Relationship versus Transaction Marketing in China: An Institutional Approach

Sun, Francis

doi:10.11114/bms.v3i2.2448

Cited by 3 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 41 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Third, the focal city is located between coastal and inland China where client entertainment is widely observed. Fourth, focusing on B2B sales managers controls client type which otherwise affects the relationship that this study investigates (Sun, 2017).…”

Section: Sample and Data Collectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For policymakers in developed countries, they should realize that client entertainment that is often considered a corruptive practice actually plays an important role in governing business transactions when the standard governance mechanisms (i.e. market and legal) are weak and social relational governance has to be applied in organizing daily economic activities (Sun, 2017). In their domestic market, they need to close the regulatory loopholes in certain industries such as the pharmaceutical sector to reduce the reliance on social relational governance and hence reduce the need to use client entertainment.…”

Section: Research and Practical Implicationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Determinants of effective client entertainment in China: a transaction governance approach

Sun

2018

JABS

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Purpose This paper aims to take an economic transaction governance approach to explore the determinants for the effectiveness of the social practice of client entertainment in facilitating business relationships in China. Design/methodology/approach The analysis is based on a broader theoretical framework which posits that exchange relationships are regulated through a combination of market, legal and social relational mechanisms and client entertainment plays a governance role by reinforcing social relational governance to regulate the behaviors of economic actors. Upon this framework, this study proposes that the social behavioral features of client entertainment affect the effectiveness of client entertainment in facilitating exchange relationships and that time moderates such effects. These hypotheses were tested on survey data collected from a sample of Chinese sales managers. Findings Empirical results indicate that the effectiveness of client entertainment in facilitating exchange relationships is associated with its social behavioral features that could reinforce social relational governance, including intensity (i.e. value and frequency) and format (i.e. intimacy and observability) of entertainment activities, and the time factor plays a moderating role. Practical implications This study can potentially help policymakers to regulate client entertainment, and business practitioners to manage entertainment spending, more effectively and efficiently without causing legal and ethical problems. Originality/value This is the first study that takes an economic transaction governance perspective to directly explore how the social practice of client entertainment plays a constructive role in China’s economic life and what factors affect its effectiveness in playing such a role. It offers guidelines for policymakers, business managers and future research to manage and study this practice.

show abstract

Section: Sample and Data Collectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Research and Practical Implicationsmentioning

confidence: 99%