Online purchase determinants of loyalty: The mediating effect of satisfaction in tourism

The purpose of this research is to investigate the impact of four online purchase determinants (website image, routine, website knowledge and innovativeness) on customer loyalty and the mediating effect of customer satisfaction within the context of e-commerce. The research model is tested using data collected from 3188 regular buyers of the national leader in the sector being studied. The statistical analyses were conducted within the Structural Equation Modeling framework. Results show that there is a complete mediating effect of e-customer satisfaction in the relationship between three online purchase determinants (website image, online routine and website knowledge) and e-customer loyalty. The research results provide an important insight into how e-companies can pursuit and use delight to highlight customers' loyalty. These results allow for a better understanding of customer specificities, with practical actions aimed at their real needs and expectations.     

Managing customer loyalty through the mediating role of satisfaction in the DIY retail loyalty program

The focus of this study is the determinants of customer loyalty among members of retail loyalty programs. With data collected from a DIY loyalty program in a Central European country (a preliminary sample of 116 club members and a representative sample of 416 members), the study empirically tests the nature of the effect of the quality of personal interactions and perceptions of the quality of the loyalty program on customer loyalty through the mediating variable of customer satisfaction. Although the findings suggest that the quality of personal interactions bears no direct influence on members’ loyalty, it has a stronger influence on members’ satisfaction than the perceived quality of the loyalty program does. Influence on members’ loyalty is stronger from the mediating variable of customer satisfaction than from perceived quality of the loyalty program. This finding confirms the role of customer satisfaction as an important determinant of customer loyalty in the DIY setting. Offering a diagnostic tool in terms of selected direct and indirect determinants influencing customers’ loyalty, the paper also contributes to comprehension of loyalty programs’ effectiveness and members’ responses to the quality of loyalty programs, which contribution provides important implications for management and development of retail loyalty programs.     

Now or later: Delay's effects on post-consumption emotions and consumer loyalty

This study identifies differences in immediate and delayed post-consumption emotional assessments, triggering a dynamic shift in word-of-mouth evaluation and repurchase intention. Experiment 1 compares participants' responses to cellphone purchases in immediate and half-hour delay conditions. Experiment 2 generalizes the research scope by examining biscuit consumption and imposing an additional 24-hour delay. Results indicate that (1) products with higher hedonic value elicit excitement and cheerfulness, which intensify over time and increase consumer loyalty; (2) products with higher utilitarian value induce feelings of confidence and security, which gradually fade in intensity and diminish consumer loyalty over time; (3) products with lower hedonic value lead to dissatisfaction, which dissipates over time, and low-level consumer loyalty rises; and (4) products with lower utilitarian value generate feelings of anger, which grow over time and erode consumer loyalty.     

The impact of affective and cognitive app experiences on loyalty towards retailers

Although mobile applications (apps) are now widespread, to date few studies have considered the effects that app use has on loyalty towards the retailer. This study aims to explore the impact of affective and cognitive app experiences on loyalty towards retailers. A theoretical model, validated empirically with data from a survey using partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM), is proposed. The results show the key role of affective experience and its impact on cognitive experience and that both dimensions positively influence the satisfaction and trust that users have in apps, which in turn has a positive effect on loyalty felt towards the retailer. These findings contribute towards improving the theoretical knowledge of the impact of apps on the retailer-customer relationship, and guide businesses in developing and implementing appropriate app-related strategies.     

The provenance of loyalty card data for urban and retail analytics

The deployment of loyalty card and other consumer data in geographic research brings opportunities to explore and understand patterns of purchasing behaviour in unprecedented detail. However, valid generalisation requires thorough evaluation of their potential bias. We argue that, in competitive markets where consumers can choose to shop across competing retailers, loyalty card data from just one of these may not represent a ‘complete’ view of all purchases, and that this ‘completeness’ must be controlled for when assessing bias. To this end, we undertake a UK wide analysis of loyalty card data assembled by a major UK grocery retailer and provide guidelines for their effective deployment in the domains of urban and retail analysis. We assess, for the first time, the ‘completeness’ of circa 500 million customer transactions recorded by a major customer loyalty programme in representing the overall purchasing patterns of circa 16 million consumers across the entire UK, and develop a method by which to do this. Moreover, no operator has complete national store coverage, and so we suggest ways of accommodating this when conducting analysis using loyalty card data. We illustrate the importance of these issues before providing recommendations for the wider use of consumer loyalty card data.     

