Recycling as a marketing problem: A framework for strategy development

This article provides a framework for integrating past recycling research by conceptualizing recycling compliance as a marketing problem. Within a social marketing framework, recycling behavior is considered the product, and the marketing problem is to sell recycling to the consumers or public. Recycling research is then categorized as consumer research (research on characteristics of the recycler), pricing research (research on the costs to the consumer, including implicit or less tangible costs), distribution research (research on modes of participation for the recycler), and promotional research (research on intervention strategies such as raffles and contests, personal selling techniques such as block leader programs, and persuasive communications). Using this framework, we provide an integration of a vast amount of recycling research, and also suggest how this research can be used to design actionable strategies for the development of community recycling programs. © 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Coupon Usage and Frequent Buyer Club Participation by Lower,Middle, and Upper Social Classes

Abstract

More than 75% of households belong to at least one frequent-buyer club program and over 90% of these households use their cards almost every time they shop. Presently, customer-loyalty efforts are a major promotional priority for 56% of marketers. However, marketing scientists have not compared the social class participation levels of frequent-buyer club members to those of coupon-users and “ordinary” customers. By performing this comparison, it was found that the coupon-user (p < 0.01) and frequent-buyer (p < 0.01) groups had lower social class standings than did the “ordinary” households. Moreover, because there were no significant (p < 0.20) differences between the upper, middle, and lower social class standings of coupon-users and frequent-buyers, managerial substitutions of frequent-buyer promotions for coupon efforts seem rational.     

Our working women: An underutilized resource

Attitudes toward the role of women in society are changing;. today, nearly half of all women between the ages of 18 and 64 hold jobs outside the home. The authors explore the current situation of these women in respect to their increasing awareness and the myths that still surround their employment. The investigation of four major areas of employment—education, government, politics, and business-reveals that women are inequitably treated in all four. A positive action program is suggested that would help to bring women into full participation in growth and development. The program requires management commitment, policy review, an audit of women's present status, measurement of attitudes, and continuous monitoring and adjustment of the program.     

The effect of the WIC program on consumption patterns in the cereal category

The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) is a federally-funded food assistance program for low income participants who are at nutritional risk. Beneficiaries receive vouchers for specific foods and brands, selected for their nutritional value. While the program is designed to improve nutrition, it may also induce changes in consumption behavior that persist beyond participation in the program. In this paper, we study how participation in WIC impacts the consumption patterns and preferences during and after the program. Our analysis focuses on the cereal category, in which the subsidized brands must meet certain nutritional guidelines. As expected, during the program households increase cereal consumption volume and shift their choices towards the WIC-approved brands. More interesting is that once households exit the program, the higher category consumption rate and elevated share of WIC brands persist. To understand the behavioral mechanism underlying these consumption patterns, we estimate a choice model and find an increased preference for WIC brands after controlling for state dependence. The evidence suggests that this targeted food subsidy program is effective in creating behavior change that persists even after the incentive is withdrawn.     

Determinants of Fresh and Frozen Fruit and Vegetable Expenditures in Turkish Households: A Bivariate Tobit Model Approach

In this study, we have identified the effects of socio-demographic and economic factors of household heads and households on monthly expenditures of fresh and frozen fruit and vegetable in Turkey using the bivariate Tobit model. The results show that both the probability and monthly spending levels of household fruit and vegetable consumption increase with increasing in age of household heads, educational levels of household heads, married household heads, household income, and the number of adults in a family, while male-headed households, working household heads, the households that receive in-kind help from the government or private sector, and the use of internet at home decrease both the likelihood and spending levels of fruit and vegetable consumption in Turkey. The results in the study may contribute to the stakeholders to identify and implement effective marketing strategies and also develop more effective policies for the government to improve nutritional levels for certain dwellings for which the government include them in the certain state-initiated benefit program.     

