IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/iburev/v15y2006i3p278-293.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Networking in SMEs: Evaluating its contribution to marketing activity

Author

Listed:
  • Gilmore, Audrey
  • Carson, David
  • Rocks, Steve

Abstract

This paper examines the networking activities of SME owner/managers within a food distribution channel, and considers them in relation to the marketing decisions made in an increasingly competitive marketplace. The study period coincided with dynamic changes within a UK regional market resulting from the market entry of multinational supermarket companies. Research findings show that there was wide variation in the extent of networking and marketing carried out by the SME owner/managers working within this channel. However, the level of marketing-led decision-making by each SME owner/manager was related to the level of networking, whereby an SME owner/manager who was proactively networking and utilising his/her marketing network displayed a more sophisticated level of marketing-led decision-making. These findings are the result of a 2 year in-depth qualitative study of 12 SME owner/managers working within the same channel.

Suggested Citation

  • Gilmore, Audrey & Carson, David & Rocks, Steve, 2006. "Networking in SMEs: Evaluating its contribution to marketing activity," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 15(3), pages 278-293, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:iburev:v:15:y:2006:i:3:p:278-293
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0969593106000382
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Akbar Zaheer & Bill McEvily & Vincenzo Perrone, 1998. "Does Trust Matter? Exploring the Effects of Interorganizational and Interpersonal Trust on Performance," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 9(2), pages 141-159, April.
    2. Hans B. Thorelli, 1986. "Networks: Between markets and hierarchies," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 7(1), pages 37-51, January.
    3. Lipparini, Andrea & Sobrero, Maurizio, 1994. "The glue and the pieces: Entrepreneurship and innovation in small-firm networks," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 9(2), pages 125-140, March.
    4. Chetty, S. & Eriksson, K., 2002. "Mutual commitment and experiential knowledge in mature international business relationship," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 11(3), pages 305-324, June.
    5. Chetty, Sylvie & Blankenburg Holm, Desiree, 2000. "Internationalisation of small to medium-sized manufacturing firms: a network approach," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 9(1), pages 77-93, February.
    6. Yanagida, Ichikazu, 1992. "The business network: A powerful and challenging business tool," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 7(5), pages 341-346, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Bužavaitė Monika & Korsakienė Renata, 2018. "Inter-Personal and Inter-Organizational Networks In Internationalization of SMEs: A Bibliometric Analysis and Review," Open Economics, De Gruyter, vol. 1(1), pages 94-104, August.
    2. Hulbert, Bev & Gilmore, Audrey & Carson, David, 2013. "Sources of opportunities used by growth minded owner managers of small and medium sized enterprises," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 22(1), pages 293-303.
    3. Hossein Hakimpoor Author_Email: hhossein3@live.utm.my & Dr. Huam Hon Tat & Assoc Prof. Dr. Khairil Anuar Arshad, 2011. "Strategic Marketing Planning (Smp) And Smes’ Performance: The Moderating Effects Of Structural Dimensions Of Marketing Networks," 2nd International Conference on Business and Economic Research (2nd ICBER 2011) Proceeding 2011-219, Conference Master Resources.
    4. Sara Parry & Paul Westhead, 2016. "Mobilizing relationship marketing to ensure venture development in a rural resource-constrained bilingual context: The case of Draig Technology Limited," Working Papers 16002, Bangor Business School, Prifysgol Bangor University (Cymru / Wales).
    5. Francioni, Barbara & Musso, Fabio & Pagano, Alessandro, 2012. "Il ruolo dei consorzi per la valorizzazione del Made in Italy nel mercato indiano [The role of export consortia for the promotion of Made in Italy products in the Indian market]," MPRA Paper 49757, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised Dec 2012.
    6. Carmela Tuccillo & Alfonso Siano, 2014. "Il marketing e la comunicazione nelle piccole e medie imprese: uno studio comparativo tra imprese italiane ed inglesi," MERCATI & COMPETITIVIT?, FrancoAngeli Editore, vol. 2014(2), pages 103-127.
    7. Emre S. Ozmen & M. Atilla Öner & Farzad Khosrowshahi & Jason Underwood, 2014. "SMEs’ Purchasing Habits," SAGE Open, , vol. 4(2), pages 21582440145, May.
    8. Pla-Barber, José & Alegre, Joaquín, 2007. "Analysing the link between export intensity, innovation and firm size in a science-based industry," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 16(3), pages 275-293, June.
    9. Ojala, Arto, 2009. "Internationalization of knowledge-intensive SMEs: The role of network relationships in the entry to a psychically distant market," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 18(1), pages 50-59, February.
    10. Sara Parry & Rosalind Jones & Jennifer Rowley & Beata Kupiec-Teahan, 2010. "Marketing for Survival: A Comparative Case Study of SME Software Firms," Working Papers 10016, Bangor Business School, Prifysgol Bangor University (Cymru / Wales).
    11. Hohenthal, Jukka & Johanson, Jan & Johanson, Martin, 2014. "Network knowledge and business-relationship value in the foreign market," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 23(1), pages 4-19.
    12. Pinho, José Carlos & Prange, Christiane, 2016. "The effect of social networks and dynamic internationalization capabilities on international performance," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 51(3), pages 391-403.
    13. Teresa Fayos & Haydeé Calderón & Juan Manuel García-García & Belén Derqui, 2022. "The upcoming rise of SMEs in cross-border public procurement: is it a matter of networking capabilities?," Journal of International Entrepreneurship, Springer, vol. 20(4), pages 537-563, December.
