Business Commons^™

Collegiate Basketball Season-Ticket Holders’ Purchasing Motivation And Interests, Steve Shih-Chia Chen, Jennifer Mark

AMTP Proceedings 2010

This study examined the ticket purchasing motivation and interests of 334 season-ticket holders (199 males, 135 females) from two NCAA Division-I regional state institutions. The participants’ purchasing motivation and interests were surveyed onsite in the 2008-9 season by utilizing a12-item self-created instrument with a high level of internal reliability. The results indicated that the participants’ ticket purchasing motivation was mainly influenced by the competition and psycho-social related factor (CPR) and price and promotion (P&P) factor. The researchers further addressed the unique aspects in promoting regional Division-I basketball programs, and limitations and directions for future studies.

Providing Consistent Service At The Concessions Stand: A Potential Problem, Mark Nagel

AMTP Proceedings 2010

Concession sales are a critical revenue stream for sport and entertainment venues. Most research investigating concession revenues has focused upon quality and availability of food choices as well as the servicescape (Bigelow, 2004; Zeithaml, Bitner, & Gremler, 2006). Though these are important areas of concern, one area that has not been extensively researched is the appearance, speed, and efficiency of individual concession stations in relation to their in-venue counterparts. This study investigated the consistency of concession operations at a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I men’s basketball game. Results indicated that a large discrepancy existed among concession outlets in …

Does The Degree Of Internationalization Moderate The Market Orientation-Performance Relationship?, Ed Bruning

AMTP Proceedings 2010

This study examines the moderating effect of foreign market expansion orientation on the market orientation-performance relationship. It is argued the traditional notion of market orientation overlooks a number of realities that occur in foreign markets that lead to effects on market orientation. A sample of Canadian businesses is analyzed using moderator regression analysis. The findings support the contention that foreign market expansion orientation moderates the relationship as expected.

Tthe Effect Of Acculturation On Franchise Relationships, Sally Baalbaki

AMTP Proceedings 2010

Buyer-seller relationships and franchisee-franchisor relationships, have been studied excessively in the past. One of the causes of the growing importance of research on franchising has been the increased reliance on the service sector in many developed countries. However, the role of the franchisee has not been adequately studied in the literature outside of the buyer-seller relational framework, and especially not in conjunction with the concept of acculturation. Interpersonal relationships are critical in a service industry, offering an important reason to undergo a study of culture and acculturation within this industry, specifically from the franchisee perspective. The purpose of this research …

Organization Structure And Service Capabilities As Predictors Of Supply Chain Performance: B2b Seller’S Perspective, Harash J. Sachdev, G. Russell Merz

AMTP Proceedings 2010

In buyer-seller exchanges the seller not only provides the goods and service but also transfers its organization capabilities on to the buying firm. Improper selection and usage of these capabilities may reduce the seller’s sustainable competitive edge in future transactions in this supply chain. Through field interviews and Resource Based View literature, the authors propose and test a model linking organization structure, service capabilities, and seller’s satisfaction and performance in business-to-business exchanges. Based on eighty-seven responses, the results indicate that autonomous structure has a positive impact on all three service capabilities. Formalization has a positive influence on only logistics service …

The Role Of Trust In Today’S Extended Enterprise, Ken Saban, Michaela Ann Noakes

AMTP Proceedings 2010

This paper explores the role that trust plays in improving the overall collaboration and business performance of firms that constitute an extended enterprise. Case studies of Eli Lilly, Airbus and Toyota Motor Company illustrate the significant economic advantages of creating and maintaining a collaborative and trusting network.

The Evolving Role And Responsibilities Of Is Managers In Logistics, Stephen Lemay, Dave Mcmahon, Jeffery A. Periatt, Jon Carr

AMTP Proceedings 2010

This article provides a description of the evolving role of IS managers, their competencies, job requirements, and training needs. Key findings for developing effective training options and their implications are discussed. The data comes from an original research project funded by the Council of Logistics Management.

