A comparison of online and offline gender and goal directed shopping online

The aim of this paper is to model the effect of the consumers’ perceptions of their offline and online gendered behaviour on online utilitarian shopping motivation and purchase intentions. We hypothesise that when consumers shop online, their behaviour is mediated by two gendered behaviours, namely offline and online. To test this hypothesis, 515 usable responses were collected in face-to-face interviews. The conceptual model was tested with confirmatory factors analysis (CFA) and structural equation modelling (SEM) across five product categories. Our findings show that the effect of a consumer's perception of their gendered behaviour offline vs. online on online utilitarian shopping motivation and purchase intentions is significantly different. In particular we found that utilitarian shopping motivation online has a significant effect on purchase intentions online mediated by gender (online) overall: strongly for females but not for males. Conversely, utilitarian shopping motivation online has a significant effect on purchase intentions online mediated by gender (offline) for males but not overall and for females.     

A comparison of online and offline consumer behaviour: An empirical study on a cinema shopping context

The main objective of this study is to analyse online vs. offline differences in consumer behaviour. To this end, through a proposal applied to cinemas in shopping centres, this study considers values and lifestyles as major factors that influence behaviours and intentions. The partial least squares (PLS) approach is used to evaluate the model. A multi-group analysis is conducted to compare consumers who buy tickets online with those who do so at a box office. We consider 391 valid cases. The results obtained show a link between the use of technology and its effects on behaviour. The relationships between values and behaviour as well as between behaviour and future intent are stronger among online consumers than the effects of lifestyles on behaviour. We consider relevant theoretical and empirical perspectives and offer critical recommendations of use to shopping centre managers, movie theatres, and intermediaries of this sector.     

Consequences of consumer regret with online shopping

Negative online reviews can significantly hurt future sales. After impulsive decisions, consumers may feel regret and write negative online reviews. Two studies are conducted to understand the origin and consequences of negative reviews according to the review content and the responsibility for the mistake in the decision. The first study analyses the influence on the review creation of regret with the process and the outcome through structural equation modelling. For the second study, a 2 × 2 experimental design was conducted. This study analyses how different content in the review (regret with the process vs. regret with the outcome) and guilt of the error (the consumer vs. the seller) affects the perceived persuasiveness, usefulness and credibility of the information, and the intention to follow the advice. The results show that for generating negative reviews, it is the regret with the process coupled with the presence of regret with the outcome which ultimately leads to the intention to write negative reviews. However, the results of the second study show that reviews that criticize the outcome are more damaging than those that criticize the process. Furthermore, reviews that show regret in which the buyer is responsible affect readers more through the greater persuasion they generate.     

Integrated consumer shopping decision model: A Japanese online supermarket context

Abstract

Online shopping is not a new marketing channel but has been growing tremendously throughout Japan. The rapid growth of Internet technology has enabled the Japanese to break away from their conservative culture and embark on different shopping experiences by shopping online. With the growing importance of online reviews to promote one’s business, Japanese online supermarkets are looking for ways to increase consumer-generated content. The purpose of this study is to investigate Japanese repeat online consumers and the antecedents that encourage them to review their shopping experiences, including the supermarket website they used and product availability in the online supermarket. It was found that online supermarkets must focus on establishing confidence with their repeat online consumers if they desire to increase the electronic word of mouth (e-WOM) of their online supermarket. Implications are discussed in relation to online supermarkets and repeat consumers’ intentions to review their online shopping experiences.     

Aesthetics and the online shopping environment: Understanding consumer responses

As the e-tail industry continues to grow with increasing competition witnessed, the study of how to entice and retain online customers has never been as important as at present. Our hierarchical model examines how the two dimensions of web aesthetics, aesthetic formality and aesthetic appeal, influence online consumers’ psychological reactions, including perceived service quality, satisfaction, and arousal, and how these psychological changes, in turn, influence online consumers’ conative tendencies. The results indicate: (1) consumers’ cognitive, affective, and conative outcomes can be significantly evoked by aesthetic stimuli; (2) the two dimensions of web aesthetics exhibit dissimilar patterns of influences; and (3) purchase task significantly moderates consumers’ responses in terms of magnitude and direction. The study provides practical guidelines for properly manipulating the two dimensions of web aesthetics based on consumers’ motivational orientations.     

Influences of online store perception,shopping enjoyment,and shopping involvement on consumer patronage behavior towards an online retailer

Online apparel retailers have adopted various types of image interactivity technology (IIT), such as close-up pictures or zoom-in functions, mix-and-match functions, and 3D virtual models to enhance consumers’ online shopping experience. The purpose of the present study was to examine the influence of level of IIT on consumer perception of online retail environment, shopping enjoyment, shopping involvement, a desire to stay, and patronage intention. Significant structural relationships between these research variables were found, supporting a pleasure-oriented conceptual model of consumer patronage behavior in the online retailing environment. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.     