Creation of consumer loyalty and trust in the retailer through store brands: The moderating effect of choice of store brand name

Within the current economic context, store brands play an important role in differentiation strategies based on assortment and positioning in terms of distributor prices. To begin with, this study identifies three determining aspects of retail loyalty and trust: satisfaction with price levels, the perceived image of the assortment and loyalty to the store brands (SB). Secondly, this study proposes a theoretical relational model among the aforementioned aspects. Finally, this study analyzes the moderating role that the strategy of choosing SB name (umbrella brand label vs. brands different from the label brand) plays in the relationship between loyalty to SB and loyalty to and trust in the retailer. By including this moderating variable, we seek to contribute to current academic research and to provide insights into the importance that SB strategy (label vs. own name) has for the effect of loyalty to SB on the relative results of the retail company. Our research results show that making the umbrella SB name the same as the label brand name increases the positive effect of customer loyalty to SB on loyalty to the retailer, but not the effect of trust on this loyalty compared to chains that use SB names different from those of the label. These results have important implications for management.     

Differential effects of atmospheric cues on emotions and loyalty intention with respect to age under online/offline environment

Effects of atmospheric cues are usually not compared across offline and online contexts as well as across age groups. This study proposes a model that examines the effect of the atmospheric cues graphics design and information design on positive emotions and loyalty intentions. The model is compared across offline and online stores and regards the consumers' age as moderator. A field study was conducted, which collected data from 363 customers. Hypotheses are tested using structural equation modeling. Results for the offline context reveal that graphics design foster positive emotions and loyalty. Information design predicts loyalty. Results for the online context reveal that information design is salient over graphics design. Information design fosters positive emotions and loyalty, while graphics design does not. Further, we found that in the offline context positive emotions predict loyalty among younger customers but not among older ones. In the online context the effect of graphics design on loyalty is stronger and, thus, significant for younger customers than compared to older ones.     

Antecedents and outcomes of brand love: the mediating role of brand loyalty

The purpose of this study was to propose and test an integrative conceptual model which incorporates experience-based (i.e. brand experience) and non-experience-based (i.e. self-congruity) antecedents and behavioural outcomes (i.e. brand loyalty and positive word-of-mouth) of brand love. The conceptual model and proposed hypotheses of the study are analysed with a sample of 361 consumers by using a structured survey as a data collection instrument. Structural equation modelling was used to examine the hypothesized linkages among the constructs. The findings of the study demonstrate strong associations between both experience-based and non-experience-based antecedents and brand love, and between brand love and its behavioural outcomes. This study also corroborates the mediating role of brand loyalty on the impact of brand love on positive word-of-mouth. This study is expected to contribute to the field of brand management by investigating the simultaneous impact of experience-based and non-experienced-based antecedents on brand love and the mediating role of brand loyalty on the association between brand love and positive word-of-mouth, which has not been addressed in the previous literature.     

The impact of private labels on consumer store loyalty: An integrative perspective

This research studies the role of private labels (PLs) on consumers’ store loyalty. It offers an integrative approach that comprises several store loyalty drivers (in-store and economic factors), analyzing the role that PLs play among different types of retailers. Data were collected through an online survey. Using structural equation modeling, we run our analysis across different retail formats, assessing which factors lead to store loyalty and to what extent PLs contribute to it. Findings suggest that depending on retailers‘ market positioning, different factors contribute to loyalty and that the impact of PLs is mostly significant for medium-cost and premium supermarkets.     

Predicting behavioral loyalty through corporate social responsibility: The mediating role of involvement and commitment

This study examines whether consumers' perceptions of corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities can predict behavioral loyalty, and how two attitudinal constructs drawing from the means-end chain model—involvement and commitment—mediate this relationship. A field study of 634 customers of an Australian professional football team was conducted by combining attitudinal surveys with actual behavioral data collected one year later. The results revealed a positive mediating effect of involvement on the relationship between perceived CSR and behavioral loyalty. However, when the effect of involvement on behavioral loyalty was mediated by commitment, the indirect effect of perceived CSR turned negative. The findings of this study indicate that the contribution of CSR initiatives to behavioral loyalty is not as robust as past research suggests, and is also contingent upon specific psychological states activated by consumers' perceptions of such initiatives.     