Interpreting A Case Of Outsourcing Shift-Gears In The Car Industry Using Different Theorys Simultaneously, Henrik Blomgren

AMTP Proceedings 2010

The purpose of this paper is to bring forward a methodology that makes it possible to handle different theoretical models simultaneously when analyzing cases of outsourcing - without ending up with contradictary conclusions. The approach used in the paper is a development of a framework, the analysis of three commonly used models (The Make-or-buy model, the Network approach, and Industrial strategy) and a case study where outsourcing of shift-gears in the carindustry is analysed. The paper addresses the basic need to clearify the fundamental assumtions embedded in theories applied on outsourcing. It also clearifies very hands-on how the suggested methodology …

Student Evaluations Of Academic Integrity And Business Behaviors In Private And Public Universities, Stephen S. Batory, Anne H. Batory, Dean Frear

AMTP Proceedings 2010

This article investigates the potential influence of college environment on student attitudinal and behavioral development. The influence of academic integrity issues is compared between students attending private and public universities. Student attitudes toward ethical business behaviors and academic issues such as the likelihood of academic dishonesty detection, the perceived effects of academic cheating, peer norms and past behavior are examined. The two groups report a very different pattern of responses. Students at private universities report lower cheating, plagiarizing, and committing other acts of dishonesty compared to students in public universities. Students in private universities are more aware of students being …

Expert To Matrix Learning: A Comparison Of Graduate Versus Undergraduate, Renee Fontenot

AMTP Proceedings 2010

The process use of expert-to-matrix learning is explained and then exampled across undergraduate principles of marketing classes and a graduate foundations of marketing course. Through expert-to-matrix learning students practice teamwork, presentation, and critical thinking skills. The technique is an example of cooperative learning, where students discuss concepts, seek explanations, and develop a common response to objectives that they present to others. They gain positive learning benefits like empowerment and responsible association. Matrix learning maximizes performance, morale, and well being of students. Teams are evaluated on the thoroughness and quality of their shared understanding of daily course objectives through class presentations. …

The "Perfect" Service-Learning Class Project: Implications For The Seleb Scale, Cynthia Anderson, Jane M. Reid, Mark Toncar

AMTP Proceedings 2010

A six-week public relations class held during the summer of 2009 conducted a very successful service- learning project. The students were able to raise money for charity, while showcasing their project on three local television stations as well as the local newspaper. Additionally, they communicated information about their event through social networking sites. Thus, this project became known as the "perfect" service- learning class project. The purpose of this article is to determine how the students participating in this service-learning project rated the items on the SELEB (Service Learning Benefits) scale, compared to less successful classes.

Customer Compliance Through Automated Marketing In Higher Education Practice, Edward Kasabov

AMTP Proceedings 2010

The Marketing Concept, Relationship Marketing Concept, and associated conceptions of customer orientation and customer centricity have been imported into pedagogy. Using empirical findings about Customer Compliance through Automated Marketing, we argue that Higher Education institutions can successfully supplant the currently dominant customer-centric thinking with the successful practices of what we refer to as ‘customer compliance’ businesses (CCBMs). The CCBM philosophy and strategies defy traditional theories of dealing with customers and especially with dissatisfied customers during service recovery and complaint management. CCBM philosophy and success can be replicated by academic institutions as well. We provide specific advice on the application of …

Service-Learning Partnerships In Marketing Education: A Case Study In A Sales Management Course, Doris M. Shaw

AMTP Proceedings 2010

Marketing educators often collaborate with the business community to prepare students for the real world. Another option for doing so is via service-learning partnerships that tie nonprofit agencies to particular college courses over a period of time. This article describes how such a partnership was incorporated into a sales management course. Following a review of service learning literature, this manuscript will discuss how the partnership was developed and implemented, learning outcomes, and future considerations.

Business Programs In Study Abroad: A Reconsideration, Susan Carley, Randy S. Stuart, M. P. Dailey

AMTP Proceedings 2010

In acknowledgement of the importance of fostering a global perspective in their students, business educators stress the role that international study can play in increasing interpersonal skills and also broadening knowledge of global business practices. Traditionally offered as semester- or year- long programs, today’s study abroad programs are more often short-term in nature, raising questions about student outcomes of abbreviated study tours. This longitudinal study of students who participated over a nine-year period examines the benefits and limitations of short-term study tours. Results suggest that schools of business may want to think again about desired student outcomes and learning objectives …

Marketing Part-Time Mba Programs: Understanding The Need For And Dimensions Of Flexibility, Lynn C. Dailey

AMTP Proceedings 2010

Flexibility likely plays a major role in MBA recruitment, particularly for part-time MBA programs. This begs the question, what does flexibility really mean in regards to education? This paper examines the issue of MBA program flexibility. The paper utilizes exploratory research to help MBA marketers better understand consumers need for flexibility and to identify dimensions on which MBA marketers can build flexibility into their programs.