The effects of utilitarian and hedonic online shopping value on consumer preference and intentions

Though value has received significant attention in the marketing literature in recent years, research on the concept has been somewhat limited in the context of online shopping, particularly in regards to empirical hypothesis testing. This paper examines the relevancy of value dimensions for online shopping and the relationship between value dimensions, preference towards the Internet retailer, and intentions. Findings from the large-scale study indicate that utilitarian value is more strongly related than hedonic value to preference towards the Internet retailer and intentions and that shopping frequency can play a moderating role. The paper concludes with a discussion of limitations and managerial implications.     

Guilt online vs. offline: What are its consequences on consumer behavior?

Although various consumption episodes, types of products, and dimensions of guilt have been examined in previous studies, the existing literature has not addressed whether guilt could arise differently depending on the purchase channel (online versus in-store). This research thus investigates the effect of the purchase channel on consumer's guilt and the consequences of that guilt on consumer's anticipated satisfaction. Two experiments conducted in different contexts show that perceived value moderates the relationship between the purchase channel and guilt. Further, we demonstrate that perceived value is also a moderator of the mediating effect of guilt in the influence of the purchase channel on anticipated satisfaction.     

Window displays and consumer shopping decisions

Window displays are an ubiquitous and prominent but under-researched element of retail strategy. This paper explores how the store and product category information communicated by a store's windows are related to consumers’ shopping decisions, such as store entry and product purchase, and how these relationships vary for consumer segments that differ in terms of their knowledge of the retailer's product(s). Results of a study conducted in the context of clothing retailers demonstrate that the store entry decision is related both directly as well as indirectly (through acquisition of inferred, store-related information) to the acquisition of observed, store-related information from window displays. However, it is product category-related information (e.g. fashion and product-self fit) rather than store-related information (e.g. merchandise and store image) that is more strongly associated with the product purchase decision. Moreover, consumers with medium levels of clothing knowledge are more influenced by windows in their shopping decisions than those with low or high levels.     

Being hybrid: a conceptual update of consumer self and consumption due to online/offline hybridity

ABSTRACT

Emergent mobile technologies are dramatically and rapidly changing not only the way we consume but also the way we live. In theory, it is becoming harder and harder to keep pace with the changes already embodied in practice. First, this paper aims to reduce the gap between theory and practice by introducing online/offline hybridity both as a new kind of hybridity and a universal contemporary human condition. Second, it presents the concept of hybrid space as a new frame of reference, as an overarching conception of our everyday. Third, it proposes the necessary micro-level updates regarding consumer self and consumption due to these changes in perspective. Fourth, it concludes by introducing privatescapes as a new global flow of shared private content with a significant impact on consumer behaviour.     

Illusion of safety: How consumers underestimate manipulation and deception in online (vs. offline) shopping contexts

Online commerce changes how consumers shop for products and services—while also giving firms more control over consumers' shopping experience, more access to their information, and leading more firms to use these platforms to their financial advantage. In this research, I examine consumer perceptions of firms when they shop for products and services online (vs. offline), to determine whether consumers feel firms might use certain kinds of manipulative and deceptive tactics against consumers. Results show consumers believe firms are less likely to use manipulative and deceptive practices to increase consumer spending, when they shop online (vs. offline) for products and services. These findings remain consistent despite key individual differences (in ethnicity, gender, age, and time spent online). This research also demonstrates how certain cues can make consumers more (vs. less) suspicious of firms when they shop online and discusses the implications these findings have for consumer financial welfare.     

Online consumer shopping behaviour: A review and research agenda

Over the last two decades, motivated by the continuous evolution of the technology-driven retail environment, researchers have studied various aspects of online consumer behaviour. This article attempts to take stock of this environment to critically assess the research gaps in the domain and provide future research directions. Applying a well-grounded systematic methodology following the TCCM (theory, context, characteristics and methodology) framework, 197 online consumer shopping behaviour articles were reviewed. The findings reveal that the application of theories remains limited in the current pool of literature that focuses more on developed nations. While studies have primarily considered categories such as apparel and grocery, in terms of methodology experimental and survey-based studies were most common. Additionally, the article suggests some future research directions. The use of combined theories to better understand technology acceptance by consumers of online-shopping is recommended. Similarly, studies across other categories like online experiential luxury, luxury services, or second-hand products that then link to novel constructs reflecting issues with payment methods, online service quality, and online store atmosphere are portrayed as meaningful avenues that will advance research in the domain.     

