Customer-led and market-oriented: a matter of balance

Abstract

This article is prompted by Slater and Narver's (1998) SMJ article entitled 'Customer-led and market-oriented: Let's not confuse the two'. It is suggested here that Slater and Narver's contention that strategic success is a function of market-led orientation rather than customer-led orientation is too reductionist a proposition which gives inadequate weight to the resource endowment and scale differences between companies. The argument is offered that success through time for the bulk of businesses will be directly related to close relationships with existing customers, particularly for smaller companies, which are the vast majority. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.