Sanna Sundqvist

Export Market-Oriented Behavior and Export Performance: Quadratic and Moderating Effects Under Differing Degrees of Market Dynamism and Internationalization

In general, findings in the market orientation research stream indicate that market orientation has a positive linear relationship with business success, and managers have been urged to be more market oriented, regardless of the firms current market orientation level. The authors develop a theory that predicts that the relationship between market orientation and business performance is an inverted U shape, such that high levels of market orientation may reduce performance. The authors’ empirical study of firms’ export market-oriented (EMO) activities in their export operations finds support for the hypothesized inverted U-shaped relationship between EMO behavior and export sales performance. They show that the inverted U-shaped relationship becomes greater in magnitude (more pronounced) as market dynamism increases and that the optimal value of EMO behavior (i.e., the value that generates the highest performance return) decreases as market dynamism increases and increases as exporting firms’ internationalization increases. Therefore, they conclude that managements task is not to aim for ever-increasing levels of market orientation but to manage market orientation so that its level is optimal given the firms environment and the international diversification strategy being pursued.

Export marketing, interfunctional interactions, and performance consequences

Firms with export operations have internal environments that are often geared toward serving the home market. As a result, export marketing and other business functions compete for resources, which thus increases the likelihood of conflict between them. Using survey responses from more than 700 exporting firms, the authors test a model of the antecedents and consequences of two important interaction variables: exporting’s interfunctional connectedness and conflict. The model explains 52 percent and 49 percent of variance in exporting connectedness and conflict, respectively. The authors identify the key drivers of successful interactions as follows: management commitment, organizational training and reward systems, relative functional identification, centralization, and export employee job satisfaction and commitment. The authors also demonstrate that connectedness is most critical for export success when export markets are in a state of turbulence, whereas conflict is most detrimental when the firm’s export environment is stable.

Electronic Word-of-Mouth in Online Environments

ABSTRACT This article presents a network analysis of electronic word-of-mouth referral communication in a real life online environment. The goal of the paper was to clarify the existing terminology of electronic word-of-mouth behavior, to examine the kind of network structure that will emerge in the electronic environment, and finally to explore the impact of the network structure on the acceptance of an innovation in such a communication environment. Results indicated that the structure of an electronic communication network is different from the traditional interpersonal communication network structure. This study also showed that the network structure affects innovation adoption timing in the electronic communication environment, as a centralized network structure leads towards early adoption and as tie strength and adoption timing are related.

Internationalization patterns of small and medium‐sized enterprises

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present an overview of the conceptual frameworks and concepts with which the research on internationalization patterns of small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) should be conducted.Design/methodology/approach – A comprehensive overview of concepts and a conceptual framework to study internationalization patterns of SMEs is offered.Findings – The complexities of existing definitions and methodologies for researching internationalization patterns are highlighted, and a synthesis of the issues is provided. An integrative model of internationalization pathways, and their antecedents and outcomes is presented.Research limitations/implications – It is recommended that future research focuses especially on the time dimension of internationalization patterns. Future research can contribute to the literature by adopting a longitudinal approach with larger samples and more detailed cases to capture the dynamics of internationalization.Practical implications – Practitione...

Market‐oriented behavior

The activities of service and product firms are compared in terms of their market‐oriented behavior in their export operations (i.e. their export market‐oriented (EMO) behavior). Empirical analysis conducted on a sample of 783 Finnish exporters containing both service and product firms uncovered several interesting differences: service and product firms differed in their level of EMO behavior; the direct effects from EMO behavior to various dimensions of export success were invariant across the samples; however, the export environment moderated the link between EMO behavior and export profit performance in different ways across the samples. The results indicate that EMO behavior may be more appropriate under certain environmental conditions, and less appropriate under others. However, the nature of the relationship between EMO behavior and export success may also depend on whether the firm’s core export market offerings are services or physical products.

