Pub Date : 2026-02-01DOI: 10.1016/j.indmarman.2026.01.006
Van Hoang Dinh
Emerging market manufacturing small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) struggle to translate artificial intelligence (AI) investments into innovation outcomes. This study investigates how AI-enabled knowledge capabilities drive new product performance by employing a sequential mixed-methods design with 261 manufacturing SMEs. Our findings reveal that AI-enabled knowledge capabilities operate through dual pathways: directly enhancing performance and indirectly through digital product innovation radicalness. Furthermore, this study identifies digital sustainability leadership as a critical boundary condition acting as both mediator and moderator, fundamentally reconfiguring how AI generates value. This study makes significant contributions to dynamic capabilities theory and the knowledge-based view. By positioning AI-enabled knowledge capabilities as critical dynamic capabilities, this research clarifies the transformation pathways through which AI generates competitive advantages and offer actionable insights for managers navigating resource-constrained environments.
{"title":"Leveraging AI-enabled knowledge capabilities for new product performance: Evidence from manufacturing SMEs in emerging economies","authors":"Van Hoang Dinh","doi":"10.1016/j.indmarman.2026.01.006","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.indmarman.2026.01.006","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Emerging market manufacturing small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) struggle to translate artificial intelligence (AI) investments into innovation outcomes. This study investigates how AI-enabled knowledge capabilities drive new product performance by employing a sequential mixed-methods design with 261 manufacturing SMEs. Our findings reveal that AI-enabled knowledge capabilities operate through dual pathways: directly enhancing performance and indirectly through digital product innovation radicalness. Furthermore, this study identifies digital sustainability leadership as a critical boundary condition acting as both mediator and moderator, fundamentally reconfiguring how AI generates value. This study makes significant contributions to dynamic capabilities theory and the knowledge-based view. By positioning AI-enabled knowledge capabilities as critical dynamic capabilities, this research clarifies the transformation pathways through which AI generates competitive advantages and offer actionable insights for managers navigating resource-constrained environments.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51345,"journal":{"name":"Industrial Marketing Management","volume":"133 ","pages":"Pages 84-103"},"PeriodicalIF":7.5,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146173854","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-02-01Epub Date: 2026-02-10DOI: 10.1016/j.indmarman.2026.02.001
Valter Afonso Vieira , Deonir De Toni , Raj S. Agnihotri
Marketing capabilities are widely recognized as critical drivers of firm performance, particularly in competitive and rapidly changing environments. Despite growing scholarly attention, the literature remains fragmented, with inconsistent findings across industries, regions, and methodological approaches. Moreover, prior studies often overlook how contextual factors—such as innovation intensity and firm maturity—shape the effectiveness of marketing capabilities. This lack of integration constrains theoretical advancement and limits the practical relevance of marketing capability research. Drawing on 127 empirical studies comprising 430 observations published between 1999 and 2025, our meta-analysis demonstrates that marketing capabilities significantly enhance both subjective and objective firm performance (ES = 0.31, p < .001). This relationship is further strengthened by higher levels of country competitiveness and innovation intensity, whereas firm size (but not firm age) positively conditions this association. In addition, the different dimensions of marketing capabilities—specialized, cross-functional, architectural, and dynamic—exhibit comparable effect sizes and are all positively associated with overall firm performance.
