1,721,190 research outputs found
La gestione dei product recall: strumenti di marketing per il richiamo di prodotti difettosi e pericolosi
No full textThe influence of cultural blogs on their readers’ cultural product choices
No full textWhile some conceptual studies have highlighted the impact that Web 2.0 technology and social media have on cultural industries, empirical evidence is still missing. Specifically, no study has considered the role of cultural bloggers, who mediate the information flows from cultural organizations to consumers. To fill this gap, this paper suggests and tests a model that explains blog readers’ intentions to consume cultural products suggested by the blog. The findings from a sample of 215 cultural blog readers show that the impact of the blog on reader intention to consume the products suggested by the blog is strongly influenced by reader engagement with the blog. In addition, the results highlight the effects of content quality, enjoyment, and homophily. The implications of these findings for bloggers and for organizations communicating through bloggers are discussed in detail
Outsourcing Production or Moving Away The Locus of Ethical Accountability? Some findings about Product Safety
No full textThe first structured debate about the application of ethics principles to business decisions dates back to the 1960s (Sele, 2006). Anyway the notions of Corporate Social Responsibility developed in that period differ substantially from our modern perspective (Smith, 2001). As a matter of fact today academicians and practitioners recognize that business has an obligation to society that goes beyond obedience to the law when producing and distributing goods and services at a profit (Buchholz, 1991).
Due to its role of gateway between the corporate environment and the company itself, marketing is probably the most important area within the firm to be affected by ethical choices (Tsalikis & Fritzsche, 1989). Therefore ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility have become central topics for marketing decisions (Hunt & Vitell, 2006): they are considered instruments to achieve competitive advantages (Cheah et al., 2007; Hart, 1995) and they therefore represent a clever investment (McWilliams and Siegel, 2001).
According to most advanced theories, companies should not only respect contractual obligations but should also prevent customers from any potential damage deriving from their products (Velasquez, 1988). In order to make it possible, firms should have a complete control over the entire production process in order to be sure that their decisions and declarations about product ethics are then really incorporated in final products.
At the same time, as production outsourcing is gaining increasing importance in many sectors due to cost pressures (Engardio et al. 2005), many companies are running the risk to lose control over some phases of the supply chain. This is emphasized by governance difficulties of the outsourced activities (Langfield-Smith, 2003; Ulset, 1996).
As a matter of fact, while on the one side the company is still accountable towards the customers, on the other side it has to develop new methods and tools in order retain control over the outsourced production to ensure product safety and quality.
Recent outsourcing practices have therefore enhanced risks, as demonstrated by recent pitfalls by some famous companies, highlighting the existence of a large gap between corporate statements about ethics and CSR and the final output, produced through outsourcing.
Through a case study research this paper aims to establish if and how the choice to outsource production can be consistent with CSR and with the declarations about product safety included in companies’ Code of Ethics. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed and patterns for future research are derived, as well
Marketing, etica e gestione delle crisi: un'analisi di product recall dal mercato italiano
No full textAtti pubblicati su CD e sul sito
http://www.marketing-trends-congress.com/2009_cp/HTML/pages/paper_lista.ht
Gli effetti delle crisi di prodotto sulla relazione impresa-mercato: uno studio delle reazioni dei consumatori a diverse modalità di gestione dei product recall
Full text linkUtilitarian and altruistic motivations in using car sharing: The moderating role of perceived power
No full textWhile the environmental benefits of car sharing have been highlighted, the motivations for people deciding whether or not to use a car-sharing service remain unclear. This study aims to fill the research gap by proposing and testing a comprehensive model that includes utilitarian (economic benefits and individual reputation) and altruistic (environmental concerns and community belonging) motivations. In addition, this research considers the direct and moderating effects of perceived power, which refers to a perceived psychological ownership leading to a “can-do” state, which has not been examined by previous research. A survey was conducted among 372 individuals who had or had not used car sharing, and data were analyzed using logistic regression. The suggested model had high predictive power for respondents’ reported use or non-use of car-sharing services. Economic benefits, environmental concerns and the interaction between perceived power and economic benefits emerged as significant predictors of the use of car-sharing services. The implications for managers of car-sharing platforms, managers of traditional automobile businesses and public policymakers are discussed
