Australasian Marketing Journal

In modern Western economic history, the industrial revolution and the evolution of scientific management helped society to achieve other important goals and turned relationship thinking into a secondary issue. A mass-market orientation and the establishment of the middle-man in distribution channels, as well as specialisation and the division of labour, became top priorities. The dominance of the highly management-oriented marketing mix approach to marketing from the 1960s onwards, has not allowed for a relationship perspective either.

This article postulates six key aspects of a successfully implemented relationship marketing strategy: three strategic issues (service business orientation, process management perspective, partnership and network formation) and three tactical issues (direct customer contacts, customer databases, customer-oriented service system). Overall, relationship marketing is seen as a philosophy rather than a departmental function. A transition curve is described for getting from the second to the first.

The emergence of the ‘network organisation’ is a recent phenomenon that has given rise to much comment and analysis. These ‘virtual’ organisations are characterised by a confederation of specialist skills or capabilities provided by the network members. It is argued that such collaborative arrangements provide a more effective means of satisfying customer needs at a profit than do single forms of organisation undertaking multiple value-creating activities. The implications of the network organisation for marketing management are considerable and, in particular, the challenges to logistics management are profound. This paper seeks to examine the bases upon which the effectiveness of network organisations can be enhanced through integrated supply chain management.

With the advent of relationship marketing, a paradigm shift in marketing thought is occurring, with the dimensions of bonding, reciprocity and trust receiving much attention. This paper addresses another factor in the equation - interdependence - by reviewing the extant literature, providing a conceptual model and discussing the implications for managing a portfolio of interdependent relationships.

This paper takes a fresh look at the role of trust in customer relationships by drawing from the economics and communications literatures, where researchers distinguish between concepts of trustworthiness and trusting behaviour. The author develops a typology of trust based on whether a marketing entity is considered trustworthy and whether a behaviour can be considered trusting, and offers the managerial implications of ideas presented, along with six propositions for future research.

In this paper I generate a number of questions and problematic issues that reveal our state of ignorance regarding relationship marketing. At the same time many suggestions for future research concerning relationship marketing arise. The questions vary from the total contribution of relationship marketing to the detailed practices of relationship marketing.

The discussion raises some general issues concerning many of the questions presented. These general issues are conceptualisation, level of analysis, modelling, measurement, time contextuality and contribution to theory and practice.