Estimating joint preference: A sub-sampling approach

Individual and joint preference inform about different aspects of a product's marketing strategy. While individual preference is easily measured, joint preference is expensive to obtain. The author proposes a sub-sampling approach that uses MCMC and data imputation techniques to estimate individual and joint preference. It requires individual data from the entire sample and joint data from a fraction of the sample. Empirical evidence suggests that the sub-sampling approach works well when joint data are collected from 25% of the sample. Predictive and correlation tests demonstrate the superiority of the proposed approach. Greater than 50% reduction in data collection cost is shown.     

When worlds collide: The implications of panel data-based choice models for consumer behavior

Panel data, both diary and scanner, have been analyzed by marketing scientists for over thirty years. One of the important uses of panel data is to better understand consumer behavior by developing and testing hypotheses using the revealed preference data rather than experimental data that uses only self-reported behavior or behavior in a simulated choice environment. The purpose of this paper is to suggest areas of research where panel data can be used to better understand the underlying behavior of the panel members.     

Analysis of multiple response in marketing research: Estimating the degree of association

Researchers often are forced to analyze nominally-scaled multiple response questions for which respondents have provided more than one response. A Multiple Index of Predictive Association (MIPA) is derived for estimating the effect of the independent variable on the dependent variable when one or both variables have multiple responses. MIPA is illustrated using demographic and preference data. The relevance of the Multiple Index of Predictive Association to marketing and its implications are discussed.     

Using stated response choice data to enrich revealed preference discrete choice models

There is growing interest in exploring the view that both revealed preference (RP) and stated preference (SP) data have useful information and that their integration will enrich the overall explanatory power of RP choice models. These two types of data have been independently used in the estimation of a wide variety of discrete choice applications in marketing. In order to combine the two data sources, each with independent choice outcomes, allowance must be made for their different scaling properties. The approach uses a full information maximum likelihood estimation procedure of the hierarchical logit form to obtain suitable scaling parameters to make one or more data sets comparable. We illustrate the advantages of the dual data strategy by comparing the results with those obtained from models estimated independently with RP and SP data. Data collected as part of a study of high speed rail is used to estimate a set of illustrative mode choice models.     

Circular or angular? How nostalgia affects product shape preference

As an important marketing strategy, nostalgia marketing is widely used by enterprises to attract consumers and influence their decision-making. Besides, feelings of nostalgia can be easily elicited in people's daily life and exert a great impact on them. Though the effect of nostalgia on consumer behavior has been extensively studied, whether and how nostalgia affects consumer preference for products with certain visual designs remain underexplored. Our research extends this domain by focusing on product shape preference as a new downstream consequence of nostalgia. Five studies (including one field experiment) demonstrate that nostalgia can increase consumer preference for circular-shaped products, with social connectedness as the underlying driver. Moreover, the indirect effect of nostalgia on circular shape preference via social connectedness is moderated by consumers' current social connections, such that the effect holds true for consumers with a low number of current social connections but is eliminated for those with a high number of current social connections. Together, marketers seeking to increase the sales of circular-shaped products may use nostalgic elements or cues in marketing campaigns.     

A brand preference and repurchase intention model: the role of consumer experience

Consumer brand preference is an essential step towards understanding consumer choice behaviour, and has therefore always received great attention from marketers. However, the study of brand preference has been limited to traditional marketing focusing on functional attributes to maximise utility. But now the shift to experiential marketing broadens the role of the brand from a bundle of attributes to experiences. Technological advancements have helped to increase the similarities between brand attributes and product commoditisation. Consequently, consumers cannot shape their preferences among brands using rational attributes only. They seek out brands that create experiences; that intrigue them in a sensorial, emotional and creative way. This study seeks to develop a model that provides an understanding of how brand knowledge and brand experience determine brand preference and to investigate its impact on brand repurchase intention. Accordingly, exploratory focus group discussions are employed followed by a survey of mobile phone users in Egypt. The findings provide insights into the relative importance of consumer perceptions on different brand knowledge factors in shaping brand preferences. It also demonstrates the significance of consumers’ experiential responses towards brands in developing their brand preferences that in turn influence brand repurchase intention. The model therefore offers managers a new perspective for building strong brands able to gain consumer preferences.     

