Christina Sichtmann

An analysis of antecedents and consequences of trust in a corporate brand

Purpose – The paper aims to present a comprehensive framework for understanding consumer trust in a corporate brand, incorporating both the antecedents and consequences of trust. The paper also seeks to account explicitly for the differences in antecedents and consequences of trust found among customers and among non‐customers.Design/methodology/approach – Data were obtained from 308 face‐to‐face interviews conducted in Germany. Structural equation modelling was used in order to test the proposed hypotheses.Findings – The results indicate that competence and credibility have a high explanatory power as antecedents of trust. Trust has a considerable impact on supplier selection for existing and new products, as well as on the word‐of‐mouth (WOM) behaviour of consumers. There are strong differences between customers and non‐customers in terms of the antecedents and consequences of trust in a corporate brand.Research limitations/implications – In order to generalise the findings, the model needs to be tested...

Service Quality and Export Performance of Business-to-Business Service Providers: The Role of Service Employee– and Customer-Oriented Quality Control Initiatives

Using the facilities–transformation–usage framework of service provision and drawing from control theory, the authors develop a theoretical model that examines the influence of different quality control initiatives on relative service quality in a business-to-business setting and, consequently, on export performance. They explicitly consider quality control initiatives that address service employees’ performance and the customers’ coproduction as well as selected firm characteristics as antecedents of such initiatives. They test the proposed model on data drawn from an export survey of service providers. The results show that export customer–oriented training, customer coproduction instructions, and work process standardization have a positive influence on relative service quality, which in turn positively affects export performance. However, adaptation to export customers’ coproduction competence and motivation has a positive influence on relative service quality only when the customer integration in the service delivery is high. The authors conclude by considering implications for the management of the service delivery process in an export setting and identifying future research directions.

Limit conjoint analysis and Vickrey auction as methods to elicit consumers' willingness‐to‐pay

Purpose – Limit conjoint analysis (LCA) and Vickrey auctions (VA) are methods for measuring willingness‐to‐pay (WTP) currently under discussion. However, there are hardly any studies comparing the approaches in terms of their applicability and validity. This paper aims to analyze the differences in WTP elicited by the two methods and their validity in high and low involvement situations.Design/methodology/approach – Data were obtained from 179 online interviews conducted in Germany. Differences in the WTPs elicited were analyzed with a Wilcoxon Signed Ranks Test. For the validation part, a χ2 test of independence was used.Findings – The results indicate differences depending on the method applied and the involvement situation. Additionally, the study indicates that for low involvement products VA performs better while for high involvement situations the results are not as clear. In terms of validity, both methods do not show satisfactory results.Research limitations/implications – In order to generalize t...

Exporting Services Successfully: Antecedents and Performance Implications of Customer Relationships

This research is among the first to present a study of the drivers of service export performance. The authors develop and empirically test a theoretical framework of the antecedent and performance implications of cross-border customer relationships (CCRs) in the context of service exports. Survey data from 142 business-to-business service providers show that valuable CCRs have positive impacts on the export performance of services, but there is no influence derived from the number of cross-border relationships. The results also indicate a positive link between relationship marketing activities and the cross-cultural skills of service employees on the one side with valuable and numerous CCRs on the other. That is, relationship marketing activities receive positive influences from export commitment, customer orientation, and managers’ cross-cultural skills.

A model of product‐to‐service brand extension success factors in B2B buying contexts

Purpose – Business‐to‐business (B2B) manufacturing firms increasingly integrate services into their product portfolios under the same brand umbrella. This article aims to develop a conceptual model of the drivers of success for such B2B product‐to‐service brand extensions.Design/methodology/approach – The research considers the drivers of product‐to‐service brand extensions success from an organizational buying behavior, branding, and service‐dominant logic (SDL) perspective.Findings – In their product‐to‐service brand extensions, B2B firms are more likely to attain success if they have well‐regarded brand reputations, relevant service competencies, and strong buyer‐seller relationships. In addition, shared innovativeness, an ability to enhance utility and/or create transaction efficiencies, and effective marketing support are proposed to positively affect brand extension success.Research limitations/implications – Future studies need to test the proposed model.Practical implications – The propositions en...

Export segmentation effectiveness: index construction and link to export performance

Although the effectiveness of segmentation efforts is critical for a firms performance in export markets, there is a lack of a psychometrically sound measuring instrument that can be used to assess a firms export market segmentation efforts. In this study, we apply the conceptual framework recently proposed by Foedermayr and Diamantopoulos (2008) and generate a composite index of export segmentation effectiveness. The indicators of the index are proximal outcome measures of export segmentation decisions capturing different dimensions of segmentation success. We empirically validate the derived index on a sample of exporting companies and show that it positively impacts export performance. Suggestions for applying the proposed index in substantive export research are also made.

Explaining social exchanges in information-based online communities (IBOCs)

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to scrutinize platforms for members to exchange information by information-based online communities (IBOCs, like LinkedIn or Facebook). Because member participation is vital for IBOCs, this research aims to identify and validate factors that drive member participation. Design/methodology/approach – With reference to social exchange theory the authors developed a model of antecedents of participation in IBOCs that was tested with survey data using PLS. Because some of the results contradicted the theory, the authors examined those results in a mainly qualitative study with online community providers. These experts offered explanations that inform the discussion and managerial implications. Findings – Role clarity, provider’s responsiveness, and enjoyment all influence member participation. Contrary to theory, the cooperation of other members affects member participation negatively while a member’s ability shows no effect. Practical implications – This research has sev...

Business Buying Behavior

The objective of this chapter is to explain the decision-making process underlying organizational-buying behavior. Three main questions are addressed: Who is the buyer? What is the meaning of organizational-buying behavior? What are the main factors affecting organizational-buying behavior? In addition, different theories of buying behavior are described that help the analysis of organizational-buying behavior.

Dienstleistungsgarantien als Instrument zur Steuerung der Kundenintegration

In jungster Zeit werden Dienstleistungsgarantien in Management und Wissenschaft als ein innovatives Marketinginstrument angesehen, mit dessen Hilfe Dienstleistungsanbieter Wettbewerbsvorteile sichern und ausbauen konnen (Wirtz/Kum 2004). So bieten beispielsweise die Munchner Stadtwerke ihren Kunden eine Garantie an, in der sie die Bearbeitung aller Anfragen innerhalb eines bestimmten Zeitraumes zusagen (o.V. 2006). Die Bremer Strasenbahn AG entschadigt ihre Kunden mit einem kostenlosen Tagesticket, wenn der Bus oder die Strasenbahn mehr als 15 Minuten Verspatung hat. Das Management mancher Hotelketten, wie beispielsweise der Choice Hotels, verspricht, Unannehmlichkeiten wahrend eines Aufenthaltes sofort zur Zufriedenheit des Gastes abzustellen oder bei Nichtzufriedenheit kein Entgelt zu verlangen (siehe Abbildung 1). Open image in new window Abbildung 1 Beispiele fur Dienstleistungsgarantien (Quellen: Stadtwerke Munchen; Bremer Strasenbahn AG; Choice Hotels, UK)

Estimating Willingness-to-Pay by Different Utility Functions: A Comparison of Individual and Cluster Solutions

In this paper we compare different alternatives for the estimation of utility functions necessary to elicit willingness to pay with conjoint analysis: Linear interpolation vs. regression on individual and on cluster level. An empirical application shows that the selected alternative has significant effects on the estimated WTPs. No superior method is found; rather, the selection of an appropriate function on cluster level is recommended.