CHAPTER 4: BEHAVIORAL PROCESSES IN MARKETING CHANNELS BEHAVIORAL DIMENSIONS

Question 1

Can be defined as “the system generated by any process of interaction on the sociocultural level, between two or more actors?

Answer 1

• Social System

Question 2

CAUSES OF CHANNEL CONFLICT

Answer 2

• Role Incongruities:
  Out of place role or not doing of what is expected duty
• Resource Scarcities: cutting and directing into other line of channel that cause scarcity
• Perceptual Differences: Perception refers to the way that an individual selects and interprets environmental stimuli.
• Expectational Differences: In practice, these expectations are predictions or forecasts concerning the future behaviors of other channel members.
• Decision Domain Disagreements: Channel members explicitly or implicitly carve out for themselves an area of decision-making that they feel is exclusively theirs.
• Goal Incompatibilities: Each member of the marketing channel has his or her own goals. When the goals of two or more of the members are incompatible which happens often conflict can result.
• Communication Difficulties Communication is like the road that helps people talk and work together, whether they’re getting along or having problems.

Question 3

What are the possible effects of conflict on channel efficiency?

Answer 3

• Negative effect – Reduced efficiency
• No effect – Efficiency Remains Constant
• Positive Effect – Efficiency increased
• Conflict and Channel Efficiency

Question 4

MANAGING CHANNEL CONFLICT?

Answer 4

• Conflict is an inherent behavioral dimension in the marketing channel.
• Given the numerous causes from which conflict may stem, it is a pervasive phenomenon in marketing channels.
• Conflict can affect channel efficiency.
• Various levels of conflict may have both negative and positive effects on channel efficiency, or
• Detecting Channel Conflict
• Marketing Channel Audit
• Groups like distributor advisory councils or channel member committees
• Appraising the effect of Conflict

Question 5

RESOLVING CONFLICT:
Rosenberg gave some advice that is still useful today?

Answer 5

• Channel wide committee - They could create a committee for regular discussions about problems and conflict.
• Joint goal setting - (or another group) could set goals together, taking into account what each team member wants, what customers need, and the rules they have to follow.
• Distributive executive - They could assign someone in each big company on the team to focus on distribution problems.

Question 6

To solve conflicts in a group, Weigand and Wasson suggest using a process called arbitration. This has several benefits?

Answer 6

1)Arbitration is fast

2)Arbitration preserves secrecy

3)Arbitration is less expensive than litigation

4)Arbitration confronts problem in their incipient stage when they are easier to resolve

5)Arbitration often takes place before industry experts

Question 7

“POWER” MEANS?

Answer 7

• THE ABILITY OF ONE MEMBER TO CONTROL OR INFLUENCE THE ACTIONS OF ANOTHER MEMBER.

Question 8

5 Types of power?

Answer 8

• Reward Power
• Coercive Power
• Legitimate Power
• Referent Power
• Expert Power

Question 9

Hunt and Nevin argue that, at least in a franchised channel, avoiding the use of coercive power by the franchisor is likely to yield the following results?

Answer 9

1. Franchisees are likely to have higher morale.
2. Franchisees are more likely to cooperate with the franchisor.
3. Franchisees are less likely to terminate their contracts.
4. Franchisees are less likely to file individual suits against the franchisor.
5. Franchisees are less likely to file class action suits.
6. Franchisees are less likely to seek protective legislation such as the “Franchise Full Disclosure Act” (1970)

Question 10

What is a Role in the Marketing Channel?

Answer 10

• A role is set of prescriptions defining what the behavior of a position member should be.

Question 11

Has been described as “the glue that holds together a channel of distribution.” ?

Answer 11

• Communication

Question 12

TWO MAIN REASONS FOR COMMUNICATION PROBLEM?

Answer 12

• Differing Goals
• Language Differences

Question 13

Three other behavioral issues that can hamper channel communication?

Answer 13

1. Perceptual differences, where channel members interpret things differently.
2. Secretive behavior, particularly regarding promotional plans, can hinder communication because manufacturers often keep details from their channel partners.
3. Insufficient communication frequency can leave channel members feeling uninformed and disconnected, negatively impacting the quality of communication.