社会资本与关系导向对于营销渠道中企业之间沟通方式与策略的影响

Based on the concepts and theories of communication in marketing channels, social capital in sociology, and guanxi in the context of Chinese culture, this paper investigates the impact of social capital and guanxi orientation on modes and strategies of interfirm commutation in the dyads of Chinese marketing channels. It is found that, firstly, a firm's social capital and guanxi orientation positively affect the firm's uses of informal communication but do not have significant influence on the firm's uses of formal communication. Secondly, a firm's mode or strategy of interfirm commutation would lead its partner to respond in kind, but as an exception, the firm's formal and coercive communication strategy not only stimulates its partner more likely to use formal and coercive communication, but also more likely to use informal communication. Thirdly, the variance of a firm's commutation modes and strategies would lead to the differences in its partner's perception of their dyadic relation, which in turn would have an impact on its partner's choices of commutation modes and strategies. Theoretically, this paper fills a gap in the stream of literature by proposing and testing the impact of social capital and guanxi orientation on modes and strategies of interfirm commutation in marketing channels, and practically, its findings may help the managers to better communicate in Chinese marketing channels.