O setor de serviços no Brasil vem crescendo desde a década de 80 e mostra-se como o setor da economia mais importante em países desenvolvidos. O estudo do marketing de serviços nos Estados Unidos e Europa para esse setor ganhou importância desde então, no entanto estudos realizados por acadêmicos brasileiros ainda são escassos. O objetivo desta dissertação foi estudar o gerenciamento das variáveis de decisão de marketing em serviços de demanda não desejada do ponto de vista conceitual e prático. Para tanto, realizou-se extensa fundamentação teórica sobre o gerenciamento de marketing de serviços, mais especificamente sobre as variáveis de decisão produto, preço, distribuição e comunicação, finalizando essa parte com uma análise critica dos serviços de demanda não desejada. Do ponto de vista prático, realizou-se uma pesquisa de cunho exploratório, utilizando o método do estudo de caso, com o intuito de gerar novas idéias sobre o tema. A pesquisa de campo compreendeu o estudo de duas empresas do setor de seguros, que geraram novas idéias sobre o tema central desta dissertação. As análises obtidas dos casos mostraram que as empresas têm consciência da natureza dos serviços que vendem. Na variável preço não é uma variável de diferenciação, já que os preços são extremamente regulamentados no mercado de seguros. A distribuição é feita de maneira semelhante nas duas organizações estudadas, ou seja, por parceiros de negócio e corretores, que tem o papel de vendas. Treinamentos e campanhas de incentivo absorvem a maior parte dos investimentos das empresas. Por fim, identificou-se que as empresas pesquisadas utilizam elementos de comunicação que ampliam a receptividade do consumidor, além de utilizarem as relações públicas e patrocínios como principais ferramentas de comunicação. / The services industry in Brazil has been growing since the 80´s and is the most important industry in most developed economies. The study of services marketing in the United States and Europe has been becoming increasingly important ever since, however studies by Brazilian researchers are still scarce. The aim of this dissertation is to study the management of decision variables in marketing for negative demand services, both in a conceptual and practical perspective. With that purpose in mind, an extensive theoretical review about services marketing management was carried out, focusing particularly on decision variables related to price, product, distribution and communication and concluding with a critical analysis of negative demand services. From a practical perspective, an exploratory research using case studies was done. Thus, the field research comprised the study of two insurance companies and resulted in fresh ideas on the central subject of this dissertation. The resulting case analyses have shown that both studied companies are aware of the nature of the services they sell. The price variable is not a differentiation variable, since prices in the insurance industry are subjected to regulations. Distribution is similar on both companies and is executed by business partners and brokers that have in fact the sales role. In-house sales training and reward campaigns account for the majority of the investment expenses of the companies. Finally, it was evidenced that the studied companies use communication elements that increase consumers´ receptiveness to their products and employ public relations and sponsorships as their main communication tools.

