Drivers of E-store Patronage Intentions: Choice Overload,Internet Shopping Anxiety,and Impulse Purchase Tendency

The dotcom era has infused a rapid increase in the usage of e-commerce in India, making online shopping the new way of retailing. This study investigates online consumers’ e-store patronage intentions, specifically modeling the ties from broad dispositional traits including choice overload, Internet shopping anxiety, and impulse purchase tendency among online shoppers. Based on the responses of 243 online shoppers, the findings suggest that consumers’ e-store patronage has a positive relationship with choice overload such that availability of larger assortments online results in a higher possibility of consumers’ patronage toward such e-tailers. Choice overload in the online context was also found to positively influence consumers’ impulse purchase tendency and showed a positive effect on Internet shopping anxiety. Furthermore, results indicate that the impulse purchase tendency of online shoppers had a significant positive effect on e-store patronage intentions, while Internet shopping anxiety was found to negatively affect the patronage intentions of shoppers.     

Exploring consumers' preferences with regard to department and specialist food stores

Consumers' lifestyle changes and striving towards better time management have resulted in the greater choice they are offered with regard to store formats. Therefore, this study was undertaken to identify the factors that influence consumers in their patronage of a particular store format and to categorize department and specialist food store consumers according to their preferences in store layout and product range in a South African context. A qualitative research approach was used and data were collected using semi‐structured interviews with open‐ended questions. Purposive sampling recruited participants shopping for food in a department store in Johannesburg. Forty semi‐structured interviews were conducted before data saturation was reached. Store‐related factors such as store location, appearance and hygiene, service quality, convenience of trading hours, and consistency in store layout predominantly influenced participants in their patronage of a specific store format. Furthermore, product‐related factors such as quality, price, product range and convenient packaging enhanced consumers' store preference. Department store consumers were orientated towards one‐stop shopping and time‐saving strategies, while specialist food consumers were focused on food shopping and the trading hours of the store. Although similarities in participants' preferences with regard to department and specialist food store were found, different preferences were found regarding the placement of specific items within the store. Participants had similar preferences regarding the product range of a food store. However, department store participants emphasized the provision of convenience food and non‐food items. The findings of this study are valuable in providing department and specialist food store retailers with guideline recommendations regarding store layout and product range in order to effectively respond to the needs and preferences of consumers within an emerging economy.     

The influence of in‐store personnel on online store value: An analogical transfer perspective

In today’s multichannel retail environment, consumers’ experiences in one channel influence their perceptions of another channel. Specifically, consumer evaluations of a firm’s online store have been found to be influenced by consumer interactions with the firm’s in‐store personnel. This paper is among the first to address this assumption and test it empirically. Drawing upon the analogical transfer paradigm, we propose hypotheses and accordingly model in‐store personnel’s competence and friendliness as determinants of online store usefulness, online store enjoyment, and online store value. Using consumer data collected from two Dutch multichannel retailers, we test this model with partial least squares modeling. The results provide clear support for the model and confirm that consumers may use characteristics of in‐store personnel as analogies when evaluating a firm’s online store. Implications for research and retail managers are discussed.     

Multiple store patronage: The effects of store characteristics

The present study contributes to the literature on multiple store patronage in two important directions. First, it examines whether consumers׳ perceived importance of store characteristics have effects on multiple store patronage. Second, it examines the relationship between multiple store patronage and consumers׳ share of wallet at the primary store. Our results show that consumers who attach high value to sales promotions are more likely to visit multiple stores. However, store characteristic factors generally did not exert significant effect on multiple store patronage. Furthermore, we find that multiple store patronage and share of wallet are not interdependent and the profiles of consumers in terms of them do not share many common characteristics.     

Influence of apparel quality knowledge,purchase attitudes and demographics on patronage preferences of rural and urban women

The influence of extrinsic cues (price, quality, store image), intrinsic cues (apparel quality knowledge) and demograpics on the store-patronage preferences of rural and urban consumers was determined. Multiple linear regression was used to generate three predictor models of store patronage (P < 0.05) for 192 rural and 149 urban women responding to a mail survey on attitudes toward discount stores. No differences were noted in attitudes of rural and urban consumers. Attitudes toward apparel price, quality and store image in discount and non-discount stores were much better predictors of store-patronage preferences than were apparel quality knowledge and demographic characteristics. The results of this study may help retailers in defining and reaching their target markets and help educators in assisting students to understand consumer-purchase attitudes and patronage preferences.     

