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This paper focuses on service firms trying to develop markets at an international level. Such strategies are more and more often adopted, even by small-sized firms in B-to-B activities. Entry modes on foreign markets are of paramount importance as they also define the modes of relationship established with foreign clients. The recent development of information and communication technologies also has an impact on growth opportunities in foreign markets. These technologies allow clients to be serviced without any local outlet but they also ensure swifter communications inside an international network and better quality-control operations. The research reported here tries to assess the performance of different entry modes in this new context.
Much of the literature on the location of producer services is concerned with their uneven spatial development across regions. Although this approach is useful, it proves to be limited, and a complementary analytical framework is required. This paper uses data from France's Annual Survey of Services to address producer service location from a novel perspective, that of the firm. A basic distinction is made between single site (compact) and multisite (network) producer service firms, and the natures of these two types are analyzed in terms of business strategies, location and performance. Further analyses are then based upon the distinctions between sales and servuction networks, and between specialized and diversified networks. Although significant for producing higher output levels, a network structure does not necessarily ensure a higher level of profitability.
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