The surpluses and shortages in business‐to‐business marketing theory and research
Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing
ISSN: 0885-8624
Article publication date: 1 December 2006
Abstract
Purpose
Business‐to‐business marketing has come of age in the last three decades and research in this area has been extensive and impressive. This paper examines the extant body of business‐to‐business marketing research and identifies surpluses and shortages with the goal of stimulating future research.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper focuses on two questions regarding future business‐to business marketing. First, what has been the focus of understanding in business‐to‐business marketing theory and what should be its future focus? Second, what has been the purpose or objective to study business‐to‐business marketing and what should be the future objective for research?
Findings
It is found that research in business‐to‐business marketing is fundamentally changing and will continue to change. The paper identifies areas of business‐to‐business marketing research that have received surplus attention and areas that require additional attention.
Practical implications
The paper provides guidelines for future exploration of the business‐to‐business research domain.
Originality/value
The paper is analogous to the widely cited paper by Sheth (1979) that reviewed the state of consumer behavior research and identified areas that had been unexplored or under‐explored, and in the process provided an impetus for new research in consumer behavor.
Keywords
Citation
Sheth, J.N. and Sharma, A. (2006), "The surpluses and shortages in business‐to‐business marketing theory and research", Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing, Vol. 21 No. 7, pp. 422-427. https://doi.org/10.1108/08858620610708902
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2006, Emerald Group Publishing Limited