American Journal of Business

B2B E-Marketing Strategies of Multinational Corporations: Empirical Evidence from the United States and
Australia
Tanuja Singh Geoffrey Gordon Sharon Purchase
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Tanuja Singh Geoffrey Gordon Sharon Purchase, (2007),"B2B E-Marketing Strategies of Multinational Corporations: Empirical
Evidence from the United States and Australia", American Journal of Business, Vol. 22 Iss 1 pp. 31 - 44
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 B2B E-Marketing Strategies of Multinational Corporations:
Empirical Evidence from the United States and Australia

Tanuja Singh, Northern Illinois University

Geoffrey Gordon, Northern Illinois University
Sharon Purchase, University of Western Australia

Abstract
This study empirically examines the role of the Internet in global business-to-
business (B2B) marketing strategies of Multinational Corporations (MNCs)
based in the United States and Australia. The results demonstrate that uses
Downloaded by RMIT University At 13:58 31 January 2016 (PT)

of the Internet in a global B2B setting often parallel its domestic uses but that
variables that facilitate or inhibit its implementation for global operations are
somewhat different in global markets. The findings suggest that MNCs in the
two countries are using the Internet in their global B2B operations predomi-
nantly for business enhancement purposes as compared to revenue enhance-
ment. Results also show that for global B2B operations, the Internet is viewed
by MNCs as a tool to enhance competitive intelligence, streamline opera-
tions, and enhance the marketing processes. It is also deemed essential for a
firm’s long-term competitive stance by large as well as small and medium-sized
MNCs.

Introduction
The Internet continues to be
viewed as one of the revolutionizing
tools that has radically changed the
dynamics of commerce around the
world. Despite the fact that early es-
timates of the potential of this tool
have been subject to frequent and
dramatic revisions, the Internet has
nevertheless created a paradigm shift
in the business world. In this brave,
new world of business, a firm’s cor-
porate website acts as the gateway
for visitors and potential customers
to find critical information about
the company as a whole, as well as
its product/service offerings (Leek,
Turnbull and Naude 2003). E-com-
merce is becoming more and more a
major element of competitive advan-
tage for those firms savvy enough to
harness its potential (Radovilsky and
Hegde 2004). While the business-
to-consumer (B2C) models of the
Internet and e-commerce continue
to garner the most press, Internet
revenues in the business-to-business
(B2B) sector are not only signifi-
cantly higher, they have also largely
remained shielded from fluctuations
of the B2C sector.
Estimates suggest that B2B
electronic commerce amounts to
about six times the size of the B2C
sector (Eng 2004). B2B trade around
the world was expected to total
around $2.7 trillion by the end of
2004 (eMarketer 2003). Further-
more, studies indicate that the U.S.
continues to account for more than
half of the worldwide B2B revenues
(eMarketer 2003). [All data are in
U.S. dollars unless stated otherwise.]
Eight to ten years ago, B2B firms–
large and small, may have asked
themselves the question of whether
or not to move their business to
the Internet. Today, companies no
longer ask themselves that question
for the answer is simple; they can no
longer exist without somehow being
on the Internet (Lichtenthal and
Eliaz 2003).
While researchers have addressed
the B2B uses of the Internet within
a domestic (often U.S.) context,
academic inquiry for global B2B op-
erations, particularly as it relates to
marketing strategies of multinational
corporations (MNCs), still remains
a fertile area for research. Few stud-
ies, if any, have empirically examined
the nature and scope of the Internet
for B2B marketing within a global
context. For example, while it is
well documented that developed

Mid-American Journal of Business

Vol 22, No. 1 31
 Singh, Gordon, and Purchase
countries lead the world in Internet
applications and e-commerce, little
is known about whether and how
MNCs from these countries inte-
grate the Internet into their overall
global strategies. Furthermore, the
factors that influence the decision of
MNCs to make the Internet an in-
herent part of their global marketing
strategy have not been examined.
“
“
…the factors that influence the decision of
MNCs to make the Internet an inherent part
of their global marketing strategy have not
been examined.
Downloaded by RMIT University At 13:58 31 January 2016 (PT)
This study attempts to fill this
knowledge gap by investigating the
role of the Internet in the global B2B
marketing strategies of MNCs from
two developed countries where the
growth of the Internet has followed
a similar pattern—the United States
and Australia. These two countries
have numerous similarities in terms
of technology adoption; technol-
ogy trends in the two countries
also suggest a similar evolution-
ary pattern for both B2B and B2C
markets. Currently, Australia, with
68.4 percent of the population using
the Internet, is among the leaders
in Internet penetration; this num-
ber is quite comparable to the U.S.
where at last count 68.6 percent of
the population was on the Internet
(Internet World Stats 2005).
This paper has three main objec-
tives. First, it examines how MNCs
from the two countries, Australia
and the United States, currently use
and plan to use the Internet and
related technologies in their global
B2B marketing strategies. Second,
the study examines the underlying
dimensions and nature of Internet
use in the MNCs’ global B2B opera-
tions. Finally, it evaluates facilitators
and barriers to the implementation
of Internet-based marketing strate-
gies in a global B2B setting.
32 Mid-American Journal of Business
Vol 22, No. 1
Background and
Hypotheses
It is evident that several charac-
teristics of the Internet make it an es-
pecially valuable tool for the B2B sec-
tor. From simplifying data collection
and delivery to enhancing product
management/innovation activities
and improving collaboration among
strategic partners, the Internet offers
numerous opportunities for en-
hanced value delivery. Furthermore,
the benefits of using the Internet
in the B2B sector are long-term and
more likely to be shielded from the
fluctuations that characterize the
B2C sector. The migration to e-com-
merce is not only a growing trend
but also an irreversible one as more
and more business organizations are
determining that in order to be effec-
tive competitors in today’s market-
place, they need a solid e-business
foundation (Leu, Addo and Chen
2003). Supposedly, the primary dif-
ference between domestic e-business
and international e-commerce is one
of complexity (Xu, Wilkinson and
Brouthers 2002) but the fundamental
driving forces are very similar. There-
fore, it appears reasonable to propose
that MNCs should benefit from
incorporating the Internet into their
global marketing strategies as well.
In particular, the Internet in global
B2B operations should facilitate
tasks such as communicating with
suppliers, customers, and partners
who often tend to be located globally
these days. Further, it should help
reduce product development costs
and enhance productivity by facilitat-
ing more efficient collection, sharing,
and dissemination of information,
among other things.
B2B E-Commerce in the U.S.
and Australia
B2B transactions continue to grow
in the U.S. According to IDC, B2B e-
commerce spending should continue
at a 50 percent growth rate through
2007 (Schifrin 2004). While esti-
mates vary considerably, the volume
of B2B e-commerce far exceeds that
of B2C e-commerce (Dinlersoz and
Hernandez-Murillo 2005). The U.S. is
expected to remain the largest global
market for B2B commerce and the
absolute size of the B2B market is
far smaller in Australia relative to the
U.S. However, B2B transactions and
investment into related technologies
are rising in Australia and its trends
mirror that of the U.S. For example,
forecasts of B2B revenues in Aus-
tralia for the year 2002 ranged from
$6-$20 billion Australian dollars and
some believe that by the end of 2005,
this sector would have generated
$133-$235 billion Australian dollars.
In the time period 2001-2003, the
amount of selling by Australian firms
via the Internet more than doubled
and the number of companies that
garnered 5 percent or more of their
business income from the Internet
grew from 37 percent to 42 percent
of Australian firms (Australian Bureau
of Statistics 2005). Further, spend-
ing on Internet technologies and
other web initiatives by businesses
continues to increase in both coun-
tries. In Australia, 66 percent of the
nation’s top 1,000 companies are in
the planning or execution stages of
B2B projects (Bryan 2005). The on-
line procurement market continues
to grow in Australia at a compound
annual rate of about 25 percent (IDC
Research 2001).
Research findings suggest that
within the Australian commercial
sector, businesses, irrespective of
their size, are adopting Internet
technology; more than half of the
small businesses in Australia now use
the Internet. Over the past several
years, the Australian Government
has introduced a B2B incentive

