Improving international brand performance: the implications of marketing capabilities, brand orientation and customer value cocreation

Purpose To thrive in today’s competitive market, international small- to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) recognize the importance of building strong brands. Choosing the right capabilities to effectively drive brand performance remains a key challenge for SMEs. This study aims to explore how marketing capabilities affect brand orientation and performance. Specifically, the study considered the mediating impact of value cocreation and the moderating effect of innovation capabilities on the association between brand orientation and performance. Design/methodology/approach The population of interest included SMEs exporting food and agricultural products. A sample of 296 managers and export executives completed the questionnaire. Structural equation modeling (SEM) using Smart PLS3 was applied to analyze the data. Findings The findings revealed that export market planning capabilities positively affect brand orientation, but the impact of marketing information capabilities on brand orientation was not supported. The results showed that brand orientation was directly and indirectly associated with brand performance through the mediating effect of value cocreation, and that innovation capability adversely moderated the relationship between brand orientation and performance. Research limitations/implications This research focused only on two primary internal marketing capabilities affecting brand orientation, i.e. market information and product planning capabilities. Practical implications Explaining why some international SMEs adopt brand orientation activities, the results may help international firms increase their brand performance by emphasizing their marketing capabilities and creating covalue with their customers. Originality/value This research expands the existing knowledge of branding in international markets.