Industrial Marketing Management 39 (2010) 1097–1102

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Industrial Marketing Management

The measurement of e-marketing orientation (EMO) in business-to-business markets

Abdel Monim Shaltoni a,1, Douglas C. West b,⁎
a
University of Petra, Jordan
b
University of Birmingham, UK

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: The adoption of e-marketing has been associated with an array of potential benefits such as market
Received 27 April 2008 expansion and cost reduction. Nevertheless, the degree of involvement in B2B markets has been patchy, with
Received in revised form 26 February 2009 many organizations not involved in it at all. This article examines the variations in e-marketing adoption
Accepted 10 June 2009
from an organizational orientation perspective and introduces empirical measurement with the ‘Electronic
Available online 18 October 2009
Marketing Orientation’ (EMO) construct. Based upon a web-survey of senior managers and marketing/sales
Keywords:
directors the findings suggest that EMO is made up of both philosophical and behavioral components. By
E-marketing conceptualizing EMO and facilitating its measurement, marketers will be able to benchmark their activities
Technological innovation towards adoption, evaluate their efforts and be able to assess where to focus their resources to improve their
Organizational orientation e-marketing processes. A number of specific recommendations are made for companies in relation to the
Internet successful adoption of e-marketing.
© 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction 2. Definition and adoption level

Berthon et al. (2008) have noted in this journal that the role of
electronic networks in B2B relationships has been growing exponen-
tially. However, despite the widely accepted benefits of e-marketing,
companies continue to embrace it to varying degrees. For example,
the vast majority of organizations in the European Union have
Internet access and use e-mails, nevertheless, only 26% of organiza-
tions in the steel and chemical industry accept orders from customers
online (European e-Business Watch, 2008). These variations may
partly be explained by the degree to which organizations are e-
marketing orientated.
What is an e-marketing orientation (hereafter EMO)? This article
attempts to answer this question through the development of the EMO
construct and the empirical examination of its components. In
addition, EMO's ability to predict e-marketing adoption levels will be
explored. The paper begins by discussing the definition of e-marketing
and e-marketing adoption. The following sections examine the
innovation perspective and the development of EMO. A diagrammatic
representation of the theoretical framework adopted in the article can
be found in Fig. 1.
⁎ Corresponding author. Birmingham Business School, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK.
Tel.: +44 121 414 2542 (work); fax: +44 121 414 7791.
E-mail addresses: ashaltoni@uop.edu.jo (A.M. Shaltoni), d.west@bham.ac.uk
(D.C. West).
1
Tel.: +962 777594005; fax: +962 65152902.
Some researchers limit the definition of e-marketing to the
Internet (e.g. Hooley, Saunders, & Piercy, 2004), while others include
several technologies such as Electronic Point of Sale (EPOS) and
computerized customer database (e.g. Strauss, El-ansary, & Frost,
2006). However, most of the definitions share the same core which is
that e-marketing is accomplished or facilitated via electronic
information and communication technologies. The Internet is cur-
rently the main enabler of e-marketing; it represents the major focus
of this article.
In general, two main sets of benefits are associated with e-marketing
adoption. The first is related to raising profitability through increasing
revenues or cutting costs and the second is related to improving
marketing functions. For example, e-CRM solutions may help in
increasing customer satisfaction by providing new and innovative
ways of providing services.
When it comes to understanding levels of e-marketing adoption,
Chaffey et al. (2006) suggest that the different adoption levels can
be viewed as stages starting with basic presence (e.g. brochure-
ware) and ending at advanced level of involvement. Likewise,
Hanson (2000) suggests that a distinction can be made between
three stages: the publishing stage (one way communication), the
database and forms stage (simple interaction including e-com-
merce), and the personalization stage (complex interaction).
Overall, the different e-marketing adoption levels may be seen in
Table 1. However, please note that some products do not lend
themselves to custom configuration, for instance chemicals and base
pharmaceuticals need to follow national/international standards as
appropriate.

0019-8501/$ – see front matter © 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.indmarman.2009.06.011
1098 A.M. Shaltoni, D.C. West / Industrial Marketing Management 39 (2010) 1097–1102

Fig. 1. Theoretical framework.