市场营销能力被广泛认为是企业绩效的关键驱动因素，特别是在竞争激烈和快速变化的环境中。尽管越来越多的学术关注，文献仍然是碎片化的，不同行业、地区和方法方法的发现不一致。此外，先前的研究往往忽略了诸如创新强度和企业成熟度等背景因素如何塑造营销能力的有效性。这种整合的缺失制约了理论的进步，也限制了营销能力研究的实际意义。利用1999年至2025年间发表的127项实证研究，包括430项观察结果，我们的荟萃分析表明，营销能力显著提高了企业的主观和客观绩效（ES = 0.31, p < .001）。国家竞争力和创新强度的提高进一步加强了这种关系，而企业规模（而不是企业年龄）对这种联系起着积极的作用。此外，营销能力的不同维度——专门化的、跨职能的、架构的和动态的——表现出相当的效应大小，并且都与公司的整体绩效呈正相关。
{"title":"Foundations of marketing capabilities across 25-year: The role of competitive and innovation indexes in establishing firm performance","authors":"Valter Afonso Vieira , Deonir De Toni , Raj S. Agnihotri","doi":"10.1016/j.indmarman.2026.02.001","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.indmarman.2026.02.001","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Marketing capabilities are widely recognized as critical drivers of firm performance, particularly in competitive and rapidly changing environments. Despite growing scholarly attention, the literature remains fragmented, with inconsistent findings across industries, regions, and methodological approaches. Moreover, prior studies often overlook how contextual factors—such as innovation intensity and firm maturity—shape the effectiveness of marketing capabilities. This lack of integration constrains theoretical advancement and limits the practical relevance of marketing capability research. Drawing on 127 empirical studies comprising 430 observations published between 1999 and 2025, our meta-analysis demonstrates that marketing capabilities significantly enhance both subjective and objective firm performance (<em>ES</em> = 0.31, <em>p</em> < .001). This relationship is further strengthened by higher levels of country competitiveness and innovation intensity, whereas firm size (but not firm age) positively conditions this association. In addition, the different dimensions of marketing capabilities—specialized, cross-functional, architectural, and dynamic—exhibit comparable effect sizes and are all positively associated with overall firm performance.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51345,"journal":{"name":"Industrial Marketing Management","volume":"133 ","pages":"Pages 104-119"},"PeriodicalIF":7.5,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146173853","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-01-01Epub Date: 2025-12-23DOI: 10.1016/j.indmarman.2025.12.001
Rafael Teixeira , Aleda V. Roth , Juliana Bonomi Santos , DeWayne Moore
This study highlights the B2B buyer services facilities network and how these networks influence service delivery and performance. The buyer's network is a critical contingency because the supplier delivers its services inside the buyer's buildings and depends on integrating buyer and supplier resources (e.g., electronic devices) for continuous delivery. Building on supply chain management literature, we identify five attributes—number of facilities, geographic distance, geographic density, variety, and volume of services—to characterize buyers' service facilities networks. We analyzed quantitative and qualitative data from Brazil's largest telecom supplier, using secondary data from 143 buyers, 21,808 services, and 3562 facilities to propose a taxonomy of B2B buyers and show how the supplier's service availability and recovery processes varied across buyer types. We focus on technology-enabled services, which require considerable resources from buyers' facilities and are exposed to the effects of the buyer's service facilities network. Our findings contextualize design concepts, offering a comprehensive view of B2B buyers, their complex idiosyncrasies, and how their facilities network affects service availability and suppliers' decisions in the “last mile” delivery context. We respond to calls to incorporate complex thinking into generic service theory and create contextualized knowledge to support service practice.
{"title":"Exploring the B2B buyer's service facilities network: Characteristics and implications for service availability in technology-enabled services","authors":"Rafael Teixeira , Aleda V. Roth , Juliana Bonomi Santos , DeWayne Moore","doi":"10.1016/j.indmarman.2025.12.001","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.indmarman.2025.12.001","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study highlights the B2B buyer services facilities network and how these networks influence service delivery and performance. The buyer's network is a critical contingency because the supplier delivers its services inside the buyer's buildings and depends on integrating buyer and supplier resources (e.g., electronic devices) for continuous delivery. Building on supply chain management literature, we identify five attributes—number of facilities, geographic distance, geographic density, variety, and volume of services—to characterize buyers' service facilities networks. We analyzed quantitative and qualitative data from Brazil's largest telecom supplier, using secondary data from 143 buyers, 21,808 services, and 3562 facilities to propose a taxonomy of B2B buyers and show how the supplier's service availability and recovery processes varied across buyer types. We focus on technology-enabled services, which require considerable resources from buyers' facilities and are exposed to the effects of the buyer's service facilities network. Our findings contextualize design concepts, offering a comprehensive view of B2B buyers, their complex idiosyncrasies, and how their facilities network affects service availability and suppliers' decisions in the “last mile” delivery context. We respond to calls to incorporate complex thinking into generic service theory and create contextualized knowledge to support service practice.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51345,"journal":{"name":"Industrial Marketing Management","volume":"132 ","pages":"Pages 183-197"},"PeriodicalIF":7.5,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145840282","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-01-01Epub Date: 2025-12-26DOI: 10.1016/j.indmarman.2025.12.010
Anni Rajala , Hannu Makkonen
Supply chain digitalization (SCD), the integration of digital technologies into supply chain activities, has become a central driver of transformation in contemporary supply chain management. Despite substantial scholarly attention, empirical evidence on the performance effects of SCD remains fragmented and at times contradictory. This study addresses this inconsistency by developing and testing a value-oriented perspective that distinguishes between digital technologies that foster value creation, generating benefits for customers and partners, and those focused on value capture to retain and exploit those benefits within the firm. This meta-analysis of 73 empirical studies identifies six value-creation themes and four value-capture themes, each associated with distinct digital technologies and supply chain functions. The results show that value-creation-oriented technologies are predominantly linked to innovation outcomes and supply chain performance, whereas value-capture-oriented technologies exhibit stronger associations with both competitive performance and supply chain performance. By disentangling these underlying mechanisms, the study clarifies when and how SCD contributes to performance and offers actionable guidance for aligning digitalization initiatives with strategic objectives in supply chains.