scheme designed to attract small- and
medium-sized business enterprises to
electronic commerce (Byrne 2002).
During 2002-2003, the Australian
Bureau of Statistics reported that
the value of e-commerce was ap-
proximately $24.3 billion Australian
dollars, representing a doubling of
income over a one year period. This
amount constituted 1 percent of
total income for all businesses and
approximately 5 percent of total
income for businesses which received
orders via the Internet (Australian
Bureau of Statistics 2005). Australia’s
leading advertisers were reported
to be allocating 9 percent of their
advertising budget to the Internet
in 2005 (Kelly 2005). The Australian
Downloaded by RMIT University At 13:58 31 January 2016 (PT)
government is among the leaders in
terms of e-Government development
and Internet usage among the general
population continues to grow as well
(IDC Research 2002).
In essence, the e-business outlook
for Australia looks promising and the
evolution and growth of the Internet
in Australia have been very similar to
their growth in other developed econ-
omies including the U.S. Therefore, it
appears plausible to hypothesize that
despite the difference in the absolute
size of e-commerce in the U.S. versus
Australia, U.S. and Australian MNCs
would not differ much in terms of
their overall usage of the Internet for
their global B2B marketing opera-
tions. Accordingly, it is proposed that:
H1: There are no differences between
U.S. and Australian MNCs in
terms of their Internet usage for
global B2B marketing operations.
Internet and Global B2B
Marketing
While the role of the Internet in
global B2B marketing has not been
specifically addressed in previous em-
pirical studies, it is logical to assume
that many of these uses should paral-
lel the domestic uses of the Internet.
Further, it should make sense that
the greater the pervasiveness of B2B
e-commerce within an organization’s
current domestic operating systems,
the greater the pervasiveness of B2B
e-commerce should be on a global
level (Claycomb, Iyer and Germain
2005). In general, researchers have
drawn on several frameworks to
“
…while smaller companies will implement the
Internet into their global B2B operations primarily
to overcome size barriers, larger companies are
more likely to use it strategically and incorporate
it into a variety of their operations.
evaluate how the Internet is trans-
forming or would transform the B2B
marketplace. For example, several
researchers (Berthon et al. 2003;
Kaefer 2004; Grey, Olavson and Shi
2005) use a transaction cost perspec-
tive to suggest that not only does the
Internet reduce transaction costs but
that it also reduces barriers to entry
and intermediation between buy-
ers and sellers. They point out that
transaction cost savings alone (from
B2B exchanges) could be a substantial
portion of total cost and order fulfill-
ment.
The Internet reduces the costs of
search, information, and bargaining
for buyers while at the same time
creating substantial efficiencies in
the buyer-seller dyad by reducing
communication, decision, policing
and implementation costs. These
researchers further suggest that the
resulting efficiencies are more than
merely cost savings for participants in
the exchange. They believe that the
quality of intra-firm as well as inter-
firm transactions is enhanced as cost-
cutting is coupled with value-added
outcomes for participants in the
exchange. In essence, the Internet
improves informational access and
furnishes a platform of instant and
constant connectivity while simulta-
neously allowing firms to reduce costs
(Sharma 2002). It appears plausible
Singh, Gordon, and Purchase
that the same drivers would apply in a
global B2B setting as well.
Along the same lines, a report
by the Organization for Economic
Cooperation and Development
(OECD) (cited in Dunt and Harper
2002) identified three variables that
“
are driving B2B e-commerce growth.
First, transaction cost reductions
and improvement in product qual-
ity and service drive e-commerce
growth. For example, e-commerce
applications can run virtually around
the clock with transactions originat-
ing from anywhere around the globe
(Murthy 2004). Second, companies
often embrace e-commerce as a reac-
tion to competitors that have already
embraced it. Finally, businesses are
demanding e-commerce readiness
from their suppliers. Clearly, these
drivers are equally applicable in a
global B2B e-commerce setting. As
competition becomes increasingly
global, transaction cost concerns,
competitors’ investments into In-
ternet technologies and demands of
business partners would necessitate
investments into Internet technolo-
gies to facilitate everything from data
collection to competitive intelli-
gence. In general, the larger the size
of the company, the more likely it is
that transaction cost improvements,
competitors’ offerings and reactions,
as well as suppliers’ demands drive
the implementation of Internet tech-
nologies to a larger extent. Further-
more, while smaller companies will
implement the Internet into their
global B2B operations primarily to
overcome size barriers, larger compa-
nies are more likely to use it strategi-
Mid-American Journal of Business
Vol 22, No. 1 33
 Singh, Gordon, and Purchase
cally and incorporate it into a variety
of their operations. Therefore, it can
be reasoned that there will be some
differences between larger versus
smaller companies in terms of how
they use the Internet for global B2B
transactions.
Others (e.g., Quelch and Klein
1996; Sotgiu and Ancarani 2004)
“
… in addition to company size, whether
or not the company derives a significant
percentage of its revenues from its global
operations should also influence the role of
the Internet on the company’s operations.
Downloaded by RMIT University At 13:58 31 January 2016 (PT)
suggest that the Internet affects
markets by enhancing multi-chan-
nel pricing opportunities, changing
the role of intermediaries, assisting
market participants, and facilitat-
ing capital flows. At the same time,
it benefits the organization inter-
nally by facilitating communication
among operational units and provid-
ing better and more accurate flow
of information. Finally, external
benefits of the Internet would be
seen in the areas of global product
reach, niche marketing, and bypass-
ing import restrictions, among other
things.
The implications of the above
are that the growth of e-commerce
will further increase organizations’
capabilities to shop globally for the
lowest cost raw materials and supplies
and enhance global partnerships with
customers and suppliers by increas-
ing value creation and delivery while
simultaneously enhancing the ability
of the firms to market products in
the most effective manner to a global
audience. In niche markets, e-com-
merce also makes it possible for small
companies to compete against giants
worldwide with relatively little in-
vestment (Cetron and Davies 2005).
Wilson and Abel (2002) and Rado-
vilsky and Hegde (2004) propose that
34 Mid-American Journal of Business
Vol 22, No. 1
the benefits of the Internet can be
conceptualized along several dimen-
sions: business enhancement and
revenue enhancement with the two
not mutually exclusive. Business en-
hancement applications include such
things as improved communication
with customers, suppliers and other
stakeholders; information collection
“ aspects than do others. Ozer (2004)
and dissemination; better reliability
and control of customer orders; and
building brand presence. Revenue
enhancement applications focus
upon the e-commerce aspect where
revenue-generating e-transactions are
emphasized. Wilson and Abel (2002)
propose that the use of the Internet
within a company would follow an
evolutionary path—starting with
the information stage where infor-
mation dissemination, delivery, and
analysis are emphasized and finally
reaching the e-commerce stage. The
information and e-commerce stages
should co-exist although the nature
of products/services offered will
determine the relative importance of
each stage in a company. Ultimately,
the true advantage of e-commerce
lies not within the technology but in
the application of the technology to
the organization’s strategic business
initiatives (Hansen 2003).
Some researchers have argued
that there has been an unwarranted
focus on cost reduction uses of the
Internet as opposed to value creation
uses. For example, Wise and Mor-
rison (2000) question the contempo-
rary wisdom of viewing the Internet
primarily as an exchange model in
the B2B sector and suggest that the
real value of the Internet is not in the
exchange aspect but in information
and strategic partnerships manage-
ment with an emphasis on providing
solutions. They propose that in order
to realize the real potential of the In-
ternet, companies must incorporate
its value dimension into their long
term strategies.
Murphy et al. (2003) found that
companies that generate 5 percent
or more of their revenues from the
Internet consistently assign higher
importance to the informational
has proposed that the use of the
Internet in New Product Develop-
ment is positively related to the
determinants of new product success.
Arguably, companies with higher rev-
enues not only have more avenues to
capitalize on the many facets of the
Internet but also have the ability and
the requisite resources to do so. It is
quite possible that in larger compa-
nies with higher revenues, the role
of the Internet is more pervasive,
deliberate, and hence more strategic
for their B2B operations. Better
resources and long-term planning
capabilities should enable them to
incorporate the Internet into a wider
variety of their operations thereby
facilitating business enhancement as
well as revenue enhancement. How-
ever, in addition to company size,
whether or not the company derives a
significant percentage of its revenues
from its global operations should also
influence the role of the Internet on
the company’s operations. Compa-
nies that derive a significant percent-
age of their revenues from global
operations are likely to use the Inter-
net for a variety of activities relative
to companies for whom their global
revenues are a smaller percentage of
their overall revenues. Accordingly, it
is hypothesized that:
H2: While both smaller as well as larger
companies will use the Internet for
global B2B marketing, Internet ap-
plications for global B2B commerce
will be more pervasive among