Budgeting In A Chaotic Economic Environment ... Factors Leading To Improvement, Nancy Coulmas

AMTP Proceedings 2010

Traditional budgets and budgeting processes have been identified as frustrating and inflexible. They are based on immovable targets and often lead to suboptimal attitudes and behaviors. When the budget process is performed in a chaotic economic environment, these negative aspects are exacerbated. This paper identifies and discusses actions that can be implemented to enhance the flexibility of budgets and their processes and to reduce the negative aspects involved.

Organizational Ethics: The Ethical Beliefs Of Marketing Managers In Trinidad And Tobago, Mohammed Y. A. Rawwas

AMTP Proceedings 2010

As a result of the recent corporate scandals involving Bernard Madoff, AIG, Enron, WorldCom, Tyco, Health- South, Martha Stewart, and the Wall Street analysts and the accounting firms (such as Arthur Andersen) that supported them, a growing concern has emerged about the quality of today's marketing managers' ethical beliefs. Epistemologists contend that belief is an ethical process that is susceptible to the intellectual virtue or vice of one's own life and personal experiences. Open-mindedness, curiosity, careful thinking, creativity, and intellectual courage are the foundations of epistemic virtues. Closed-mindedness, intellectual overconfidence, intellectual conformity, and wishful thinking are among epistemic vices. The …

An Investigation Of The Relationships Among Market Power, Industry Concentration And Industry Share, Rick Mathisen, Tom Miller

AMTP Proceedings 2010

In a previous study the authors investigated the relationship of market power to advertising investments, R&D investments and industry concentration. The findings revealed that although there was a positive correlation between market power and both advertising and R&D investments, there was a negative correlation to industry concentration.

The current study investigates the relationships between market power, industry concentration and industry share. Market power indicates the ability of a firm to have higher gross margins in a firm macro measure. Traditional market power measures at the micro level indicate the ability to increase the difference between price and marginal cost. This …

Exploring B2b Brand Equity: Beyond The Traditional Models, Rick Mathisen, Michael Musante

AMTP Proceedings 2010

The original concept of brand equity was proposed by David Aaker in 1991. Subsequently Keller also proposed that concept of reseller brand equity. Brand equity in Aaker’s and Keller’s models was based on the value of the brand to the consumer. Little research or models have been proposed that address brand equity of B2B products. Yoo and Donthu tested a model of brand equity in the consumer market. The inputs were based on distribution intensity, store image, pricing, advertising and price deals. These were found to affect perceived quality, brand loyalty and brand associations consistent with the Aaker model. The …

Retiring Workers Could Present A Problem For Marketers, Even In A Recession, Eileen D. Weisenbach Keller, Doris M. Shaw

AMTP Proceedings 2010

Today's workforce is aging fast. The tacit knowledge held by those approaching retirement is necessary for firms to compete in the increasingly competitive marketplace. While some research has been devoted to how older workers view their retirement will impact the workplace, minimal attention has been given to how younger workers view this issue. As companies strive to remain market-driven, this paper examines how younger personnel view the impact of retirement on their employers and the impending brain drain. A discussion of implications for the marketing function within firms also is provided.

A Study Of Market Segmentation In High-Tech Startup Ventures, Alan D. Lish

AMTP Proceedings 2010

Much has been written about the benefits of market segmentation. In fact, it provides the basis of most marketing strategies in larger firms. But while larger firms understand the benefits of market segmentation and put it into practice, many start-up firms seem to ignore or dismiss segmentation as an essential marketing strategy. This paper explores the practical use of market segmentation as it applies to high-tech start-ups, examines its use in those companies, and tries to determine if segmentation strategy is used by start-ups in other, non-traditional ways.

Successful Strategising Through Customer Exclusion, Edward Kasabov, Alex Warlow

AMTP Proceedings 2010

Marketing tends to emphasise retaining existing customers and generating customer satisfaction and loyalty. However, observation of the current practices of businesses suggests that such an over-emphasis on customer satisfaction may be misplaced. Many successful companies have developed competitive advantage by practicing ‘Exclusion Marketing’. This discussion defines Exclusion Marketing, explores its main tenets and ingredients, and demonstrates how by implementing such tactics modern businesses can reduce the cost of their products and services while offering high levels of service to ‘good’ customers, while eliminating and ‘excluding’ troublesome or non profitable clients. This discussion contributes to debates on the relationship between companies …

Why Hispanic Women Wear What They Wear, Maria-Gracia Inglessis

AMTP Proceedings 2010

This paper is an exploration of how Hispanic women communicate their identity through clothing and how cultural values affect how they shop for clothes. Based on in-depth interviews with Hispanic women in Florida, this study demonstrates that Latinas retain overtime a set of values characteristic of the traditional Hispanic culture. This study also reveals that Hispanic women are high self-monitors and enjoy the experience of discovery when they shop. Specific implications for marketers are offered.