The behavioral responses to perceived scarcity – the case of fast fashion

The literature on scarcity has generally examined consumers’ attitudes towards scarce products and suggested that scarcity messages have a positive effect on the evaluation of and attitude toward the scarce object. However, literature has largely failed to explain consumers’ feelings or reactions to human-controlled scarce environments. This study examines how deliberate product scarcity influences the consumers’ behavioral responses, and provides an understanding of consumers’ reactions to conditions of scarcity that are strategically created by marketers. The context of this study is fast fashion retailers, as they are known to create extreme human-induced scarcity. We conducted 21 face-to-face interviews with fast fashion store managers, consumers, and an industry expert. Further, observational research was also conducted to observe the consumer buying behavior across 10 different fast fashion stores. The objectives were to (1) help the interviewees think about the various strategies adopted to induce scarcity within the stores (from retailer’s perspective), (2) understanding of scarcity in these stores (from consumer’s perspective), and (3) consumers’ responses to such deliberate manipulations. All the interviewees agreed that fast fashion stores were successful in creating perceived scarcity which reflected both limited merchandise supply as well as deliberate manipulation of merchandise availability by the retailer. The findings also suggest that consumers in these perceived scarcity conditions exhibit buying behavior like urgency to buy, which further leads to deviant and competitive behaviors like in-store hoarding and in-store hiding. Though perceived scarcity, urgency to buy, and in-store hoarding was consistent across the interviews with store managers and consumers, surprisingly, the phenomenon of in-store hiding behavior did not emerge from any of the interviews conducted with store managers, but was a consistent theme across most consumer interviews.     

Exploring Brand Personality–Celebrity Endorser Personality Congruence in Celebrity Endorsements in the Indian Context

The objective of the research reported in this paper was to develop and test a model of brand personality–celebrity endorser personality congruence and its impact on consumers’ attitudes and intentions. In particular, the study drew on social adaptation and attribution theories to develop hypotheses related to the impact of this congruence on consumers’ perceptions of endorser credibility and suitability, and the subsequent impact of these perceptions on consumers’ attitudes and intentions. The study was motivated by recent attention being paid to the importance of personality in choosing celebrities for product endorsements and the fact that the brand personality–celebrity endorser personality congruence has not been explored before. The model was tested based on data obtained from a sample of participants in India. Results from path analyses indicated a positive and significant impact of personality‐based congruence on endorser credibility and suitability, which, in turn, positively and significantly impacted ad believability. Ad believability in turn significantly impacted attitude toward the ad, which had a significant impact on brand attitude and purchase intentions. Research and managerial implications are discussed, as are directions for future research.     

Polygamous Store Loyalties: An Empirical Investigation

Grocery store loyalty has been traditionally viewed as a trait of consumers toward a particular store for their overall shopping needs. In this study, we argue that store loyalty shall be regarded as category specific trait, that is, a consumer could be loyal to store A in category one while at the same time be loyal to store B in category two. We name this consumer behavior polygamous store loyalties.We use an in-home scanning panel dataset that tracks purchases of 1,321 households in 284 grocery categories across fourteen retail chains over a 53-week period in a large US market. First, we provide model free evidence of polygamous store loyalties in the data, even though the overall store loyalty based on the traditional view is low. Next, we propose a model to separate category specific effects from overall store level effects. Finally, we discuss how retailers can use the results to gain a new perspective on store attractiveness to improve overall store patronage.     

Return policy,No joke: An investigation into the impact of a retailer's return policy on consumers' decision making

This study investigates the important role of a retailer's return policy in consumers' decision making. Utilizing signaling theory and the Cue Diagnosticity framework, this study posits that return policy, as a cue from a retailer, interacts with other cues (product, price, and product quality) to reduce perceived purchase risk and increases store image and patronage intention. Employing factorial experiment design, the authors conduct two studies and find support for several hypotheses. Results show that consumers value return policies depending upon the situation. A lenient return policy drives down purchase risk and leads consumers to have positive store images and higher patronage intentions. Both theoretical and managerial implications of the findings are provided.     

Shopping orientation segments: exploring differences in store patronage and attitudes toward retail store environments among female apparel consumers

The purpose of this study was to identify shopping orientation segments for US female consumers. The sample included 151 women, aged 18 years and over. This research examined differences in the segments relative to store patronage preferences (i.e. department, discount, specialty), attitude toward the environment of the store selected as first choice when shopping for a specific apparel item (i.e. a dress), and demographic characteristics. Cluster analysis revealed that four shopping segments described the female consumers. The segments were named Decisive Apparel Shopper, Confident Apparel Shopper, Highly Involved Apparel Shopper, and Extremely Involved Apparel Shopper, based on several shopping factors. Differences were found among the shopping orientation segments for store of first choice, attitude and household income. Implications and future research directions are discussed.     