Sexual Behavior and References in Program Promotions Aired During Sweeps and Nonsweeps Periods

A content analysis of on-air progmm promotions ap- pearing on the ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox networks was conducted to ascertain the degree to which promotional spots contain sexual acts or language, and whether the networks increase their use of sexual images and words in promos aired during sweeps. A total of 171 hours of prime time programming were videotaped over a three- month period in the fall of 1990. A total of 1,705 promotional spots were present between and within the programs. Analyses revealed that one in five promotions contained sexual acts or references. The most commonly-occurring sexual incident was kissing. An average of one verbal or visual instance of intercourse occurred every three hours. Depictions of or comments about sexual responsibility includ- ing STDs and pregnancy prevention were rarely in evidence. There were more sexual incidents per hour in nonsweeps promotions than in promotions aired during sweeps. Sex was more prevalent in promo- tions for dramas and movies, and NBC program advertisements were the most sex-laden.     

Financial Education Interventions Targeting Immigrants and Children of Immigrants: Results from a Randomized Control Trial

We document that immigrants in the United States differ from natives in several aspects relevant for their financial decision making. Based on these differences, we designed novel financial education materials targeted at US immigrants and their children and evaluated their effectiveness using a randomized control trial. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first rigorous evaluation of financial education programs targeted at this population. Compared to a control group, the groups that received the one‐time educational intervention were more likely to correctly answer financial knowledge questions immediately after the intervention. The estimated effects of this one‐time intervention on knowledge were large, but most of them faded away after six months. Moreover, we find little effect of the treatments on intended financial behavior measures, both immediately and six months later. Our results point to the efficacy of this type of educational material in informing immigrants and their children about important financial information that they are unfamiliar with, including information related to their immigrant status. However, they also suggest that a priority for future research should be to test whether repeated opportunities for learning can increase financial knowledge retention and lead to behavior change.     

The Response to the Commitment with Block-Leader Recycling Promotion Technique: A Longitudinal Approach

SUMMARY

This article focuses on the study of the changes in consumers' recycling beliefs, attitudes, and behavior due to the application of one promotion technique: a commitment by block leader technique characterized by the agreeing participant signing a request or statement in which s/he makes a commitment to recycle as a result of the encouragement of a person who belongs to the same social circle. We therefore carried out a quasi-experimental work whose results enable us to explain the response to this recycling promotion technique. It makes a contribution to existing environmental literature by (1) systemizing the set of existing doctrines in order to explain the response to this recycling promotion technique, and (2) revealing the effects of this technique on people's beliefs and attitudes. The practical implications that may stem from these contributions are of an educational nature and should be of use to the public management of promotion campaigns.     

The role of training in reducing poverty: the case of the ultra‐poor in Bangladesh

Although microcredit is considered the main vehicle for increasing the income of the poor and alleviating poverty in Bangladesh, it is now well recognised that more than this is needed to reach the ultra poor in rural areas. Consequently, almost half of the Bangladesh population is in some way linked to non‐governmental organizations' development programmes, at the centre of which is poverty alleviation. The study reported here developed a comprehensive cross‐sectional intervention to examine whether the income of those who participated in the training programmes of non‐governmental organizations was related to that participation. The study was carried out in three leading organizations in three districts of Bangladesh using a quantitative associational research design. Three hundred responses were analysed using multiple regression analysis to elicit information from ultra poor clients who had received training. The results suggest that the post‐training income level of the trainees was negatively rather than positively related to the fact of their participation in training, the opposite of what human capital theory would lead us to expect.     

Effects of marketing and relationship variables on service intermediaries' promotional program participation

Many service companies sell services through independent intermediaries. Using the Taiwanese life insurance industry as a research context, the author investigates the influence of a life insurance company's marketing (product attractiveness and financial incentives) and relationship (interpersonal relationships and bargaining costs) variables on banks' participation in its promotional program. Both marketing and relationship variables significantly affect the bank's participation, though the marketing variables are more important determinants of participation. Product attractiveness dominates all other factors. Finally, these variables have independent rather than contingent effects on the bank's decisions.     

