The Antecedents And Performance Of B2B Supplier's Brand Orientation

The high homogenization of products and service aggravates the competition in the industrial market.In order to form the differentiation advantage and get rid of the homogenization of the market,suppliers often take the branding strategy to obtain the sustainable competitive advantage.The supplier brand orientation strategy reflects that supplier formulate brand strategy planning through the rational allocation of organizational resource.Currently,there is a lack of research on brand orientation in the industrial market,which cannot effectively answer the question of how B2 B suppliers to implement brand orientation strategy based on existing organizational resource.Based on the brand strategy in the industrial market,from the perspective of organizational knowledge,this paper argues the antecedent of the implementation of B2 B brand orientation is organizational knowledge.It explores the key organization knowledge types are technology knowledge and market knowledge and explore the relationship between different knowledge stock and B2 B brand orientation,and the effectiveness of B2 B brand orientation.Based on the related theory,this paper adopts the hybrid design method combining qualitative research and quantitative research,and analyzes the antecedents and performance of B2 B brand orientation from the perspective of organizational knowledge.The conclusions are:(1)Choose three typical B2 B suppliers in the Chinese industrial market for sample to carry out multi-case study,the key organizational knowledge factors influencing the B2 B supplier brand orientation can be refined for the technology knowledge and market knowledge.It shows that B2 B suppliers should have systematic and diversified knowledge resource types,and acquire these knowledge resource through the input of the asset or ability of the organization.(2)Through the empirical test of 220 valid questionnaires,the relationship between suppliers' technology knowledge and B2 B brand orientation is u-shaped;market knowledge is significantly positive associated with B2 B brand orientation;the product homogeneity strengthens the relationship between the two kind of knowledge and B2 B brand orientation;when suppliers have low technology knowledge,interaction effect of technology knowledge and market knowledge has a positive effect on B2 B brand orientation;when suppliers have high technology knowledge,interaction effect of technology knowledge and market knowledge has anegative effect on B2 B brand orientation.Therefore,suppliers should create and accumulate organizational knowledge consciously,the rational allocation and management of organizational resource is necessary.They should adjust dynamically according to own organizational knowledge,thus build up brand as the carrier of the competitive advantage.(3)The empirical test shows that B2 B suppliers can promote financial performance of the organization through the implement the strategy of brand orientation.The B2 B brand plays a role in the process of supplier and purchaser trading,obtains the most tangible benefits,thus effectively improves the financial performance.This paper has enriched the brand strategy of the Chinese industry market research and further expand the relationship among the organizational knowledge,B2 B brand orientation,and financial performance.Not only make up for the deficiency of the lack of the antecedent of brand orientation,make a deep theoretical explanation for how to choose brand orientation in the high homogeneity of industrial market,but also offer a new theoretical starting point for for the study of the effectiveness of brand orientation.