The impact of customised mobile marketing on passenger shopping behaviour in the airport terminal

With growing popularity of mobile devices, digital marketing strategies are increasingly important for modern airports. This paper studied context-aware mobile marketing strategies in the airport retail environment. An on-site mobile marketing experiment was conducted at a partner airport to explore how preference and/or location-based mobile coupons could affect passengers’ retail behaviour. Results show that retail shopping became more efficient (less browsing time) with mobile marketing influence, but not necessarily more effective (not higher spending amount). Randomly pushed mobile marketing information is effective in keeping passengers in shops for longer but context-aware mobile marketing is more effective in increasing spending amount.     

Memory Enhances the Mere Exposure Effect

The fact of having already encountered something encourages future preference, a phenomenon known as the mere exposure effect (MEE). There is a widely accepted view that recognition inhibits the MEE. Here this view is contested and the generality of the findings upon which it is based questioned. New evidence is presented from a systematic investigation of the moderating influence of recognition memory on the MEE, using brand logo stimuli and methods that make the results directly applicable to marketing practice. It is shown that recognition, whether correct or mistaken, enhances, rather than inhibits, the likelihood of preference.     

Political Campaign Advertising: Believe It or Not

SUMMARY

The extent that political advertising in elections is believed by voters' is an important issue for public policy, political marketing, and marketing in general. Much effort and funding is devoted to communicating with voters' during elections via advertising. This study examined political advertising believability and three potential antecedents of believability during an election. The data were gathered via a random sample of voters immediately following an election and the results indicate that believability is influenced by a voters' involvement, perceived control and satisfaction and that party preference plays a key role in believability of competing campaigns.     

城市居民旅游目的地偏好的差异性研究——以长沙为例

掌握城市居民对旅游目的地偏好的差异,利于旅游目的地的营销。调查了长沙居民,通过交叉分析和卡方检验,计算其偏离度发现:清静乡村型旅游目的地偏好的性别和学历分异明显,男性比女性更加偏好,研究生层次的消费者对清静乡村型旅游目的地表现出最强偏好;在自然山水旅游目的地类型中,家庭月收入在2000元以上或大专文化程度的消费者表现出很强的偏好;在热闹都市旅游目的地类型中,高中、中专或职高层面的消费者相对于其它文化程度的消费者来说,偏好最强。     

The Joint identification of utility and discount functions from stated choice data: An application to durable goods adoption

We present a survey design that generalizes static conjoint experiments to elicit inter-temporal adoption decisions for durable goods. We show that consumers’ utility and discount functions in a dynamic discrete choice model are jointly identified using data generated by this specific design. In contrast, based on revealed preference data, the utility and discount functions are generally not jointly identified even if consumers’ expectations are known. The separation of current-period preferences from discounting is necessary to forecast the diffusion of a durable good under alternative marketing strategies. We illustrate the approach using two surveys eliciting Blu-ray player adoption decisions. Both model-free evidence and the estimates based on a dynamic discrete choice model indicate that consumers make forward-looking adoption decisions. In both surveys the average discount rate is 43 percent, corresponding to a substantially higher degree of impatience than the rate implied by aggregate asset returns. The estimates also reveal a large degree of heterogeneity in the discount rates across consumers, but only little evidence for hyperbolic discounting.     

基于消费者理性化与主权化的营销思维重组

本文认为,随着金融危机的爆发,中国消费者的心理及行为特征已经呈现理性化与主权化交织的状态,既关注产品和服务的性价比,同时坚持原有的品牌偏好,注重商品的符号价值,通过消费来进行自我建构和社区联系,追求真实与短暂的愉悦和刺激,注重参与和体验.部分营销技术也因此失去其效用.这就要求我们站在一个新位置进行营销思维重组:营销的聚焦可由具体性的营销组合操作转变到注重对消费者的了解和营销生态的把握,在保证产品质量和安全等基础营销责任的同时消解营销霸权而贴近消费者,让渡市场权力,让消费者通过体验和参与来进行自我价值的创造.     