larger companies with higher
revenues relative to smaller and
medium-sized companies.
H3: Internet applications for global B2B
commerce will be more pervasive
among companies that derive a sig-
nificant percentage of their revenues
from their global B2B operations.
Constraints of Internet Use in
Global B2B Marketing product provided because: 1) they
There are many constraints which
could potentially limit the use of the
Internet by organizations in conduct-
ing their B2B marketing efforts. In a
global setting, these constraints may
be even more pronounced, posing
a challenge to global e-commerce
Downloaded by RMIT University At 13:58 31 January 2016 (PT)
operations in the B2B sector. First,
it is virtually impossible for one
company within an industry to be
an island within itself in establishing
e-commerce operations. To a large
degree, industry-wide information
and business process standards must
be established in order for com-
panies to succeed in developing a
global e-commerce presence (Temkin
2001). In order for these standards to
evolve, MNCs must overcome fears
related to the sharing of information
and what can be considered sensitive
data.
Second, privacy concerns and
security issues also remain con-
straints which could impede use
of the Internet. According to
Chakraborty, Lala and Warren (2004),
Internet users have concerns over
how websites acquire, use, and share
identifiable information. Likewise,
several researchers (i.e., Temkin
2001; Chakraborty, Lala and Warren
2004) point to the lack of security
associated with the transmission of
data and the storage of transactional
information by a website as reasons
why organizations could choose not
to pursue Internet applications for
B2B commerce, particularly in a
global setting where standards of data
protections may be quite different
from their home countries.
Third, even though MNCs can
succeed in setting up and operat-
ing global e-commerce operations,
they still may not be utilized due to
basic business issues. In an examina-
tion of why so many forest industry
dot.coms failed, Shook, Vlosky and
Kallioranta (2004) found that while
many companies rushed to set up
Internet-based operations, custom-
ers did not use the services and
lacked human interaction; and 2) in
many instances, the Internet op-
erations did not allow customers to
perform their business better, faster,
and cheaper. In essence, too many
companies focused on the technology
versus the business process and the
customer. Reinforcing the above,
Zank and Vokurka (2003) conducted
an empirical study of industrial
distributors and manufacturers to
determine what the major barriers to
e-business were. Financial cost, lack
of standards, technical immaturity,
and unprepared trading partners were
identified as the most likely barriers.
Other reasons the authors identified
as to why barriers exist in establishing
e-commerce operations within firms
include resistance from IT, resistance
from manufacturers, resistance from
distributors, and resistance from
customers.
In general, small firms, as com-
pared to large firms, are more likely
to face resource constraints (Dilts
and Prough 1989). In addition to fi-
nancial constraints, small companies
are also more likely to lack manage-
rial and technical expertise and prone
to pursue less aggressive strategic
options (Larson, Carr and Dhariwal
2005). As a result, smaller companies
may be reluctant to pursue e-com-
merce initiatives particularly for their
global operations. Conversely, it can
be argued that larger companies are
more likely to find ways to circum-
vent the various constraints in the
expectation that these constraints are
likely to diminish or even disappear
over time. Additionally, it is possible
Singh, Gordon, and Purchase
that larger companies that have sig-
nificant investments into their global
operations may view these barriers as
something they must overcome, and
are unlikely to be deterred by them.
Finally, from a resource perspective,
larger companies should be able to
overcome these constraints more
effectively.
H4: Perception of barriers to imple-
mentation of Internet technologies
for B2B marketing will differ as a
function of the size and revenue of
the firms.
In summary, benefits of the
Internet as far as its B2B uses are
concerned include competitive
intelligence, strategic partnership
management, connectivity, commu-
nity, transaction, and cost reduction.
The barriers to Internet imple-
mentation revolve around technol-
ogy constraints, security issues and
differences in business practices.
However, whether the Internet is
used primarily for short-term cost
cutting strategies or as a tool to
develop strategic partnerships in the
B2B marketplace to offer superior
value to the customer, the manner in
which the Internet is likely to be used
for global B2B transactions should be
relatively similar to how it is used in
domestic operations. Be it domestic
or global businesses, the Internet has
the potential to modify the competi-
tive environment and all participants
in the business market are likely to
be affected by e-commerce, regard-
less of whether they are proactive
about adoption or not (Pires and
Aisbett 2003). Further, many uses
of the Internet for the B2B sector
might indeed be similar to its uses for
the B2C sector. However, structural
(e.g., regulatory and technological
environment) and functional (e.g.,
technology availability and techno-
logical competence) factors in the
global environment may influence the
degree to which Internet technolo-
gies are used in global operations.
Mid-American Journal of Business
Vol 22, No. 1 35
 Singh, Gordon, and Purchase
Methodology and Findings
A paper and pencil survey was
developed after a review of the exist-