This thesis consists of three essays in the theory of Industrial Organization. More specifically, the thesis focuses on the interaction of financial structure and market structure. The intellectual starting point of this thesis is the Modigliani-Miller theorem. Modigliani & Miller (1958) show that in the presence of perfect financial and output markets, financial structure has no effect on the value of the firm. This thesis departs from a Modigliani-Miller economic environment by assuming that firms have more information about their projects than financiers have. In imperfect output markets, this departure from Modigliani-Miller world implies that there may exist important strategic interactions between production and financial decisions. In the three essays of this thesis, we derive theoretical links between financial structure and output market competition. We show that in the presence of asymmetric information in output and financial markets, firms may affect the outcome of various oligopolistic and entry games by choosing an appropriate financial policy. We explicitly introduce financial variables in these types of games to show that they may have an important role to play in the resolution of the output competition. The presence of asymmetric information is usually a sufficient condition for financial structure relevance to the firm's market value. However, this is not necessary. It is shown elsewhere that taxes or bankruptcy costs may also affect financial decisions. Throughout this thesis, we abstract from these important determinants of financial structure to focus on asymmetric information in output and financial markets to show that a firm's financial policy may be used strategically in oligopolies. The three essays may be united under the common theme of asymmetric information and strategic financial decisions. In the first essay, the choice of a lender in a debt contract becomes a determinant of the extent of competition in downstream industries. We show that in the presence of imperfect output markets and asymmetric information in financial markets, members of an industry may achieve a partial collusion in the output market by borrowing from the same bank. In an oligopoly, debt is pro-competitive as it gives incentives to the borrowing firm to undertake an aggressive output strategy. This aggressiveness is translated into an increased output. As both firms borrow, the industry becomes more competitive. The industry also becomes riskier and firms' debt value is decreased. A common lender can better control these incentive effects and hence, limit the extent of competition in the output market. This model finds a natural interpretation in an international trade context. In this framework, the result shows that freeing financial markets from trade barriers may decrease the competitiveness of international oligopolies by allowing firms to borrow from the same lender. In the second essay, we develop a theoretical link between firms' financial structure and their output market structure. In the presence of asymmetric information about the incumbent's cost level, an incumbent's financial structure may constitute a signal of its efficiency and prevent potential entrants from coming into the market. A market, threatened by entry, is occupied by one of two possible types of incumbent. The firm's type is completely characterized by its cost level. Only the own firm knows with certainty its true type while the entrant and financiers are uncertain of it. Entry is profitable for the entrant if and only if the market is occupied by the high cost type incumbent. The low cost firm chooses a financial structure that credibly distinguishes itself from the high cost incumbent. From the observation of the incumbent's financial policy, the entrant can correctly infer the incumbent's type. If it observes a financial structure consistent with the low cost incumbent's financial strategy, it stays out of the market. Otherwise, it enters. In equilibrium, financial structure allows credible revelation of all private information and entry occurs in the same circumstances as with perfect information. In the third essay, we give a formal representation of Telser (1966)'s 'deep pocket' argument. We propose that entrants are financially vulnerable because they must signal their value to financiers before entering the market. We assume that there are two possible types of entrant threatening to enter a monopoly market. The entrant's type is parametrized by its cost level. This information is private to each entrant as other players are uncertain of the entrant's true type. Entry is profitable only for the low cost entrant. But if the high cost type can misrepresent as a low cost firm, there exist financial structures which yield positive equity value. The low cost firm must avoid these structures to credibly reveal its type to financiers, secure sufficient funds and finance its entry. In equilibrium, the low cost entrant must issue debt to signal its quality to investors. It enters the market heavily leveraged. This provides incentives for the incumbent to engage in a price war to financially exhaust the entrant and cause its bankruptcy. The price war may be interpreted as the incumbent's predatory response to the entrant's leveraged entry. We argue that a diversified pool of undistinguishable entrants is sufficient to justify the 'deep pocket' argument put forward by Telser (1966). We base our explanation on the presence of asymmetric information in financial and output markets. / Arts, Faculty of / Vancouver School of Economics / Graduate

The supply chain management discipline suggests that information sharing is paramount when attempting to achieve cost reductions and quality improvements. In many cases, the traditional accounting data used to support strategic decisions reflect inaccurate supply chain costs. This research explores the applications of managerial costing techniques, and how they can be used to improve the decision making capabilities of firms in the aerospace and transportation industries. The methodology used to address the research questions consisted of a hybrid of the grounded theory and multiple-case study methods. The objective of this research was to present the antecedents and barriers associated with implementing supply chain costing, and the impact that costing approaches have on strategic decision making. The research identifies a theoretical model that can be used to explain the relationships and themes associated with supply chain costing and strategic decision making. Evidence suggests that there is some movement to implement managerial accounting techniques within these two industries to capture supply chain costing information. However, the reliance on traditional financial accounting suggests that the overarching principles of supply chain management and information sharing amongst of partner firms has yet to be realized.

Market changes are held to occur at an ever-faster rate due to forces such as technologicaladvancements, shifting consumer preferences and habits and increased competition. This hascaused a rise in interest for developing more agile working methodologies in marketing.Marketing agility is a capability that allows firms to quickly sense and respond to marketchanges. The assessment of when and how much marketing agility is needed is based on theknowledge of when the business environment is uncertain. Uncertainty is not always presentor constantly at the same level, indicating marketing agility is not as necessary in all contexts.The need for agility is also influenced by characteristics of the firm and their businessenvironment. Utilising a research design based on interviews with marketing managers inSweden, the purpose of this research is to determine how characteristics of the firm and theirbusiness environment influence the need for marketing agility. The results indicate that bothmarket uncertainty levels and different characteristics of the firm related to size, structure,resources, brand and product, influence the need for marketing agility. We emphasise how theneed for marketing agility can be constant or occur only in specific situations. The paperconcludes with implications for research and practice in relation to when marketing agility isneeded.Keywords: Marketing Agility, Iteration, Sensemaking, Speed, Marketing Decision, Uncertainty,Dynamic Market Changes