Household Economic Security and Public Policy

There are three challenges to household economic security: Slow income growth at the lower and middle parts of the income distribution, swings in households’ use of debt and leverage, and large numbers of households with low savings. Appropriate policy responses to these include increasing worker skills through greater opportunities for education and training, removing barriers to labor force participation, strengthening the safety net, improving access to credit while reducing exposure to harmful aspects of debt use, and making retirement savings easier and more automatic.     

Perceived justice and post-recovery satisfaction in banking service failures: Do commitment types matter?

Based on the notion that the types of customer commitment to a service provider may have diverse reasons and effects on the customer’s perceptions, attitudes, and behaviors, this study aims to investigate the different buffering effects of calculative and affective commitments on the perceived justice and post-recovery satisfaction (PRS) relationship. Multiple and hierarchical regression analyses were conducted based on survey data collected from 284 households who experienced service failure in the banking sector. Results revealed that while affective commitment moderates the effects of procedural and interactional justice, calculative commitment increases the impact of distributive and procedural justice on PRS.     

Audience Segmentation of Kentucky Mothers by Nonparticipation Status in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women,Infants, and Children

We identify women most and least likely to discontinue participation in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program. Kentucky WIC program management information system data from 2012 to 2013 was explored through a retrospective cohort study. Audience segmentation identified unique groups with respect to nonparticipation. Presumptive eligibility for Medicaid was the strongest predictor of nonparticipation. Among those who were not presumptively eligible, women who were the only ones in their households enrolled in the program were at higher risk of nonparticipation. Outreach strategies at the point of enrollment or when presumptive eligibility for Medicaid is granted could mitigate further nonparticipation.     

Estimating population-based injury prevention practices

This study piloted a survey suitable to generate statewide prevalence estimates for injury prevention practices and/or behaviours. A number of prevalence estimates of injury prevention practices and/or behaviours were generated in the pilot. For example, the prevalence of a household smoke alarm was high (732/1000 households) and yet only 44% of households had tested the functionality of the alarm in the 12 months preceding the survey. Findings of this kind point to an increasing need for primary care practitioners to play a leading role in targeting preventive strategies for injury. In addition, the survey methods and approach highlight the value of such information to health departments and non-government agencies in terms of targeting priority injury risk behaviours and the evaluation of injury-related intervention programmes. The survey has been designed so the methods can be applied nationally and internationally.     

Supermarket Shoppers' Response to Mature Models in Point-of-Purchase Displays

Abstract

Point-of-purchase advertising influences up to 70 percent of purchases in supermarkets (Bauer 1995). Based on the increased attention to including more older models in promotional materials in recognition of the aging population and the potential socialization effects of promotional tools, an experiment was conducted to assess the impact of older point-of-purchase display models on younger shoppers in a supermarket display. The results indicate that retailers' and manufacturers' fears of alienating younger shoppers if older models are used are largely unfounded. Managerial implications are provided.     

Using response behaviour theory to solicit survey participation in consumer research: An empirical study

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to report on research that examines survey participation rates (i.e. response rates) for personal interview surveys where solicitation for participation is based on different theories of survey-response behaviour in two culturally distinct countries. Field experiments were designed to investigate the extent to which the theories of exchange, cognitive dissonance, self-perception, and involvement/commitment can influence potential respondents to participate in a personal interview survey in Australia and Hong Kong. The results show that there were significant differences in Australia with the theory of self-perception having the strongest impact on survey-response behaviour, while cognitive dissonance has the least impact. In contrast, the effects in Hong Kong were not significant. This study adds to the limited empirical research regarding why consumers participate in surveys, particularly personal interview surveys. The theories are applied at the self-introduction and invitation to participate, which is a crucial stage in the potential respondent's decision about participation.     

