Fenfang Lin, Jake Ansell and Wai-sum Siu
Drawing from industrial upgrading theories, this study aims to explore the issues of industrial upgrading and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) development in an emerging…
Abstract
Purpose
Drawing from industrial upgrading theories, this study aims to explore the issues of industrial upgrading and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) development in an emerging market – China.
Design/methodology/approach
A contextual stepwise approach is undertaken by applying netnography and interviews to investigate manufacturing SMEs' perceptions on upgrading.
Findings
The study outlines three economic actors – government, industry and manufacturer; two upgrading factors – internal and external; a vicious circle that consists of thin profit, quality and imitation issues; and a benign circle that incorporates a list of upgrading capabilities – research and development (R&D), creativity, design and branding – in the context of upgrading to the value-added supply chain.
Research limitations/implications
By integrating the findings with relevant literature, the authors propose a framework to best illustrate manufacturing SME upgrading. The findings reveal that Chinese manufacturing SMEs acquire upgrading capabilities through organizational learning during the upgrading process, which is affected by both external and internal factors in the constraints imposed by the interplay of relevant actors.
Originality/value
Through the innovative methodological approach, this study affords great insights into industrial upgrading from the perspective of manufacturing SMEs in an emerging economy – China.
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Previous studies focus on the direct effects of marketing analytics on entrepreneurial performance, but few explore the underlying mechanisms. Drawing on affordance theory, this…
Abstract
Purpose
Previous studies focus on the direct effects of marketing analytics on entrepreneurial performance, but few explore the underlying mechanisms. Drawing on affordance theory, this study explores pathways through new product innovation (NPI) for the effects of marketing analytics on business performance. NPI is a market-based innovation concept comprising customer- and competitor-driven NPD and incremental innovation.
Design/methodology/approach
Using survey data collected from UK-based entrepreneurial firms operating in the IT and telecoms industries, we apply confirmatory factor analysis and a sequential structural equation model to test the mediating role of NPI in the effect of marketing analytics on market performance and financial performance.
Findings
The results show that marketing analytics enhances business performance through competitor-driven but not customer-driven NPD. Although using marketing analytics to generate customer knowledge for existing product innovation may enhance market performance, this positive effect becomes negative when competitor-driven NPD is undertaken to improve existing product innovation.
Originality/value
This study makes significant contributions to the innovation and NPD literature. It delves deeper into the existing view on the positive contributions of customer engagement to business value creation, revealing the significance of competitor knowledge to enhance business performance through marketing analytics, particularly in the context of IT and telecoms entrepreneurial firms.
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Fenfang Lin, Jake Ansell, Alasdair Marshall and Udechukwu Ojiako
This paper aims to distil the management challenge pertaining to B2B SME branding strategy, communication and constraint in the emerging market context of Chinese manufacturing.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to distil the management challenge pertaining to B2B SME branding strategy, communication and constraint in the emerging market context of Chinese manufacturing.
Design/methodology/approach
Complemented by 19 interviews, this paper adopted a novel methodological approach – netnographic analysis – to investigate a selection of Chinese manufacturing SMEs.
Findings
Findings revealed three managerial approaches to B2B brand management: conservative, flexible and integrated-exploratory.
Practical implications
Understanding the three approaches offers managerial implications for Chinese manufacturer SMEs to redesign their branding practice. Informed with a better understanding of the available option, they will be able to achieve high value-added production through branding to gain competitiveness. This study sheds light on B2B SME branding from an emerging market perspective, an area that has been largely neglected in the existing literature.
Originality/value
Findings make a novel contribution to B2B SME brand management literature by clarifying practical management issues pertinent to Chinese emerging market manufacturers in particular, and offering widely generalizable lessons for B2B brand management research.
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Xianjin Zha, Kunfeng Liu, Yalan Yan, Guanxiang Yan, Jia Guo, Fenfang Cao and Yunzhi Wang
Digital libraries and social media have emerged as two prominent online information sources with different characteristics. The purpose of this paper is to compare digital…
Abstract
Purpose
Digital libraries and social media have emerged as two prominent online information sources with different characteristics. The purpose of this paper is to compare digital libraries and social media from the perspective of the dual route model which outlined a general framework of central and peripheral route-induced attitude change.
Design/methodology/approach
Research hypotheses were developed and data collected from users of digital libraries and social media were used for data analysis. The paired samples t-test was employed to compare the means.
Findings
Both central route (information quality) and peripheral route (source credibility and reputation) of digital libraries are higher than those of social media.
Practical implications
The important status of digital libraries as conventional information sources should be propagated by various “marketing” ways. Managers of digital libraries should encourage their users to use both digital libraries and social media so that some unique advantage of social media could usefully complement digital libraries. They should also recognize the challenge brought by social media and try various ways to enhance reputation.
Originality/value
Building on the dual route model, this study compares digital libraries and social media in terms of the central route and peripheral route, which the authors believe presents a new lens for digital library research and practice alike.
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Xinyue Zhou, Zhilin Yang, Michael R. Hyman, Gang Li and Ziaul Haque Munim