ing literature in the area. A pilot test
with ten local firms suggested minor
modifications in the wording of some
statements to clarify terms used in
the survey. The revised survey was
further tested for face and content
validity by two independent research-
ers. Overall, the survey contained
twenty-eight statements anchored
from strongly disagree to strongly
agree, and an additional twenty ques-
tions about the firms’ global opera-
tions, geographic coverage, revenues,
profits, etc. For the U.S. sample, a
commercial mailing list was used
to survey 1,030 international MNC
Downloaded by RMIT University At 13:58 31 January 2016 (PT)
executives who are directly respon-
sible for global marketing operations.
Respondents include international
vice presidents, directors, export
and import managers, and in a few
instances, company owners. One
hundred forty-one completed surveys
were returned; two responses were
discarded due to incomplete informa-
tion for key variables. The final sam-
ple size of 139 constitutes a response
rate of 13.4 percent for the U.S. Four
hundred ninety-one surveys were sent
to company executives in Australia
using a commercial database that
indicated the global B2B involvement
of these firms. Fifty-eight usable
responses were obtained from this
sample resulting in a response rate of
11.8 percent.
Descriptive analyses were con-
ducted to assess sample characteris-
tics and analyze other information
regarding the MNCs’ global opera-
tions. Almost all firms had global
revenues and all reported using the
Internet to conduct at least some
part of their global operations. To
assess dimensionality of Internet use,
data from the U.S. and Australia were
combined and subjected to a factor
analysis. Additionally, univariate tests
and Analysis-of-Variance (ANOVA)
tests were conducted for hypothesis
testing.
36 Mid-American Journal of Business
Vol 22, No. 1
Descriptive Results
All firms in the sample report
had global operations, although the
breadth of operations differed sig-
nificantly across the two samples. In
general, U.S. firms’ global operations
are concentrated in Europe and Latin
America, followed by Asia Pacific, Far
East and South and East Asia. For
Australian firms, Asia Pacific, South
East Asia, and Far East are more
prominent in terms of their global
operations. Descriptive analyses
suggest that in both samples, manu-
facturing firms dominate.
For the U.S. sample, approximately
90 percent of the companies report
having less than 50,000 employees;
the remaining 10 percent have more
than 50,000 employees with about 3
percent reporting more than 100,000
employees. Australian companies
are much smaller with approximately
85 percent having less than 5,000
employees and 15 percent report
employing between 5,000 to 50,000
people.
It is worth noting that relative to
the Australian sample, more firms in
the U.S. sample derive a significant
percentage of their revenues from
global operations. For example,
44 percent of the firms in the U.S.
sample derive more than 25 percent
of their revenues from global sources
whereas for the Australian firms this
number is 21 percent. The same is
true of profits with 36 percent of the
U.S. firms reporting that profits from
global operations comprise more
than 25 percent of total profits; only
23 percent of Australian MNCs have
comparable figures. Sixty percent
of the U.S. companies report that
all products available for sale in
the U.S. are also available for sale
in global markets; this number for
the Australian sample is 55 percent.
Thirty-eight percent of companies in
the U.S. sample sell directly to their
global customers, 15 percent use
intermediaries, and 47 percent use a
combination. These numbers are 35
percent, 12 percent, and 19 percent
respectively for Australia. Interest-
ingly, a majority of the respondents
(82 percent in the U.S. and 90 percent
in Australia) indicate that traditional
channels would continue to remain
important in global B2B operations
despite increasing reliance of the
MNCs on the Internet.
Commonly Reported Uses of the
Internet in Global B2B Marketing
Table 1 describes the most com-
monly reported use of the Internet
by Australian and U.S. MNCs. In the
U.S., the Internet is used as a device to
interact with global partners. It is also
used as a tool to display merchandise,
to collect information from global
partners, as a marketing tool to proj-
ect a uniform image of the company,
and as a tool to inform partners about
new product offerings. U.S. compa-
nies also report using the Internet as
a product development tool in the
global B2B context. Australian compa-
nies report using it to provide support
and service for global partners. It is
pertinent to mention that other uses
of the Internet such as providing pric-
ing details and order customization,
processing, and fulfillment are also
reported in the two samples although
they do not constitute the most com-
mon uses. Eighteen percent of U.S.
companies and about 26 percent of
Australian companies note that the
Internet is used to develop custom-
ized applications targeted especially at
their global partners.
These results suggest that while
many of the uses of the Internet ap-
pear to be strictly uni-directional such
as providing information and display-
ing merchandise (sometimes labeled
“brochureware”), other uses such as
information collection and creating
strategic partnerships are character-
ized by interactivity and competitive
intelligence. For example, approxi-
mately 42 percent of the U.S. respon-
dents and 25 percent of the Australian
respondents report that the Internet
is used by their companies as an
information collection and handling
 Singh, Gordon, and Purchase

