Forecasting artificial intelligence on online customer assistance: Evidence from chatbot patents analysis

The main goal of this research is to provide a comprehensive understanding of the actual progresses in artificial intelligence, with emphasis on chatbots as emerging forms of customer assistance in online retailing. Drawing upon an analysis of the chatbot patents in the past 20 years, our findings show the increasing technology push towards the adoption of new conversational agents based on natural language. Findings also highlight the extent to which the research and development efforts are attempting to improve artificial intelligence systems that characterize chatbots. To this end, technology advancements are mainly focusing on: (i) improving chatbot ability to automatically draw inferences on users starting from multiple data sources, and (ii) using consumers’ knowledge adaptively to provide more customized solutions. Finally, results show the tight relationship between the digital assistants’ analytical skills and their ability to automatically interact with the users.     

Engaging and retaining customers with AI and employee service

Artificial intelligence (AI) permeates in service organisations as a tool to enhance operational efficiency and improve customer experience. Reports show that most consumers prefer human interactions with service employees. Drawing on this observation, the current study examines how customers' service experiences with employees and AI influence customer engagement and loyalty. Customers’ emotional intelligence is proposed as a moderator between service experience and customer engagement. The study was conducted with hotel customers in Australia. The results show that whilst both service experience with employees and AI are significantly related to customer engagement and loyalty, only certain dimensions make significant unique variances in the outcome variables. The findings indicate that customers prefer employee service. These service experiences also have significant partial mediation effects on customer loyalty. Emotional intelligence has a significant moderation effect on customer engagement. Discussion of these findings and implications derived from this study concludes this paper.     

治理机制对顾客参与价值共创行为的影响——虚拟品牌社区的实证研究

虚拟品牌社区是企业与顾客进行价值共创的重要平台,顾客参与价值共创行为对企业长远发展具有十分重要的作用。现有研究多是基于不同的理论从顾客视角出发探索顾客参与价值共创行为受到的心理动机和个人特征等因素的影响,鲜有从企业视角出发,探索治理机制对虚拟品牌社区中顾客参与价值共创行为的影响。本文立足交易成本理论与社会交换理论,从企业视角切入,引入关系质量作为中介变量,构建虚拟品牌社区治理机制、关系质量与顾客参与价值共创行为的关系整合模型。采用问卷调查法对模型进行验证,研究结果显示:(1)契约治理机制只对知识贡献行为产生显著正向影响,对顾客公民行为的影响不显著,而关系治理机制对知识贡献行为与顾客公民行为均具有显著正向影响。(2)关系质量在契约治理机制与顾客公民行为的关系中起完全中介作用,在契约治理机制与知识贡献行为、关系治理机制与知识贡献行为以及关系治理机制与顾客公民行为的关系中起部分中介作用。由研究结论可知,虚拟品牌社区一方面应综合运用契约治理机制与关系治理机制来有效地促进顾客参与价值共创行为,以弥补单独运用某一种治理机制存在的不足;另一方面也应注重关系质量在虚拟品牌社区中促进顾客参与价值共创行为的重要作用。这些研究发现为促进虚拟品牌社区的可持续发展提供了有价值的启示。     

虚拟品牌社区顾客体验会带来其价值共创行为吗--基于手机虚拟品牌社区的实证研究

本文以顾客体验为切入点,基于价值共创理论、心理所有权理论和互惠规范理论,并运用于S-O-R理论框架,构建了虚拟品牌社区下,顾客参与价值共创行为产生的影响路径模型,通过问卷调查与实证分析得出:第一,顾客信息体验和娱乐体验越强,其参与价值共创的意愿程度越高,心理所有权部分中介了二者的促进关系;互动体验强化了社区顾客的心理所有权,并经由心理所有权的完全中介提高其参与共创意愿。第二,顾客参与共创意愿程度越高,其价值共创行为就越容易出现,社区的互惠规范正向调节了二者的关系。     