Regardless of level, e-marketing occurs as a result of new devices
or systems and it causes changes in most marketing functions.
Accordingly, it is sensible to consider e-marketing as primarily an
organizational innovation. Many studies have employed this rationale
and used well-established innovation theories as a theoretical
foundation for identifying and classifying the factors that may affect
the adoption of e-marketing. This can be seen particularly in the
context of technological innovation (Tornatzky & Fleischer, 1990) and
the diffusion of innovation (Moore, 2004; Rogers, 1995). An example
of these factors is ‘perceived compatibility’ which reflects the degree
to which e-marketing is perceived to be attuned with the organiza-
tional culture and existing IT (information technology) infrastructure.
Another popular theory, the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM)
(Davis, Bagozzi, & Warshaw, 1989), offers a specific adaptation of the
Theory of Reasoned Action (Ajzen & Fishbein, 1980) applied to IT
acceptance. TAM relates to the impact of perceived usefulness and
ease of use of IT on attitudes that affect the behavioral intentions and
ultimately the behaviors of adopters.
3. E-marketing orientation (EMO)
The innovation perspective can provide several explanations for
technology adoption businesses, yet it has been argued that classical
innovation theories were synthesized from a body of research that

Table 1
E-marketing adoption levels.

Communication level Transaction level Transformation level

(basic adoption) (intermediate adoption) (advanced adoption)

Description Simple extension of the marketing
communication department.
Example Establishing a static web site to provide
products and company information or
receiving enquiries via online form.
Characteristics Limited interactivity, no e-marketing
strategy, lack of resources committed
to e-marketing activities.
Organizations start conducting marketing
transactions using e-marketing resources.
Selling products and accepting payments via
web sites, online customer service, conducting
market research on the Internet.
The interaction is more complex and personalized,
e-marketing strategy starts to evolve, availability
of some financial resources and skilful staff.
Organizations empower themselves by using
e-marketing strategy to drive corporate strategy.
Allowing customers to configure and order products
online according to their specifications.
High levels of interactivity, clear and solid
e-marketing strategy, availability of enough
resources to conduct e-marketing functions.