Rebates And Reward Programs: Conflicting Drivers, Michael Mccall, Clay Voorhees, Carol L. Bruneau, Aimee Dars Ellis

AMTP Proceedings 2010

Rebate programs and customer reward programs have evolved almost side by side within the hospitality, tourism, services and retailing sectors. Interestingly, they both share a common theme of delaying rewards for consumers. In each case consumers are motivated to purchase a good or service contingent upon a reward that is delayed until a later time. At present there has been little research that examines how these programs function together and whether when implemented in tandem that they might actually be in conflict. An online survey was completed by 68 members of a shopping blog that asked about their participation and …

Implications Of Contemporary Leadership Models On Sales Management, Ellen M. Raineri

AMTP Proceedings 2010

As organizations have discovered that they cannot solely compete on price, product, quality, or technology, organizations have sought the use of optimum leadership models to assist with competition and survival. After examining the evolution of three contemporary leadership models: Spiritual Leadership, Primal Leadership, and Innovative Leadership, it is shown that these models offer sustenance in various ways for organizations and employees. Furthermore, because of the introduction and practice of Spiritual Leadership, Primal Leadership, and Innovative Leadership, specific implications exist for sales management as related to their sales reps and to their customers.

Using Diffusion Of Innovation Theory To Help Predict The Adoption Of New Technologies In Retailing, Richard Clodfelter

AMTP Proceedings 2010

New technologies are constantly being tested by retailers to determine their applicability to business operations. This paper examines diffusion of innovation theory and its applicability to assisting retailers in making decisions about the implementation of these new technologies. This paper concentrates on one form of biometric technology that is currently being tested by several retailers—fingerprint authentication at point-of-sale. The purpose of the paper is to identify components and processes, based on diffusion of innovation theory, that could be tested to better determine how consumers will react to the introduction and implementation of new technologies in retail stores.

Self-Efficacy And Its Relation To Sales Outcomes, Charles E. Pettijohn, Allen Schaefer

AMTP Proceedings 2010

This research evaluates the relationships existing between salesperson self-efficacy and that individual's performance and customer-orientation. The study uses scales specifically designed to measure the salient variables and then statistically analyzes the degree to which these variables relate to desired sales outcomes.

Provider And Customer Response To The Service Environment: A Field Experiment, Kendra Fowler, Eileen Bridges

AMTP Proceedings 2010

This research extends service theory by examining the relationship between providers and customers in an actual retail setting. Findings indicate that employee evaluations of the service environment improve in the presence of a pleasant, congruent ambient scent; providers are also more courteous and customers more friendly. Most importantly, provider mood states act as moderators of the relationships between the service environment and employee attitude as well as customer perceptions of employee behavior. Implications for managers include careful consideration of whether it is desirable to introduce ambient scent, and how to reduce the impact of negative employee mood states.

Retail Prejudice: Does Marketplace Color Really Matter?, Sacha Joseph-Mathews

AMTP Proceedings 2010

In the last decade, manufacturers, retailers and service providers alike have started paying significant attention to ethnic minority consumer segments. Several companies have increased their marketing budgets in the millions with the intention of attracting these consumers to their products, services and stores. Yet many retailers in particular are ill-equipped to deal with these new minority segments, and conventional wisdom suggests that simply attracting minority segments to stores may not be enough to ensure their return. This study seeks to examine two issues that are important to retailers who are focused on minority consumer segments: perceived retail prejudice and customer …

A Comparative Analysis Of Retail Store Image: Wal-Mart And Dillards, Charles E. Pettijohn, Linda S. Pettijohn, A J. Taylor, Andrew J. Newman

AMTP Proceedings 2010

The research in this manuscript reports on analyses of retail image which compares the images of two well- known U.S. retailers. The scale used is the research is one that has been specifically designed to evaluate consumers' perceptions of retailers. The results indicate that differential scale items are required to meaningfully assess different varieties of retail establishments. Specifically, the findings indicate that consumers assess retailers in a manner which seems consistent for retail store type. The study offers conclusions and insights based upon the differential items used to assess discount retailers and traditional department stores.