Ad wearout wearout: How time can reverse the negative effect of frequent advertising repetition on brand preference

This paper reports a surprising reversal in the effect of advertising repetition over time. A field study shows higher annoyance with a more frequently advertised brand at the time of advertising, but greater preference for this same brand several weeks later. A longitudinal online experiment replicates the reversal in brand preference across four time points and tests an underlying mechanism for this reversal. It shows that initial annoyance with frequent ad repetition is highly susceptible to decay over time, whereas brand memory remains relatively stable. Through these two processes, brands with heavier advertising exposure move over time from lower preference to higher preference. Finally, a third experiment demonstrates a crucial condition for this reversal — product relevance at the time of consideration. This study shows that the reversal occurs only if at the later time the product category is relevant. We discuss the substantial implications of these findings for marketing theory and practice.     

Perceptions of Small Businesses Toward Professional Marketing Research Services

In spite of small businesses comprising about 97 per- cent of the business firms in the United States and perhaps being less qualified to carry out research projects themselves, professional marketing research organizations tend to concentrate their efforts on solicitin business from large firms. The present study surveyed 320 small usinesses in one SMSA to determme their level of confidence in various sup liers of marketing research services, their future re- search needs, the degree of confidence they have in their own research capability, and their preference for outside assistance. Results from the study provide information that should be useful to marketing re- search organizations wishing to penetrate this extensive small busi- ness market.     

Comparing stated and realized preferences for shade‐grown vs. conventionally grown coffee

We used both stated preference and revealed preference data to estimate willingness to pay (WTP) for shade‐grown coffee as compared with conventionally grown coffee. Stated preference data was collected using contingent valuation studies. Revealed preference data came from an experiment where all survey participants received a personally identifiable voucher redeemable for a free bakery item when the holder purchased a coffee. We compared estimates of mean and median WTP a price premium for shade‐grown coffee from stated preference data with similar estimates from revealed preference data. We used a logit model to evaluate the effect of explanatory variables (measures of environmental attitudes, personal norms for pro‐environmental behaviour and demographic variables) on respondents’ WTP a price premium for shade grown coffee. Model parameters were estimated using the maximum likelihood approach. Respondents with higher scores on measures of environmental attitudes and personal norms for pro‐environmental behaviour were, on average, willing to pay more for shade‐grown coffee. While this paper examined a specific case, purchase of shade‐grown coffee, our results confirmed that stated environmental concern was a good predictor of pro‐environmental behaviour. We found that mean and median WTP estimates from stated preference methods were higher, but not significantly different than mean and median WTP estimates from actual purchases, indicating convergent validity between stated and realized preference methods. The majority of individuals both stated WTP a price premium and purchased shade‐grown coffee at a price premium. We did, however notice some interesting behaviour at the individual level where stated preferences under‐predicted realized preferences at low price‐premia and over‐predicted realized preferences at high price premia.     

Market Driven Manufacturing

World-Class Manufacturing has received a great dealof attention in the past few years, drawing largely on successfulJapanese manufacturing practices. There has also been a separateexplosion in the use of conjoint analysis to determine customerpreferences for marketing purposes. In this paper these two developmentsare used together to determine the most advantageous manufacturingpriorities for a given competitive situation. For illustrationpurposes we use customer preference data from automobiles; thesepreferences are segmented and we then show how the various segmentslink to differing sets of manufacturing priorities. Finally,we examine how strategic manufacturing priorities can be translatedinto specific action-oriented improvement programs.     

Determinants of Consumer Preferences for Honey in the Democratic Republic of Congo

Honey is one of the important non-timber forest products consumed in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and, as such, an important source of income for many households. However, poor knowledge of buyers’ preferences in the marketing of honey presents a major challenge to the profitability of the honey enterprises. The research presented in this article identifies key consumer characteristics that influence the preferences of honey consumers in the DRC. The primary data source used in this analysis is drawn from a survey of 214 consumers. Results show that consumers who are married and have reached at least the level of secondary education have a strong preference for local forest and savannah honey. Those between the ages of 30 and 50 do not prefer honey from beekeeping, but would rather have it imported. We conclude that segmentation of the honey market and increasing consumer awareness must go in tandem in order to develop a good marketing strategy.