Learning outcomes The teaching objectives of the case study are to provide students with an understanding of how strategic marketing tools are applied in an international marketing context and how brands, especially brands that come from emerging markets, are introduced and managed within modern versus traditional trade (e.g. ethnic shops). Case overview/synopsis This case illustrates the challenges and opportunities related to the introduction of a brand to a new market wherein the product (traditional coffee), although part of a very well-developed product category (coffee), may have been new to consumers in the new market. The brand itself, Zlatna džezva, is a flagship brand in its home country (Bosnia and Herzegovina) within a developing market. However, both the brand and the traditional coffee experience are relatively unknown to other markets. The case study focuses on Vispak’s CEO and CMO who are contemplating their next business move in the new market. Finally, the Dutch market and consumers are presented to facilitate the process of segmentation, targeting and positioning for students. The case study concludes with a task and dilemma for managers of the company. Complexity academic level This case could be used in a variety of undergraduate level classes, depending on what the instructor wishes to emphasize. The authors use the case for following courses: principles of marketing, marketing management and international marketing. In all courses, the case is allowing students to obtain the greater overview of the scope of the strategic marketing decision-making. Before starting with case analysis, students should have some familiarity with central marketing issues and concepts, specifically related to analysis of environment, segmentation-targeting-positioning, product and brand management. Supplementary materials Teaching Notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email support@emeraldinsight.com to request teaching notes. Subject code CSS: 8: Marketing.

PurposeMarketing accountability is currently receiving increased attention from scholars and practitioners alike, with its usage mostly being linked to the improved position of marketing within the firm and to better firm performance. The purpose of this study is to assess whether a supplier’s marketing accountability also has an unobserved signaling effect on customer perceived value.Design/methodology/approachBased on a survey of advertising agency-client dyads, the authors develop and test a multilevel model that assesses the relationship between the supplier’s marketing accountability and perceived value of the client.FindingsEmpirical results indicate that marketing accountability of the agency is positively related to client-firm perceived value, that is marketing accountability also has a positive signaling effect on customers’ value perceptions.Originality/valueThis study provides novel insights on how perceptions of customer value are created in business relationships. More specifically, it highlights that marketing accountability of a supplier positively contributes to shaping clients’ value perceptions. Implications for marketing theory and practice, focused on the need for building, improving and sustaining marketing accountability within the firm and its relevance for value, are discussed and future research directions are identified.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is twofold: (1) to assess importance-performance analysis (IPA) and service performance (SERVPERF) conceptualizations of service quality, and to establish which one excels in predicting the tourists' satisfaction in hotel industry; and (2) to test the mediating role of satisfaction between quality conceptualization and hotel guests’ repurchase intentions and word of mouth recommendations regarding the hotel. Design – A conceptual framework was empirically tested on a sample of 311 tourists staying in six hotels in Sarajevo (Bosnia and Herzegovina), which is a tourist destination with increased relevance internationally. Methodology – Covariance-based structural equation modeling was used to estimate the model. Approach – Two conceptualizations were firstly estimated separately then they were contrasted and compared. Findings – The results showed a slight superiority of the IPA conceptualization over that of SERVPERF in predicting satisfaction and in affecting customer attitudinal and behavioral outcomes. This study also confirms the vital mediating role of satisfaction on customer outcomes. Originality of the research – This study utilizes and compares two relevant conceptualizations of hotel service quality and is based on a conceptual framework that establishes which one is better for predicting tourists’ behavioral outcomes. The study is of practical relevance since it gives suggestions on tools that should be used by hotel managers in assessing the quality perceived by their guests.

