Leo Y.M. Sin

CRM: conceptualization and scale development

Purpose – To develop a reliable and valid measuring scale for customer relationship management (CRM).Design/methodology/approach – A series of studies were conducted for the development and validation of multiple measures for the dimensions of CRM. Once the dimensions of CRM were identified, data from study 1 (n=150 business executives attending a part‐time MBA program) were used to select items based on factor analysis. Then, confirmatory factor analyses was used on data obtained from a mail survey of Hong Kong financial firms in study 2 (n=215) to examine factor structure, as well as to provide evidence of dimensionality, scale reliability and validity. Finally, in study 3, data from 276 business executives attending a seminar on CRM were used to test the scale generalizability of CRM measures in various industries.Findings – A reliable and valid scale was developed to measure the four dimensions of CRM: key customer focus, CRM organization, knowledge management and technology‐based CRM.Research limitat...

The effect of relationship marketing orientation on business performance in a service‐oriented economy

Although a large body of research theoretically asserts a positive association between relationship marketing orientation (RMO) and business performance, a valid measure of RMO has not yet been proposed and systematic analysis of its effect on business performance has thus far not been possible. This paper addresses some conceptual and measurement issues related to the study of RMO and its impact on business performance in a service context. It first reviews the concept of RMO and its important dimensions. Next, a measurement scale with acceptable reliability and validity is developed to capture the dimensions of RMO. In turn, analysis of data shows that RMO is positively and significantly associated with sales growth, customer retention, market share, ROI, and overall performance. The implications of these findings are discussed and the limitations of the study as well as future research directions are addressed.

Relationship marketing orientation: scale development and cross-cultural validation

This paper addresses the conceptual and measurement issues related to the study of relationship marketing orientation (RMO). It first reviews the concept of RMO and its important components. It then reports on the construction and psychometric assessment of a measure of RMO. Six multiitem scales are developed showing strong evidence of reliability and validity in samples from firms in Mainland China and Hong Kong. Further analysis provides evidence supporting scale invariance across the two samples. The final section includes a discussion of the implications of the findings and directions for future research.

When Arousal Influences Ad Evaluation and Valence Does Not (and Vice Versa)

This research examines, across 2 studies, the interplay between the valence and arousal components of affective states and the affective tone of a target ad. In the first study, music was used to induce a pleasant or unpleasant mood, while controlling for arousal. Participants were subsequently exposed to an ad that either had a positive-affective tone or was ambiguous in its affective tone. As predicted, the valence of the affective state colored the evaluation of the ad in a mood-congruent direction, but this coloring effect occurred only when the ad had an ambiguous-affective tone. In the second study, the target ad had a clear positive or negative affective tone, and the valence and arousal dimensions of the mood state were manipulated independently. As predicted, the arousal dimension, but not the valence dimension, influenced ad evaluation. Ad evaluations were more polarized in the direction of the ads affective tone under high arousal than under low arousal. This effect was more pronounced for self-referent evaluations (e.g., “I like the ad”) than for object-referent evaluations (e.g., “The ad is good”), favoring an attributional explanation—the excitation transfer hypothesis—over an attention-narrowing explanation—the dynamic complexity hypothesis. Taken together, the results of the 2 studies stress the important contingency of the affective tone of the ad, when examining the effects of the valence and arousal dimensions of a persons affective state on ad evaluation. The results also provide additional insights into how and when affect serves as information in judgment processes.

Is relationship marketing for everyone

Marketing academics and practitioners have been examining the relationship between relationship marketing orientation (RMO) and business performance and yet, to date, there has been no systematic analysis of its effect on a business’s performance across various industries. This paper compares RMO with market orientation (MO) in terms of their impact on firms’ business performance, with particular interest in three industries. It first reviews the concept of relationship marketing and its relationship with business performance, leading to the development of two hypotheses. Next, a measurement scale was used to capture the dimensions of RMO. The reliability and validity of the scale were briefly described to provide readers the background for data analysis. Then several stepwise regression analyses were performed to test the hypotheses. Results indicated that the hypotheses received support, suggesting that RMO is for every industry with particular importance in the manufacturing industry.

Market Orientation, Relationship Marketing Orientation, and Business Performance: The Moderating Effects of Economic Ideology and Industry Type

This study examines how economic ideology and industry type moderate the impacts of market orientation and relationship marketing orientation on business performance. The authors collected data through a survey of firms in both Mainland China and Hong Kong. They selected these two economies because they have similarities in cultural dimensions and differences in economic dimensions. The authors find support for the moderating effect of economic ideology and industry type on the link among market orientation, relationship marketing orientation, and business performance.

Market orientation and business performance in a Chinese business environment

Abstract Market orientation (MO) is the prerequisite for a successful business operation. To test the assertion empirically, this study looks into the nature of the correlational relationship between MO and company performance using sample data from firms engaging in China trade in Hong Kong. Narver and Slaters scale for measuring the extent of MO is tested and used. The results show that there is a significant positive correlation between MO and business performance. In other words, there is a significant difference in the performance of China trade companies that are market-oriented and those that are not market-oriented.

The Contrasting Effects of Culture on Consumer Tolerance: Interpersonal Face and Impersonal Fate

This research highlights two cultural tendencies--concern for face and belief in fate--that are characteristic of Asian (vs. Western) consumers. In three cross-cultural studies on service failures, we show that these cultural tendencies have contrasting effects on consumer tolerance, such that Asian (vs. Western) consumers are more dissatisfied with social failures but less dissatisfied with nonsocial failures. We further demonstrate that these contrasting effects of culture are sensitive to pertinent contextual factors such as the presence of other consumers or a fate-suggestive brand name. Overall, our research evinces the multidimensionality of cultural influence and points to the need for a sharper focus in conceptualizing cross-cultural consumer behavior.

Market Orientation and Business Performance

Abstract The purpose of this study was to conduct an investigation into the link between market orientation and business performance using sample data from firms operating in Mainland China, a communist country undergoing economic transformation from a planned economy to a market economy. The study found that market orientation was positively and significantly associated with sales growth, customer retention and overall performance. Implications of our findings were discussed and limitations of the study as well as future research directions were addressed.

Market orientation and business performance

The market orientation concept has received increasing research attention, although the vast majority of published work has focused on organizations based in western countries, especially in the USA. Given the importance of globalization, this western focus limits our understanding of the concept in global markets. The purpose of this study is to examine how the context of country/economy affects: levels of market orientation; and the strength of linkages between a companys market orientation and its business performance. Data were collected through a survey of firms in both mainland China and Hong Kong. These two economies were selected because they have similarities in cultural dimensions on the one hand, and differences in economic dimensions on the other. While the results suggest that the proposed conceptual model does generalize to a Chinese context, they also show that the country/economic context influences the impact of market orientation on business performance. However, contrary to our prediction, the country/economic context does not appear to affect the levels of market orientation. The implications of our findings are discussed and the limitations of the study as well as future research directions are also addressed.