the two coun- enhance the revenue stream for the

Table 1
Uses of the Internet in Global B2B Strategies**
U.S. % Australia
The Internet as a tool
to interact with global 73
partners
The Internet as a tool to
64
display merchandise
The Internet as a tool to
collect information from 64
global partners
The Internet as a tool
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The Internet as a tool
to display merchandise
The Internet as a tool
to interact with global
partners
The Internet as a prod-
uct development tool
The internet as a tool
to provide support
tries are more company. Surprisingly, no systematic
focused on and statistically significant differences
business exist in how MNCs view the role of
enhancement. the Internet in their global business
% For example, operations. Firms report very similar
respondents in uses of the Internet for global opera-
both the U.S. tions irrespective of their size, profits,
and Australian longevity, etc.
64
samples agree Therefore, it is perhaps not surpris-
(mean values ing that the most commonly reported
3.71 and 3.58 uses of the Internet in global B2B
64
on a 5-point operations in the U.S. and Australia
Likert-type are quite similar—only their order of
scale anchored importance differs. It is plausible that
60 from strongly the Internet has become such a ubiq-
disagree to uitous phenomenon and its use has
strongly agree) become so commonplace for routine
that the Inter- operations, that it is hard to use it as a

to project a uniform 59
global image
The Internet as a tool to
inform global partners 57
about product offerings
The Internet as a prod-
54
uct development tool
** Note: Only those uses that were reported by 50% or more companies
in the two samples are shown here. This list is not exhaustive.
device for their global operations.
Respondents in both samples also
report transaction-centered uses such
as order placement and processing
even though these uses are less com-
mon than information-centered uses.
Only 20 percent of the respondents in
the U.S. sample and 10 percent of the
respondents in Australia report that it
is possible to customize and place an
order using the company website.
In comparing the responses of U.S.
and Australian companies regarding
the current and future roles of the
Internet, results suggest that their
strategies and views seem almost
identical. Results indicate that not
only are current uses of the Internet
as reported by the two groups quite
similar, their future expectations are
almost identical as well. To illustrate,
current uses of the Internet in global
B2B operations of MNCs based in
60
and service to global
partners net is used in
The Internet as a their firms as a
tool to inform global tool to enhance
59
partners about product communica-
offerings
tion with global
The Internet as a tool customers and
to project a uniform 53 suppliers (p
global image
=.439; F =.602).
Further, respon-
dents in both
samples view
the future uses
of the Internet
for global B2B operations to be more
encompassing and sophisticated.
Mean values for the statement “Inter-
net technologies have an important
strategic role in our global business
operations” are 3.43 and 3.73 respec-
tively for the U.S. and Australian
samples (p = .065; F = 3.443). Similarly,
respondents in both samples agree
that Internet technologies will play a
more important role in their future
global B2B operations (mean values
3.75 and 3.88; p = .416; F = .665).
In analyzing the results, it becomes
evident that at the present stage, the
most common uses of the Internet
in global B2B operations are geared
toward business enhancement and not
specifically toward revenue enhance-
ment, although they might contrib-
ute to cost savings (e.g., its product
development use) and consequently,
differentiating tool. It is also possible
that the currently reported uses of the
Internet add more value to an MNC’s
global operations and using the Inter-
net for these activities results in the
highest levels of efficiency. Finally, it
is quite likely that the reported uses
of the Internet in a global B2B setting
are relatively easy to implement and
unlikely to be thwarted by country-
specific factors such as the regulatory
climate or data security issues.
Underlying Dimensions of
Internet Use in Global B2B
Operations
A principal components analysis
with a varimax rotation was con-
ducted to assess whether there are
common underlying dimensions of
Internet use for B2B operations in the
two countries. This analysis resulted
in a 6-factor solution explaining about
62 percent of the variance. A variance
extraction of 60 percent or more is
considered satisfactory in the social
sciences, particularly in exploratory
research (Hair et al. 1998). Most fac-
tor loadings were above .50, indicating
a clean factor structure and minimal
problems with cross-loading.
The six dimensions address either
the facilitating aspects of the Internet
or barriers (inhibitors) to the imple-
mentation of Internet. The study

Mid-American Journal of Business

Vol 22, No. 1 37
 Singh, Gordon, and Purchase
found that the facilitating aspects of
the internet could be classified into
the following five categories: future
orientation, operational efficiency enhance-
ment, marketing efficiency enhancement,
partner relationship enhancement, and
competitive intelligence. The barriers to
the implementation of the Internet
in global B2B operations are partner-
specific barriers. The next section
discusses these dimensions, which
are labeled facilitators and inhibitors.
Theoretical justification for the ex-
tracted dimensions is also discussed.
Table 2 contains information on factor
loadings along with the Cronbach’s
alpha for each factor (scale).
As previously noted, while research
has not specifically addressed the uses
Downloaded by RMIT University At 13:58 31 January 2016 (PT)
of the Internet in international mar-
keting operations of MNCs, the di-
mensions extracted through principal
component analysis are quite similar
to what one would expect to be the
fundamental uses of the Internet in
facilitating exchange in any setting. In
that sense, these dimensions appear
to be theoretically sound and validate
the assertion that the uses of the
Internet in global marketing parallel
its uses in domestic markets although
the potential may not have been fully
utilized yet.
Facilitators. The future orientation
dimension of Internet usage encom-
passes those elements that indicate
that the Internet is viewed not merely
as a part of a company’s current strat-
egy but also as an important element
of its future strategy. This dimen-
sion incorporates such things as the
future (planned) use of the Internet
for global B2B operations, planned in-
vestments into Internet technologies,
expected level of usage of the Internet
in company’s future operations, and
the Internet’s use to increase market-
ing efficiency. This dimension clearly
suggests a deliberate role for the
Internet in a company’s overall global
strategy. The fact that companies are
investing in Internet technologies
around the world suggests that it is
38 Mid-American Journal of Business
Vol 22, No. 1
being viewed as a long-term Table 2
investment and not merely Factor Analysis Results: Dimensionality of
as a tool to generate short
Internet Use in Australia and U.S.
term cost savings. Indeed
the Internet can be viewed
Factor 1: Future Orientation
as one of the few business
a = .871
tools that small firms can
use as effectively as large Future Role of the Internet .821
firms to compete against Future Level of Expected Internet Use .777
rivals (Ramsey et al. 2004).
Another well document- Focus on Technology and Internet Upgrades .726
ed use of the Internet is its Future Use for Efficiency Enhancement .671
ability to enhance opera-
tional efficiency. Research- Strategic Importance of the Internet Role .658
ers have addressed the use Marketing Efficiency .526
of the Internet for enhanc-
ing operational efficiency Factor 2: Operational Efficiency Enhancement
a = .772
within the context of its
ability to make it easier to
Order Fulfillment .797
implement specific activities Pricing Information .727
(Yip and Dempster 2005).
To illustrate, the increased Global Transactions .626
connectivity between Information to Global Suppliers .585
partners, facilitated by the
Internet, has accelerated the Customized Applications .510
trend to increased out- Factor 3: Marketing Efficiency Enhancement
sourcing and collaboration a = .783
throughout organizations’ Product Offerings .809
supply chains to the point
where these relationships Product Developments .750
can now be considered sup- Global Image .747
ply networks versus supply
chains (Barnes, Miecz- Merchandise Displays .513
kowska, and Hinton 2003). Factor 4: Partner Relationship Enhancement
Consistent with this view, a =.776
the operational efficiency Service and Support .749
enhancement dimension
in this study refers to those Addressing Complaints .666
uses of the Internet which Communication with Partners .564
provide added value to a
company’s customers and Factor 5: Competitive Intelligence
a = .719
partners by adding ser-
vices such as on-line order Information Collection .697
placement, customized Conducting Research .680
operations, etc. The specific
activities that fall under this Access for Partners .495
umbrella include using the Internet for Long-Term Relations .413
Internet for placing orders,
for payment and other Factor 6: Partner-specific Inhibitors
a = .5871
transactions, for develop-
ing customized offerings Comfort Level of Partners .693
for partners, for providing Ease of Access for Partners .626
pricing information, and for
informing global suppliers

