Study On The Formulation And Management Of Virtual Marketing Organizations

Virtual Marketing, a product resulted from the Marketing transformation, is a must-be road for modern companies. The current theory of Marketing is, from both its content and boundary, developing toward the direction of Virtual Marketing, which is being put into practice by some enterprises. However, until now, the sub-disciplinary system is still to be built up, and the related research has just begun. The thesis, with the research objects of the composition of virtual marketing organization and by the methodology of Concept Model, Structural Equation, Herding Behavioral Model, Bullwhip Effect and Game Theory, has made a systematic research on the basic disciplinary theory of Virtual Marketing, its theoretical framework, virtual marketing organizational buildup, and the theory and methodology of virtual marketing operation and management, aiming at exploring the new sub-disciplinary of Marketing and providing the reference for the peers. The main tasks of the thesis are as follows:â‘ Research on the basic disciplinary theory of Virtual Marketing. Beginning with the kernel of Marketing, i.e. the overcoming of exchange barriers, the thesis abides by the principle of modern marketing from value exploring through value creation to value transfer, analyzes, based on the Virtual Marketing and Virtual Enterprises management, the inherent relationship between the operation management and marketing management of enterprises, and between the virtual marketing and virtual operation. Then the Virtual Marketing is defined and the discussion is carried out about the differences between the virtual marketing and traditional marketing on marketing opportunities, marketing strategy, market supplies shape and the management and transfer of marketing.Afterwards, two underlying assumptions of Virtual Marketing are put forward. The theoretical kernel of Virtual Marketing is identified to be still the overcoming of exchange barriers. Virtual Marketing is originated from the combination of modern Marketing and Management. Based on the research results above, the thesis studies and introduces the basic theoretical framework of Virtual Marketing, and points out that the applied system of Virtual Marketing could be unfolded into the following phases from the buildup of virtual marketing organization through its operation and management to its disorganization management.â‘¡Research on Virtual Marketing organizational buildup. It is carried out in details as follows: 1) The selection of partners in the buildup process of virtual marketing dynamic alliance. Firstly, it is analyzed how to identify, with the method of united analysis, the attribute utilities of candidate companies in the process of virtual marketing partners'selection. The candidate companies are then classified and the Model of Discrete Selection is introduced on candidate companies. Aiming at maximizing the utility of a company's virtual marketing, we analyze the possibilities of selection of candidate companies by the leader company. Based on the Model of Discrete Selection, the thesis combines the quantitative and qualitative measures of companies, and puts forward the scientific and reasonable method which helps select the virtual marketing partners and avoids effectively the Herding Behaviors in the selection process.2) The selection of cooperation mode in the buildup process of virtual marketing dynamic alliance. It has been discovered that the following factors affect the cooperation mode, the nature of companies, market share, scale of companies, educational level of management, comparative distance, cooperation cost, risks incurred from cooperation, flexibility of companies, logistical status, behavioral factors and structure of management functions. The study reveals that the educational level of management has a significant effect on tactical alliance, outsourcing production and insertion compatibility and has a direct influence on the cooperation mode of companies. The flexibility of companies is another important consideration in the decision of the cooperation mode of companies. Companies will also make a consideration of logistical status. The matrix organizational structure has a positive effect on the cooperation mode of companies. Furthermore, irrational herd behavior could exist during the course of selecting the cooperation mode of virtual marketing.3) Research on Herding Behaviors in the partners'selection process of virtual marketing dynamic alliance. Per the concepts and model of Herding Behaviors, the cooperation of virtual marketing is analyzed. The analysis discloses that the different leading member company's rationality will lead to the different member company's selection only under the condition of uncertainty about the effects of the company's virtual marketing. The thesis sets up the market transaction mechanism of virtual marketing cooperation, utility function and discriminating rule of Herd Behavior, and then demonstrates the characteristic of Herd Behavior, which occurs when the leading member company selects its partner. In the condition of complete rationality owned by the leading member company, the Herd Behavior above will not occur, whereas the Herd Behavior will happen in the condition of limited rationality. â‘¢Research on virtual marketing operation and management. It is carried out in details as follows:1) Research on profit allocation among members in the virtual marketing dynamic alliance. For the type I dissymmetrical information, the thesis, using the game theory and the principal-agent theory, puts forward the second profit allocation strategy which is based on the first profit allocation strategy and makes comprehensive use of incentive and restraints. For the type II dissymmetrical information, multi-order profit allocation strategy is then analyzed by phases.2) Research on mechanism of trust among members in the virtual marketing dynamic alliance. The mechanism of trust, the foundation of the successful operation of virtual marketing, can be divided into trust between companies and trust in companies from the perspective of behavior. From the angle of behavior, the trust relationship is discussed between members in the virtual marketing dynamic alliance. The main factors of trust relationship between members in the virtual marketing dynamic alliance are identified to be the history of cooperation, reputation, pledge, life cycle, opportunism, inter-independence, culture and geo-difference. The mutual trust between the members is generated by a process mechanism defined later. There are two ways to achieve the mutual trust. One is the accumulation of reliable information of the counterpart, including information exchange and communication, and objective coordination, the other is the increase of reliability of the counterpart, including informal contract, monitoring and control. The assurance mechanism of trust relationship of virtual marketing, together with the way of design, is explored.3) Research on the management of virtual channel. This part touches the Bullwhip Effect in the management of virtual marketing channel, forecasts, through the model of ARIMA with variable coefficients, the needed information by the lower retailers and the upper suppliers in the virtual marketing channel, analyzes the difference of order quantities from retailers and suppliers in the condition of unstationary, and finally demonstrates the existence of Bullwhip Effect in the management of virtual marketing channel in the circumstances of complete information sharing and agile operation. After the simulation experience is carried out for the order decision-making from the upper and lower member companies in the internal supply chain of virtual marketing channel, it is found that the Bullwhip Effect in the virtual marketing channel has a positive relationship to market promotion coefficients and demand smoothing coefficients, and there is an anti-Bullwhip Effect in the virtual marketing channel. It is then noted that the Bullwhip Effect in the virtual marketing channel will intensify with the fluctuation of market demand. Finally, the conditions are introduced to avoid effectively the Bullwhip Effect.4) Research on the virtual promotion. It mainly focuses the cooperative advertisement in the virtual marketing. This part, after introducing the factor of product price elasticity and the Nash Equilibria of cooperative and non-cooperative models in the Game Theory, analyzes the optimum advertisement strategy adopted by manufacturers and retailers when the manufacturers are facing competition and choose the price discount. After a trade-off, the optimum strategy is identified according to different conditions.5) Research on performance in the virtual marketing dynamic alliance. The part analyzes, using the method of demonstration, the relationship between cooperation mode, virtual marketing and corporate performance of member companies in the virtual marketing activities and gives the three assumptions that the cooperation relationship has a significant positive effect on virtual marketing and performance, and virtual marketing has a significant positive effect on performance. The research shows that the three assumptions are statistically significant and demonstrated accordingly.The research has formulated the theoretical framework of virtual marketing and made a comparatively systematic exploration on the buildup and management of virtual marketing organization. The findings resulted from the research are showing some meanings both academically to peers'references and practically.