{"title":"tA meta-analysis of the performance effects of supply chain digitalization: toward a value-oriented perspective","authors":"Anni Rajala , Hannu Makkonen","doi":"10.1016/j.indmarman.2025.12.010","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.indmarman.2025.12.010","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Supply chain digitalization (SCD), the integration of digital technologies into supply chain activities, has become a central driver of transformation in contemporary supply chain management. Despite substantial scholarly attention, empirical evidence on the performance effects of SCD remains fragmented and at times contradictory. This study addresses this inconsistency by developing and testing a <strong>value-oriented perspective</strong> that distinguishes between digital technologies that foster value creation, generating benefits for customers and partners, and those focused on <strong>value capture</strong> to retain and exploit those benefits within the firm. This <strong>meta-analysis of 73 empirical studies</strong> identifies six value-creation themes and four value-capture themes, each associated with distinct digital technologies and supply chain functions. The results show that value-creation-oriented technologies are predominantly linked to innovation outcomes and supply chain performance, whereas value-capture-oriented technologies exhibit stronger associations with both competitive performance and supply chain performance. By disentangling these underlying mechanisms, the study clarifies when and how SCD contributes to performance and offers actionable guidance for aligning digitalization initiatives with strategic objectives in supply chains.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51345,"journal":{"name":"Industrial Marketing Management","volume":"132 ","pages":"Pages 226-245"},"PeriodicalIF":7.5,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145840284","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-01-01Epub Date: 2025-12-04DOI: 10.1016/j.indmarman.2025.11.012
Ala Arvidsson, José Augusto Campos Garcia, Lisa Govik
This study investigates the shifting power dynamics within global supply networks amidst supply scarcity and the implications for supply security. It focuses on the impact of the semiconductor shortages on automotive original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) between 2020 and 2024, where traditional hierarchies of power shifted, and OEMs had to increasingly rely on their lower-tier suppliers for supply and innovation. Data are collected using a mix of participatory observations, interviews, and secondary sources from the focal OEM (and its holding group), its suppliers, its distributors, and market experts. Utilizing resource dependence theory as a framework, we explore how OEMs navigate these dependencies to secure their supply while facing scarcity. Through an analysis spanning micro (firm), meso (inter-firm and supply network), and macro (environment) levels, this study offers insights into the sources of power and dependencies in the network, strategies for mitigating vulnerabilities and ensuring continuity of supply vis-à-vis dependency. The key strategies identified include diversifying the supplier base, forming strategic alliances, and enhancing information sharing. Further, it reveals the importance of understanding and managing interdependencies within the macro and meso levels, in addition to the micro level, to maintain power balance and the continuous supply of critical components. This study contributes to the literature by advancing the understanding of power dynamics during supply crises and providing practical recommendations for managing interdependencies to maintain supply chain resilience.
