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The Internet is rapidly changing the way in which information is displayed and accessed on a global level. Taking into consideration the new communication opportunities offered on line, businesses will be forced to alter both their internal and external communication strategies, and be prepared to flow with the changes. One of the sectors that can benefit from the global expansion of Internet communications is biotechnology. In order to understand the on‐line corporate communication model used by biotechnology companies, the Internet sites of 600 firms were accessed and analysed. The data presented highlight the type of on‐line messages, their function (marketing or PR oriented), the targeted audiences, and the level of on‐line interaction provided by the company’s site. Finally, the interpretation of results concludes with an integrated on‐line communication model for biotechnology companies.

Every business can be described in terms of flows – both of materials and of information. Materials flow into the company, between activities within it, and in the form of finished goods and services from the company to its customers. Simultaneously, there are flows of information in the reverse direction that provide valuable data for the system: feedback from the marketplace in the form of customers’ orders, customer reaction, and information on needs and wants; flows of information within the company that provide data in the form of inventory schedules, production schedules, etc., and orders from the company to outside suppliers. In one sense the whole company and the market in which it operates can be regarded as a series of linkages and relationships, and the company’s operating efficiency can be seen to depend on how well these connections work. If the system can be made to flow smoothly, at minimum cost, then the chances are that the overall company performance, measured by any criteria, will be high. In practice, however, it is very common to find bottlenecks and poor integration between different parts of this system, with consequent unsatisfactory performance.

Product recall messages represent an essential communication tool in crisis situations. Their function is twofold: to provide information of a practical nature regarding the defective product, and the operational process of recalling it, and to defend the reputation of the affected firm. This paper attempts to analyse the structure and the function of product recall messages published in the UK national press, using as points of reference best practice guides published by professional or governmental organisations.

The accelerated globalisation of world markets in the last 30 years has increased the importance of internationalisation models for both academics and practitioners. The internationalisation process of SMEs is one of the newest developments in this area, with major implication for the strategic orientation of small firms. However, this phenomenon has to be considered in relation with the specific characteristics for various market environments and industrial sectors. This study attempts to analyse the impact of the domestic market profile on the internationalisation process of biotech SMEs in US and UK, outlining the similarities and the differences between these two countries.

One of the major functions of marketing strategy is the proper positioning of the company in the sectorial value‐added chain, in order to create the best possible competitive advantage. This process is extremely important, especially for small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs), since any wrong decision can literally eliminate the company from the market. This paper attempts to analyse and present the strategic positioning process specific to small and medium‐sized biopharmaceutical firms in the UK. After discussing the specific characteristics of the value chain in the biopharmaceuticals sector, the paper presents the research methodology used to collect primary and secondary data. Data analysis leads towards a theoretical model that describes the stages and the factors influencing the strategic positioning of SMEs in the value‐added chain of the biopharmaceuticals sector.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the competitive strategies adopted by French wine producing firms in a crisis context.

First, two case studies have been developed through interviews with wine producers. They show that many strategies, corresponding to different levels of performance, are possible in a crisis industry. Second, an empirical study has been conducted applying a questionnaire survey addressed in June 2008 to wine producing firms from the Languedoc‐Roussillon region, south of France. Third, ordinal regression is operated in order to link financial performance and strategic choices of the investigated 160 respondent firms.

The findings indicated some interesting trends concerning wine producers' perception regarding the effect of the crisis and the strategies adopted by firms. The preferred strategic choice of the majority of investigated firms is the combination of “niche + differentiation” strategies. On the other hand, the strategic choice of firms is influenced by their experience; many less experienced firms prefer to adopt a differentiation strategy or a combination of the “niche + differentiation” strategies. Moreover, statistical analysis shows that no implementation of niche, differentiation or relational marketing lead toward decreasing turnover.

This research is focused only on wine producing firms from Languedoc‐Roussillon region in France. A second limitation is the fact that firms' performance was not systematically measured. The performance is evaluated mainly indirectly, considering that the investigated firms have survived the crisis.

Very few studies have been conducted on this particular topic.

The paper's objective is to investigate the relation between direct and indirect marketing channels applied by French wine producers, and to identify the elements that can enhance the success of direct distribution methods.

Secondary data collected though a questionnaire survey, and published in a study of Viniflhor was analysed in order to identify the distribution channels used by French wine producers. In the second part of the study, primary qualitative data obtained through face‐to‐face interviews with 17 wine producers was used to explore their direct marketing approach.

The findings indicated that French wine producers use a large variety of both direct and indirect marketing channels, although the importance of these distribution methods varies with the size of the producer (defined in terms of vineyard area and wine production). An integrated distribution strategy is applied by more than a half of the respondents. Although the strategic planning process is applied informally and intuitively, a series of innovative elements are combined in order to enhance the value of the product offer and to develop long‐term relationships with satisfied customers.

The low response rate obtained in the application of data collection methods raises questions regarding the possibility to generalize the findings to the entire population of study.

The paper applies a three layer analysis to the situation of the French wine producers from various regions, creatively combining focused investigation with an integrative perspective.

The development of new information technology and telecommunication (ITT) devices has increased the complexity of business‐to‐business (B2B) interactions, forcing the service organisations to adopt a multi‐channel, customer‐oriented approach. The purpose of this study is to present an exploratory study of B2B interactions in Romania, which measures the preference of both service providers and client firms for various channels of interaction, and identifies the main dimensions of the interactive process.

The primary data were collected through an e‐mail questionnaire that was answered by 113 service providers and 102 client organisations, and then analysed using the SPSS statistical package.

Five main interaction dimensions have been identified as the framework used by client organisations to evaluate the quality of B2B interactions. These dimensions are complex constructs that have a double projection in the context of ITT systems and CRM procedures.

The process of B2B interactions is poorly documented for transition economies, such as Romania. After describing the dimensions of B2B interactions, the paper proposes a diagnostic procedure for evaluating the perception gaps between the service provider firm and the client organisation, concerning the quality level of each dimension. This diagnostic can be adapted and used by each service provider organisation to identify the possible areas of customer dissatisfaction and the requirements for future improvements.

Successful marketing strategies depend very much on an organisation's ability to implement them. As the role of technology grows apace in marketing, it is important to understand how IT and organizational processes impact on the implementation of marketing strategies. This paper attempts to show how technology is changing the nature of marketing and then shows its interaction with people and processes. It also offers organisations an opportunity to undertake a self‐evaluation exercise to determine how well integrated are their implementation policies. In general, the argument outlined indicates that for successful implementation of strategies an organisation has to integrate people, processes and IT.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the particularities of integrated marketing communication (IMC) in the online environment.

Both secondary and primary data (face‐to‐face interviews with 29 marketing or communication managers of UK online consumer retail firms) are analysed in order to identify the various meanings of the integrated online marketing communication, the opportunities and challenges raised by online communication, and the structure of an efficient integrated online marketing communication system.

The transparency, interactivity and memory of the internet force the organisation to adopt a proactive‐reactive attitude in online communication, and to combine consistency and continuity with flexibility and customisation.

The number of interviews used to collect primary data is relatively small; the use of the information collected is general and unstructured; and the findings are applicable only to online customer product retailers.

The messages sent by the company to its online audiences have to be transformed/adapted in a three‐stage process.

The paper identifies the specific opportunities and challenges raised by the internet for integrated marketing communication, and proposes an original model for the adaptation of online messages to core corporate values, communication strategy and tactics, and targeted audience/communication channels.