefine themselves in a world where their buildings no longer represent a storehouse of knowledge unavailable elsewhere.Originality/valueThis paper reveals that information technology advances have not made libraries obsolete, but they have made it imperative that libraries redefine their role to be digital information managers and service providers for their readers.
The first 30 years of the internet through the lens of an academic library
Authors: Sandore Namachchivaya Beth 
Published: November 2012

PurposeThis paper aims to examine how the internet both precipitated and facilitated significant shifts for academic libraries in the kinds of services they provide, and the ways in which they provide access to content. It aims to view this evolution from the perspective of one academic library in an institution that has been at the center of internet and technology development worldwide for over 30 years, the University of Illinois at Urbana‐Champaign.Design/methodology/approachThe first 30 years of the internet in libraries are explored in decade time segments. Each of the three decades is characterized by significant and unique internet developments. Key internet‐based innovations in libraries are explored, in the areas of service, digital libraries, search and discovery. The reasons for the relative impact of these innovations are explored and discussed.FindingsThe internet is both foundation and incubator for myriad new social, technical, organizational and legal constructs, including policy and best practices, governance, intellectual property, whole new categories of services, industries, and areas of research. Since diverse stakeholders can participate with little or no investment, the pace of growth and innovation is unpredictable. This pace is sustained over time, occurring on multiple levels. For this reason, the internet does not “grow” simply in one direction, such as exponential user growth, or the systematic installation of infrastructure. In the University of Illinois at Urbana‐Champaign, the internet has fundamentally altered, and continues to enable significant shifts in the direction of the library's programs, services and resources.Originality/valueThis paper contributes to a group of invited papers that addresses the first 30 years of the internet in libraries.
The paradox of our age
Authors: McLeod Julie 
Published: November 2012

PurposeThis editorial briefly aims to consider the implications of the words of the poem The Paradox of our Age attributed to HH The 14th Dalai Lama and a former pastor in the USA for information and records managers.Design/methodology/approachThe article is a viewpoint based on a personal reflection of the powerful image and clear message conveyed in the words of this poem about what people have and do, what they have lost and do not do.FindingsFor those in education the words “we have more degrees, but less sense; more knowledge, but less judgement” question whether academics and teachers, developing and discovering new knowledge are sharing it but not enabling and encouraging others to make best use of it to make appropriate judgements. For those working in information sciences the words “we build more computers to hold more information to produce more copies than ever, but have less communication” echo the information overload syndrome but question if, with all the present technology, people – academics and teachers – communicate appropriately?Originality/valueThe editorial highlights the “paradox of our [information] age” captured in the 117 words of a poem from religious figures. Its value is in making academics and teachers stop and think, reflect on how well they are succeeding as information managers, records managers and archivists, in capturing, organizing, preserving or destroying the increasing quantities of information and copies in digital form. Are they supporting the appropriate communication and use of information to make decisions or judgements?
Sustainability strategies in an EPQ model with price‐ and quality‐sensitive demand
Authors: Glock Christoph H. , Jaber Mohamad Y. , Searcy Cory 
Published: November 2012

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present a mathematical model that illustrates the trade‐offs between sustainability, demand, costs, and profit in a supply chain with a single supplier and a single manufacturer.Design/methodology/approachIt is assumed that a single product is produced and sold on a market where demand is sensitive to price and quality. Sustainability is treated as a quality attribute and is measured in terms of the levels of scrap and emissions generated in the supply chain. It is assumed that the emissions and scrap can be controlled by varying production rates or by investing in production processes. The impact of cooperative and non‐cooperative behaviour between the supplier and the manufacturer is explored. Numerical studies are used to illustrate the behaviour of the model.FindingsThe analysis shows that the supplier and the manufacturer can attract additional customers by controlling scrap and emissions. The behaviour of the supplier and the manufacturer are dictated by the decision criteria, such as changes in the level of sustainability, used by customers to evaluate the product. It is shown that the profit of the system is higher and that the level of quality is lower in the case of cooperation than in the case of non‐cooperation.Research limitations/implicationsSeveral areas for future work are highlighted. The study of alternative demand functions, linking sustainability to a monetary component, including additional players, and incorporating additional sustainability indicators all offer possibilities for extending the model.Originality/valueThere is an identified need for analytical models that consider sustainability in the supply chain. The results are especially important for companies operating in markets where customers perceive the sustainability of a product as a quality criterion.