scholarly journals The role of digital channels in industrial marketing communications

2015 ◽  
Vol 30 (6) ◽  
pp. 703-710 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heikki Karjaluoto ◽  
Nora Mustonen ◽  
Pauliina Ulkuniemi

Purpose – The purpose of this research is to investigate industrial marketing communications tools and the role of digital channels. The research draws from the literature on industrial marketing communications to examine its goals and intended utilization in industrial firms. Design/methodology/approach – An empirical multiple case study conducted among six industrial firms examines the current state of digital marketing communications (DMC). Findings – The study gleans three research insights. First, although DMC is one of the most important industrial marketing communication tools, firms have not yet used it to its full potential. Second, firms use DMC to enhance customer relationship communications, support sales and create awareness. Third, firms have not used social media tools as a part of DMC as widely as traditional digital tools. Research limitations/implications – Although the findings mirror those in DMC literature in general and industrial marketing communications in particular, they put more emphasis on the role of DMC in customer relationship communications and sales support. Practical implications – DMC provides an opportunity to deliver various marketing objectives, such as creating brand awareness, increasing and supporting sales and improving communication with existing customers. Different DMC tools are required for each of these objectives. Originality/value – This study is among the first ones examining the rapidly changing communications landscape and the spread of digital channels in industrial marketing communication.

2012 ◽  
Vol 2 (8) ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Namita N. Kumar

Subject area Integrated advertising, promotion and marketing communications. Study level/applicability The case has been developed for use in marketing communication as well as strategic brand management courses of MBA and/or PGDM programmes. It high/ights the fact that generating interest amongst customers is not the only task of marketing strategists but conversion of such interest into an effective purchase is what the marketing department should be looking for. Case overview The case takes the students through the journey of Vodafone's marketing communication since its introduction in the Indian market. It gives the reader a briefing as to how Vodafone has grown in the past few years - the changes in communication strategies involved to propagate the product; the integrated marketing communications that have he/ped Vodafone increase its customer base considerably. As mentioned by Marten Pieters, CEO of Vodafone Essar, India is an emerging market and it is necessary for Vodafone not on/y to increase its customer base but a/so to generate revenues. Therefore, his di/emma is how to bring about the perceptual connect with customers which induces them into product usage. Expected learning outcomes The area of integrated advertising, promotion and marketing communications is an integral part of marketing. It forms the foundation of creating effective marketing programmes that in turn helps develop positive product perception in the minds of the customers. It also helps the student understand the role of customizing the marketing communication according to the target audience and the importance of integrating advertising with not only the promotional activities but also other newer forms of marketing communications. The case has been structured to achieve the following learning objectives: the role of marketing communications in creating and building brand Vodafone; understanding the importance and key elements of Vodafone's Zoozoo ad campaign relating it to Vodafone's communication strategies; and the effect of marketing communication on the customers' perception about the brand. Supplementary materials Teaching notes are available. Please consult your librarian for access.


2013 ◽  
Vol 3 (8) ◽  
pp. 1-6
Author(s):  
Surajit Ghosh Dastidar ◽  
Srividya Raghavan

Subject area Marketing, strategy, and integrated marketing communication. Study level/applicability The case is suitable for analysis in an MBA level marketing communication course where the theories of hierarchy of effects (HoE) models, push vs pull strategies as well as positioning strategies can be introduced. The case is suitable for analysis in an MBA level marketing course for the module on marketing communications/advertising and promotions. Case overview Sanjay, the regional head of PepsiCo India (eastern region), had been tasked with the preparation of a support plan for a new communication campaign of Mountain Dew, a yellow-coloured drink in PepsiCo's soft-drink portfolio. He had attended a meeting at the headquarters where he had been briefed on the new national campaign roll-out for Mountain Dew – for the first time with celebrity association. While Mountain Dew had been growing its market share in other regions of the Indian market, the Eastern region had been unresponsive to the mass media image building campaigns. During the meeting, the various aspects of Mountain Dew's performance were discussed and Sanjay was asked to prepare a support plan for the national campaign that will help to increase revenues and market share of the brand in the Eastern region. Expected learning outcomes To understand the complexities of differential impact of integrated nation-wide communications on various segments of the market due to cultural variations, to understand the role of push strategy vs pull strategy in marketing communications, to understand the role of consistency in image between the trade and consumers perception, to understand the impact of celebrity endorsements, an introduction to the HoE communication models and their applications, to understand limitations of the HoE and Think-Feel-Do models in objective setting and understanding the uses of alternative models, to build a communication plan based on pull vs push strategy. Supplementary materials Teaching notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email [email protected] to request teaching notes.


