Types and sources of export information: Insights from small business

Abstract

DR. LEONIDAS C. LEONIDOU IS ASSOCIATE professor of marketing at the University of Cyprus and Athena S. Adams-Florou is a doctoral candidate in management at the University of Bath, England. This paper reports the findings of an empirical study on the information behaviour of 80 exporters based in Cyprus. With regard to types of information needs, the study revealed that information on foreign customers was the most influential overall, followed by product aspects, market preference, and pricing issues. Exporters were also found to rely more on personal rather than impersonal sources in gathering information about foreign markets. In examining the relationship between types and sources of export information, it was shown that specific types of information are strongly correlated with certain sources. Moreover, the number of sources from which information was obtained differed in accordance with the specific information type. Finally, some of the associations between these two dimensions were somewhat paradoxical, while others were attributed to the specific role performed by developing country-based exporters in overseas markets.