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Effect of exporter’s incentives on foreign distributor’s role performance

Journal of International Business Studies volume 46, pages 960–983 (2015)Cite this article

Abstract

A foreign distributor’s motivation to perform local marketing tasks for an exporter is often poor due to agency conflicts and transaction cost constraints characterizing the export channel. While exporters may engage in actions such as offering incentives and overseeing partner activities to improve foreign marketing, such intrusions into partner operations often fail to enhance the distributor’s role performance. Drawing on motivation theory, the authors develop a model explaining the efficiency of different incentive types in enhancing the distributor’s motivational context to act on behalf of the exporter, thereby improving relationship quality, distributor relationship-specific investments, and, consequently, distributor role performance. The authors use a sample of 278 European exporters to test hypotheses regarding relationship factors that mediate and moderate the incentive–role performance relationship. The results indicate that the impact of low-powered incentives (LPIs) substitutes for the effect of high-powered incentives on relationship quality and specific investments, the key mediators driving distributor role performance. In addition, exporter oversight of distributor activities weakens the effectiveness of LPIs to increase distributor-specific investment. The authors derive implications for designing portfolios of incentives, with inferences based on efficiently matching incentive-induced motivational context with foreign distributor’s actions required to accomplish exporter goals.

Abstract

La motivation d’un distributeur étranger à réaliser des actions de marketing local pour un exportateur est souvent réduite en raison de contraintes liées aux conflits d’agence et aux coûts de transaction qui caractérisent le canal d’exportation. Si les exportateurs peuvent s’engager dans des actions telles que l’offre d’incitations ou la supervision d’activités du partenaire pour améliorer le marketing à l’étranger, ces intrusions dans les opérations du partenaire échouent souvent à améliorer la performance du rôle du distributeur. En s’appuyant sur la théorie des motivations, les auteurs développent un modèle qui explique l’efficience de différents types d’incitations destinés à améliorer le contexte motivationnel du distributeur pour agir au nom de l’exportateur, permettant ainsi d’augmenter la qualité de la relation, les investissements spécifiques à la relation avec le distributeur et, par conséquent, la performance du rôle du distributeur. Les auteurs utilisent un échantillon de 278 exportateurs européens pour tester des hypothèses concernant les facteurs relationnels qui ont un effet médiateur et modérateur sur la relation entre l’incitation et la performance du rôle du distributeur. Les résultats indiquent que l’impact d’incitations de faible puissance (IFP) se substitue à l’effet d’incitations de forte puissance sur la qualité de la relation et les investissements spécifiques, les médiateurs clés ayant un impact déterminant sur la performance du rôle du distributeur. Par ailleurs, la supervision par l’exportateur des activités du distributeur affaiblit l’efficacité des IFP concernant l’accroissement des investissements spécifiques du distributeur. Les auteurs en déduisent des implications pour concevoir des portefeuilles d’incitations, avec des inférences fondées sur des combinaisons efficientes entre le contexte motivationnel lié à l’incitation et les actions du distributeur étranger nécessaires pour accomplir les objectifs de l’exportateur.

Abstract

La motivación de un distribuidor internacional para desempeñar tareas de mercadeo local para un exportador es con frecuencia pobre debido a los conflictos de agencia y las limitaciones de los costos de transacción que caracterizan el canal de exportación. Mientras que los exportadores pueden tomar acciones como ofrecer incentivos y supervisar actividades asociadas para mejorar el mercadeo en el extranjero, esta intrusión dentro de las operaciones asociadas a menudo fracasan en aumentar el desempeño del rol del distribuidor. Partiendo de la teoría de la motivación, los autores desarrollan un modelo para explicar la eficiencia de los diferentes tipos de incentivos para aumentar el contexto motivacional del distribuidor para actuar en representación del exportador, y de esta manera mejorar la calidad de relación, las inversiones específicas para determinadas relaciones de distribución, y, en consecuencia, el desempeño del rol del distribuidor. Los autores usan una muestra de 278 exportadores europeos para poner a prueba la hipótesis sobre los factores análogos que median y moderan la relación incentivo – desempeño del rol. Los resultados indican que el impacto de los incentivos de baja potencia (SIP) substituye el efecto de los incentivos de alta potencia en la relación calidad e inversiones específicas, mediadores clave que motivan el desempeño del rol de distribuidor. Adicionalmente, la supervisión en exceso de las actividades del distribuidor por parte del exportador debilita la efectividad de los incentivos de baja potencia para aumentar la inversión específica del distribuidor. Los autores derivan implicaciones para diseñar portafolios de incentivos, con inferencias basadas en la coincidencia del contexto motivacional inducido mediante incentivos, con las acciones del distribuidor extranjero requeridas para alcanzar las metas del exportador.