about company requirements. These
uses enable a company to realize
substantial costs savings by using the
Internet for routine activities such as
order placement, while at the same
time creating high exit barriers for
partners through customized offer-
ings that would be hard to duplicate
by competitors.
“
The fact that companies are investing in
Internet technologies around the world
suggests that it is being viewed as a long-
term investment and not merely as a tool to
generate short-term cost savings.
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Researchers have addressed how
the Internet can be used as a market-
ing and public relations tool to rein-
force company image worldwide and
as a means to introduce prospective
customers to specific company em-
ployees (Ellinger et al. 2003). Further,
the company can use technological
capabilities of the Internet to facili-
tate activities such as product devel-
opment by involving relevant people
from its worldwide facilities. In sum,
this dimension emphasizes attracting
and retaining customers by staying in
constant touch with them (Mustaffa
and Beaumont 2004). Not surpris-
ingly, this study found the marketing
and image dimension of Internet use
in a global B2B context to be con-
sistent with what other studies have
reported. This dimension of Internet
use consists of items that tap into spe-
cific marketing functions such as the
Internet’s use for communicating a
firm’s product offerings, for informing
partners about new product develop-
ment, for projecting a uniform global
image, and for merchandise display.
By serving as a brochureware, the
Internet can replace or supplement
traditional means of information dis-
semination to various constituents.
For example, information regarding
product selection and service avail-
ability can easily be provided on-line
to customers around the world.
The fourth dimension, partner
relationship enhancement, contains
items that address the use of the
Internet in developing long-term
relationships with clients and suppli-
ers. The items suggest that partner
relationships can be viewed as a
“ as an information collection medium,
stepwise development process (Aldin,
Brehmer, and Johansson 2004) and a
two-way street. In fact, this dimen-
sion focuses upon service and support
as well as sharing strategic intelligence
with partners. An example of this
activity can be found in Siemens’
operations; the company utilizes the
Internet to simultaneously reduce
its after-sales support (of customers’
machines) costs while guaranteeing
the shortest response times in the
case of problems, a win-win situation
for both partners (Wucherer 2006). In
keeping with this conceptualization,
this study found that items in this
dimension address the use of the In-
ternet to provide service and support,
to resolve concerns and complaints,
and to provide/share information with
global partners.
Perhaps the most profound im-
pact of the Internet on competitive
intelligence has been that because
huge amounts of data are now widely
accessible, customers are now more
informed about their options and
thus can negotiate with vendors on a
more level playing field (Angel 2004).
Therefore, it is not surprising that
the final facilitator dimension labeled
competitive intelligence is in keeping
with what is often viewed as the most
obvious potential for the Internet—
Singh, Gordon, and Purchase
that of collecting, disseminating,
analyzing and using information
gathered from various constituencies.
It is labeled competitive intelligence
because it involves information gath-
ering, analysis and dissemination. It
views information as a tool to provide
superior value to global partners by
offering services tailored to specific
client needs while at the same time
using it to keep track of competitors’
activities. The specific items that tap
into this dimension view the Internet
as a means to conduct strategic global
research on clients and competitors,
and as a tool to use this information to
develop long term relationships with
global partners.
Inhibitors. Items that load on the
factor labeled inhibitors suggest that
the inhibitors to the implementation
of the Internet in B2B global market-
ing are primarily partner-specific in-
hibitors. Previous research suggests
that market-specific barriers such as
security and privacy concerns are a
concern for all organizations (Gao
2005) and these barriers did load on
the same factor. However, the factor
scores were lower than the norm, and
thus they were not retained in the
final analysis. On the other hand,
partner-specific inhibitors are such
things as lack of access to the Inter-
net for global partners, the comfort
level of global partners in using the
Internet, and/or lack of confidence in
the technology (Ratnasingam 2005).
These factors may hinder the use of
the Internet in a global B2B context
because even though the MNC has
the required competency to imple-
ment Internet-based services, the
international partner may have
limited or no access to the Internet,
might not be comfortable using it, or
skeptical of the technology’s ability
to deliver promised results. Further,
research also suggests that there are
considerable legal differences among
the various markets in the world in
terms of privacy issues. Companies
Mid-American Journal of Business
Vol 22, No. 1 39
 Singh, Gordon, and Purchase

located in those countries where

the government keeps a close watch
Table 3
on businesses might be reluctant to B2B Internet Use of U.S. and Australian MNCs
use the Internet due to its perceived
transparency. Similarly, privacy H1: There are no differences between U.S. and Australian MNCs in terms of their Internet usage
concerns about confidential data may for global B2B marketing operations.
also inhibit the use of the Internet Mean Mean
Constructs F P
for certain operations. A lesson to U.S. Australia
be learned is that designers should Future Orientation 1.809 .180 3.61 3.77
not attempt to use a “one size fits all”
Operational Efficiency 4.136* .043 2.61 2.34
approach when developing web sites
(Chakraborty, Prashant, and Warren Marketing Efficiency 0.006 .937 3.48 3.47
2005).
Relationship Enhancement 0.070 .791 3.28 3.25
Regardless, mean values for the
inhibitors suggest that, in general, Competitive Intelligence 3.388 .067 3.15 2.92
MNCs irrespective of their size and
Perception of Inhibitors 0.272 .603 2.80 2.75
fields of operations, do not view
these issues as significant in terms of
* Significant at <.05
their decisions to implement Internet
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technologies. It could be that MNCs

are investing in Internet technologies
in spite of these constraints or that
the nature of Internet usage is such
Table 4
that these constraints do not pose a Differences as a Function of MNC Revenue
problem for the MNCs. (Revenues coded Small, Medium, Large, Very Large)