Untangling the relationships between consumer characteristics,shopping values,and behavioral intention in online group buying

This study examines the link among consumer characteristics (price-sensitive behavior, variety-seeking behavior, and compulsive buying behavior), shopping values (utilitarian and hedonic shopping values), and behavioral intention in online group buying (OGB). This study tests usable responses collected by means of mall-intercept systematic sampling from consumers who previously participated in OGB. Structural equation modeling was used to analyze data and test the hypothesized relationships. Findings suggest that price-sensitive and variety-seeking behaviors are significantly related to utilitarian shopping value, whereas price-sensitive, variety-seeking, and compulsive buying behaviors are significantly related to hedonic shopping value. Both utilitarian and hedonic shopping values significantly influence consumers’ OGB intentions. For a successful OGB strategy, Internet marketers and site operators should emphasize the utilitarian shopping value of price saving and selection and introduce the hedonic shopping values of promotions and sensory experiences. This study provides a link between two streams of prior research – that is, consumer characteristics and shopping values. Furthermore, it validates an empirical model whose results can help business practitioners make better-informed marketing management decisions for OGB and help academics and consumers better understand OGB behavior.     

Understanding the omnichannel customer journey: The effect of online and offline channel interactivity on consumer value co-creation behavior

Building on the service dominant logic, this study explores the effect of online and offline channel interactivity on consumers’ value co-creation behavior (VCB), the mediating effect of brand involvement, and the moderating effect of cross-channel consistency (CCC). We surveyed 387 customers who engage in omnichannel shopping. The relationship between online and offline channel interactivity and VCB was positive and partially mediated by brand involvement. The interaction effect of online channel interactivity (ONI) and offline channel interactivity (OFI) had a negative effect on brand involvement when CCC was low but a non-significant positive effect when CCC was high. These findings enrich the theoretical understanding of value co-creation and provide insights into omnichannel management.     

Understanding the online consumer: A typology of online relational norms and behavior

Relational norms governing Web-based interaction provide the basis for a typology of relationship orientation manifested by consumers online. Clustering techniques are applied to survey data collected online to identify four groups: Transactional Community Members, Socializers, Personal Connectors, and Lurkers. Cluster assignment is validated by examination of segment means, under volitional versus constraint-based marketing contexts. Relational profiles are developed, differentiated by the strength of relational norms and exhibited interactive behavior. Results suggest investment in community-building infrastructure (i.e., chat rooms, bulletin boards, interactive events), has a positive effect on the future loyalty intentions of highly relational patrons. Implications and future research directions are discussed.     

Consumer perceptions of online shopping environments: A gestalt approach

Although Web pages and sites consist of a multitude of individual cues, this paper argues that marketers need a gestalt approach to understand how consumers perceive online shopping environments. Following a systematic review of the literature on categorizations of online shopping environments, this paper develops and tests a gestalt model of consumer perceptions of online shopping environments. The model shows that consumers perceive online shopping environments in terms of their sense‐making and exploratory potential. It encompasses perceptions at the level of both individual pages and the experience consisting of the navigation through a succession of pages accessed during one visit. It also accounts for the informational needs all shoppers possess, reflected in the central role of information in online shopping environments. The model confirms the importance of the three main categories investigated in the literature (ease of understanding, informativeness, and involving qualities), but provides a theoretically grounded explanation of how consumers perceive online shopping environments holistically. It can form a basis from which to envisage organismic and behavioral responses. ©2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Understanding the influence of submission devices on online consumer reviews:A comparison between smartphones and PCs

Online consumer reviews (OCRs) are of immense value to businesses and consumers. With the rapid development of mobile Internet, smartphones have become an important device for consumers to publish OCRs. Information input is more difficult on smartphones than on PCs because of the screen size, the convenience of using keyboard and the interference of use situation. Based on cognitive cost theory, this study compares the differences of the statistical characteristics of OCRs (study 1) and the narrative content of OCRs (study 2) submitted via smartphones and PCs about material purchases in B2C websites. In study 1, an analysis of 24,933 OCRs across six products shows that OCRs submitted via smartphones have fewer words, more images, higher star rating, and shorter time interval than via PCs. In study 2, by coding and analyzing 1001 OCRs, the results show that OCRs submitted via smartphones are less likely to mention price, product functionality, product quality, product aesthetics, service quality, logistics quality, and attitudinal loyalty than via PCs, whereas no significant difference is observed in the dimensions of seller trustworthiness, cognitive attitude, emotional attitude, and recommendation expression. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.