ROLE OF THE MARKET MAVEN IN RETAILING - A GENERAL MARKETPLACE INFLUENCER

This article deals with the market maven. This maven is a general marketplace influencer which may be a significant constraint in the retail setting. This South African study highlights the importance of word-of-mouth communication in business. The South African market was chosen because of its cultural diversity and its unique set of European and African influences. This paper reviews the literature concerned with general marketplace influencers. It then reports the results of a study of 621 respondents. The results show that mavens appear to be good targets for general messages about marketing mix changes, messages spanning multiple product categories and messages concerning new product introductions. These results indicate that mavens appear to be good targets for retailers, provided they can be targeted effectively.