Business-to-business branding: a review and assessment of the impact of non-attribute-based brand beliefs on buyer’s attitudinal loyalty
Full text linkBusiness-to-business branding has received increasing attention from researchers in the last few years. Nonetheless, there is no agreement on the relative contribution of a brand versus an offering's functional attributes to the industrial buyer's preferences. Drawing on models from the business-to-consumer context, this paper demonstrates that non-attribute‒based brand beliefs are predictors of hedonic outcomes as measured by industrial buyers' attitudinal loyalty, while attribute-based brand beliefs are not. Moreover, the moderating role of the buyer's level of knowledge for the value-generating process is identified, suggesting that the impact of non-attribute‒based brand beliefs on attitudinal loyalty is greater for buyers with a low level of knowledge.La stratégie de marque interentreprise a de plus en plus reçu l'attention des chercheurs au cours des dernières années. Néanmoins, il n'y a pas consensus sur la contribution relative de la marque (par opposition aux attributs fonctionnels de l'offre) aux préférences de l'acheteur industriel. En se basant sur les modèles issus du contexte entreprise-particuliers, cet article démontre que pendant que les croyances non basées sur les attributs de la marque sont des prédicteurs des performances hédoniques telles que mesurées par la loyauté de l'attitude des acheteurs industriels, les croyances basées sur les attributs de la marque ne le sont pas. Par ailleurs le rôle modérateur du niveau de connaissance que l'acheteur a du processus de génération de la valeur est mis en évidence, ce qui suggère que l'impact des croyances non basées sur les attributs de la marque sur la loyauté de l'attitude est plus grand chez les acheteurs qui ont un faible niveau de connaissance
Marketing issues for business-to-business firms entering emerging markets: an investigation among Italian companies in Eastern Europe
Full text linkPurpose.The purpose of this paper is to comprehensively explore marketing issues for foreign industrial companies of large, small and medium size entering emerging markets (EMs), particularly transition economies in Eastern Europe. The vast majority of current studies about emerging markets focus only on defining suitable strategies related to large consumer goods corporations. Design/Methodology/Approach.The research adopted a multiple case study approach. Five Italian companies belonging to different business-to-business industries that have entered emerging countries in Eastern Europe were selected for investigation.Findings.Empirical analysis uncovered recurring issues related to: institutional factors causing market uncertainty and instability; difficulties in building a sales network; a need for product adaptation to guarantee satisfactory performance; choices related to communication, branding and trade fairs; and considerations about competition and first mover advantage. Results can be interpreted as an extension of the analysis of institutional voids by Khanna and Palepu (1997).Research limitations.The study is based on the analysis of five case studies of companies operating in specific emerging markets, namely in Eastern Europe Countries (EEc) Further research based on different samples and different emerging countries is needed before generalizing results. Practical implications.The study shows that the main institutional void affecting business-to-business companies entering EMs is the lack of locally developed sales and after-sales networks. This institutional void slows the entry process of business-to-business companies in EMs. Given these constraints, from the perspective of business-to-business SMEs, it may be fruitful to pursue niche positioning in EMs. Originality / value. The study analyzes emerging markets opportunities and entry strategies from the business-to-business marketing perspective, uncovering the most critical issues
Public administrators' engagement in services co-creation: factors that foster and hinder organisational learning about citizens
No full textCitizens and public organisations are increasingly engaging in the co-creation of public services. To be successful, such co-creation efforts require public organisations to engage in organisational learning about citizens' value-creation processes. The purpose of this paper is to explore the antecedents of such organisational learning, drawing on Payne, Storbacka, and Frow's framework about value co-creation management. A model consisting of five factors is suggested and tested via a survey administered to a sample of 204 local government administrators in Italy. The findings highlight the significance of two positive antecedents (public administrators' level of citizen orientation and expected benefits from co-creation) and three negative antecedents (perceived citizens' lack of competencies and experience, perceived biases in citizens' perceptions, and lack of resources) of organisational learning. From the managerial perspective, the model tested in this study can be used by public organisations to evaluate their level of organisational learning
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