Roland Helm

Measuring customer preferences in new product development: comparing compositional and decompositional methods

Preference measurement is important in the early stages of new product development. Conjoint analysis (CA) and analytic hierarchy process (AHP) are common methods for measuring preferences with CA dominating marketing research and practice. These methods mainly differ with respect to their basic conception: AHP is a compositional method whereas CA is designed in a decompositional manner. This study aims at comparing the methods as instruments of preference measurement. The results show a high degree of predictive and convergent validity of both methods. However, inspecting the results in detail reveals considerable differences, which indicate that AHP performs slightly better.

Implications from cue utilisation theory and signalling theory for firm reputation and the marketing of new products

The main research streams, which focus on signals, signalling theory and Cue utilisation theory, stress the importance of a producers credibility or reputation as an important factor that determines a signals potential to reduce customer risk and to motivate customers to adopt a product. Earlier empirical research has focused on the isolated effect of cues like price, guarantees, advertising or reputation on perceptions of quality of new products rather than on the impact of reputation on perceptions of other cues, such as advertising and bonding instruments, e.g. guarantees. This research focuses on the impact of reputation on the effectiveness of various types of information and bonding instruments, which are said to depend on the character of the instrument. The major goal of this paper is to identify adequate strategies for an innovative producer with low reputation to signal high quality credibility.

A comparative empirical study on common methods for measuring preferences

Literature and practice reveal that most marketing related questionnaires measuring consumer preferences rely on some kind of conjoint analysis. Recent studies show the analytic hierarchy process to be suitable for this task, too. This paper gives a comparison of the approaches and the results of former studies. Because we found considerable differences in those results, an additional study has been performed being designed such that it has potential for explaining these differences. As we found respective explanations, we finally derive general guidelines on the selection of conjoint analysis and analytic hierarchy process depending on the complexity of the problem situation and the previous knowledge respondents have in preference measurement.

The effects of a lack of social recognition on online communication behavior

Online services and applications extend the influencing opportunities of traditional word-of mouth (WOM). Unlike traditional word-of-mouth, the online environment allows for special features such as anonymity in user-generated content. Furthermore, the personality of online users affects their motivation when creating this content. The aim of this paper is to link specific online activities, i.e., the posting of product ratings and participation in discussions in online forums, with certain personality traits within an empirical study. The findings, based on an online survey with more than 16,900 completed questionnaires, indicate that opinion leaders in the online environment cannot be compared with traditional opinion leaders in terms of their articulation and personality structure. In regard to online activities with a high influencing potential, the results of moderated regression analyses show that persons with an introverted personality are more active as online opinion leaders due to the lack of social recognition they experience. The results have implications for how marketers should present incentive structures to address and integrate potential online opinion leaders, and how scholars should understand the role of opinion leaders in the online environment.

An institutional perspective of public policy and network effects in the renewable energy industry: enablers or disablers of entrepreneurial behaviour and innovation?

Abstract This study extends theory on the effects of public policies stimulating technology demand and of industry network ties on firm-level entrepreneurial behaviour. We take an institutional perspective to develop a theoretical model examining the mechanisms through which public policies, regulatory uncertainty, and industry network ties affect firm-level entrepreneurial decision-making processes and the ability to introduce highly innovative products and to sustain superior performance. We focus on firm-level effects, which enables the study of the tension between institutional pressures of homogeneity and competitive pressures of heterogeneity for entrepreneurial decision-making processes in environments characterized by policy-induced market demands. To test our hypotheses, we draw on data from a large-scale survey among German renewable energy firms. Our results show that public policies can constrain firm innovativeness and risk-taking behaviour because they steer firms towards a more conservative attitude and discourage the pursuit of high-risk innovation projects. However, firms can counteract these influences and enhance their innovativeness by maintaining close network ties with research associations as we find that innovativeness and a highly innovative product portfolio are key success factors. In summary, these findings provide important implications for the study of public policy effects, industry network ties and entrepreneurial behaviour.

Marktexploration, Marketingstrategien und Preisfindung

Die Geschaftsidee eines Existenzgrunders ist die Basis des Erfolgs der daraus entstehenden jungen Unternehmung. Um diese Idee dahingehend zu uberprufen, inwieweit daraus tatsachlich eine erfolgreiche Unternehmungsgrundung resultieren kann und um die meist notwendigen Fremdkapitalgeber auch von der Geschaftsidee uberzeugen zu konnen, ist die Erstellung eines Marketingplans unumganglich. Im nachfolgenden Beitrag werden der Aufbau eines solchen Plans, die grundlegenden, bei der Erarbeitung zu berucksichtigenden Grundsatze des Marketing sowie die wichtigsten Optionen des Marketing-Mix vor dem Hintergrund der vorrangig zu verfolgenden Ziele bei einer Unternehmungsgrundung aufgezeigt.

The need for economic and pre‐economic marketing controlling

The splitting or rather the widening of a marketing controlling system into economic and pre‐economic control of performance makes effective strategic forward‐looking planning, management, and control of marketing activities possible. The main reason for including pre‐economic measures of performance is the possibility to receive and assimilate so‐called weak signals from the market which cannot be received by traditional economic controlling systems. These early warning indicators prevent marketing management from decision making based on past‐oriented data, the use of which would require the structure of the environment to remain unchanged. Based on this expanded knowledge, marketing strategies can be generated in a much more sound way.

Conceptualization and Integration of Marketing Intelligence: The Case of an Industrial Manufacturer

Purpose: The primary goal of this article was to conceptualize a systematic marketing intelligence process for industrial manufacturers because, up until now, such concepts have only been focused on consumer goods settings. Hence, this article investigates how marketing intelligence activities are developed and managed effectively in industrial markets. Methodology/approach: The authors conducted a case study of Maschinenfabrik Reinhausen, a German based manufacturer of regulation technology for power transformers. Findings: We found that a systematic marketing intelligence process should be based on the resource- and market-based view of strategy as well as on the market orientation construct. When implementing marketing intelligence, the integration of the sales force within the whole process is the crucial lever for an industrial company. The formalization of the process is necessary to ensure its continuity and acceptance; however, the varying intensity allows the necessary flexibility of the process. Research implications: The constraints of the decisive process steps of marketing intelligence have to be further enhanced for industrial markets. It is important to find out how the integration of the sales force can best be designed to incorporate reward systems and motivation structures, and how to establish a corporate marketing-minded culture throughout the organization. Practical implications: The important steps for a well implemented marketing intelligence process are a preparation phase, followed by the gathering, analysis, and dissemination of information. This article highlights the success factors for each process step. Above all, managerial and organizational commitment is necessary for the implementation of the whole process. Originality/value/contribution: By focusing on the industrial manufacturing business, this study provides deep insights into a neglected area of research. Light needs to be shed on marketing intelligence in industrial markets, where the lack of traditional market research has to be compensated.

Compensation preferences of R&D-suppliers: some empirical results

R&D suppliers who are not compensated according to their preferences are motivated to behave opportunistically. The paper presents empirical findings about these preferences. The investigation is based on the assumption that the probability of a continuous compensation, instead of a final payment, increases when the negotiation power of the supplier rises. The results confirm this presumption with regard to the power determinants of effective intellectual property rights and the number of cooperation alternatives. In contrast to that, suppliers, who control the complementary assets themselves, have no explicit preference.

Preference Measurement with Conjoint Analysis and AHP: An Empirical Comparison

Conjoint analysis (CA) and analytic hierarchy process (AHP) are common methods for measuring preferences with CA dominating marketing research and practice and AHP becoming more and more relevant as a tool of decision analysis.