The style of a communication may influence a receiver's responses as well as the message's factual, informational content. The degree to which a promotional communication attempts to control a receiver's responses can be defined as a relational and therefore a stylistic variable. This dissertation operationalizes a stylistic variable, directiveness, as the degree to which a persuasive communication instructs the receiver how to respond in terms of action, attitudes and beliefs. Directive messages attempt to limit the receiver's responses while less directive or suggestive messages encourage the reader to make up his or her own mind. Using Attribution Theory and the Cognitive Processing Model as theoretical bases, experimental hypotheses were tested involving the impact of directive versus suggestive messages on receiver responses to one-sided and two-sided communications and high and low involvement topics. Directiveness was found to have significant impact on receiver responses depending on the receiver's level of involvement. The main implication of this research is that how a persuasive communication is worded may influence a receiver's responses to what informational content is presented. / Ph. D.

This research develops hypotheses to explain temporal changes in the effectiveness of marketing mix variables. Three potential explanations for these changes in market response are explored: (1) changes in market response associated with industry evolution, (2) trends in market response which may be related to changes in consumer knowledge and familiarity with products over time, and (3) changes in market response associated with changes in consumer incomes. In addition, this research investigates (4) changes in the relative effectiveness of marketing mix variables over time. The hypotheses are tested on time series data from five U.S. industries as well as aggregate U.S. consumption data. To estimate temporal changes in market price sensitivity, advertising effectiveness, and distribution effectiveness, a structural time series modeling methodology is used, and numerical optimization procedures are used to perform maximum likelihood estimation. The results show mixed support for the hypothesis that market response is related to the level of industry maturity. Problems with the indicators of industry maturity were identified which may be partly responsible for the mixed results. Consistent with expectations, this study shows that advertising effectiveness does appear to decline over time, while market price sensitivity and distribution effectiveness increase. Consequently, price reduCtions and increases in distribution coverage appear to become relatively more effective than increases in advertising expenditures over time. There appears to be no relationship between marketing mix effectiveness and consumer incomes. / Ph. D.

With the phenomenon of internationalization gaining in importance, it is crucial for companies to be aware of what the internationalization process involves. An important part of the process is selecting optimal entry modes for foreign target markets. The objective of this research has been to develop guidelines to aid in such a selection. A theoretical decision model was first developed based on existing research literature. The literature, however, did not adequately address the influence of company objectives on the entry-mode selection process. To overcome this deficiency, the theoretical model was super-imposed with real-world data gathered via interviews with industry personnel actively involved in the entry-mode decision making process. This yielded the final decision framework. This framework approaches the selection process in three steps--1) elimination of unfeasible entry modes, 2) selection of objective and factor concordant entry modes, and 3) selection of the optimal entry mode for a given target market. / Master of Science

No / A study of key decision makers in a sample of large international companies explored the non-domestic market entry decision. A literature review revealed five broad external domains which held the potential to affect that decision. A series of statements was factor analysed to reveal ten more specific variables. An analysis of which variables discriminated between the decision to enter and not enter a new non-domestic market demonstrated that geocultural/political similarity, developed economy, attractive market, good market information and governmental attitude significantly affected the decision. The findings supported a marketing-strategy based theory of market entry.

This dissertation presents export decision-making information meant to complement the array of information available to wood furniture manufacturers, relevant government agencies, and marketers. It utilizes data obtained from a literature search as well as from a national survey of 947 wood household-furniture manufacturers in the U.S. and 310 manufacturers in Malaysia. Personal interviews were also carried out to support as well as to add depth to the quantitative data. This report includes a detailed look at the global export market opportunities for wood household furniture. For U.S. manufacturers, potential markets are its NAFTA partners - Saudi Arabia, the European Union, and the Pacific Rim countries. However, U.S. companies need to focus more on exporting and not be totally dependent on the domestic markets. As for Malaysian manufacturers, the U.S. will remain as the largest market for their products. However, this may change with the competition that Malaysia faces with other Asian nations such as China, Indonesia, and Thailand. Furthermore, Malaysia, a tropical wood producing country, may lose its market share if U.S. consumers start to demand environmentally friendly wood furniture products. / Ph. D.

