Noise complaints in restaurants have been accelerating and unpleasant sounds erode customer satisfaction. Restaurant ambient noise, such as background and physical sounds influence customer satisfaction and effectively controlling the sound environment in restaurants is challenging, particularly situational sounds generated by customers. Situational sounds address how customers are influenced by other customers dining in the same restaurant and highlight a type of sound that cannot be easily managed by employees. Situational sounds can be loud conversation among fellow customers or misbehaving children. Concerns with situational sounds are less about how they impact customer satisfaction, and more about the way in which managers handle them. Thus, managers find a proactive service approach to be most effective when handling situational sounds in a restaurant. For example, strategically placing a large noisy group in a separate room or further away from other customers in the restaurant can mitigate the negative impact to other diners. The results of this study confirmed that background sounds, physical sounds, and managers’ proactive customer service regarding situational sounds impact customer satisfaction. However, the interactive effects of background sounds, physical sounds, and managers’ proactive customer service regarding situational sounds do not influence customer satisfaction. Based on the results, recommendations for restaurant managers are provided to decrease controllable unpleasant noises caused by background and physical sounds as well as strategies for effectively executing proactive customer service to handle situational sounds.

This study investigates spectator perceptions of concessions (e.g., food and drinks) service quality by surveying fans at National Football League games during the 2013 season. The survey explored such research questions as the extent to which constructs associated with service quality positively affect the concession experience and the extent to which concessions experiences may be positively related to key marketing outcomes (e.g., do spectators feel concessions made the sports event more memorable, make them more likely to would spread word-of-mouth, feel appreciated, etc.).. The study also examined if different traits of fans perceived the concessions experience differently (e.g., fans of various ages and genders, the avidity of fans, and spectators who sat in different sections of the stadium, etc.). Respondents included 507 fans who attended NFL games in 2013; respondents averaged 37.1 years of age. Results suggest that the game day experience with service quality does effect the concession experience. Fan intention to return to the concession venue, their overall game day experience, level of fan avidity, and favoritism towards the host organization is positively affected by their experience at the concession stand. The study also suggests that the fan concession experience does move the needle in terms of fan purchase intent, fans’ feelings of appreciated by the team and team management, having a memorable game day experience, and intention to spread their experience via word-of-mouth. The study also suggests that the level of the stadium in which fans were seated may not have a strong relationship with perceptions of service quality

In services marketing related to sports, the live, direct interaction between the provider and the customer is crucial. Service quality influences how fans form attitudes and behaviors at sports events; there are several touch points where services are provided and fans often have high expectations. Smiling employees influence fan opinions about sports events. This study tested the effect of smiling on key marketing outcomes by conducting an experiment and field study pertaining to services marketing in sports. Results showed interesting and significant findings about the effect of smiling on sport fans’ perceptions and behaviors about the service provider.

The concept of loosely bound but highly coordinated entities is revolutionizing the way business leaders and researchers think and behave. We examine these virtual enterprises and propose a model to explain what sociological factors perpetuate the formation and success of a network of small and medium sized manufacturers.

This paper presents a theoretical framework to explain the emergence and functioning of a virtual enterprise. We extend the literature on dynamics of dyadic relationships to a network context, and illustrate how performance and commitment are achieved in a virtual enterprise.

Background The origins of life on the Earth required chemical entities to interact with their environments in ways that could respond to natural selection. The concept of interpretation, where biotic entities use signs in their environment as proxy for the existence of other items of selective value in their environment, has been proposed on theoretical grounds to be relevant to the origins and early evolution of life. However this concept has not been demonstrated empirically. Results Here, we present data that certain catalytic RNA sequences have properties that would enable interpretation of divalent cation levels in their environment. By assaying the responsiveness of two variants of the Tetrahymena ribozyme to the Ca 2+ ion as a sign for the more catalytically useful Mg 2+ ion, we show an empirical proof-of-principle that interpretation can be an evolvable trait in RNA, often suggested as a model system for early life. In particular we demonstrate that in vitro , the wild-type version of the Tetrahymena ribozyme is not interpretive, in that it cannot use Ca 2+ as a sign for Mg 2+ . Yet a variant of this sequence containing five mutations that alter its ability to utilize the Ca 2+ ion engenders a strong interpretive characteristic in this RNA. Conclusions We have shown that RNA molecules in a test tube can meet the minimum criteria for the evolution of interpretive behaviour in regards to their responses to divalent metal ion concentrations in their environment. Interpretation in RNA molecules provides a property entirely dependent on natural physico-chemical interactions, but capable of shaping the evolutionary trajectory of macromolecules, especially in the earliest stages of life’s history.