Kirznerian and Schumpeterian entrepreneurial‐oriented behavior in turbulent export markets

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to shed light on the mechanisms by which entrepreneurial‐oriented behaviours (EOB) enhance international business performance. In so doing, the authors demonstrate that different dimensions of EOB may need to be emphasized or dampened, depending on the environmental conditions facing the firm.Design/methodology/approach – A survey of 783 Finnish exporters is undertaken, and the relationships between the dimensions of EOB and business performance are assessed.Findings – It is found that Kirznerian manifestations of EOB have stronger positive relationships with export profits when markets are relatively stable, whereas Schumpeterian manifestations of EOB have stronger positive relationships with export profits when markets are more dynamic.Research limitations/implications – The study has implications for researchers studying multidimensional strategic orientations. The approach adopted is novel, in that instead of adopting a fully aggregated or fully disaggregated app...

Strategic flexibilities and export performance

Purpose – The study aims to develop and test a model of export performance, focusing on the degree to which firms have different types of export flexibility and the degree to which firms adopt market‐oriented behavior in their export operations (i.e. their degree of export market‐oriented [EMO] behavior). Furthermore, the study seeks to examine the moderating roles that EMO behavior and export environment play with respect to the relationships between export flexibility dimensions and export performance.Design/methodology/approach – The model is tested on a sample of 783 exporting firms. Data were collected via mail survey. Analysis was undertaken using structural equation modeling.Findings – EMO behavior moderates the relationship between export flexibility and export sales performance. However, EMO behaviors moderating role differs depending on (a) the source of the export flexibility, and (b) the environmental conditions the firms face. Increasing levels of EMO behavior are associated with increased e...

IMC strategies in new high technology product launches

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide empirical evidence on the use of IMC in new high technology product launches among companies that operate in different fields of business, yet providing similar innovation to the same market.Design/methodology/approach – A qualitative case research methodology is applied. Multiple sources of evidence are gathered. These include interviews with key informants and documentary data, and IMC mini audits. Concerning the theoretical approach, the related literature in IMC, new product launch and high technology marketing is reviewed.Findings – IMC is vital to high technology marketers launching new products and services. The analyses reveal that IMC practices vary across firm size, industry type, product/service orientation, and customer orientation.Practical implications – Companies of different types can be on an equal footing in their integration efforts. Whether service‐ or product‐oriented companies, business‐to‐consumer or business‐to‐business marketers, c...

New product pricing strategies for network effects products: free products?

An increasing amount of products introduced today exhibit network effects, i.e., the value of using the product increases as more people adopt it. However, current marketing literature offers little decision-making guidance for managers introducing network effects products. In this paper, we show that the consistency between product characteristics, objectives of product launch, and pricing objectives determines preferable introductory pricing strategies. Contrary to traditional products, the pricing decisions for network effects products are influenced by whether creating a critical mass of users is important for the future success of the product. Additionally, we demonstrate that although penetration pricing can be recommended in some cases, it is not suitable in all situations. Premium prices can be charged depending on the relative importance of intrinsic and extrinsic product value. The results of our study highlight the need to update the theoretical reasoning on launch strategies for network effects products. Implications for managerial practice are discussed and suggestions for further research offered.

How the source of word-of-mouth influences information processing in the formation of brand attitudes

ABSTRACT Word-of-mouth (WOM) can be a powerful, persuasive source of information, but relatively little is understood about how consumers utilize information in service evaluations and how the source of WOM (e.g. friends, family) affects attitudes. The importance of WOM is acknowledged in the services context; however, the research field of higher education has found some inconsistent results concerning the impact of WOM. The aim of this study, with its focus on information processing, is to enhance the understanding of these varying results with data from international masters degree applicants. By means of structural equation modeling, the results suggest that the processing of WOM differs depending on the source and the difficulty of evaluation criteria. Information through some sources of WOM is mainly cognitively processed, whereas in others information is processed more as simple cues. Overall, insights are provided into the impact of WOM, and higher education marketing.