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Explores the distinctive behaviours and organizational capabilities which enable firms to innovate successfully. Identifies four aspects of innovation which sustain the firm’s abilities to deliver superior customer value. These are: culture and climate; the management of assets and capabilities; structure and controls; and new product and process development. Argues that the over‐reliance on the traditional approach to innovation – the development of new products and services – is too limited a view and may even be preventing business leaders from adopting this broader, organisational approach where the contribution from each area of the business can be multiplicative when kept in balance. Finally, issues the role of business leaders in removing barriers to innovation and nurturing a multi‐faceted approach across the firm and draws conclusions.

This research explores the role of innovativeness and involvement constructs and associated attitudinal and behavioural traits, in profiling customers in dynamic markets. Customer behaviour in the Irish cheese market was investigated, with a particular focus on the dynamic “speciality cheese” product category. A greater percentage of speciality cheese customers were found to be innovative within the cheese domain compared with non‐buyers. The speciality cheese customers also displayed higher levels of enduring involvement than the non‐speciality cheese customer. Reported attitudes reinforced these psychological traits. Speciality cheese customers had a broader knowledge of cheese products than non‐buyers and also indicated a preference for a greater number of cheeses. The behaviour of speciality cheese customers in the marketplace reflected these attitudes and tendencies. They shopped in a wide variety of retail outlets, spent more money on cheeses, and consumed a variety of cheeses. They are typically aware of a number of cheese brands and are not brand loyal, but compare and often buy different brands.

This article has been withdrawn as it was published elsewhere and accidentally duplicated. The original article can be seen here: 10.1108/02634509610152691. When citing the article, please cite: Simon Knox, (1996), “The death of brand deference: can brand management stop the rot?”, Marketing Intelligence & Planning, Vol. 14 Iss: 7, pp. 35 - 39.

An empirical study based on the buying behaviour of local authorities in the UK. A taxonomy of local authority is outlined and buying centres identified. The stages in the buying process are discussed and differentiated from the stages associated with the private sector. In particular, the communication flow between local authorities at the product selection stage are a distinguishing characteristic. Voluntary consortium purchase does not occur to any great extent so that purchasing decisions are unco‐ordinated and fragmented when viewed on a national basis.

The literature on in‐store purchasing behaviour is reviewed and it is argued that the importance of the purchasing situation as a strategic factor to induce behaviour change amongst continental cheese users should be reconsidered. Research is reported that shows significant differences in in‐store behaviour between frequent and occasional purchasers. Suggestions are offered for ways in which store managers might modify this behaviour.

Effective pricing research techniques need to reflect fully consumer behaviour. A historical review indicates the limited capabilities of consumers to recall grocery prices correctly. Adoption‐level theory implies that consumers evaluate brand prices relative to a reference price rather than in isolation. A consumer survey, updating our knowledge of consumers′ ability to recall prices correctly, provides evidence that price accuracy increases when a reference price is given. Considers implications for pricing research.

This article extends the IMP interaction approach into horticultural marketing in the United Kingdom. Firstly, the stages in the development of retail buyer‐supplier relationships are categorised, secondly, the principal characteristics of the interaction elements are highlighted and, thirdly, the concept of demand and supply portfolios are introduced to explain the strategy adopted by both parties.

This paper considers the emerging focus in both academic and practitioner literature on the concept of the corporate brand and argues that the underlying generative mechanisms and processes that enable successful corporate brand management are not clearly understood. Based on the findings of recent fieldwork, the authors outline six new conventions for understanding the processes of nurturing and managing a corporate brand and discuss the implications of these conventions for the emergent theory of corporate brand management. Evidence from this work has also led the authors to propose a more holistic definition of the corporate brand, “the visual, verbal and behavioural expression of an organisation's unique business model”.

This study examines how various characteristics of the discount retail environment and the overall attitude towards a discount retail store, considered to be an abstract and global image component, influence consumers’ satisfaction and how consumers’ satisfaction, in turn, affects store loyalty. The data, collected from a sample of 517 discount retail customers in Daegu, Korea, indicate that: (1) forming the overall attitude is more closely related to in‐store services: atmosphere, employee service, after sales service and merchandising, (2) store satisfaction is formed through perceived store atmosphere and value, (3) the overall attitude has strong influence on satisfaction and loyalty and its impact is much stronger on loyalty than on satisfaction, (4) store loyalty is directly affected by most significantly location, merchandising and after sale service in order, (5) satisfaction is not related to customers’ committed store revisiting behavior. The applications in management and implications for future research are discussed.

Opens by exploring the changing relationship between customer value and how it has been traditionally interpreted within the organisation. Business leaders today acknowledge that the traditional 4Ps approach to brand marketing needs to be transformed in order to realise a broader vision of customer value across the organisation. Argues that it is the business leader who should be leading this transformation, as manager of the organisation's brand and its values, as well as challenging the marketing department to redefine its role as brand custodians. Outlines a framework which enables senior management to develop superior customer value through branding and positioning their organisation and to deliver this value through its business processes. Uses practical examples to illustrate the use of this framework and concludes by considering whether or not the traditional marketing department is acting as a barrier when it comes to positioning and branding their organisation.