Hypothesis Testing H2: Internet applications for global B2B commerce will be more pervasive among larger
Hypotheses were tested using companies with higher revenues relative to smaller and medium-sized companies.
univariate tests and one-way Analysis-
of-Variance (ANOVA). Bonferroni Construct F P
Mean Mean Mean Mean
(Small) (Medium) (Large) (Very large)
post-hoc tests were used to conduct
pair-wise comparisons. Instead of Future Orientation 1.196 .313 3.4643 3.6556 3.5881 3.8105
comparing individual scale items, fac- Operational Efficiency 4.413 .005* 2.7286 2.4625 2.3200 2.8431
tors obtained from the factor analysis Marketing Efficiency 5.750 .001* 3.0313 3.6307 3.2576 3.7745
were used for comparison purposes Relationship Enhancement 2.753 .044* 3.6154 3.4965 3.0870 3.2628
since they encompass the overall
Competitive Intelligence 3.116 .028* 3.1833 3.1915 2.8551 3.2450
dimensions of Internet usage for
MNCs’ global B2B operations. * Significant at <.05
H1: suggests that there are no dif-
ferences between U.S. and Australian
firms in terms of how they use the In-
ternet for their global B2B operations. fulfillment, providing pricing informa- applications as compared to smaller
One-way ANOVA results indicate tion, and offering customized ap- companies.
that except for the dimension labeled plications relative to Australian firms One-way ANOVA results suggest
operational efficiency enhancement, (F(1,180)=4.136 p<.043). Thus, H1 is that there are indeed some differences
there are indeed no significant dif- largely supported. Table 3 contains between larger and smaller companies
ferences between U.S. and Australian results of one-way ANOVA for H1. in terms of their Internet usage for
firms in how they use the Internet H2 suggests that company size global B2B operations. As shown in
and what barriers they perceive in its and revenue have a significant effect Table 4, the effects of revenue are sig-
use for global B2B operations. For on the use of Internet technologies nificant [F(3,179)=4.413, p<.005; and
the operational efficiency dimen- for global B2B marketing decisions. F(3,173)=5.750, p<.001; and F(3,175)
sion, the difference is significant In general, it is hypothesized that = 2.753, p<.044; and F(3,177)=3.116,
with U.S. firms more likely to use companies with higher revenues will p<.028) respectively] for four dimen-
the Internet for such things as order encompass more formal Internet sions of Internet use for global B2B

40 Mid-American Journal of Business

Vol 22, No. 1
 Singh, Gordon, and Purchase

[(F3, 166) = 1.486, p<.220)]. Overall,

Table 5 barriers to the implementation of the
Differences as a Function of MNC Revenue from Global Sources Internet are not viewed as significant
by MNCs as evidenced by the mean
H3: Internet applications for global B2B commerce will be more pervasive among companies that value for the composite variable
derive a significant percentage of their revenues from their global B2B operations. labeled inhibitors (2.7882). Therefore,
H4 is not supported. Table 6 contains
Construct F P*
Mean Mean Mean detailed results for H4.
(Small) (Medium) (Large)

Future Orientation .259 .772 3.6774 3.7100 3.5521 Discussion and Implications
Operational Efficiency 2.756 .066 2.4125 2.7388 2.6235 Based upon results of this study, it
appears that the predominant model
Marketing Efficiency 1.757 .176 3.4861 3.5815 3.1250
in the U.S. and Australia is the infor-
Relationship Enhancement .174 .841 3.2364 3.2449 3.3725 mation-to-transaction path in terms
Competitive Intelligence .131 .877 3.0659 3.0969 3.1719 of Internet use for global B2B market-
ing operations. Additionally, while
*Not significant the information-to-transaction model
dominates in both countries, the U.S.
MNCs appear to use the Internet
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much more heavily for collecting

Table 6
Perception of Inhibitors as a Function of Company Revenue
H4: Perception of barriers to implementation of Internet technologies for B2B marketing will differ as
a function of the size and revenue of the firms.
Dependent Variable
Inhibitors to Internet Implementation
* Not significant
marketing—operational efficiency,
marketing efficiency, relationship
enhancement, and competitive intel-
ligence. Bonferroni post-hoc tests
suggest that in general, larger compa-
nies are more likely to use the Inter-
net to enhance operational efficiency,
marketing efficiency, and use it as a
competitive intelligence mechanism
as compared to smaller and medium
sized companies. The difference for
relationship enhancement and com-
petitive intelligence while significant
is interestingly reversed—small- and
medium-sized companies are more
prone to use it than larger compa-
nies. This finding seems consistent
with what researchers have sug-
gested—that the Internet enables
small companies to compete against
Mean Mean Mean Mean
F P*
(Small) (Medium) (Large) (Very Large)
1.486 .220 2.6667 2.8060 2.8622 2.8750
giants worldwide with relatively
little investment (Cetron and Davies
2005). Therefore, H2 is supported.
No differences were found among
MNCs as a function of the percent-
age of revenue they derive from their
global sources. As shown in Table 5,
the percentage of revenue that an
MNC derives from its global opera-
tions has no effect on how the MNC
will use the Internet for its global B2B
marketing operations. Therefore, H3
is not supported.
H4 proposes that the perception
of barriers to implementation of
Internet technologies for B2B mar-
keting will differ as a function of size
and revenues for the firms. Results
suggest that there are no differences
among MNCs in this area either
information from their global part-
ners whereas Australian MNCs use it
more heavily for providing service and
support to their global partners. The
most common uses for the Internet
are characterized by an informa-
tion-orientation and not specifically
a transaction-orientation. Transac-
tion-oriented uses of the Internet are
certainly present in the two samples
but to a far lesser extent than informa-
tion-oriented uses. However, if the
growth of this medium continues as
most predictions suggest, it will not
be long before it acquires the same
status in global B2B operations as it
has in domestic operations of numer-
ous firms.
Additionally, the uses of the
Internet and views regarding the role
of the Internet in global B2B market-
ing are remarkably similar in the two
countries. It is evident that MNCs
in the U.S. and Australia use the
Internet for business enhancement,
and to a lesser extent for revenue
enhancement purposes, and are not
particularly concerned about inhibi-
tors such as the regulatory climate of
a country. Further, contrary to what
Wise and Morrison (2000) suggest,
MNCs do not view Internet’s role in
B2B marketing simply as a short-term
cost reduction device. In particular,