Note: Dedicated online companies have been omitted as by their nature they are highly involved in e-marketing.
 A.M. Shaltoni, D.C. West / Industrial Marketing Management 39 (2010) 1097–1102
focused primarily on simple innovations being adopted autonomously
by individuals (Fichman, 1992). Therefore, these theories apply less
well to more complex business innovations such as the Internet
(Chadwick, Doherty, & Hart, 2002), particularly when the units of
adoption are organizations rather than individuals. The organizational
orientation represents a different approach to understanding e-
marketing adoption. Organizations with different orientations vary
in the way they do business. For example, an innovation-oriented
organization focuses on inventing superior products which might lead
to innovative breakthroughs in the market. By contrast, a customer
oriented organization focuses on identifying and satisfying the needs
of its existing customers (Berthon, Hulbert, & Pitt, 1999). Based on this
it is to be expected that the organizational orientation perspective can
provide a rich source for understanding why organizations vary in
their adoption of e-marketing. However, despite leading examples of
orientation analyses in other fields, surprisingly few studies have
employed the orientation perspective in relation to e-marketing.
Fang, Mahajan, and Balasubramanian (2003) found that customer
orientation, among other sets of factors, has a positive effect on
Internet adoption and other studies that followed a similar path
include Chaston and Mangles (2001) and Jones, Hecker, and Holland
(2003).
An exploratory research effort was made by Shaltoni (2006) in
which the organizational orientation towards e-marketing was
investigated through interviews with marketing academics and
practitioners, the results indicated that the orientation towards e-
marketing is made up of philosophical and behavioral components.
Building upon the attitudinal perspective of organizational orienta-
tion (Miles & Gregory, 1995; Narver & Slater, 1990), a philosophical
component of the orientation towards e-marketing may be identified
by the degree to which decision makers emphasize e-marketing.
Behaviors are also vital in shaping e-marketing orientation.
The behavioral component is akin to the organizational orienta-
tions identified by Kohli and Jaworski (1990) and Deng and Dart
(1994); it may be viewed as all the activities that lead to high levels of
involvement in e-marketing. Two main stages may be further
proposed within the behavioral component of e-marketing orienta-
tion. The initiation stage is when e-marketing ideas or intentions are
converted into formal and planned projects. This includes activities
such as gathering information about e-marketing from different
sources, evaluating the different adoption alternatives, planning for
the adoption and making the decision to adopt. The Implementation
stage follows the initiation and relates to all the activities involved in
putting e-marketing into practice, e.g. updating or improving the
company Web site and employing qualified staff (please also see
Fig. 1). Organizations who believe in the importance of e-marketing
for achieving success will make efforts to continuously improve their
e-marketing activities and can be described as having high levels of
EMO and be highly involved in e-marketing.
What directions might these relationships take? According to
Ajzen and Fishbein (1980) and Davis et al. (1989), beliefs and
attitudes are considered as major determinant of behaviors. There-
fore, a positive relationship is hypothesized between the philo-
sophical and behavioral components of EMO. Furthermore, based
on the argument that the implementation stage in the innovation
process cannot be undertaken until the initiation stage has been
completed (Rogers, 1995), a positive relationship is also hypothe-
sized between the initiation and implementation activities of EMO.
In light of the above discussion, the following four hypotheses are
offered:
H1. EMO represents a synthesis of philosophical and behavioral
components.
H2a. In EMO, there is a positive link between the degree to which
decision makers emphasize e-marketing and the initiation activities.
1099
H2b. In EMO, there is a positive link between the degree to which
decision makers emphasize e-marketing and the implementation
activities.
H3. In EMO, there is a positive link between the initiation and
implementation activities.
4. Scale development
An explanatory research design was utilized based upon fieldwork
at the construct operationalization stage. Following the guidelines of
Churchill (1979), the construct domain was specified and initial items
developed or chosen from the literature. Each of the research
constructs were measured with multiple items, an experience survey
and a pre-testing survey was conducted. As well, factor analysis was
used to establish construct validity and regression analysis then
conducted to establish the criterion/predictive validity.
Starting with the literature review, a comprehensive list of
items was drawn up based upon the literature discussion. An
experience survey was then conducted involving three marketing
academics and two marketing managers who served as a panel of
judges to evaluate the content/face validity of the items. The five
judges were asked to appraise each item (on a measurement scale
from 1 to 5) for its representativeness of the construct and clarity
of construction. A consensus among the judges (4 or above) was
sufficient to admit items into the final item pool which contained
16 items: the EMO construct was measured by 12 items and in
addition four items to measure the extent of e-marketing adoption
(see Table 2).
The proportional reduction in loss (PRL) measure (Rust & Cooil,
1994) was then used to explore the reliability of their judgments on
specific items. PRL can be viewed as a direct extension of Cronbach's
alpha to data collected via qualitative methods. The PRL measure
generated a result of (.91), which indicated high reliability. Next, two
pre-tests were conducted before the main wave of the questionnaires
was sent out. In the first, the questionnaires were hand delivered to a
judgment sample (known as a ‘purposive sample’) of ten managers
who were responsible for e-marketing activities in their companies.
The role of this group was to offer their expert opinions on the nature
and structure of the questionnaire. Eight complete and suitable
responses were returned. The respondents expressed no difficulties in
answering the research questions and only minor modifications were
suggested. However, given that the survey was conducted via the
Web, a need for a second test was deemed necessary to detect and
avoid any possible problem before the main survey was conducted.
Thus, a second wave was conducted with 35 companies. A
personalized e-mail invitation was sent to each respondent and out
of the 35 invitations, six complete responses were received and no
errors or problems were detected. (Please note that neither of these
two pre-tests was included in the response rate or the data produced
used in the analysis).
5. Research sample
Having ascertained the validity and reliability of the scale items, a
self completion online questionnaire was sent out to 850 businesses
that were randomly selected from the UK Trade and Investment
directory. It was decided to regard the marketing managers as key
informants because Internet related issues that concern marketing
activities are usually decided by them (see for example Lynn, Lipp,
Akgun, & Cortez, 2002) and as an aside, it made thematic sense to
conduct an investigation of e-marketing orientation using the web.
However, in the cases of small and micro companies (less than 50
employees), general managers or owners were contacted because they
are generally responsible for marketing decisions and e-marketing in
particular.
1100 A.M. Shaltoni, D.C. West / Industrial Marketing Management 39 (2010) 1097–1102

Table 2
EMO.