O estudo sobre a decisão de customizar produtos nos mercados internacionais é importante para as empresas que decidem abrir uma subsidiária em outro país, mediante aquisição de uma empresa ou construção de suas próprias instalações. Qualquer que seja a decisão, constitui um alto grau de internacionalização, uma vez que a empresa fica exposta a elevados custos e riscos internacionais. Nesse contexto, existe a necessidade da empresa decidir quais produtos deverá customizar e quais deverá padronizar no mercado-alvo. O objetivo geral desta dissertação é o de identificar, na função marketing de empresa internacionalizada, os fatores de influência relacionados com decisões sobre customização de produtos para um determinado país. Inicialmente, em uma revisão da literatura, reuniram-se informações sobre internacionalização, marketing internacional, estratégias de entrada no mercado internacional, decisões dos profissionais de marketing, decisões sobre composto de produtos, sobre customização de produtos, fatores de customização de produtos entre outras. Assim, para se chegar ao objetivo geral, realizou-se um estudo de caso de caráter exploratório e qualitativo em uma empresa, localizada no Brasil, de origem alemã do setor de autopeças que comercializa produtos para clientes industriais, isto é, negócios entre empresas. Como resultado da pesquisa, chegou-se a uma escala de importância em que foram enumerados sete fatores de influência nas decisões sobre customização de produtos: 1. posicionamento de mercado; 2. importância estratégica de clientes; 3. desenvolvimento do ciclo de vida do produto; 4. exigências legais; 5. ambiente físico; 6. infraestrutura e compatibilidade; 7. importância estratégica de fornecedores. O estudo de caso mostrou que os fatores de influência estão relacionados entre si. Os resultados ainda sugeriram que os dois primeiros fatores são fundamentais para que a empresa de autopeças obtenha sucesso na customização de produtos no mercado-alvo, uma vez que o estudo de caso constatou evidências de que o setor automotivo tende a operar com poucos modelos de motores no mercado global, o que sugere poucos fornecedores de autopeças para desenvolver soluções para clientes globais que operam em mercados locais. Outros resultados advindos da pesquisa sugeriram uma possível relação entre a autonomia da subsidiária e o fator posicionamento de mercado à medida que os executivos tendem a tomar decisões sobre customização de produtos no mercado local e comunicá-las à matriz. / The study concerning products customization decision in the international markets is important for companies that have taken a decision to open an overseas subsidiary, either acquisition of a company or through its own Greenfield investments. Whatever decision follows, the result comes up with high degree of internationalization, as long as company has been liable to high costs and international hazards. At that context, the company has been needed to decide which products may be customized and which products may be standardized at a target-market. Thus, the central purpose of this dissertation is to identify, at internationalized company marketing function, the influencing factors that have been associated with decisions about products customization towards a particular overseas country. At first, literature was reviewed so that information had had gathered about internationalization, international marketing, international marketing strategies, marketing experts\' decisions, products mix decisions, products customization decisions, customization decision factors among others. Therefore, to reach at central purpose, a qualitative and exploratory case study was performed at auto-parts German company that deals in business to business customers. Amongst the main results from that research, it was reached a model of importance where it was numbered seven influencing factors with regard to products customization decisions: 1. marketing positioning; 2. strategic customers importance; 3. product life cycle development; 4. lawful requirements; 5. natural environment; 6. infrastructure and compatibility; 7. strategic suppliers importance. It has been noticed from research that influencing factors have been a relationship each other. The first two ones were considered very outstanding influencing factors for researched auto-parts company. It will reach success at new markets if the two ones are considered for products customization decisions because that research has found evidences about tendency in automotive industry for developing few motors model into global market. That tendency has suggested few auto-parts suppliers for local developing solutions for global customers. Other distinct result has noticed from this research suggests a possible relationship between subsidiary autonomy decisions and marketing positioning factor while executives take decisions about products customization at local market and release them to headquarters.