Satisfaction in International Marketing Channels: A Local Channel Member Perspective

International marketing channels become more important every day. Channel member satisfaction is a key characteristic of healthy channel relationships. However, limited knowledge exists regarding satisfaction in international marketing channels. The present research involves a European context and investigates channel member satisfaction in international relationships and its consequences from the perspective of local channel members. Study I adopts a qualitative approach to establish a conceptualization of satisfaction. Study II tests a conceptual model based on a sample of 236 wholesalers involved in the international distribution of industrial goods. Empirical evidence supports (1) a seven-factor conceptualization of satisfaction, (2) main effects relating satisfaction to conflict, trust, and commitment in international channel relationships, (3) and partial moderating influence of two contextual variables, namely, competitive intensity and output control. doi:10.1300/J049v14n04_02 [Article copies available for a fee from The Haworth Document Delivery Service: 1-800-HAWORTH. E-mail address: Website: © 2007 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved.] Christian Schmitz is affiliated with the Institute of Marketing and Retailing, University of St. Gallen, Switzerland. Tillmann Wagner is affiliated with the Rawls College of Business, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX. The authors wish to thank Christian Belz, Shelby D. Hunt, and James B. Wilcox for their helpful suggestions, in addition to the anonymous JMC reviewers. Address correspondence to: Tillmann Wagner, Rawls College of Business, Area of Marketing, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX 79409 (E-mail: [email protected]). Journal of Marketing Channels, Vol. 14(4) 2007 Available online at http://jmc.haworthpress.com © 2007 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved. doi:10.1300/J049v14n04_02 5