Michael L. Ursic

An experience curve explanation of export expansion

Various explanatory variables have been identified in past research as determinants of the export behavior of firms. This article proposes that while many factors contribute to export behavior, experience curve effects are a major variable explaining the international activities of firms. The research reported here finds that younger firms are much more faborably disposed toward and active in international marketing than older firms. This is attributed to the competitive domestic situation younger firms encounter. Since older firms are often well entrenched in the domestic market, exporting may be the only alternative available to younger firms to obtain the production expertise and efficiency necessary to become a successful domestic competitor.

Classification of exporting firms according to sales and growth into a share matrix

An export growth share matrix, which divides firms into four categories based on export percentage and anticipated growth, was developed from an analysis of past literature and an empirical data base. Implications are then developed for each category of firms to help the government encourage exporting and to improve managerial decisions regarding marketing abroad.

RESEARCH NOTE, The Impact of Safety Warnings on Perception and Memory

Little research has been done concerning consumer product safety warnings. This study, using 91 undergraduates, attempts to alleviate this void through an experiment in which the design and presence of a safety warning are systematically varied. The presence of a warning is found to have a positive impact on an individuals perception of the effectiveness and safety of a brand. The use of a pictogram, the strength of a signal word, and the use of capital letters in a safety warning are found to have little effect on perception of a brand or on memory of safety information.

The Views of Marketing Recruiters, Alumni and Students about Curriculum and Course Structure

There is a general lack of information regarding the most appropriate manner of structuring marketing curricula and courses. This article reports the results of a survey of marketing recruiters, alumni and students regarding their attitudes about the importance of various marketing skills, courses and teaching methods and presents several practical implications regarding curriculum and course design.

Information Load, Cost/Benefit Assessment and Decision Strategy Variability

The effect of four potential information load-producing variables on decision strategies and decision time and accuracy was examined. These variables included two task-effects, the number of alternatives and attributes, and two context effects, the variability of information on the attributes and alternative similarity. Number of alternatives had the most impact on decision strategies, which were determined via protocols collected during a decision task. The four loadproducing variables all had a significant effect on decision time, with the task-effect variables having the greatest influence. Of the two load-producing variables that showed a significant relationship with decision accuracy, alternative similarity had the most impact.

The Decision Process Equivalency of Electronic Versus Pencil-and-Paper Data Collection Methods

An experiment was conducted comparing electromc versus pencil-and-paper data collection methods. The consistent Ending was that the electromc data collection method displayed more stability across levels of the methodological variables. No significant differences were found in the responses received for the data collection methods or interactions. The findings for these two primary topics of study combined with the absence of significant differences across data collection methods for measures of three additional variables, involvement with the product, attitude toward survey research and questionnaire completion time, lead to the conclusion that electronic and pencil-and-paper data collection approaches provide data that is equivalent and interchangeable in many if not all ways. Keywords Electromc data collection, data collection methods, response effects, decision processes, protocol analysis, survey research.

Using price as a weapon: An economic and legal analysis of predatory pricing

Abstract Predatory pricing is an illegal attempt to destroy competition on a certain area or market by setting low prices. This article seeks to clarify the practices that are considered illegal predatory pricing. Generally, it was found that proving that a certain pricing practice is illegal is difficult; however, there are set standards related to cost that the courts usually apply.

The Relationship Between Managerial Characteristics and Exporting Behavior

The study examines the relationship between objective, managerial characteristics and various measures of export behavior. It was found that exporting manager are younger, have more international work experience and are more educated. It was also found that years of international experience is negatively related to export sales volume and anticipated growth, and that the number of languages spoken is positively related to growth.

A Refutation of the Psychic Distance Effect on Export Development

It has been hypothesized that companies develop the direction of their export thrust based on the psychic distance among countries. This concept, which is a construct of geographic and cultural factors, alleges that firms new to exporting will start their efforts in the psychically closest country and gradually expand to serve the psychically more distant markets. This research presents an empirical investigation of the concept and concludes that it does not make a major contribution to the understanding of export behavior. Rather, the existence and size of demand in any given market structure determines the orientation of the initial export thrust.

Attitudinal and Behavioral Changes of Small and Medium-Size U.S. Exporters

This paper examines the changes in the attitudes and behaviors of small and medium size firms toward exporting from 1979 to 1981. The evidence presented by the authors indicates that the government’s export promotion programs have succeeded in making small and medium size firms more aware of export opportunities. The authors also found that recessions do not necessarily have the effect on exports one would expect. They may reduce expectations of future growth through exports, but they do not affect current export levels. The paper argues that while government efforts have made businesses more aware of export opportunities, future export growth will come through the development of new products and the creation of new firms, not from increased awareness. Also, policymakers must maintain responsible policies to ensure that the awareness of international marketing developed by business can now be turned into activity.