The Effects of Voluntary Versus Mandatory Menu Calorie Labeling On Consumers’ Retailer-Related Responses

Restaurants with 20 or more locations will soon be required to disclose calorie information on menus and menu boards. Retailers not included in this mandate can choose to voluntarily provide calorie information. To better understand the implications of this major policy change for food retailers, this research examines how consumers’ retailer-related responses are affected by menu calorie labeling. A framework based on the attribution theory and the health halo literatures is developed, and three primary studies, including a field experiment, are used to test the proposed direct, moderating, and mediating effects derived from this conceptualization. Findings across the studies show that menu calorie labeling has a positive direct effect on perceptions of the restaurant’s concern for customers’ well-being and positive indirect effects on attitudes toward the restaurant and patronage intentions. However, these direct and indirect effects are attenuated when the restaurant is perceived to be more (vs. less) healthful and when menu calorie labeling is mandatory (vs. voluntary). The implications of these findings for retail and restaurant management are discussed.     

Exploring Attitudes and Affiliation Intentions toward Consumers Who Engage in Socially Shared Superstitious Behaviors: A Study of Students in the East and the West

Existing literature on superstitious beliefs focuses on consumer purchasing behavior. However, little is known about how superstition‐based consumption behaviors are socially perceived. This paper investigates students’ attitudes toward consumers who engage in socially shared superstitious behaviors. Two studies show that students from Eastern and Western countries have negative attitudes and lower affiliation intentions toward consumers engaging in socially shared superstitious behaviors. As predicted by social judgment theory, this effect is driven by perceived low competence but not by perceived warmth. These negative attitudes and lower affiliation intentions are moderated by the student's superstitiousness. The managerial implications of social perceptions regarding consumer superstitious behavior are discussed.     

Don't ignore the floor: Exploring multisensory atmospheric congruence between music and flooring in a retail environment

In retail environments, consumers commonly evaluate products while standing on some type of flooring and concurrently being exposed to music; however, no study has examined the interaction of these two atmospheric cues. To bridge this gap, this research examines whether retailers can benefit from creating multisensory atmospheric congruent rather than incongruent retail environments of flooring and music. The results of an experiment in a real retail store reveal positive effects of multisensory congruent retail environments (e.g., soft music combined with soft flooring) on product evaluations. This study provides a new process explanation with consumers’ purchase‐related self‐confidence mediating these effects. Specifically, consumers in congruent rather than incongruent retail environments experience more purchase‐related self‐confidence, which in turn leads to more favorable product evaluations. Furthermore, this study shows that consumers with a low rather than a high preference for haptic information are influenced more by multisensory atmospheric congruence when evaluating a product haptically.     

Investigating the marketing impact of consumers’ connectedness to celebrity endorsers

Consumers enjoy following famous media personalities, discovering details about their habits, food preferences, or designer brands that they wear. Consumers model their consumption behaviors based on their favorite celebrities’ preferences. Marketers are aware of such celebrity admiration and frequently use celebrities as part of marketing communication strategies. Grounded in parasocial relationship and social connectedness theories, this study tests a model of connectedness to the celebrity, attitude toward the celebrity, receptivity toward the celebrity‐endorsed message, and purchase intentions of the celebrity‐endorsed market offering. These relationships were investigated using structural equation modeling. The findings indicate an individual's level of connectedness to their favorite celebrity is positively linked with both their receptivity toward the celebrity‐endorsed message and purchase intentions of the celebrity‐endorsed market offering. On the theoretical side, the integration of parasocial relationship and social connectedness theories explain the processes through which celebrity endorsements impact consumers’ attitudes and behaviors. On the practical side, the findings suggest marketers should carefully choose the best celebrity endorsers for advertisements after considering how constituents from within their key target markets are likely to connect with the chosen celebrity. However, beyond consumers’ connectedness to the celebrity, the findings also suggest that receptivity toward the celebrity‐endorsed message is an essential link to purchase intentions of the endorsed offering.     

Does the digitalization of retailing disrupt consumers’ attachment to retail places?

This study breaks new ground in the marketing domain by extending the concept of place attachment to the study of the online retail environment. We provide empirical evidence that consumers can establish strong attachments not only with traditional offline places but also with online retail stores. Moreover, we assessed how distinct dimensions of the place affect the formation of consumers’ attachment and their behavioral loyalty. Our findings show that while consumers who feel a strong sense of attachment toward the place engage in spreading positive word-of-mouth regardless of the environment, their attachment to the store does not prevent them from switching to another provider, especially in the online environment.     

