J. J. Giglierano

Improving mail response rates with express mail

The purpose of this article is to report the results of a field experiment in which the response rate effects of using express delivery service for mailed questionnaires were examined. It is generally understood that when a higher postage rate is paid for mailing the questionnaire, for return mail, or for both, the response is significantly higher [l, 21 than when bulk rate postage is used, although some contradictory results have been obtained [3]. Two reasons exist for revisiting the issue of responserate differentials. First, past research has dealt with questionnaires mailed to consumer respondents; response-rate differentials in industrial market research have not been examined. Second, express mail service has become popular since most of the studies on response rates were performed. Express mail offers the researcher a premium postage alternative. However, effects of express mail on response rates are unknown. The uniqueness of business respondents is crucial in certain research settings. When respondents are upper level executives, for example, their busy schedules and time priorities ensure low response rates to mailed questionnaires. In addition, the benefit structure of some busi-

An Exploratory Study of Self‐administrated Quck‐audits as a Management Diagnostic to Assess Marketing and Entrepreneurial Orientations in Established and Startup Firms

This paper explores the development and application of a self‐administered organizational diagnostic to assess the firm’s underlying business orientation. The research further explores the relationships between Entrepreneurial Orientation (EO), Market Orientation (MO), and Performance with high tech firms headquartered in the Silicon Valley. In this initial study of 89 respondents, we explored differences in business orientation between startups and established firms. We also examined whether the constructs and their measurements could be used to provide managerials recommendations for performance improvements. We found that the interaction between EO and MO was positively and significantly related to business performance.

Anatomy of competitive advantage: towards a contingency theory of entrepreneurial marketing

Entrepreneurial marketing (EM), born out of the practice of firms operating in conditions of uncertainty, is emerging as a powerful alternative to cope with the decreasing effectiveness associated with traditional marketing. In this article, the authors provide their collective position regarding the field of EM. A brief history and conceptual background of EM is presented and the contextual differences that have shaped its evolution are considered. Distinctions between traditional and EM are derived based on discussions of the concepts of size, speed, market, opportunity, risk, and uncertainty. The perspective of value co-creation in uncertainty is used to develop a contingency framework to serve as the foundation towards a general theory of EM. Operand and operant resources and environmental conditions are proposed to moderate the EM process from opportunity recognition to entrepreneurial organization, EM, and temporary competitive advantage. The theoretical facets are illustrated with seven propositions and directions for future research.