Abstract The purpose of this study is to examine links between, on the one hand, employee satisfaction, loyalty and performance, and on the other, the relationship between customer satisfaction and loyalty, as well as their inter-relationship. We conducted a study with employees (53 employees) and students (262 students) across seven departments of a private university in a developing European country. In order to test the cross-level effects of employee-level constructs on student-level constructs, a multilevel analysis was conducted using hierarchical linear modeling. The results confirmed the positive effect of employee satisfaction on employee loyalty and employee performance, but not the impact of the employees’ loyalty on their performances. At the same time, the results showed that students’ satisfaction was positively related to loyalty. Finally, the results showed that, unlike employee performance, employee loyalty at the level of the department had a positive and significant impact on the students’ loyalty and also enhanced the effect of students’ satisfaction on student loyalty.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the curvilinear effects of firm innovativeness (i.e. product, organisational and marketing innovation) on international expansion as well as the effect of expansion on performance in the developing countries (DCs) setting.,Research hypotheses are tested using survey data obtained from firms located in four South-East European DCs. Covariance-based structural equation modelling is used to test the proposed conceptual framework.,Empirical findings support the hypothesised U-shaped relationship between product innovation and organisational innovation and the level of international expansion of firms in developing markets. The authors found an inverse U-shaped relationship between marketing innovation and the level of international expansion. Furthermore, the existence of a strong positive link between the level of international expansion and firm performance is also confirmed.,While this research utilises a sample of firms from a homogenous group of DCs, further research could use a more heterogeneous sample and thus control the model for various contingency effects (e.g. environment turbulence, market structure and competitive dynamics).,When it comes to product and organisational innovation, international expansion is achieved only with a higher level of innovativeness. On the contrary, beyond a certain level, further investments in marketing innovation do not have additional positive effects on international expansion.,This study is one of the first that explicitly focuses on examining the non-linear effects of innovativeness on international expansion in the DC context.

The purpose of this study is to examine links between, on the one hand, employee satisfaction, loyalty and performance, and on the other, the relationship between customer satisfaction and loyalty, as well as their inter-relationship. We conducted a study with employees (53 employees) and students (262 students) across seven departments of a private university in a developing European country. In order to test the cross-level effects of employee-level constructs on student-level constructs, a multilevel analysis was conducted using hierarchical linear modeling. The results confirmed the positive effect of employee satisfaction on employee loyalty and employee performance, but not the impact of the employees’ loyalty on their performances. At the same time, the results showed that students’ satisfaction was positively related to loyalty. Finally, the results showed that, unlike employee performance, employee loyalty at the level of the department had a positive and significant impact on the students’ loyalty and also enhanced the effect of students’ satisfaction

Purpose By applying the logic of the resource-based view and process-based internationalisation theory, this study aims to provide a better understanding of the effects of product innovation capability on the export scope of firms based in developing countries and the role of export experience as a facilitating mechanism. Design/methodology/approach Using survey data obtained from three developing countries, two main research hypotheses were empirically tested: a quadratic relationship exists between product innovation capability and export scope and export experience has a moderating effect in this relationship. Findings Product innovation capability and export scope have a U-shaped relationship, and export experience exerts a moderating effect. The greater the export experience is, the more the relationship between product innovation and export scope changes, taking on a more inverted U-shaped form. Practical implications Firms based in developing countries need to catch-up on innovation capabilities before being able to succeed in international markets. Managers must be aware that initial investments in product innovation could not pay off immediately and that significant additional efforts might be needed to obtain noteworthy results in terms of international expansion. Originality/value This study is among the first to focus on the curvilinear relationship between product innovation capability and export scope for firms based in developing countries while accounting for the moderating role of firms’ export experience.

Introduction: The purpose of this study to investigate internal service quality (as perceived by employees) and external (customer) perceptions of quality in the context of service profit chain (SPC).Objective: The objective of the study is to evaluate the impact of internal service quality on students’ perceptions of quality and to test the significance of a direct link between internal and external service quality.Methods: We measured the perceived service quality using a SERVPERF instrument and the multilevel modeling approach with HLM 7.01.Results: The empirical findings support a link between perceptions of internal and external service quality. We show that when employees (faculty) perceive university services as being of high quality, it has a positive spill-over effect on students’ overallperceptions of the quality of university services. Perceptions of internal service quality are also positively related to students’ perceptions of reliability, responsiveness and quality assurance.Conclusions: The perceptions of internal service quality by faculty members are positively related to students’ perceptions of quality. Comparing the levels of internal and external service quality will help managers define priorities for allocating resources to improve quality.