Event sponsorship has moved from primarily philanthropic activities to mutually advantageous business arrangements between sponsors and the sponsored (Abratt, Clayton, and Pitt 1987). The objectives being sought by sponsoring organizations are focusing more and more on exploitable commercial potential and bottom-line results (Cornwell 1995; Hoek, Gendall, and Sanders 1993; Hoek, Gendall, Jeffcoat, and Orsman 1997; Irwin and Sutton 1994; Marshall and Cook 1992; Wilson 1997), and less on altruism or a sense of social responsibility without expectation of return. With this heightened awareness on ROI comes an increased importance for understanding what makes some sponsorship efforts more successful than others.

This paper seeks to compare shirt sponsorship in professional football (soccer) in the United States with global trends. We try to answer why America has been slow to accept shirt sponsorship. In 2007, Major League Soccer (MLS) became the first professional team sports league in the USA to embrace shirt sponsorships, breaking a long-standing taboo that banned this practice. To date, 14 of the 19 MLS clubs wear a sponsored jersey. Only a few fledging professional sports leagues in the USA allow shirt sponsorships (e.g. the Women’s National Basketball Association, the United Football League, and the Women’s Professional Soccer League). No prestigious professional sports leagues in America allow shirt sponsorships (e.g. Major League Baseball, the National Football League, the National Basketball Association, and the National Hockey League). This opposition to shirt sponsorship in professional sports places America in stark contrast to the rest of the world.

We describe the initial realization of behavior in the biosphere, which we term behavioral chemistry. If molecules are complex enough to attain a stochastic element to their structural conformation in such as a way as to radically affect their function in a biological (evolvable) setting, then they have the capacity to behave. This circumstance is described here as behavioral chemistry, unique in its definition from the colloquial chemical behavior. This transition between chemical behavior and behavioral chemistry need be explicit when discussing the root cause of behavior, which itself lies squarely at the origins of life and is the foundation of choice. RNA polymers of sufficient length meet the criteria for behavioral chemistry and therefore are capable of making a choice.

In 2007, Major League Soccer (MLS) became the first major professional sports league in the USA to allow individual franchises to sell advertising space on their game jerseys. While these shirt sponsorships are considered the norm in international soccer, in the US game uniforms are considered 'sacred space' free from the increasingly commercialized American sports landscape. Team owners and sports writers have given their opinions – the former arguing they are a necessity for increasing revenue, the latter arguing they represent a dangerous commoditization of sports – yet, little attention has been paid to the opinions of sports fans. To address this, an exploratory survey was conducted to assess fan reactions to shirt sponsorships in MLS, how these ads are affecting fan behaviours, and whether or not fans believe these ads to be starting a trend for other sports to follow. Preliminary results found no strong negative opinions about the presence of jersey advertisements, and respondents – soccer fans, sports fans and non-fans – showed support for shirt sponsorship if it helped keep games affordable and/or helped teams stay competitive. These results are discussed in greater detail, along with implications for more theoretical approaches to understanding the effect of shirt sponsorships on sports fans.

In vitro transcriptions of the 98‐nucleotide intron found in the Chlorella virus pdg locus always produce at least one slower‐migrating species (as ~10–20% of the total transcription yield) in addition to the expected transcripts. Extensive characterization of these slower‐migrating products suggests that they are knotted RNA molecules, which we call knRNAs, previously observed only by the ligation of synthetic ribo‐oligonucleotides. An RNA with knot‐forming interactions would display physical properties unique to this topology. The observation that knotting cannot be induced upon renaturation of the full length intron argues that the co‐transcriptional folding pathway that allows knotting is inaccessible during post‐transcriptional folding. We propose that knotting is the result of co‐transcriptional mis‐folding that allows the 3′‐end of an intron to become threaded through an internal loop during formation of its pseudoknotted structure, resulting in an open knot. Because it occurs during a biologically relevant process, this phenomenon may occur in vivo as well.

Sports organizations have begun to focus on assessing quality. Rising ticket prices, skyrocketing team costs for owners, and increasing competition from other entertainment entities make service quality central. SERVQUAL, as applied to a National Football League (NFL) game day concession experience is discussed in this paper. Studies were conducted at two separate NFL games where total of 558 respondents reported assessments of service quality and important dependent variables. The results help to clarify the impact of key service quality drivers on fan satisfaction and return intentions. Results are reported and conclusions and recommendations are drawn dealing with how fans respond to the key dimensions of service.