    14. Demirgil, Hakan & Karaoz, Murat & Baptista, Rui & Sungur, Onur, 2011. "Networking Activities and Growth of Newly Founded Firms under Incubation," MPRA Paper 46575, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    15. Lindstrand, Angelika & Eriksson, Kent & Sharma, D. Deo, 2009. "The perceived usefulness of knowledge supplied by foreign client networks," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 18(1), pages 26-37, February.
    16. O'Dwyer, Michele & Gilmore, Audrey, 2018. "Value and alliance capability and the formation of strategic alliances in SMEs: The impact of customer orientation and resource optimisation," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 58-68.
    17. Emre S. Ozmen & M Atilla Oner & Farzad Khosrowshahi & Jason Underwood, 2013. "SME Buying Behaviour: Literature review and an application agenda," Post-Print halshs-01200695, HAL.
    18. Rana Tadvji & Azhdar Karami, 2014. "The relationship between international networking and firm performance in British SMEs," Working Papers 14002, Bangor Business School, Prifysgol Bangor University (Cymru / Wales).
    19. Serkan Altuntas & Mustafa Kemal Yilmaz, 2016. "Fuzzy Dematel Method to Evaluate the Dimensions of Marketing Resources: An Application in SMEs," Journal of Business Economics and Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 17(3), pages 347-364, June.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Seyed Meysam Zolfaghari Ejlal Manesh & Alex Rialp-Criado, 2019. "International ecopreneurs: The case of eco-entrepreneurial new ventures in the renewable energy industry," Journal of International Entrepreneurship, Springer, vol. 17(1), pages 103-126, March.
    2. Boaventura, Joao Mauricio & Carnaúba, A.A.C. & Todeva, Emanuela & Azevedo, A.C. & Armando, Eduardo, 2016. "Governance Structures and Trust: a Study of Real Estate Networks," MPRA Paper 76785, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    3. Wei-ping Wu & Alicia Leung, 2005. "Does a Micro-Macro Link Exist Between Managerial Value of Reciprocity, Social Capital and Firm Performance? The Case of SMEs in China," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 22(4), pages 445-463, December.
    4. Sroka Włodzimierz, 2011. "Problem of Trust in Alliance Networks," Organizacija, Sciendo, vol. 44(4), pages 101-108, July.
    5. Montoro-Sanchez, Angeles & Diez-Vial, Isabel & Belso-Martinez, Jose Antonio, 2018. "The evolution of the domestic network configuration as a driver of international relationships in SMEs," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 27(4), pages 727-736.
    6. Santangelo, Grazia Domenica, 2012. "The tension of information sharing: Effects on subsidiary embeddedness," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 21(2), pages 180-195.
    7. Nordman, Emilia Rovira & Tolstoy, Daniel, 2014. "Does relationship psychic distance matter for the learning processes of internationalizing SMEs?," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 23(1), pages 30-37.
    8. Maximilian Holtgrave & Mert Onay, 2017. "Success through Trust, Control, and Learning? Contrasting the Drivers of SME Performance between Different Modes of Foreign Market Entry," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 7(2), pages 1-24, May.
    9. Eriksson, Kent & Chetty, Sylvie, 2003. "The effect of experience and absorptive capacity on foreign market knowledge," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 12(6), pages 673-695, December.
    10. Laaksonen, Toni & Jarimo, Toni & Kulmala, Harri I., 2009. "Cooperative strategies in customer-supplier relationships: The role of interfirm trust," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 120(1), pages 79-87, July.
    11. Marian Gorynia & Barbara Jankowska, 2007. "Teorie internacjonalizacji," Gospodarka Narodowa. The Polish Journal of Economics, Warsaw School of Economics, issue 10, pages 21-44.
    12. Yong Suhk Pak & Jong Min Lee, 2023. "Organizational learning platforms for knowledge creation in international joint ventures: the mediating role of formal and informal communication," Asian Business & Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 22(5), pages 2135-2163, November.
    13. Hualiang Lu & Shuyi Feng & Jacques H. Trienekens & S.W.F. (Onno) Omta, 2008. "Performance in vegetable supply chains: the role of Guanxi networks and buyer-seller relationships," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 24(2), pages 253-274.
    14. Marta Fernández‐Olmos & Ana F. Gargallo‐Castel & Ruimin Wang, 2024. "The effects of business associations in the export–survival relationship: An application to the DOC Rioja wine industry," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 40(1), pages 31-45, January.
    15. Jonsson, Sara & Lindbergh, Jessica, 2010. "The impact of institutional impediments and information and knowledge exchange on SMEs' investments in international business relationships," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 19(6), pages 548-561, December.
    16. Díez-Vial, Isabel & Montoro-Sánchez, Ángeles, 2020. "International gatekeepers: How to integrate domestic networks and international relations," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 29(6).
    17. Eriksson, Kent & Jonsson, Sara & Lindbergh, Jessica & Lindstrand, Angelika, 2014. "Modeling firm specific internationalization risk: An application to banks’ risk assessment in lending to firms that do international business," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 23(6), pages 1074-1085.
    18. Han, Shaojie & Su, Jingqin & Lyu, Yibo & Liu, Qing, 2022. "How do business incubators govern incubation relationships with different new ventures?," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 116(C).
    19. Adrian MICU & Marius GERU & Angela-Eliza MICU, 2017. "Developing Customer Trust in E-Commerce Using Inbound Marketing Strategies," Proceedings RCE 2017, Editura Lumen, vol. 0, pages 522-531, November.
    20. Ariño, Africa & Reuer, Jeffrey J., 2004. "Alliance contractual design," IESE Research Papers D/572, IESE Business School.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:iburev:v:15:y:2006:i:3:p:278-293. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/133/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.