EMO construct Items

Philosophical • (PHIL1) In our organization, we believe that it is a strategic necessity to be involved in e-marketing. Developed for this study
component • (PHIL2) In our organization, we tell employees that success depends on the adoption of advanced e-marketing resources. Developed for this study
• (PHIL3) We encourage the development of e-marketing initiatives in our organization. Adapted from Srinivasan, Lilien, and Rangaswamy (2002).
• (PHIL4) We feel that that our organization should be highly involved in e-marketing. Developed for this study
Initiation component • (INI1) In our organization, we follow the developments in e-marketing using several secondary sources (e.g. industry magazines, government statistics
…etc). Adapted from Jaworski and Kohli (1993)
• (INI2) In our organization, we monitor competitors' adoption of e-marketing. Developed for this study
• (INI3) We do in-house research about e-marketing. Adapted from Jaworski and Kohli (1993)
• (INI4) Several meetings are held yearly in our organization to prepare e-marketing plans. Adapted from Jaworski and Kohli (1993)
Implementation • (IMP1) The latest e-marketing technologies (e.g. web applications) are installed in our organization. Developed for this study
component • (IMP2) In our organization, there is adequate technical support for e-marketing implementation. Developed for this study
• (IMP3) In our organization, the implementation of e-marketing is done by employees who have e-marketing knowledge. Adapted from Jaworski and
Kohli (1993)
• (IMP4) The activities of the different departments which are responsible for e-marketing implementation are well coordinated. Adopted from Jaworski
and Kohli (1993)
Extent of E-marketing • We use e-marketing resources (such as web site and e-mail) to communicate with our customers. Adapted from Srinivasan et al. (2002)
adoption • We use e-marketing resources to support our firm's traditional commercial activities (e.g. pricing information, customer service). Adapted from
Srinivasan et al. (2002)
• We use e-marketing resources to conduct commercial transactions (e.g. selling products and accepting payment via web site). Adapted from Srinivasan
et al. (2002)
• We have a computerized customer database that we use to perform marketing activities (e.g. inform customers about new products). Developed for
this study

Several issues were considered in the administration of the web
questionnaire, for example, a welcome screen was used to emphasize
the ease of responding and to show respondents how to answer each
question. Also, a professional web-survey solution company hosted
the questionnaire on their server, sending the e-mail invitations,
collecting and managing the replies. Out of the 850 e-mail invitations
sent in the first two weeks, 139 bounced back2 and 100 responses
were received. In an effort to increase the response rate, a second
e-mailing wave was sent out and the number of responses increased to
145 in the next two weeks. The response rate of 20% is approximately at
the same level with previous studies related to the adoption of ICTs
in general, and e-marketing resources in particular (see for example,
Arnott & Bridgewater, 2002; Beatty, Shim, & Jones, 2001; Fang et al.,
2003 who achieved rates ranging from 14 to 21%). Overall, the response
rate achieved in this research was deemed to be satisfactory, especially
bearing in mind the administration via the Internet.
Exploring the existence of non-response bias is always an
important issue to be addressed. The widely used extrapolation
method of successive waves (Armstrong & Overton, 1977), which
assume that subjects who respond less readily are more like non-
respondents, was employed. A Chi-square test was conducted to
compare early and late respondents on the research variables. The
results revealed no significant differences (p > .05) between the early
and late respondents suggesting that non-response bias is not a
problem in this study.
The reliability coefficients of all the scales were met and in many
cases exceeded the recommended standard of .70 suggested by
Nunnally (1978) (see Table 3). With regards to validity, a factor
analysis was used to establish the EMO construct validity and to test
H1. The results revealed the presence of a simple structure, with all
items showing a number of strong loadings on three factors (see
Table 4). One factor was related to the philosophical component of
EMO, while the other two factors were related to the initiation and
implementation stages of the behavioral component.
Regression analysis was then conducted to establish the criterion/
predictive validity of EMO and to test Hypotheses 2a, 2b, and 3.3
Criterion validity can be established through examining a construct
relationship with a dependent variable which it is supposed to pre-
dict (Deng & Dart, 1994). Here the dependent variable is the extent of
e-marketing adoption. The result of the regression analysis confirmed
the positive relationship between EMO and the extent of e-marketing
adoption, which adds further support to the validity of EMO (see
Table 5). With regards to the second and third hypotheses the results
showed that the components of EMO were positively related to each
other. More specifically, the philosophical component of EMO was
positively related to initiation (b = .63, p < .001) and implementation
(b = .61, p < .001) (see Table 6). Also, the initiation stage was
positively related to the implementation stage (b = .66, p < .001).
7. Discussion

