Enhancing NPD operational performance through B2B and B2C customer involvement for varying degrees of product technology

The present article addresses how different types of B2B customer involvement motives and B2C customer involvement motives affect different dimensions of new product development (NPD) operational performance in the B2B context. This study also explores the moderating effects of high vs. low product technology on the relationships between different types of customer involvement motives and different dimensions of NPD operational performance. Based on data collected from the textile and apparel industry in 10 countries, the current study illustrates that B2C customer involvement has a greater impact than B2B customer involvement on time-to-market. Nevertheless, B2B customer involvement plays an important role as it contributes more to quality than does B2C customer involvement. In addition, the study explains the different strategies that should be adopted in B2B and B2C customer involvement when high vs. low product technology is present.