ORGANIZATION CHARACTERISTICS AND MARKETING STRATEGIES IN THE DIFFUSION PROCESSES OF PRODUCT MEANINGS

The literature about diffusion of innovation (DoI) is particularly rich and articulated considering that it has been a topic of practical and academic interest since the 1960s; at the same time empirical researches in this field are mainly about new technologies and managerial practices. The increasingly important role played by design in today’s business and academic arenas suggest to verify the validity of robust results mainly obtained in tech-based industries in design-intensive ones. Consequently the paper aims to identify the determinants that impact on different dimensions of the diffusion processes about product meanings in the Italian furniture industry. More in detail we have identified four groups of determinants (Innovation characteristics, Adopter characteristics and Marketing strategy, Competitive environment) and conceptualized diffusion dynamics along two variables (Rapidity, Contagion). Analyzing more than 5.600 products proposed on the market between 1995 and 2006 by 215 furniture manufacturers that operate in 7 compartments (kitchen, upholstery, lighting, living, chairs, tables, night), the paper discusses 92 diffusion processes of new product meanings. The empirical results obtained through the linear regression analysis enrich a broad literature about diffusion of innovation highlighting differences and similarities between tech-based and design-intensive industries. For example, complexity and observability of the innovation confirm their role both in tech-based and design-intensive industries influencing diffusion dynamics, while compatibility doesn’t impact both on rapidity and contagion. On the one hand company reputation positively impact on the diffusion rapidity of new product meanings in design-intensive industries, or at least in the furniture one; similarly collaborative and focalized strategies enable rapid growth in the adoption of new product meanings. On the other hand, if collaborative strategies and network connections determine elevated values of contagion, company size and market ferment are negatively correlated to the capability to influence other companies in the adoption of new product meanings. From a managerial point of view, the relevance of variables that characterize the early stage of the diffusion processes in the determination of the following dynamics allows to interpret the empirical results as forecasting suggestions. The paper can provide managers of new tools to forecast the evolution of product meanings considering their nature, early adopters, marketing strategy and competitive environment during the launch.