The Relationship between Consumers' Unethical Behavior and Customer Loyalty in a Retail Environment

This paper investigates the relationship between two outcomes of relationship marketing – affective commitment and behavioral loyalty – and consumers' unethical behavior. The main objective of the study is to assess whether affective commitment and behavioral loyalty to a store translate into more ethical behavior towards that store, controlling for the variables of age, gender, and ethical beliefs. The study does not rely on a single measurement tool, but is based on ten months' panel data and three different mail surveys targeted at 359 Belgian households. The results provide support for our hypothesis that affective commitment is indeed negatively correlated with consumers' unethical behavior. The same conclusion could not be drawn for the relationship between behavioral loyalty and consumers' unethical behavior. No significant relationship was detected, not even in situations where affective commitment was high. The results hold major implications for retailing practice.     

Encouragement Designs: An Approach to Self-Selected Samples in an Experimental Design

When subjects choose their own treatment (are self-selected into treatments based on their varying compliance with assignment to treatment states), many of the well-developed techniques of randomization-based experimental design and analysis are no longer applicable. With random assignment to treatment and control conditions, we can reasonable assume that over many replications, the two groups will be similar in all respects (observed and not observed) but that of receiving the treatment. With non-random assignment, it may be true that the groups differ on the variable of interest prior to receiving the treatment, and that a measured post-treatment difference (or lack thereof) will be erroneously attributed to the treatment. Our approach involves making all subjects aware of the availability of the treatment, but then offering extra encouragement (an encouragement design) to participate in the treatment to a randomly selected half of the population. If the encouragement is successful, we show how this leads to an estimable treatment effect (with associated asymptotic standard error).An illustrative example using fictitious data is presented in which we measure the effects of coupon books on store purchase behavior. A randomly selected half of the customers at a given store are assigned to receive coupon books as part of a package of store materials (the treatment condition) whereas the other half are not. We overlay on this initial randomized design an encouragement condition in which a second randomly chosen half of the store's customers receive their materials from an employee (encouraging participation with the treatment), and for the other half the materials were simply placed on a table. The market share of persons who chose to take the coupon book was 44% and 20% from those who did not. A naive estimate of the effect of the treatment is 24%; however this estimate ignores the self-selection bias (those persons assigned to receive the coupon book but refused to take it, and those not assigned who picked one up anyway). Using the encouragement design estimator derived leads to a lower estimated impact of the treatment at 5%. The difference in these results may have significant impact on the choice by store management to utilize employees to hand out promotional materials.Eric T. Bradlow is Assistant Professor of Marketing and Statistics     

Application of Telemarketing in University Foodservices

Abstract

One of the downsides of university foodservice operations is that non-mandated students are less likely to participate in the meal plan program. This paper discusses the development and use of telemarketing as a means of increasing student participation in non-mandated meal plans. Three goals were established for the telemarketing program: Increase revenues; define student participation factors; and generate goodwill. An analysis of revenues and costs attributed to the program showed that telemarketing was an effective means of increasing sales and generating profits.     

How individualism–collectivism influences consumer responses to the sharing economy: Consociality and promotional type

With the explosion of online exchange of products, the sharing economy is experiencing ever-increasing growth. Despite the increasing popularity of lateral exchange market platforms as part of the sharing economy, research has not yet adequately investigated cultural effects on how consumers’ intentions to purchase products on these platforms. Using two studies, this paper examines whether consumers high in individualism versus consumers high in collectivism respond differently to platforms with low versus high consociality and how individualistic and collectivistic consumers respond differently to two types of promotions that relate to self-maximization. Findings in Study 1 indicated that consumers high in individualism (collectivism) have higher patronage intentions toward a platform low (high) in consociality. Findings in Study 2 suggested that in the presence of a promotion, collectivistic consumers respond comparably to promotional types across platforms, whereas individualistic consumers respond more positively to collective (individual) promotions when consociality is low (high). Further, felt commitment to others as a result of the consociality/promotional type relationship explains these effects. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.