European Journal of Marketing

Nick Lee; Gordon Greenley

doi: 10.1108/03090560810903583pmid: N/A

Purpose – The purpose of this editorial is to stimulate debate and discussion amongst marketing scholarship regarding the implications for scientific research of increasingly large amounts of data and sophisticated data analytic techniques. Design/methodology/approach – The authors respond to a recent editorial in WIRED magazine which heralds the demise of the scientific method in the face of the vast data sets now available. Findings – The authors propose that more data makes theory more important, not less. They differentiate between raw prediction and scientific knowledge – which is aimed at explanation. Research limitations/implications – These thoughts are preliminary and intended to spark thinking and debate, not represent editorial policy. Due to space constraints, the coverage of many issues is necessarily brief. Practical implications – Marketing researchers should find these thoughts at the very least stimulating, and may wish to investigate these issues further. Originality/value – This piece should provide some interesting food for thought for marketing researchers.

B. Nathaniel Carr II

doi: 10.1108/03090560810903592pmid: N/A

Purpose – This paper seeks to propose steps marketing stakeholders should and can take to facilitate increasing the speed at which marketing proceeds to evolve – toward the stars and beyond. Design/methodology/approach – Drawing from the literature advanced by first‐tier scholars the confusion surrounding marketing's future is examined. Findings – Marketing, in its various manifestations, has been, is, and will continue to be, of enormous human benefit. Originality/value – This paper recommends that all marketers subscribe to the normative marketing stakeholders' model presented and the open‐minded exchange is prescribed.

Sofie Hansen

doi: 10.1108/03090560810903600pmid: N/A

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to introduce a more basic macro‐sociological approach to a discussion on the archaic marketing practices of the Russian firm as examined in the empirical research of Wagner. Design/methodology/approach – To show fundamental conditions for relationship marketing being implemented in Russia, the paper applies assumptions of sociology of knowledge, systems theory, world society theory, organisation theory, network theory, and economic sociology. Findings – The paper argues that the global diffusion of relationship marketing first observed on mature Western markets, to a transitional economy such as Russia will depend on global interrelation by technology, formal organisation, epistemic community, network, and event within the four relevant function systems: science, education, mass media, and economy which primarily determine the knowledge capacities of the Russian firm. Originality/value – In this paper, relationship marketing is reduced to knowledge. Further, the paper pinpoints social structures that lead to global knowledge diffusion. Since the Contemporary Marketing Practices, University of Auckland, NZ approach is concrete rather than abstract, the paper contributes to analytical considerations of a paradigm shift from transactional to relational marketing in present transition economies.

Gerard Prendergast; Alex S.L. Tsang; Chit Yu Lo

doi: 10.1108/03090560810903619pmid: N/A

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to examine the antecedents of consumers' intention to seek samples, a previously unexplored aspect of consumer behavior. Design/methodology/approach – Using as a backdrop Ajzen's theories of reasoned action and planned behavior, a survey of 154 respondents tested the proposition that attitude toward sample seeking behavior, and the congruity between a person's self‐concept and their image of the type of person who engages in sample seeking behavior (i.e. self‐concept congruity), are linked to the intention to seek samples. Findings – Attitudes toward sample seeking and self‐concept congruity, as well as their interaction, were found to positively predict the intention to seek samples. Originality/value – This research is the first of its kind to identify the predictors of sample seeking. By addressing the traits that predict sample seeking, marketers can stimulate consumers to seek out samples, and this can in turn stimulate product trial and diffusion. The paper also offers directions for future research.

Michael Johnston; Audrey Gilmore; David Carson

doi: 10.1108/03090560810903628pmid: N/A

Purpose – The purpose of this commentary is to discuss environmental uncertainty and to illustrate the value of scenario planning for small to medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) operating in a volatile environment. Design/methodology/approach – The literature regarding strategy formulation, environmental uncertainty and scenario planning is reviewed and considered in the context of managerial decision making. Findings – Given the way managers learn to “know” what is happening in their business environment, scenario planning can be adapted for use by SME owner/managers. Originality/value – Although scenario planning was developed for use by large companies, this paper illustrates that it can be used by smaller firms.

Christopher R. Plouffe

doi: 10.1108/03090560810903637pmid: N/A

Purpose – The exchange of goods between individual consumers being facilitated by the internet and “peer‐to‐peer” (P2P) systems is severely altering the business landscape. In broader terms, P2P exchanges are a form of what has occasionally been labeled “consumer‐to‐consumer” (C2C) exchange. What little work there is in business research which has examined both C2C and P2P exchange has to‐date been largely anecdotal or conceptual. This paper aims to address these shortcomings Design/methodology/approach – A model of antecedents germane to the P2P phenomenon is formulated and empirically tested which includes the consumer's satisfaction with, extent of usage of, and future behavioral intentions toward P2P exchanges as the focal endogenous constructs of interest. Findings – The model is tested with perceptual and archival data from a survey of consumers active in one prevalent form of P2P exchange (i.e. the “swapping” of pirated music). The model explains significant variance in all three focal endogenous constructs. Research limitations/implications – The primary limitations include the study's exploratory nature and not being able to incorporate all potentially salient constructs and variables germane to the P2P phenomenon within the context of the study reported here. Additionally, and from a sampling perspective, a more heterogeneous sample may benefit future research. Practical implications – The key insight emerging from the work is that the wide prevalence of P2P exchanges occurring globally between consumers has more to do with unexplored aspects of the phenomenon (such as its convenience; the “connectedness” it makes consumers feel to others) and seemingly much less to do with traditional marketing mix variables. Originality/value – While much has been written in the practitioner ranks and popular press about the problem of P2P exchanges, this work represents one of the first empirical studies of the antecedent drivers of the phenomenon. As is articulated in the paper's concluding sections, from a more embracing frame of reference, P2P systems and “consumer‐to‐consumer” exchanges are not the dire threats many marketing managers believe them to be. Challenges remain, however, for marketers to determine how to best harness these powerful new systems.