{"title":"Power dynamics in global supply networks at times of supply crisis","authors":"Ala Arvidsson, José Augusto Campos Garcia, Lisa Govik","doi":"10.1016/j.indmarman.2025.11.012","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.indmarman.2025.11.012","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study investigates the shifting power dynamics within global supply networks amidst supply scarcity and the implications for supply security. It focuses on the impact of the semiconductor shortages on automotive original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) between 2020 and 2024, where traditional hierarchies of power shifted, and OEMs had to increasingly rely on their lower-tier suppliers for supply and innovation. Data are collected using a mix of participatory observations, interviews, and secondary sources from the focal OEM (and its holding group), its suppliers, its distributors, and market experts. Utilizing resource dependence theory as a framework, we explore how OEMs navigate these dependencies to secure their supply while facing scarcity. Through an analysis spanning micro (firm), <em>meso</em> (inter-firm and supply network), and macro (environment) levels, this study offers insights into the sources of power and dependencies in the network, strategies for mitigating vulnerabilities and ensuring continuity of supply vis-à-vis dependency. The key strategies identified include diversifying the supplier base, forming strategic alliances, and enhancing information sharing. Further, it reveals the importance of understanding and managing interdependencies within the macro and <em>meso</em> levels, in addition to the micro level, to maintain power balance and the continuous supply of critical components. This study contributes to the literature by advancing the understanding of power dynamics during supply crises and providing practical recommendations for managing interdependencies to maintain supply chain resilience.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51345,"journal":{"name":"Industrial Marketing Management","volume":"132 ","pages":"Pages 61-75"},"PeriodicalIF":7.5,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145685428","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-01-01Epub Date: 2025-12-17DOI: 10.1016/j.indmarman.2025.12.005
Marcos Inácio Severo de Almeida , Valter Afonso Vieira , Juliano Domingues da Silva , Xialu Liu , Valter da Silva Faia
B2B digital platforms are virtual spaces where industrial companies showcase their products through online marketplaces, integrating data from buyers and sellers who continuously interact for commercial purposes. Industrial buyers often navigate these platform-driven online sales funnels through diverse journeys, engaging with lower, middle, and higher funnel stages. The existing literature on sales funnels often focuses on isolated or (classic) simultaneous stages rather than providing a holistic view of the funnel structure. Our study contrasts traditional simultaneous models with a novel dynamic non-simultaneous framework, to unravel the sequence (or simultaneity) of marketing efforts driving marketing performance. We further evaluate the cumulative impact of product bundling, cross-selling, and up-selling strategies across funnel stages for industrial buyers on B2B digital platforms. Our key findings reveal: (1) an asymmetrical relationship between cross-selling and up-selling within the funnel, (2) the influence of sales agent sentiment on sales strategy adoption, and (3) the context-dependent suitability of simultaneous versus non-simultaneous structures. Specifically, a 1 % increase in up-selling efforts leads to a 0.70 % increase in sales conversions, underscoring the cumulative effect of targeted strategies. These insights advance research on B2B digital platforms by clarifying the dynamic effects of online sentiment and sales strategies within online sales funnel frameworks.
{"title":"Sales funnel structures in B2B digital platforms: Dynamic effects of online sentiment and sales strategies on marketing performance","authors":"Marcos Inácio Severo de Almeida , Valter Afonso Vieira , Juliano Domingues da Silva , Xialu Liu , Valter da Silva Faia","doi":"10.1016/j.indmarman.2025.12.005","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.indmarman.2025.12.005","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>B2B digital platforms are virtual spaces where industrial companies showcase their products through online marketplaces, integrating data from buyers and sellers who continuously interact for commercial purposes. Industrial buyers often navigate these platform-driven online sales funnels through diverse journeys, engaging with lower, middle, and higher funnel stages. The existing literature on sales funnels often focuses on isolated or (classic) simultaneous stages rather than providing a holistic view of the funnel structure. Our study contrasts traditional simultaneous models with a novel dynamic non-simultaneous framework, to unravel the sequence (or simultaneity) of marketing efforts driving marketing performance. We further evaluate the cumulative impact of product bundling, cross-selling, and up-selling strategies across funnel stages for industrial buyers on B2B digital platforms. Our key findings reveal: (1) an asymmetrical relationship between cross-selling and up-selling within the funnel, (2) the influence of sales agent sentiment on sales strategy adoption, and (3) the context-dependent suitability of simultaneous versus non-simultaneous structures. Specifically, a 1 % increase in up-selling efforts leads to a 0.70 % increase in sales conversions, underscoring the cumulative effect of targeted strategies. These insights advance research on B2B digital platforms by clarifying the dynamic effects of online sentiment and sales strategies within online sales funnel frameworks.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51345,"journal":{"name":"Industrial Marketing Management","volume":"132 ","pages":"Pages 135-149"},"PeriodicalIF":7.5,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145790322","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-01-01Epub Date: 2025-12-01DOI: 10.1016/j.indmarman.2025.11.005
Maria M. Smirnova , Ksenia S. Golovacheva
This study investigates the role of the marketing agility chain in dysfunctional environments. We examine two core components of marketing agility—market sensing and marketing implementation flexibility—and identify configurations that foster superior performance under market uncertainty. Two distinct trajectories of market sensing are explored: customer orientation and innovativeness, both of which enhance the flexible implementation of marketing decisions. Using data from 249 firms in an emerging market, we test the performance effects of the interplay between market sensing and marketing flexibility through structural equation modeling (SEM) and further assess effective configurations using fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA). To evaluate outcomes, we employ both subjective and objective performance measures. The results confirm the assumed chain of effects in marketing agility, revealing a strong synergy between its components in creating conditions for superior performance, even in dysfunctional environments.