The geography of e-shopping in China: On the role of physical and virtual accessibility

Although e-shopping is increasingly adopted, it remains unclear (1) how e-shopping varies geographically, and (2) how this relates to physical and virtual accessibility. This paper presents a combined study of both issues focusing on the case of China, arguably one of the emerging e-shopping hotspots. Drawing on Alibaba's Online Shopping Index, we use a general spatial model (SAC) to explore the role of virtual and physical accessibility in the spatial distribution of e-shopping across 276 prefecture-level cities in China. The results suggest that both physical accessibility (proxy-ed by the relative number of shopping malls and the relative number of buses) and virtual accessibility (proxy-ed by the percentage of broadband subscribers and the relative number of delivery points) increase e-shopping, with both effects complementing each other. We discuss how findings contribute to our understanding of the geography of e-shopping, and outline implications for policymakers and e-retailers alike.     

The link between customer satisfaction and loyalty: the moderating role of customer characteristics

This research examines whether trust and commitment mediate the extent to which satisfaction influences loyalty, and whether such mediation is conditional on certain demographic or situational customer characteristics. The findings suggest that assuming homogeneity supports the general notion that trust and commitment partially mediate the extent to which satisfaction influences loyalty. FIMIX-PLS and PLS-MGA analyses substantiate that this mediation differs between two distinct customer segments. The two segments reveal heterogeneity in how trust and commitment partially mediate the link between satisfaction and loyalty. That is, the effect of satisfaction on loyalty is fully mediated by trust and commitment in the segment of customers with high education, whereas satisfaction is partially mediated by trust, but not by commitment, in the other segment of customers with less education.     

Beyond good and bad: Challenging the suggested role of emotions in customer experience (CX) research

Our paper challenges several notions regarding emotion's role and their influence on the customer experience (hereafter CX). Based on our analysis, we develop the following five propositions to advance our understanding of emotions' role in customer experience research. First, we argue that positive and negative emotions can coexist during the consumption experience. Second, positive emotions do not automatically lead to positive consumption outcomes, and negative emotions may not necessarily generate negative results. Third, positive or negative emotions toward a company employee might not automatically transfer to the company as a whole. Fourth, customers are not apathetic victims of their emotions with no capability to control their emotional experiences. Our last proposition is that consumption emotions are not a purely intrapersonal phenomenon, but that the social context matters and influences the consumption experience. We propose a related future research agenda highlighting opportunities for scholars and managers alike.     

Online retail experience and customer satisfaction: the mediating role of last mile delivery

ABSTRACT

For various industries worldwide, recent years have been defined by the remarkable growth of e-commerce. Enabled by the Internet, retailers can reach more customers, spread much further in the distribution chain, and optimize their resources. In the new market environment, customer experience has become a source of competitive advantage. This study investigates the role of last mile delivery in the customer’s e-retail experience. A quantitative methodology was used, which incorporated a survey that was conducted in Sweden and measured participants’ most recent e-retail experience. The results indicate that the last mile delivery experience mediates the relationship between the customer’s perception of the online shopping experience and customer satisfaction. These conclusions provide ground for further thorough investigations of the role of last mile delivery in the e-retail context and support e-retailers in increasing their customers’ satisfaction.     

Impacts of retail brand personality and self-congruity on store loyalty: The moderating role of gender

The present study was an effort to investigate the impacts of both retail brand personality and self-congruity, using them together in the same study, on store loyalty. Subsequently, this study explored the moderating role of gender in these relationships of retail brand personality and self-congruity with store loyalty. Questionnaire was used to collect data (n=355) using systematic sampling from department store shoppers of age 18 years and above in Kolkata, a metropolitan city of India. Multivariate data analysis techniques like exploratory factor analysis, structural equation modeling were used to analyse the data. Results revealed that both retail brand personality and self-congruity constructs have positive impacts on store loyalty and gender significantly moderates these impacts. Arguably, this paper is the first to examine the three constructs namely, retail brand personality, self-congruity and store loyalty using them together in the same model. Academic and managerial implications are further discussed.     