6. Results This result confirmed the initial conceptualization of EMO. H1,

Focusing on the respondents, 53% were in top management and
41% in marketing/sales. Thus the key informants targeted in the survey
provided the overwhelming majority of the sample (94%). In terms of
product specificity, respondents were classified as (1) those whose
products were primarily IT related (44%), e.g. computer software,
hardware, and communication technologies, and (2) those whose
products were non-IT related (56%), e.g. food, textile, and clothing. In
terms of organizational size, 16% of the sample had more than 250
employees, 21% had 50–249, and 63% had less than 50 employees.
which suggested that EMO represents a synthesis of philosophical and
behavioral components, was proven. Viewing EMO as a synthesis of
philosophical and behavioral components combines the two main
perspectives of organizational orientation, which are the attitudinal
and behavioral perspectives. On the face of it, and as expected, there
are several similarities between EMO and Kohli and Jaworski's (1990)
view of market orientation. For example, the initiation stage in EMO
includes activities related to gathering information about e-marketing
from different sources, dissemination of information across depart-
ments, evaluating the different adoption alternatives, and planning

2
As with mail surveys, undelivered e-mails generally occur because managers
change workplace along with their e-mail addresses (Zatz, 2000). Occasionally it may
be the result of server problems or impenetrable firewalls.
3
Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was considered for testing the hypothesis.
However, SEM focuses on the model fit rather than the relationships between the
variables (Jaccard and Wan, 1996); it also requires larger sample size to ensure
trustworthy results. For these reasons, SEM was deemed to be inappropriate.
 A.M. Shaltoni, D.C. West / Industrial Marketing Management 39 (2010) 1097–1102 1101

Table 3 Table 6
Research constructs reliability test. The relationship between the components of EMO.

