Is Customers' Dependence on Manufacturers Equivalent to Manufacturers' Power?

Abstract

This study was done to replicate and extend prior research efforts as called for in 1996 by Gaski. Specifically, the relationship between customers' dependence on a manufacturer for products sold and customers' perception of the power of that manufacturer was investigated, where customers' dependence is the need to obtain resources from the manufacturers whose products they sell to increase their own performance and manufacturer's power is the manufacturer's ability to control decision-making variables by their customers. Data were collected from 406 intermediary customers in a marketing system. A regression model was used to quantify the relationship between ratings of manufacturers' power and customers' dependence. Contrary to previous findings, analysis indicated a near absence of an effect of customers' dependence on the manufacturer for products to be sold on customers' perception of manufacturer's power.