The impact of hard discounter presence on store satisfaction and store loyalty

Hard discounters, such as Aldi and Lidl, have become more important in the last decade. Recent research suggests that the presence of a hard discounter (HD) decreases customers’ share of wallet. In this study, we aim to understand why this occurs, by considering how HD presence affects store attributes and store satisfaction. In particular, we investigate whether HD presence affects store satisfaction formation as well as the effect of store satisfaction on share of wallet. We analyze Dutch data on store attribute evaluations, store satisfaction and share of wallet. Our results show that HD presence decreases convenience evaluations of a store, satisfaction and share of wallet. Moreover, we show that the relationship between convenience and store satisfaction becomes more important when a HD is present, while we then also find a stronger positive relationship between satisfaction and share of wallet. Simulations based on our model estimations show that especially price-oriented retailers should fear decreases in share of wallet when a HD is present.     

How Collective Engagement Creates Competitive Advantage for Organizations: A Business-Level Model of Shared Vision,Competitive Intensity,and Service Performance

We argue that collective engagement can serve as a unique value-creation capacity at the business level by linking shared vision and service performance. We also propose that competitive intensity will be a market indicator by which management can enhance the effect of shared vision on collective engagement, and indirectly strengthen service performance (through collective engagement). Furthermore, we argue that this distinctive value-creation capability, embedded in collective engagement, generates competitive advantage; specifically, one that competing organizations will struggle to replicate. We examine our moderated-mediation model by using a three-time-point method derived from five different sources in 198 retail-service branches. Our findings indicate that collective engagement, fueled by shared organizational vision, improves service performance. Furthermore, as this conditional indirect effect of shared vision on service quality and customer satisfaction was solely generated through collective engagement rather than other mechanisms (i.e., commitment and involvement), it creates a competitive advantage for engagement-oriented organizations.     

服务质量、私人关系对顾客忠诚的影响研究

服务质量和顾客忠诚是企业获得竞争优势的法宝,而私人关系作为中国企业管理中独特的要素受到越来越多的关注,揭示三者之间的内在联系对于提升服务企业绩效及丰富相关管理理论十分重要。本文以服务行业为研究对象,研究服务质量、私人关系对顾客忠诚的影响。数据分析结果表明,企业的服务质量和顾客与服务人员私人关系都正向影响顾客对企业的忠诚,企业的服务质量有助于提升顾客与服务人员的私人关系,在企业一致性高的情况下,顾客与服务人员私人关系对顾客对企业忠诚有更大的影响。这些发现对于提升顾客忠诚有一定的借鉴意义,也有助于丰富中国情境下的本土化理论。     

Sustaining brand loyalty: The moderating role of green consumption values

Environmental issues are massively emerging in the current agendas of governments, businesses and consumers all over the globe. Consumers increasingly adopt a more energetic role in the environmental discussion and employ product consumption to manifest their contribution to the debate. Equally, a growing number of businesses try to affect positive social change, whereas others strategically approach green opportunities; at the same time, they persistently intensify their branding offerings to sustain loyalty. This article brings into discussion green consumption values as the authors aim to shed light into the way the latter moderate the effect of brand related factors, namely, brand experiences and brand personality, on brand loyalty. Based on data received from 413 participants and using the wearable technologies industry as the focal context, the study underscores the significance of green consumption values. Findings are discussed, and implications for managers are provided.     

Towards a taxonomy-based preferred-customer model for suppliers in air cargo express service markets

Drawing on social exchange and push–pull–mooring theories, this paper develops a taxonomy-based preferred-customer model for B2B air express markets. Our model extends the conventional bilateral customer-supplier relationship perspective of customer portfolio management to include competition effects for more comprehensive (trilateral) strategic decision making. Based on this unified framework, our a survey of 180 customers of air cargo express carriers identifies three distinctive groups of preferred customers. In addition to the effect of competitors on air express carriers’ prioritization of customers, which is further complicated by a satisfaction paradox and spurious loyalty, we further establish classification indicators for differentiating preferred from non-preferred customers. Notably, although commonly used in practice, we find sales volumes to be ineffective for that purpose.