Author(s):  
Ayaz Ahmad ◽  
Salniza Md. Salleh ◽  
Selvan a/l Perumal

This study aims at identifying and conceptually linking Information Technology, Marketing Database and the IMC process in a resource paradigm. It also conceptually posits the mediated role of Marketing Database to further transmit the absorbed effect to the IMC process. Review of the past studies has been done to conceptually connect these resources and/or capabilities. This paper establishes different relationships to be further tested empirically for both the academia and industry professionals. The main contribution is to conceptually theorize all the three concept and linking them conceivably that were either missing or vague in the marketing communication literature. Further, it also provides a research avenue to seek the complementarity of such resources by utilizing the extended RBV theory. The theoretical framework proposed is based on past literature from the RBV and marketing communications literature positing some new structural paths beside certain previous linkage (s) if any.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott DuHadway ◽  
Carlos Mena ◽  
Lisa Marie Ellram

PurposeSupply chain fraud is a significant global concern for firms, consumers and governments. Evidence of major fraud events suggests the role of supply chain structures in enabling and facilitating fraud, as they often involve several parties in complicated networks designed to obfuscate the fraud. This paper identifies how the structural characteristics of supply chains can play an important role in enabling, facilitating and preventing fraud.Design/methodology/approachThe research follows a theory elaboration approach. The authors build on structural holes theory in conjunction with a multiple case study research design to identify new concepts and develop propositions regarding the role of network structure on supply chain fraud.FindingsThis research shows how structural holes in a supply chain can create advantages for unscrupulous firms, a role we call tertius fraudans, or the cheating third. This situation is exacerbated by structural ignorance, which refers to the lack of knowledge about structural connections in the network. Both structural holes and structural ignorance can create information gaps that facilitate fraud, and the authors propose solutions to detect and prevent this kind of fraud.Originality/valueThis paper extends structural holes theory into the domain of fraud. Novel concepts including tertius fraudans, structural ignorance and bridge collapse are offered, alongside a series of propositions that can help understand and manage structural supply chain fraud.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Juergen Weber ◽  
Leona Wiegmann

Purpose This paper aims to investigate how and why German cost accounting prevails and develops in German multinational organisations despite the various indications in the literature that it will converge towards an anglophone system over time. To analyse this, the authors draw on the ideas of professional practices (Jarzabkowski et al., 2016) and their path dependency (Schreyögg and Sydow, 2011) as a method theory. Design/methodology/approach The authors deploy an exploratory method using multiple case studies to determine similarities and differences between organisations concerning how cost accounting practices developed over time. They conducted interviews with cost accountants, group controllers and managers of German multinational organisations as well as experts from higher education institutions and consultancies. Findings This paper shows the path-dependent development of German cost accounting. It identifies self-reinforcing learning and complementary effects that seem to make it inefficient for organisations to deviate from the learned path as well as economic and normative pressures that affect the design of cost accounting systems. Originality/value By considering German cost accounting a path-dependent professional practice, this paper illustrates how and why the core of German cost accounting prevails, although organisations make adjustments within the existing structures to respond to the pressures they face. This paper hereby highlights the role of cost accountants in defining (and consequently bringing about or preventing changes to) the design of cost accounting systems.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 113-132
Author(s):  
Neeraj Kumar Dubey ◽  
Preeti Sharma ◽  
Purnima Sangle

Purpose This paper aims to study the role of the emerging technology landscape and collaborative platforms in customer relationship management (CRM) unravelling novel opportunities for mutual co-creation in Indian banking context. Design/methodology/approach This study used the case-study method for collecting various sources for “triangulation”. Findings The advancement of technology has drastically increased avenues of dialogue and access and brought transparency in the relationship, offering opportunities for co-creation and increased dependence on technology in CRM. A longitudinal approach explained how bank leveraged technology in multiple aspects of CRM for enhancing relationship quality and outcome. Research limitations/implications The study is exploratory in nature in Indian banking context, and thus it should be viewed as a preliminary step in contributing to the understanding of CRM in a new collaborative technology landscape. Practical implications This study explains the changing shape of CRM and provides relevance of customer orientation and offers insight about co-creation which has taken centre stage because of the emergence of collaborative technologies. Originality/value This study is possibly one of the first to conduct a case study to understand the way collaborative technological advancements are being exploited by organisations to develop superior CRM capability and achieve co-creation. This study analysed and comprehended the design and implementation of CRM in an Indian bank in real-life settings to gain a better understanding of the adoption of new collaborative technological advancements by a bank for customer centricity and facilitating co-creation.


2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 291-309 ◽  
Author(s):  
Soon-Ho Kim ◽  
Seonjeong Ally Lee

PurposeThis study investigates relationships among components of the marketing communication mix, brand identification, brand image, brand love and brand loyalty. The focus of this study is advertisement spending, customers' attitudes toward the advertisement, monetary promotion and non-monetary promotion as marketing communication mix elements.Design/methodology/approachProposed relationships are investigated with 683 previous coffee shop customers, based on a cross-section, online, self-administered survey in South Korea.FindingsResults identify advertising spending, attitude toward the advertisement, monetary promotion, and non-monetary promotion play key roles in influencing brand identification; however, they do not influence brand image. Both brand identification and brand image further influence brand love on brand loyalty.Originality/valueThis study is the first to investigate the marketing communication mix elements in a coffee shop context.


