[1] Narver and Slater define market orientation as "the organization culture that most effectively and efficiently creates the necessary behaviours for the creation of superior value for buyers and, thus, continuous superior performance for the business".
They added that market orientation "provide[s] a unifying focus for the efforts and projects of individuals and departments within the organization."
[3] Empirical study found that among all three behavioral components, interfunctional coordination has the most significant influence on new product success.
Thus, competitive advantage exists externally to the firm, enabling the company to build lasting differentiation by creating new forms of customer value.
Consequently, it is the firm’s perceived position in the eyes of the customer that matters, in the context of shifting purchase criteria, and not product innovation.