Marketing activities and business performance: evidence from foreign and domestic manufacturing firms in a liberalized developing economy

Research findings on emerging markets over the last decade indicate that economic reform policies in many developing countries have not only changed the environments of these economies, but also influenced the attitudes of firms towards the marketing concept. This study determines the degree to which marketing activities are practised in foreign and domestic firms in an emerging developing economy and the effects of such practices on business performance. The research instrument comprises five marketing activity components and six performance dimensions. Data were generated from a sample of 200 firms through a self‐administered mail survey. Results of the study reveal that foreign firms perform more marketing activities and perceive all marketing components as important determinants of performance in comparison with their domestic counterparts. To conclude, managerial implications of the findings as well as study limitations and future research directions are discussed.