Product Market Effects of Customer Referencing

Customer referencing refers to the phenomenon of a firm intentionally revealing its customers so that the firm can obtain certification of the quality of its products. In this paper, we examine the association between customer referencing and firms’ future product market performance. We find that firms that engage in customer referencing achieve better product market performance than those that do not, which is consistent with the notion that customer referencing, by certifying the referencing firm’s product quality, enhances the firm’s future product market performance. We also find that this positive association is stronger when the referenced customers are reputable and when the referencing firms have a greater need for certification. These results further affirm the certification role of customer referencing. Our study provides new insight into how certification via inter-organizational relationships can be an intangible marketing asset.