{"title":"How to succeed in a dysfunctional environment: Configuring marketing agility components for better performance","authors":"Maria M. Smirnova , Ksenia S. Golovacheva","doi":"10.1016/j.indmarman.2025.11.005","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.indmarman.2025.11.005","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study investigates the role of the marketing agility chain in dysfunctional environments. We examine two core components of marketing agility—market sensing and marketing implementation flexibility—and identify configurations that foster superior performance under market uncertainty. Two distinct trajectories of market sensing are explored: customer orientation and innovativeness, both of which enhance the flexible implementation of marketing decisions. Using data from 249 firms in an emerging market, we test the performance effects of the interplay between market sensing and marketing flexibility through structural equation modeling (SEM) and further assess effective configurations using fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA). To evaluate outcomes, we employ both subjective and objective performance measures. The results confirm the assumed chain of effects in marketing agility, revealing a strong synergy between its components in creating conditions for superior performance, even in dysfunctional environments.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51345,"journal":{"name":"Industrial Marketing Management","volume":"132 ","pages":"Pages 32-45"},"PeriodicalIF":7.5,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145685339","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-01-01Epub Date: 2025-12-30DOI: 10.1016/j.indmarman.2025.12.002
Filoumena Zlatanou, Stephan Dickert, Stephan C. Henneberg
This study conceptualizes and provides experimental evidence for the mediating role of emotions in business relationships. Drawing on Relational Norm Theory, we explore how (positive, negative) emotional responses to the (non)fulfillment of relational norms influence trust as a key characteristic of business relationships. We employ a thematic analysis of the literature, augmented by sensitizing interviews with boundary spanners (i.e., organizational representatives that manage interactions in business relationships) from buying and selling firms, to develop a conceptual dual-pathway model, and an experimental design for causal testing. Our results suggest that emotions of positive and negative valence partially mediate the relationship between relational norm fulfillment and trust, in extension to the established mediation models of business relationships in the literature. While positive and negative emotions do not differ in their degree of influencing trust outcomes, relational performance norm (non)fulfillment was found to generate stronger emotional reactions than that of relational interaction norms. Our research contributes to a more nuanced understanding of business relationships by integrating an alternative explanatory mechanism complementing structural and attitudinal mechanisms, operating on the level of boundary spanners within established models. Way markers for novel research avenues are proposed, and practical insights for managers in interorganizational contexts are derived.