Margaret‐Anne Lawlor; Andrea Prothero

doi: 10.1108/03090560810903646pmid: N/A

Purpose – The aim of this article is to explore children's understanding of television advertising intent. Design/methodology/approach – A different perspective on advertising intent is offered in this paper, as evidenced in an interpretive study of Irish children, aged between seven and nine years. A qualitative approach was employed, involving a series of focus group discussions and in‐depth interviews with 52 children. Findings – The findings indicate that the participating children view advertising as serving interests including, but not limited to, the advertiser. The existence of other interested parties is suggested by the children, namely the agendas of viewers and television channels. The authors assert that these children view advertising as being larger and more complex than the advertiser's perspective, which has been the traditional focus in the extant research. Originality/value – Adopting an advertising literacy perspective, the authors seek to explore children's “reading” and understanding of advertising. Advertising literacy is an approach to understanding advertising that has not received substantial attention in the child‐advertising literature. The literature to date has tended to focus on the following question – do children understand the persuasive intent of advertising? This question is suggestive of a “yes/no” answer. In contrast, the authors view the concept of understanding as being more complex and multi‐faceted, and accordingly, seek to develop this concept by way of a classification that suggests four different levels of understanding that children may exhibit towards advertising

Shintaro Okazaki; Radoslav Skapa

doi: 10.1108/03090560810903655pmid: N/A

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to examine American multinational corporations' (MNC's) web site standardization in Poland and the Czech Republic. The theoretical framework was adopted from global marketing strategy (GMS) theory, which focuses on three primary strategies: strategy to create a uniform brand image; strategy to appeal to cross‐border segments; and strategy to express culturally bound meaning. To this end, MNCs are posited to pursue the standardization of corporate visual components and web site functions, and the localization of textual information. Design/methodology/approach – Using web site content analysis techniques, the similarity between the home (US) and host (Polish or Czech) sites is evaluated, and the existence of web site functions in each site is coded. As a secondary reference point, German sites are also examined. Two native coders per country are employed, and the reliability scores are deemed to be satisfactory. Multivariate analyses, including a multiple discriminant analysis and a multiple correspondence analysis, were applied to test the principal thesis of the study. Findings – The findings suggest that American MNCs tend to apply a high level of visual components in Polish and Czech sites. However, the level of standardization in textual messages is notably low. Specifically, it appears that the textual information in Polish sites is highly localized – despite their uniform visuals, in the same manner as German sites. In addition, MNCs use web site functions in Polish sites to a similar extent to their home US sites, but to a much lesser extent in Czech sites. Originality/value – The findings of this study make an important contribution to the literature, electronic commerce research in this region is extremely scarce. In addition, the theoretical framework, based on GMS theory, appears to be a useful stepping‐stone in this area. Along with recent findings in international advertising standardization, this study also provides unique evidence that European integration affects firms' marketing standardization strategy, not only offline, but also in the online marketing environment.

Anselmo Ferreira Vasconcelos

doi: 10.1108/03090560810903664pmid: N/A

Purpose – Based on the reasoning that work means more than just material rewards, the purpose of this paper is to propose the broadening of internal marketing concept (IMC) role through incorporation of happiness in the workplace (HWP) construct. Design/methodology/approach – A conceptual approach is outlined. Findings – This paper provides a theoretical foundation and conceptual framework – based on internal marketing (IM) variables – explaining how goals related to HWP could be achieved. Practical implications – Given that happiness in life is a goal that everyone pursues, and HWP is one of its dimensions, it is suggested that firms could employ it as a strategy to maintain and motivate their best assets (i.e. their employees). It also suggests that work is far beyond a simple exchange process between employers and employees. Thus, given the nature and meaning of work for human beings, it should be treated as a channel whereby people could improve their self‐esteem and could fulfill themselves through their tasks on the job and feel happy. Originality/value – Regarding IMC managerial approach and features, it is sustained that it could more aptly address the issue of HWP. To some degree, the desire of HWP brings about the need of changing the current management mindset that puts people on a secondary role.

Erik M. van Raaij; J.W. Stoelhorst

doi: 10.1108/03090560810903673pmid: N/A

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to review the market orientation literature from a managerial perspective and to discuss and integrate the implementation lessons that can be drawn from it. Design/methodology/approach – The paper starts with a review of the managerial implications of the market orientation literature. It then provides an overview of nine implementation approaches. It draws on an integrative model of marketing orientation to organize the implementation lessons from the literature into an actionable approach to implementing a market orientation. Findings – The paper finds that the literature offers a rich, yet fragmented, picture of what market orientation is, and how it can be improved. Research limitations/implications – The paper identifies a conceptual gap in the literature between market orientation and customer value generation and offers a model to bridge this gap that can serve as a guide for future theory development and empirical research. Practical implications – The paper identifies four design enablers and three development enablers that can guide managerial action to improve market orientation and offers practitioners a structured way to go about the implementation of a market orientation. Originality/value – Despite significant advances in the development of market orientation theory, there is still a void in the literature with respect to the implementation of a market orientation. This paper is the first to review the market orientation literature from a managerial perspective, to provide an overview of the implementation approaches published to date, and to integrate the managerial implications of the market orientation literature.