Is Relationship Marketing Running out of Steam?-Multiple Analysis, 2000-2005

Abstract

The purpose of this study centered on the use of multiple analyses to assess the influence of relationship marketing in research literature. We have examined the impact of relationship marketing articles in leading peer-reviewed academic journals in the marketing field through both citation analysis and content analysis. A search of the SSCI Database of the ISI-Web of Science for the period 2000-2005 turned up 135 relationship marketing articles. The frequency of appearance of RM articles shows a general increase over the five-year period, and the journal in which they were most frequently published was the Journal of Industrial Marketing Management. Most articles focused on relationships with buyers rather than on other types of relationships. The results of this study also indicate the trend of increasing numbers of relationship marketing articles would increase, and future directions research can focus more on internal, lateral relationship for research in relationship marketing.