{"title":"Let's be emotional! Experimental evidence for an alternative mediation logic of emotions in business relationships","authors":"Filoumena Zlatanou, Stephan Dickert, Stephan C. Henneberg","doi":"10.1016/j.indmarman.2025.12.002","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.indmarman.2025.12.002","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study conceptualizes and provides experimental evidence for the mediating role of emotions in business relationships. Drawing on Relational Norm Theory, we explore how (positive, negative) emotional responses to the (non)fulfillment of relational norms influence trust as a key characteristic of business relationships. We employ a thematic analysis of the literature, augmented by sensitizing interviews with boundary spanners (i.e., organizational representatives that manage interactions in business relationships) from buying and selling firms, to develop a conceptual dual-pathway model, and an experimental design for causal testing. Our results suggest that emotions of positive and negative valence partially mediate the relationship between relational norm fulfillment and trust, in extension to the established mediation models of business relationships in the literature. While positive and negative emotions do not differ in their degree of influencing trust outcomes, relational performance norm (non)fulfillment was found to generate stronger emotional reactions than that of relational interaction norms. Our research contributes to a more nuanced understanding of business relationships by integrating an alternative explanatory mechanism complementing structural and attitudinal mechanisms, operating on the level of boundary spanners within established models. Way markers for novel research avenues are proposed, and practical insights for managers in interorganizational contexts are derived.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51345,"journal":{"name":"Industrial Marketing Management","volume":"132 ","pages":"Pages 246-263"},"PeriodicalIF":7.5,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145883360","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Scholarly interest in social media-enabled selling (SOCSEL) – a strategy that focuses on salesperson social media use to sell to customers - has seen a dramatic rise in recent years. Studies have shown that SOCSEL brings numerous benefits to both salespeople and their organization. Although the benefits of SOCSEL are well known, there is no consensus on its conceptualization, and its measurement remains underdeveloped. In the present study, we derive a multidimensional conceptualization of SOCSEL based on prior conceptualizations. Our scale development process reveals that SOCSEL is best measured by four facets: insight acquisition, networking, engaging stakeholders, and navigating firms' sales cycles. Evidence from three samples of B2B salespeople across a variety of industries provides empirical support for our 4-dimensional structure of the SOCSEL scale. The results suggest that the scale developed in this study is a psychometrically reliable and valid measure that can help advance more empirical works related to SOCSEL.
{"title":"B-2-B social media-enabled social selling: A multi-dimensional scale development and validation","authors":"Shivan Sanjay Patel , Shivendra Kumar Pandey , Ashish Kalra","doi":"10.1016/j.indmarman.2025.12.004","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.indmarman.2025.12.004","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Scholarly interest in social media-enabled selling (SOCSEL) – a strategy that focuses on salesperson social media use to sell to customers - has seen a dramatic rise in recent years. Studies have shown that SOCSEL brings numerous benefits to both salespeople and their organization. Although the benefits of SOCSEL are well known, there is no consensus on its conceptualization, and its measurement remains underdeveloped. In the present study, we derive a multidimensional conceptualization of SOCSEL based on prior conceptualizations. Our scale development process reveals that SOCSEL is best measured by four facets: insight acquisition, networking, engaging stakeholders, and navigating firms' sales cycles. Evidence from three samples of B2B salespeople across a variety of industries provides empirical support for our 4-dimensional structure of the SOCSEL scale. The results suggest that the scale developed in this study is a psychometrically reliable and valid measure that can help advance more empirical works related to SOCSEL.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51345,"journal":{"name":"Industrial Marketing Management","volume":"132 ","pages":"Pages 169-182"},"PeriodicalIF":7.5,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145790321","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-01-01Epub Date: 2025-12-16DOI: 10.1016/j.indmarman.2025.12.003
Charles Baah , Yaw Agyabeng-Mensah , Ebenezer Afum , Innocent Senyo Kwesi Acquah , Douglas Opoku Agyeman
The rise of digital technologies presents opportunities and threats across industries. While research shows that large and high-tech firms are embracing digital transformation, there is limited understanding of how small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), often constrained by limited resources and inadequate capabilities, navigate these constraints to achieve digital transformation. Addressing this gap, the study employs network and contingency theories, integrating sufficiency and necessity logics to explore the symmetric and asymmetric relationships between digital co-transformation, interfirm knowledge creation, collaborative innovation, and business-to-business (B2B) SME performance, while considering the moderating role of environmental threats. Using partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) and necessary condition analysis (NCA) to analyze time-lag survey data involving 232 B2B SMEs, the symmetric results revealed positive associations between digital co-transformation, interfirm knowledge creation, collaborative innovation, and B2B performance. Furthermore, environmental threats moderated the impact of digital co-transformation on interfirm knowledge creation and collaborative innovation, but not on performance. The asymmetric results also revealed that digital co-transformation, interfirm knowledge creation, and collaborative innovation are necessary conditions for achieving performance, implying that without these factors, desired performance outcomes will be constrained. Overall, the study provides valuable theoretical and managerial insights for enhancing B2B SME performance.
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