Determinants of export marketing strategies of forest products companies in the context of transition — The case of Slovakia

Determinants of export performance have been extensively examined in the literature. Although marketing strategy is considered to be one of the major determinants of export performance, little attention has been paid to the factors affecting export marketing strategies. Direct empirical evidence pertaining to factors influencing export marketing strategies is lacking not only for developed western countries, but also for the transition countries of Europe. As a consequence of the changes that have taken place in these countries over last 17 years, the factors influencing export marketing strategies might significantly differ from the factors observed in the developed western countries. Additionally, this situation as it relates to the forest products industries specifically is still unknown. Incorporating insights from the resource-based view of the firm, market-as-network perspective and institutional theory connected by characteristics of transaction costs theory, the objective of this study was to determine deductively, and to subsequently test, the factors influencing export marketing strategies in the forest products industries in the context of Slovakia. A case study approach employing a qualitative methodology using in-depth personal interviews with individual decision makers from forest products companies was chosen to test the framework. The results suggested that generally the physical and relational resources and domestic formal institutions have the most relevant bearing on export marketing strategies. In addition, company history reveals that the years of the transition process are still having an effect.