The Catch-22 of Responsible Luxury: Effects of Luxury Product Characteristics on Consumers’ Perception of Fit with Corporate Social Responsibility

The notion of “responsible luxury” may appear as a contradiction in terms. This article investigates the influence of two defining characteristics of luxury products—scarcity and ephemerality—on consumers’ perception of the fit between luxury and corporate social responsibility (CSR), as well as how this perceived fit affects consumers’ attitudes toward luxury products. A field experiment reveals that ephemerality moderates the positive impact of scarcity on consumers’ perception of fit between luxury and CSR. When luxury products are enduring (e.g., jewelry), a scarce product is perceived as more socially responsible than a more widely available one and provokes positive attitudes. However, this effect does not appear for ephemeral luxury products (e.g., clothing). The perceived fit between luxury and CSR mediates the combined effects of scarcity and ephemerality on consumers’ attitudes toward luxury products. This study provides valuable insights that luxury brand managers can use to design their CSR and marketing strategies.     

Effects of art in retail environments

Artworks have been introduced to retail environments outside of the art gallery and museum setting, with the assumption that art can transfer everyday consumption experiences into special and memorable ones. However, the question on the effectiveness of the placement of artwork in retail environments in influencing consumers’ behaviors and experiences has not been addressed. Using the Sacred Heart sculpture by Jeff Koons, we conduct two studies to test the influence of art on an individual’s behavioral intention to visit a restaurant and expected experience of food consumption. Study 1 corroborates that the effect of attitudes toward an artwork on behavioral intentions is amplified when consumers’ art knowledge and levels of openness to experience are low, indicating that consumers who lack art appraisal skills are likely to be dependent on their attitude toward art. Study 2 examines the mediating roles of attitudes toward an artwork and an artist by manipulating art attractiveness and artist information as the sources of esthetic perceptions. The artist information serves as the factor boosting the effect of art attractiveness on the behavioral intention through the mediation of attitudes toward the artwork and the artist. Results show that how consumers perceive an artwork, namely artistic processing in a retail environment, is powerful in leading them to enter a store and have desirable consumption experiences. Retailers can also enhance consumer experience by selecting artworks based on target consumers’ level of art knowledge and openness to experience.     

Developing effective social media messages: Insights from an exploratory study of industry experts

As consumers are increasingly utilizing the social network and media platforms for prepurchase information, managers are confronted with producing effective social media messages that can favorably influence buyers’ attitudes and behavioral intentions towards brands. A qualitative, in‐depth, elite interview investigation with social media marketing experts was undertaken to develop awareness of the factors influencing the effectiveness of social media marketing. Adopting a thematic analysis approach, this study establishes the three overriding themes of interactivity, credibility, and infotainment as being valuable in determining how social media marketing can enhance brand performance. Attitude theory and the hierarchy‐of‐effects model is utilized to support understanding and explain the decision making of social media users in this context. Overall, this study provides managers with a thorough explanation of the effects of the identified core themes on social media attitudes and intentions. Implications for social media marketing theory and practice are presented based upon the depth and breadth of knowledge attained from the analysis of the expert interview data.     

Despite unethical retail store practices,consumers at the bottom of the pyramid continue to be loyal

Research in the area of retail store loyalty agrees that consumers reward retailers when they are satisfied with its products, services, and its image. Moreover, one would agree that if the retailer engages in unethical practices, the customer would quickly defect and even engage in word of mouth to influence others to defect. But this might not be the case universally. One consumer group that continues to be loyal to a retailer despite widespread unethical practices is the poor. A growing stream of research under the label of bottom of pyramid (BoP) and subsistence consumers has increasingly pointed out the market attractiveness of this segment to multinational companies. These poor consumers are individuals who earn approximately $2 per day. In this paper, we explain the nature of widespread unethical retail practices prevalent amongst the neighborhood retail stores (or kirana as they are referred to in India) that serve the BoP consumer, types of patronage behaviors, and the reasons ‘why’ these consumers continue to support the kirana store. The data for this paper comes from a qualitative study conducted with 58 urban poor consumers in India. This study carries significant implications for both domestic and multinational companies that market fast-moving consumer goods in the BoP market.     

Hurry up! The effect of pop-up stores’ ephemerality on consumers’ intention to visit

Retail has responded to the continuing shift in consumer preferences toward ephemerality and immediacy with pop-up stores: temporary, experiential store formats. Considering pop-ups’ widespread application, it is important to identify which store characteristics attract visitors. Research has pinpointed the pop-up experience as affecting consumer behavior. However, experience does not exclusively define pop-ups but applies to all experiential stores. Our work suggests that pop-ups’ distinguishing feature – ephemerality – leads consumers to anticipate limited product assortments, thus driving intention to visit. Considering pop-ups’ target group – consumers with a high need for uniqueness (NFU) – an exclusive, limited product assortment has a stronger effect on intention to visit for consumers with a high NFU.