Mid-American Journal of Business

Vol 22, No. 1 41
 Singh, Gordon, and Purchase
this study provides strong empirical
support for the strategic role of the
Internet. As discussed earlier, future
orientation appears prominently in
the results clearly establishing that
companies in the two countries do
indeed view the Internet’s role from a
strategic long-term perspective. More
importantly, future orientation does
not differ as a function of company
size or revenue, further attesting to
the emerging view that companies,
irrespective of their size, are embrac-
ing the Internet, at least in developed
economies.
Results of this study confirm that
both U.S. and Australian MNCs are
using the Internet to replace and/or
supplement traditional marketing and
Downloaded by RMIT University At 13:58 31 January 2016 (PT)
business functions such as informa-
tion delivery. They are also using it
to develop innovative functions such
as providing customized applications
and product development using global
partners. However, at the present
time, the primary uses of the Internet
seem to be at an evolutionary stage
in global B2B settings. While the
Internet has become a ubiquitous
medium that both large and small
companies have adopted for their
global operations, it probably remains
underutilized and has significantly
more potential than what is being
currently used. As discussed earlier,
companies seem to be using the In-
ternet in their global B2B operations
more for business enhancement as
compared to revenue enhancement,
albeit both uses are gradually becom-
ing complementary. It is important
to note however, that even simple
uses of the Internet such as informa-
tion collection and dissemination
encompass more than static informa-
tion—they point to the competitive
intelligence approach to information,
where information is used to deliver
value and monitor competitive stance.
Relationship enhancement uses such
as designing systems and protocols to
address client and vendor concerns
point to the interactive role that the
42 Mid-American Journal of Business
Vol 22, No. 1
Internet is beginning to assume in
global B2B operations.
It is not surprising that the
predominant uses of the Internet
involve the facilitation of information
exchange between global partners.
The ability of the Internet to enable
synchronous as well as asynchronous
communication makes it an ideal tool
to disseminate and collect informa-
tion and enhance operational efficien-
cy. Further, the inherent interactivity
of the Internet makes it a more effec-
tive device for business enhancement
activities such as dissemination of
tailored information on the company
and its products to specific audiences.
The evolutionary nature of the
Internet is also evidenced in this
research. It has been suggested
that companies typically follow a
hierarchical path as they go through
implementing electronic business
strategy models. Some suggest that
these strategies may be a function of
such factors as the size and longevity
of the firm (Quelch and Klein 1996;
Sharma 2002). However, results of
this study suggest that MNC revenue
is the only factor that affects Internet
use for global B2B marketing. Com-
panies with higher revenues are using
the Internet more strategically—they
appear to incorporate it into more
functions ranging from competitive
intelligence to improving marketing
efficiency.
At the same time, Internet usage
for global B2B operations does not ap-
pear to be a function of how globally
focused a company is. As noted ear-
lier, percentage of revenues or profits
that were derived from global opera-
tions did not affect to any significant
degree how a company will use the
Internet. It could be that the Internet
has become such an integral part of
today’s competitive environment that
whether or not a company is globally
focused is immaterial.
An important contribution of
this research is in providing empiri-
cal evidence regarding the role of the
Internet in global B2B marketing
efforts of MNCs from two industrial-
ized economies, which typically lead
the way to more advanced innova-
tions. These results also help to verify
the claims of universalization of this
medium by indicating that more than
anything else, the Internet appears to
be an integral part of MNCs’ global
marketing strategies. The fact that
large and small companies view the
role of this medium as crucial to their
growth and profitability attests to its
long-term strategic significance in
global marketing efforts. Additionally,
results of this study demonstrate the
various ways in which the Internet is
being used in global marketing opera-
tions, and the limitations that compa-
nies must be aware of when deciding
to implement it for their global opera-
tions. It also provides a framework
for evaluating the value-added nature
of the Internet at various stages of
competitive strategy development for
global applications.
Future research should address
these questions within the context of
different countries and industries. In
particular, it would be informative to
assess whether MNCs from devel-
oping and newly emerging markets
view the role of the Internet differ-
ently for their global B2B operations,
and if so, what factors contribute to
these differences. Similarly, it would
be useful to assess other potentially
more advanced uses of the Internet
within global settings including those
in developing and newly emerging
markets. MAJB
Note
1. In this paper the term MNC is
used to describe firms that have
global operations irrespective of
their size and revenues.
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About the Authors
Tanuja Singh is Associate Profes-
sor and Chair of the Department of

Ramsey, E., P. Ibbotson, J. Bell, and B.
Gray. 2004. A projectives perspec-
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the Web, www.forbes.com, October.
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Industrial Marketing Management
Xu, K., T. Wilkinson, and L.E.
Brouthers. 2002. The dark side of
Marketing in the College of Business at
Northern Illinois University. Her primary
research interests are in the area of
global marketing, electronic commerce
and pubic policy issues in marketing.
Her papers have been published
in such journals as the Journal of
Global Marketing, Journal of Consumer
Marketing, ,Journal of International Con-
sumer Marketing, International Business
Review, Research in Consumer Behav-
ior, Business Horizons, and Marketing
Management Journal, among others

Geoffrey Gordon is the OTA/Off

the Record Research Professor of Invest-
ment Research in the Department of
American Journal of Business formerly Mid-American Journal of Business
Marketing at Northern Illinois University.
Gordon has been at Northern Illinois
Purpose University for the past 15 years and has
The American Journal of Business (formerly Mid-American Journal of Business) published in many journals including
publishes discipline-based scholarship and welcomes contributions that apply Marketing Management, Industrial
research to practice. The aim is to give voice to academic research in both Marketing Management, Business
academic and practicing business circles.
Horizons, and the Journal of Product
Submit Manuscripts and Brand Management. His primary
Arrange citations and references according to author-date system, The Chicago research interests are in the areas of
Manual of Style, 14th edition. Send the manuscript with an abstract and author marketing strategy and new product/
biography to the Editor-in-Chief. Electronic submissions are required. Send service development.
two separate files. Include title page with author(s) identification and e-mail
addresses on first file. Include contents of manuscript in second file. Identify Sharon Purchase is a senior
subject area for appropriate review. No submission fee required. Send to:
lecturer at the University of Western
Ashok Gupta , Editor-in-Chief Complete instructions available Australia. Her research interests are
gupta@ohiou.edu online: www.bsu.edu/MAJB electronic business and buyer-supplier
relationships.

44 Mid-American Journal of Business

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