The effects of customer and competitor orientations on export performance: An empirical study of Moroccan SMEs

Export, a "light" input mode on international markets, is usually the first step towards internationalization. However, export is regarded as a difficult, complex and dynamic process in a competitive and turbulent environment. This competition requires that firms support a high level of customer and competitor orientations in order to ensure their growth and survival. These orientations are often considered as the major force behind the development, sustenance and prosperity in exporting. Thereby, this study aims at examining the effects of customer and competitor orientations on export performance among the small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in a developing country. Morocco was selected for the study. A questionnaire survey approach was carried out on a sample of one hundred and two Moroccan SMEs. Then, hypotheses were tested through a multiple linear regression. Results confirm a positive and significant relationship between customer orientation and export performance, as well as between competitor orientation and export performance in the context of Moroccan SMEs. Data refer to a specific moment in time. Future research should attempt to investigate these relationships using a longitudinal design. The outcome of the study provides interesting information from a developing country perspective on the need for SMEs to adopt these orientations as a survival and competitive strategy towards achieving competitive advantage in a turbulent business environment. This study extends prior work by introducing the customer and competitor orientations on export performance in the context of a developing country, namely Morocco where the export performance concept remains to be widely investigated.