RNA and DNA oligonucleotides radiolabeled with 32P or 33P often require gel electrophoresis to remove undesired side and/or degradation products. Common ways to visualize these molecules after electrophoresis are by ultraviolet (UV) shadowing, which necessarily reduces the specific activity of the oligonucleotide, and by autoradiography using film, which is cumbersome and increases the cost of generating the radiolabeled molecule. A more cost-effective method is to physically inject the gel with a “Dip-N-Dot” solution of dye and radionuclide after electrophoresis but prior to phosphorimaging. The gel can be overlaid on its computer-generated image, allowing the labeled molecules to be visualized quickly.

Prior research has suggested and found evidence for an event’s image being transferred to a brand because of sponsorship activity. This study builds on prior work by examining how the image transfer process is impacted by spectators’ level of identification and the degree to which the sponsor and event are perceived to be logically connected (event-sponsor fit). Further, the impact of image transfer on sponsorship related behavioral intentions is assessed. Using two contexts and nine different sponsors our results indicate that high levels of identification and a logical event-brand fit serve to increase image transfer perceptions. Image transfer is also found to predict intentions to purchase from event sponsors. Managerial implications and directions for future research are discussed.

The influence of a firm’s cause-related marketing efforts on sales representative attitudes and behavioral performance is investigated. Results from a field study indicate that the influence of a representative’s construed customer attitude toward the cause campaign on selling behavioral performance is mediated through cognitive identification and selling confidence. Further, the influence of construed customer attitude toward the campaign on selling confidence is moderated by cognitive identification such that the effects are stronger for salespeople with lower levels of identification with the company. The authors discuss the implications of the research and offer directions for further research.

Numerous business and popular articles continue to appear to stress the importance of the Internet as a powerful and interactive means of communication. As with other media, the web affects viewers' product evaluations and behavioral intentions. This article attempts to understand how students (recently admitted freshmen) form opinions about their school through interaction with the university web site. Multiple studies are conducted using website variables. The results of study one suggest website vividness, interactivity, and entertainment value are crucial in the formation of positive evaluations of and word of mouth behaviors directed toward the university. In study two, these same predictors helped explain word of mouth intentions but contributed little to evaluations.

This research explores the impact of four individual psychological motivations (i.e., team identification, eustress, group affiliation, and self-esteem enhancement) on college students’ reported verbal recommendations and patronage behaviors toward a sporting event. Seven of the eight hypothesized relationships are supported and one non-hypothesized path from patronage to word-of-mouth is added. Investigating potential gender differences among the motivation constructs extends the findings. Of particular interest are the statistically significant findings of a eu-stress/attendance relationship for men, and a group affiliation/word-of-mouth relationship for women. Findings and corresponding implications are discussed and future research directions presented.

Recently marketing has witnessed an explosion of interest in creating and maintaining relationships. It is widely being heralded as a revolutionary new way of responding to markets. But has this „new“ method been explored or practiced before? Undertaking an early century literature review, the author uncovers evidence that writers and practitioners of 1910-1935, contrary to current belief, incorporated relational methods and espoused a relationship philosophy. Results indicate that relational selling was not only practiced for the benefit of the seller, but was also for the customer and the relationship. Conclusions about why relationship selling disappeared only to resurface again at the end of the twentieth century are put forth

ABSTRACT Relationships between business firms and not-for-profit organizations already represent $6.5 to $8.5 billion annually (Deutsch 1997) and are growing. However, there is a dearth of research dealing with the effect on internal stakeholders even though research is needed. This research contributes to the marketing literature as cause-related marketing relationships between firms and not-for-profit organizations, a form of corporate social responsibility, are examined as a recruitment, motivation, and retention tool available to marketing managers. Specifically, we examine the current literature and propose a model to examine the direct effect that a cause-related marketing partner's evaluation exerts on a marketing representative's corporate evaluation and possibly more importantly, the conditions under which this effect is moderated.

We describe the initial realization of behavior in the biosphere, which we term behavioral chemistry. If molecules are complex enough to attain a stochastic element to their structural conformation in such a way as to radically affect their function in a biological (evolvable) setting, then they have the capacity to behave. This circumstance is described here as behavioral chemistry, unique in its definition from the colloquial chemical behavior. This transition between chemical behavior and behavioral chemistry need be explicit when discussing the root cause of behavior, which itself lies squarely at the origins of life and is the foundation of choice. RNA polymers of sufficient length meet the criteria for behavioral chemistry and therefore are capable of making a choice.