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While mail surveys continue to be a widely used research technique, relatively little empirical research exists that assesses their effectiveness among industrial (commercial) organizations. To address this literature void, the present paper reports the findings from a mail survey of international freight forwarders. More specifically, this paper investigates the influence of postcard prenotification with respect to response rates, response speed, response quality, response bias, and response cost effectiveness. The paper also discusses implications of the results and offers suggestions for further research.

This paper provides a comparison of users and providers of third‐party logistics (3PL) services with respect to relationship marketing elements, such as trust and communication, as well as relationship marketing outcomes, such as retention and recovery.

Constructs for the relationship marketing elements and outcomes were derived from the extant literature and modified to reflect the nature of 3PL arrangements. The relevant data were collected from separate, but consistent, mail surveys that were sent to users of 3PL services as well as providers of 3PL services.

The results indicate statistically significant differences between 3PL users and providers across eight of nine relationship marketing elements, with the lone non‐significant comparison involving the communication construct. There are also statistically significant differences between 3PL users and providers for each of the four relationship marketing outcomes.

Although the present study utilized previously validated relationship marketing elements and outcomes, future research could examine other relationship marketing elements and outcomes. Future research could also investigate relationship marketing issues through dyads/matched pairs of 3PL users and providers.

This manuscript examines 3PL with respect to theories and/or frameworks that comes from outside the logistics discipline, an approach advocated by Stock. Moreover, the paper adds to Moore's 3PL/relationship marketing research by investigating relationship elements and outcomes. The current paper adds to the rather limited literature that incorporates both 3PL user and provider perspectives.

The purpose of this paper is to merge service and product quality concepts as well as problem-solving capabilities and relationship satisfaction into an integrative model and empirically test it in business-to-business (B2B) context.

Hypothesis testing was performed using a structural equation model based on a LISREL approach applied to a sample of 1,218 industrial buying centers producing and marketing food and beverage products for industrial use in Belgium, France and Holland.

The model allows a comparison between the relative efficacy of product quality, service and sales quality as well as problem-solving in driving relationship satisfaction. The results demonstrate the relative effectiveness of sales team quality while also emphasizing the importance of problem-solving in building relationship satisfaction.

This study makes theoretical and empirical contributions providing a better understanding of the impact of service/product quality and problem-solving in building relationship satisfaction in a B2B context.

El propósito de este trabajo es fusionar los conceptos de servicio y calidad del producto, las capacidades de resolución de problemas y la satisfacción relacional en un modelo integrador y probar este modelo empíricamente en un contexto B2B.

Para contrastar las hipótesis propuestas se aplicó un modelo de ecuaciones estructurales, utilizando el enfoque LISREL, aplicado a una muestra de 1218 centros de compras industriales que producen y comercializan productos de alimentación y bebidas para uso industrial en Bélgica, Francia y Holanda.

El modelo permite una comparación de la eficacia relativa de la calidad del producto, la calidad del servicio y las ventas, así como la resolución de problemas en la construcción de la satisfacción relacional. Los resultados demuestran la efectividad relativa de la calidad del equipo de ventas, al tiempo que enfatizan la importancia de la resolución de problemas en la construcción de la satisfacción relacional.

Este estudio hace una contribución teórica y empírica para comprender mejor el impacto de la calidad del servicio / producto y la resolución de problemas en la construcción de la satisfacción relacional en un contexto B2B.

This study reports findings about British advertising agency managers’ response patterns to a mail survey and four follow‐up techniques (original, photocopy, postcard and letter), which were manipulated to determine their individual impact on response rate. Findings should provide original insights to mail survey researchers planning to sample advertising agency managers in reducing both non‐response and sampling bias. The initial response rate was just over 18 per cent and four follow‐up techniques altogether lifted the overall response rate to a little less than 32 per cent. There are several statistically significant differences of importance to mail researchers in reducing non‐response bias and increasing response rate.

The purpose of this paper is to identify the input, process and output factors (along with their manifest variables) of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), and to establish cause and effect relationships amongst the factors and sub-factors. Systems thinking, a holistic approach, is used to carry out qualitative analysis of the feedback loops.

A well-structured questionnaire was developed to gather the relevant data to identify the factors affecting the performance of SMEs in a holistic manner. A total of 150 responses were collected during November 2015–March 2016. Factor analysis and path analysis were used to establish causal relationships between input, process and output factors. The systems thinking approach has been used for qualitative analysis.

Feedback loops have been identified amongst input-process-output-input factors and amongst sub-factors. They enabled authors to infer that the managers/owners of SMEs are systems thinkers, if not completely, at least partially. Six negative feedback loops and one positive feedback loop prevail. System behaviour arises out of the interaction of positive and negative feedback loops; it appears that in the long-run, the SMEs attain their target levels. The following inferences are drawn: circular relationships are identified amongst input, processes and organisational performance (OP), modern management tools such as just in times, Kanban have long-term benefits and are perceived as ineffective by small enterprises and formal financing and functional transparency enhances OP.

Systems thinking, a holistic approach, has been used to study the effect of input, process and output factors on one another. Such studies are sparse, especially, in the Indian context. Many studies have been conducted to study the effect of input and of processes on performance such as innovation, information technology, human resource, technology, government regulation on performance of SMEs in a silo but, rarely all together. The qualitative analysis adds value to the research. Many of the outcomes of the research have been largely discussed in Indian print media which indicates the pragmatic approach of the research.

Despite the importance of professional services to organisations, relatively little is known about the way they are purchased. This study details the risks perceived and risk‐reducing strategies employed by purchasers in local government and examines how these vary with buying‐phase and buy‐class. Risk varied little, but some of the 36 risk‐reducing strategies identified varied across the buying phases and were more useful in the modified‐rebuy situation. The results are discussed in the context of risk measurement and implications for purchasers and providers of professional services.

Attempts to validate Rotter’s locus of control scale with a sample of religious not‐for‐profit leaders. Uses a questionnaire sent to 558 senior pastors of Arkansas Southern Baptist churches. Findings are consistent with other reseachers who have highlighted some deficiencies in the scale and many resppondents struggled to answer some sections. Suggests that the scale should be re‐evaluated with less items.

A literature review of techniques for raising response rates to industrial mail surveys identified six tried and tested methods. Experimental evidence shows considerable support for a prior telephone call, pre‐paid monetary incentives, non‐monetary gifts (such as a pen), using stamps on return envelopes, granting anonymity to respondents and following up the initial mailing with a second covering letter and questionnaire. Gives indications of the likely rise in response rates. By examining the available evidence, users of industrial mail surveys can decide more confidently on their research strategy.

Explores the importance of several regimes of new product development activities using multiple statistical techniques on two different data sets collected in the USA and Canada over 12 years apart. The results were consistent across the statistical methods and across the data sets, but contradict much previous new product research. In particular, it was found that undertaking technical activities proficiently is more important than performing marketing activities proficiently and that performing development stage (including subsequent) activities proficiently is more critical than performing “up‐front” or predevelopment activities proficiently in determining the success or failure of new industrial products.

This paper addresses the effectiveness of Web site capabilities. It is intended to empirically determine the importance of site properties for Internet sales performance. More specifically, we consider the relationship of characteristics such as navigability, interactivity, multimedia design and marketing communications content with sales attributed to the Internet. Advanced econometric modeling of cross‐section data on business‐to‐business firms demonstrates that interactive responsiveness of the site, enabling customized interactive programs and club membership, fast‐downloading multimedia, such as frames and animation, corporate information stressing corporate positioning and active information submission on behalf of the target audience may influence sales performance. Important implications for optimization of business‐to‐business Internet strategies are also considered.