Abstract

A motivação do distribuidor estrangeiro para realizar tarefas locais de marketing para um exportador é muitas vezes deficiente devido a conflitos de agência e restrições de custo de transação que caracterizam o canal de exportação. Enquanto exportadores podem se envolver em ações como a oferta de incentivos e supervisão das atividades de parceiros para melhorar atividades externas de marketing, tais interferências nas operações dos parceiros muitas vezes não conseguem melhorar o desempenho do distribuidor. Com base na teoria da motivação, os autores desenvolvem um modelo explicativo da eficiência de diferentes tipos de incentivo na melhoria do contexto motivacional do distribuidor de forma a atuar em nome do exportador, melhorando assim a qualidade do relacionamento, os investimentos do distribuidor nesse relacionamento, e, consequentemente, o desempenho do distribuidor. Os autores usam uma amostra de 278 exportadores europeus para testar hipóteses relacionadas a fatores de relacionamento que mediam e moderam a relação entre incentivo e desempenho do papel de distribuidor. Os resultados indicam que o impacto dos incentivos de baixa potência (LPIs) substituem os efeitos dos incentivos de alta potência na qualidade do relacionamento e em investimentos específicos, os mediadores chave que definem o desempenho do papel de distribuidor. Além disso, atividades de supervisão do distribuidor por parte do exportador enfraquecem a eficácia dos LPIs no aumento do investimento específico do distribuidor. Os autores derivam implicações para a criação de carteiras de incentivos, com inferências baseadas na eficiente combinação do contexto motivacional induzido por incentivo com as ações do distribuidor estrangeiro necessárias para atingir os objetivos do exportador.

Abstract

由于出口通道的代理冲突和交易成本约束, 外国经销商为出口商执行本土营销任务的动机往往较弱。出口商可能从事如提供激励和监督合作伙伴活动以改进国外市场营销的行动, 然而这种侵入合作伙伴运营的方法往往不能提高分销商的角色绩效。基于激励理论, 作者开发了一个模型来解释不同激励类型在提高经销商代表出口商行动的动机的情景下的有效性, 从而提高关系质量、经销商关系专用性投资, 因而提高经销商角色绩效。作者利用278位欧洲出口商的样本数据, 检验了关系因素对激励-角色绩效关系的中介和调节作用。结果表明, 低能激励 (LPIs) 的影响取代了高能激励对关系质量和指定投资的效果, 这是推进经销商角色绩效的关键介质。此外, 出口商对经销商活动的监督减弱了LPIs增加经销商专用性投资的有效性。作者推导出设计激励组合的启示, 在基于高效匹配的激励-诱导动机情境下, 国外经销商的活动需要完成出口商的目标。

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Notes

  1. We transformed four manifest indicators scores to bring their skewness within acceptable limits.

  2. We acknowledge the method developed for PLS by Liang et al. (2007). However, we prefer the procedure available with AMOS7 because it allows for the test of the influence of common method variance on structural links.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank Joe Cannon, Adamantios Diamantopoulos, Stephen Kim, Susan Golicic, Ulrike Mayrhofer, and David Obadia for their comments on previous versions of this article. They are grateful to Tunis Call Center and Export Enterprises S.A. for their support.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. ESCE, International Business School, Paris, France

    Claude Obadia

  2. Institute of International Business, J. Mack Robinson College of Business, Georgia State University, Atlanta, USA

    Daniel C Bello

  3. College of Business, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, USA

    David I Gilliland

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Accepted by Shaoming Zou, Consulting Editor, 20 March 2015. This article has been with the authors for two revisions.

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Obadia, C., Bello, D. & Gilliland, D. Effect of exporter’s incentives on foreign distributor’s role performance. J Int Bus Stud 46, 960–983 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1057/jibs.2015.17

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Keywords

  • export marketing (or, export/import marketing)
  • inter-organizational relationships
  • channel governance
  • incentives
  • psychic distance
  • importer role performance