2012 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 252-265 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andreas Hinterhuber ◽  
Giulia Hinterhuber

PurposeCurrent research on industrial management strategy is mostly directed at industrial end customers. In doing so, current research overlooks one critical constituency – industrial retailers, i.e. companies selling products manufactured by industrial manufacturers to other companies using these products to create a finished product or service. Since the current literature states that retailers are mostly interested in category profit margins and profitability (regardless of specific brands), it is not clear whether industrial retailers value brands at all. The purpose of this paper is to determine the importance of industrial brands versus other purchase criteria for industrial distributors.Design/methodology/approachThree studies are conducted to examine the importance of brands vis‐à‐vis other purchase criteria for industrial retailers and end users. In a longitudinal study employing conjoint analysis the authors find that industrial brands have a larger impact on industrial retailer choice than product price or margin.FindingsFirst, these results suggest that industrial brands are a strong purchase driver also for industrial retailers (and not just industrial end users). Second, industrial marketing managers are thus well advised to invest in brand building to positively impact industrial retailer choice, rather than reducing prices or increasing product margins as the prevailing literature suggests. In conclusion, these studies seem to suggest that retailers use brands not only as associative or predictive cues of product performance, but also as predictive indicator of a product's expected future profitability.Research limitations/implicationsFrom a theoretical point of view, the authors’ studies suggest that industrial brands not only transmit cues to prospective end‐customers, but also send cues to intermediaries – such as industrial retailers – which influences their decision‐making processes. The strong importance B2B retailers place on brands as key purchase factor is an indicator that retailers use brands not only as associative or predictive cues of product performance, but also as predictive indicator of a product's expected future profitability (i.e. profit margins and asset turnover), which positively affects retailers’ own profitability. The results of this study are also an indication that the relationship between industrial manufacturers and industrial retailers are probably driven more by considerations of cooperation than by considerations of conflict.Practical implicationsAs a managerial implication, it is suggested that industrial marketing executives should invest in brand building to positively impact industrial retailer choice, rather than reducing prices or increasing product margins, as the prevailing literature suggests.Originality/valueIn this paper, three separate empirical studies are conducted to examine the role of brands in industrial management practice.


2018 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 145-152 ◽  
Author(s):  
Youmna Mohamed Abdelghany Youssef ◽  
Wesley J. Johnston ◽  
Talaat Asaad AbdelHamid ◽  
Mona Ibrahim Dakrory ◽  
Mohamed Galal Soliman Seddick

Purpose The purpose of this study is to investigate conceptually the relationship between the customer’s engagement and equity and to determine whether customer engagement could be positively enhanced by business-to-business (B2B) firms to maximize their customer equity, through examining the role of cognitive, emotional and behavioral engagement. Design/methodology/approach This paper is built on the evolving marketing literature and proposes a comprehensive framework that uses a multidimensional conceptualization for the customer’s engagement and equity constructs; examines the relationships between customer satisfaction, commitment, trust and involvement and customer engagement; and specifies the specific customer engagement dimensions – cognitive, emotional and behavioral – as key mediators of the engagement–equity relationship. Findings This paper indicated that customer engagement is a multidimensional construct with three dimensions: cognitive, emotional or behavior engagement. Customer’s satisfaction, commitment, trust and involvement would be regarded as antecedents to customer engagement, whereas customer equity would be regarded a consequence for customer engagement. In addition, this paper identified three drivers of customer equity – value, brand and relationship equities – based on reviewing the previous studies. Originality/value This paper integrates philosophies from previous marketing studies of customer relationship management and customer engagement and equity into a B2B environment in a more customer-centric approach.


2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 68-87 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kate Daellenbach ◽  
Lena Zander ◽  
Peter Thirkell

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to better understand the sensemaking strategies of managers involved in making decisions concerning arts sponsorship. Design/methodology/approach – A qualitative, multiple case method is employed, using multiple informants in ten arts sponsorship decisions. Within and between case analyses were conducted and examined iteratively, along with literature to generate themes to guide future research. Findings – This study finds art sponsorships may be seen as ambiguous, cueing sensemaking; the sensemaking strategies of senior managers involve response to pro-social cues while middle managers draw on commercial benefit cues; sensebreaking and sensegiving are part of the process; and the actors and their interpretations draw from cues in the organisational frames of reference which act as filters, giving meaning to the situations. Research limitations/implications – This study presents a novel perspective on these decisions, focusing on the micro-level actions and interpretations of actors. It extends current understanding of sponsorship decision making, contributing to a perspective of managers responding to cues, interacting and making sense of their decisions. Practical implications – For arts managers, this perspective provides understanding of how managers (potential sponsors) respond to multiple cues, interpret and rationalise arts sponsorships. For corporate managers, insights reveal differences in sensemaking between hierarchical levels, and the role of interaction, and organisational frames of reference. Originality/value – This study is unique in its approach to understanding these decisions in terms of sensemaking, through the use of multiple informants and multiple case studies.


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