Construct Alpha t-value Standardized Model summary ANOVA F

coefficients beta
EMO .942
Philosophy .910 Test 1 R = .626
Initiation .882 8.649 .626⁎ R2 = .393 71.716
Implementation .868 Adjusted R2 = .387
E-marketing adoption .75 Test 2 R = .607
7.941 .607⁎ R2 = .369
Adjusted R2 = .363 63.053
Table 4 Test 3 R = .655
Factor analysis. 8.998 .655⁎ R2 = .428
Adjusted R2 = .423 80.966
Loading Component 1 Component 2 Component 3
Note: ⁎Significant at .001.
(PHIL1) .810
Test 1: Philosophy is independent and the initiation is dependent.
(PHIL2) .834
Test 2: Philosophy is independent and the implementation is dependent.
(PHIL3) .766
Test 3: Initiation is independent and the implementation is dependent.
(PHIL4) .847
(INI1) .672
(INI2) .790
(INI3) .767 Additionally, regression analysis showed that top management
(INI4) .619 emphasis on e-marketing was positively related to the initiation and
(IMP1) .647 implementation activities. Thus, H2a, that in EMO, there is a positive
(IMP2) .874 link between the degree to which decision makers emphasize e-
(IMP3) .769
marketing and the initiation activities, was also proven. In other
(IMP4) .747
words, managers in an e-marketing oriented organization are
Amount of variance explained expected to have positive attitudes towards e-marketing; these
Component Eigenvalues % of variance Cumulative % positive attitudes will be translated into activities that enhance the
level of involvement in e-marketing. Interestingly, the results also
1 6.45 54.1 54.1
2 1.32 11 65.7 showed that the philosophical component of EMO has a relatively
3 1.00 8.4 73.5 similar impact on the two stages of the behavioral component. As
4 .62 5.2 78.7 such, H2b that in EMO, there is a positive link between the degree to
which decision makers emphasize e-marketing and the implementa-
Suitability of the data for factor analysis
KMO .897
tion activities, was supported. This suggests that positive attitudes
Bartlett's test sig. .000 towards e-marketing are required throughout the implementation
Notes: (1) Extraction method: principal component analysis.
stage and not only during the initiation.
(2) Rotation method: Varimax with Kaiser normalization. A positive and strong relationship was also found between the
(3) PHIL: philosophy; INI: initiation; IMP: implementation. initiation and implementation activities, which was consistent with
Rogers' (1995) proposition that the implementation stage in the
innovation process cannot be undertaken until the initiation stage has
for the adoption. These activities correspond to organization wide been settled. H3 was thus given support: in EMO, there is a positive
generation of market intelligence and the dissemination of the link between the initiation and implementation activities.
intelligence among the departments of the organization. Similarly,
the implementation stage in EMO, which includes activities such as
installing new technologies and employing e-marketing staff, is 8. Managerial recommendations
related to the responsiveness element. However, EMO includes a
philosophical component that reflects the organizational beliefs The survey indicates that there is a strong case for companies to
towards e-marketing. This component of EMO is equally consistent undertake an EMO audit in a similar vein to undertaking a marketing
with the attitudinal aspect of organizational orientation. Narver, orientation audit. It will help identify strategies and tactics to close the
Slater, and Tietje (1998) asserted that market orientation must be gaps between where they are now and where they want to go to with
understood as an organization's culture and not merely as a set of their adoption of e-marketing given it is virtually impossible for any
processes and activities. Likewise, Avlonitis and Gounaris (1999) organization to develop any sense of direction without knowing
argued that: “unless the company has developed a certain attitude, where their business stands ‘now.’
strategies that will aim to maximize its adaptation to the market The two main behavioral EMO stages identified in the survey are
cannot be designed” (p. 1005). The philosophical component of EMO ‘initiation’ and ‘implementation.’ In the initiation stage, e-marketing
is also consistent with the views of many researchers who suggest ideas are generated, filtered and transformed into projects. A starting
that top management plays a critical role in shaping organizational point for businesses is to explore and evaluate their e-marketing
values and orientations (e.g. Deshpandé & Farley, 2004; Fang et al., potential, primarily the level of e-marketing resources available to the
2003; Lynn et al., 2002). organization, what these resources can offer and how much they cost
based upon monitoring customers' requirements and main competi-
Table 5 tors' involvement in e-marketing. At the functional level, cross-
Relationship between EMO and the extent of e-marketing adoption. departmental meetings should be arranged to ensure that all the
t-value Standardized Model summary ANOVA F relevant departments, particularly marketing and information tech-
coefficients beta nology, have the opportunity to participate in developing a plan that
R = .800 defines the practical steps for adopting e-marketing or improving the
EMO 13.873 .800⁎ R2 = .641 192.450 level of adoption. With regard to the implementation stage, companies
Adjusted R2 = .637 should consider a variety of issues such as educating and training
Note: (1) ⁎Significant at .001 level. (2) Dependent variable: extent of e-marketing current employees in dealing with e-transactions and evaluating
adoption. the performance and success of e-marketing. The establishment of a
1102 A.M. Shaltoni, D.C. West / Industrial Marketing Management 39 (2010) 1097–1102
separate department for managing and controlling e-marketing might
also be considered.
Having made the points above it would be unsafe to claim too
much from the EMO construct but it is fair to argue that ultimately
EMO offers managers the opportunity to uncover useful insights into
the factors that determine e-marketing adoption. Take the case of
managers of technology vendor organizations; if they applied EMO,
they will be in a better position to develop strategies and tactics to
enable them to create value. For example, when prospects are
interested in selling their products online, but have no dedicated
department or staff expertise to accomplish this, web solution
companies could offer a package that includes consultancy, software
solutions and implementation services that cover installing and
managing an online store for the first three months or more.
9. Limitations and future research
This study employed a cross-sectional analysis of a large number of
businesses in different industries. Such an approach was appropriate
for developing a generalizable EMO construct, however, it does not
shed much light on the changes involved in moving from one
adoption level to another; for example, a low level of adoption may
lead managers to alter certain behaviors, which may in turn lead to a
higher involvement in e-marketing. Therefore, in-depth and longitu-
dinal studies of a few organizations engaged in the change process
could be undertaken to better understand the changes related to the
progression from one e-marketing adoption level to another. Another
limitation is related to the sample. In this study, marketing and top
managers were targeted. These managers were considered to be the
most appropriate source for information. Yet it would be interesting
to examine perceptions of organizational orientation towards e-
marketing from other managers, particularly information technology
managers and users at different organizational levels. Having different
perceptions will minimize any potential bias in the data resulting
from the informants' position. Finally, it would be useful to replicate
this study in different contexts (e.g. non-profit organizations and
developing countries) or through using qualitative methods (e.g.
content analysis of internal company memos, annual reports …etc).
Such expansions and replications can, over time, develop into a body
of theory specifically related to EMO and its impact on e-marketing
adoption strategies and tactics.
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank Jaafar El-Murad and Leyland Pitt for their
valuable advice on previous versions of the manuscript and the three
anonymous reviewers. Any inaccuracies are our responsibility.
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Abdel Monim Shaltoni (Ph.D., University of Birmingham) is an assistant professor of
marketing at the University of Petra, Jordan. His current research interest is focused on
the organizational adoption of e-marketing where he published several peer reviewed
papers in edited books and major international conferences.
Douglas West (Ph.D., University of Leeds) is Professor of Marketing at the University
of Birmingham, UK. He has published in the Journal of Advertising, the Journal of
Advertising Research, the International Journal of Advertising, the Journal of Business
Research and the Journal of Forecasting among others. He is co-author of Strategic
Marketing: Creating competitive advantage, Oxford University Press, 2006.