The authors examine the influence of antecedent social ties on export behavior in an exploratory cross-case investigation of a sample of small and medium-sized exporters drawn from different industries. Data pertaining to 31 export market entries support the view that decision makers' cosmopolitanism has a significant influence on the initiation of exports.

Purpose -The nurturing of trust within firm-customer relationships highlights the significance of social exchange theory in helping to explain the relational paradigm. By focusing upon this theory it was hypothesized that psychological contracts also play an important role in helping manage customer relationships. The principal purpose of this study is to explore the role of the psychological contract within the firm-customer relationship, and its effects on trust. Design/methodology/approach -A sample of 343 distributor firms within the motorized vehicle industry was used to test a model developed on the basis of social exchange theory. Findings -Psychological contracts are perceptual in nature and encompass reciprocal obligations stemming from the relational marketing efforts between suppliers and distributors. This construct was shown to have a positive impact upon the level of trust and commitment within the relationship; however, perceived violations of the contract terms were found to reduce the distributor's level of trust. Originality/value -Given that trust was found to increase commitment, these findings have important managerial implications as they show that psychological contracts will erode important customer relationships if not factored into the customer decision-making processes within the firm.

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PurposeThe globalisation of markets combined with the paradoxical rise of nationalism has created an increased concern about the importance of the interaction of global brands with other cues such as the country of origin (COO) of products and services. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the decision‐making processes of experts and novices with respect to international brand names, COO and intrinsic quality differences.Design/methodology/approachWithin subject experimental design, quantitative study analysis of variance.FindingsResults of a series of experiments with personal computers as a product with strong COO effects supported this argument. Experts or highly knowledgeable consumers were found to use COO in a circumspect manner or as a limited summary construct, only when such information was consistent with a linked brand name or a particular level of physical quality. Novices, for both products used COO as a halo regardless of brand name and physical quality.Research limitations/implicationsInternational brand names are used in a more analytical manner by experts, with respect to quality, whilst novices based their decision‐making on extrinsic cues. This was a controlled experimental design and results could be evaluated further by more realistic design using actual products in a more market setting. Although the use of product description as used as experimental treatments in this study is not an unusual manner in which personal computers are purchased by consumers, especially when they are purchased online.Practical implicationsInternational marketers must carefully consider the quality, brand and COO information carefully when marketing to consumers of varying product knowledge as it appears different decision‐making styles are used by experts and novices.Originality/valueThis is one of the few studies to experimentally manipulate brand, quality and COO information amongst different groups of consumers with varying product knowledge (experts and novices). The experimental treatments were also carefully chosen so that differences due to the use of a global brand IBM could be evaluated against a lesser known local brand name.

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