Revenge buying: The role of negative emotions caused by lockdowns

With the stabilizing of COVID-19 and the lessening of isolation measures, the consumption market is gradually recovering. Consumers exhibit a tendency to compensate for the previous pent-up demand, triggering the phenomenon of revenge spending. Nevertheless, research on revenge buying during the pandemic has been limited thus far. Moreover, the role of negative emotions and retail therapy has not been well explored. Therefore, drawing from retail therapy theory and the stimulus-organism-response framework, this study aims to investigate how negative emotions, physiological motivations, and self-seeking stimulate consumers to form positive perceptions that revenge buying can provide therapeutic utilities, and consequently choose revenge buying. Empirical data were collected from China. The structural equation modelling results reveal that anxiety, boredom, self-seeking, and psychological motivation have a positive influence on therapeutic shopping motivation, therapeutic shopping value and therapeutic shopping outcome, which subsequently influence revenge buying behavior. The theoretical model provides a novel perspective to research revenge buying. Additionally, the results provide managerial implications for consumer, retailers, and policymakers to make preparedness for revenge buying in future health crises.     

Impact of customer experience on loyalty: a multichannel examination

This article examines the relation between the five dimensions of customer experience advocated by Schmitt [1999a. Experiential Marketing. Journal of Marketing Management, 15, 53–67] (cognitive, affective, sensory, behavioural and social) and service provider loyalty. The examination focuses on two different channels, namely branch/agency (physical) and online (Web-based). A total of 484 panellists of a large Canadian polling firm self-administered a Web-based questionnaire regarding banking experience. The exercise was subsequently replicated in the tourism sector. Findings demonstrate that the main dimension impacting loyalty is the affective dimension (negative), thereby contributing handsomely to experiential marketing literature since negative emotions are rarely investigated. Findings also reveal that choice of channel exerts a moderating effect on the different dimensions influencing loyalty and that results vary from one sector to another. The multidimensional, multichannel, multisector approach selected for this study substantiates customer experience as complex and context specific. The authors also suggest practical implications and set out avenues of future research.     

The influence of culture,emotions, intangibility,and atmospheric cues on online behavior

This paper examines how emotions and website atmospheric cues influence service tangibility and consumer attitudes. The proposed model was compared across three cultures: North America (Canada and U.S.), China, and the Middle East. The findings support the overall model and demonstrate several non-invariant paths across the groups. Particularly, the results suggest how the influences of two emotional dimensions (pleasure and dominance) on consumer perceptions of site atmospherics vary across cultures. Moreover, the effects of service tangibility dimensions (physical tangibility, specificity, and mental tangibility) on consumers' attitudes toward the website and service vary significantly across the three cultures. Mental tangibility has the greatest influence on North American customers' attitudes, while physical tangibility and specificity have the greatest impact on Chinese and Middle Eastern customers' attitudes, respectively.     

Assisting consumers in detecting fake reviews: The role of identity information disclosure and consensus

Current discussions in academia and in the press increase consumers’ awareness of potentially deceptive online reviews. The increasing practice of fake reviews posted online not only jeopardizes the credibility of review sites as important information sources for individuals but also endangers a valuable source of information for service providers. Two studies shed further light on the role of consensus and identity-related information in assisting consumers detect potentially faked reviews. In one preliminary study, a sample of 4826 rejected and 4881 published online reviews was analyzed to investigate the differences in the disclosure of author-related information such as name and age as well as star ratings across those reviews. In the main study, a 3 (identity disclosure) x 2 (consensus) x 2 (priming of fake reviews) experiment was carried out with 390 respondents. The results highlight the relevance of the review's consensus in relation to the overall rating of previous reviews and corroborate the results of the preliminary study from the perspective of an internet user: the value of the amount of available information on the review's author in assisting individuals detect potential fake reviews. This study complements research in computer science by highlighting the relevance of contextual—in addition to textual—indicators that assist internet users in detecting potentially deceptive online reviews.     

Effect of online 3D advertising on consumer responses: the mediating role of telepresence

Abstract

This study develops a conceptual framework for measuring the effectiveness of Internet-based 3D advertisements. The study uses an interdisciplinary literature review (marketing, information systems, and human–computer interaction) to enhance the understanding of the impact of using 3D visualisation in online advertisements, and to identify the most relevant conditions for application. The findings demonstrate the effectiveness of such ads in the case of a geometric product, as well as in the case of a material product. This study's results highlight the significance of telepresence as a mediator. The findings reveal that telepresence determines how ad format (2D versus 3D) influences the range of variables used to measure advertising effectiveness.