Background music tempo effects on food evaluations and purchase intentions

This article is a report of results of three studies investigating effects of fast versus slow background musical tempo on physiology, cognition, and emotions. Two pilot studies first measure consumer perceptions of tempo. In Studies 1 and 2, participants view a short video restaurant advertisement featuring fast or slow background music along with illustrations of food items. Results indicate that fast music is more effective than slow music for evoking positive taste expectations and purchase intentions. Study 3 shows that the effects observed in Studies 1 and 2 occur because fast music enhances self-reported arousal levels that then lead to enhanced moods, taste expectations, and purchase intentions. Theoretical implications regarding effects of music on emotional responses are discussed, as are practical managerial implications for using fast music as a persuasive technique.     

Determinants of consumers’ purchase behaviour towards green brands

This study applies perceived risk theory to explore the factors that influence consumers’ purchase behaviour towards green brands, including green perceived quality, green perceived value, green perceived risk, information costs saved, and purchase intentions towards green brands. This study focuses on consumers who have the experience of purchasing products from green brands in the food and restaurant service industry in Taiwan. The results of this study show that purchase intentions are positively associated with purchase behaviour. Moreover, the study demonstrates that purchase intentions mediate the impacts of green perceived quality, green perceived value, information costs saved, and green perceived risk on purchase behaviour. Specifically, green perceived risk is negatively influenced by green perceived value and information costs saved and functions as a mediator among green perceived value, information costs saved, and purchase intentions. The study has critical implications for green brand researchers and practitioners.     

Order effect of multi-touchpoints on Generation Z consumers

Abundant user-generated content has increasingly driven consumers to form or modify their purchasing decisions based on interactions with other consumers, although the extant research overlooks the customer-to-customer (C2C) interaction touchpoints. Based on the customer journey characteristics of cross-channel and multi-frequency interactions, this study explores the impact of interaction valence and interaction channel sequence on Generation Z consumers' purchase attitudes from the perspective of attitude modification process. Using a scenario-based experimental design in a restaurant setting, we sample 616 Generation Z students. Findings suggest that C2C interactions that have the same valence at each touchpoint strengthen Generation Z consumers' initial purchase attitude, whereas inconsistent valences modify purchase attitudes. Our results reveal that a negative-to-positive ordering is more conducive to the formation of a positive purchase attitude than a positive-to-negative ordering. Moreover, the cross-channel sequence of a customer journey moderates the inconsistent valence order such that the positive-to-negative order improves purchase attitude more than the negative-to-positive order. This study explains theoretically the difference of ambivalent experiences on Generation Z consumer attitudes. We provide practical suggestions for multi-channel restaurant enterprises to successfully employ customer journey touchpoint management.     

The Impact of Coupons on Service Quality Evaluations,Risk, and Purchase Intentions

Abstract

To attract customers, restaurants will often use coupons. This research examined the impact of a promotional coupon on service quality expectations, perceived purchase risk and purchase intentions. It was found that the use of coupons does increase purchase intentions and reduce perceived purchase risk. However, coupons were found to negatively influence service quality expectations. Implications of these findings for restaurant managers are discussed.     

Marketing externalities in industrial clusters: A literature review and evidence from the Christchurch,New Zealand electronics cluster

Literature on the internationalisation of small- and medium-sized firms identifies location in a geographic cluster of networked firms as a source of competitive advantage. In particular, local networks are cited as a source of market information and referrals that can help firms enter international markets. Co-location and the local interactions that it fosters create externalities that benefit entrepreneurial firms. This paper identifies four types of externalities: supply side, demand side, active, and passive. Supply and demand side refers to inputs to the firm and markets for outputs, respectively. Passive externalities occur simply because firms are co-located, while active externalities only occur because firms are co-located and work together in networks. Representatives of firms in the Christchurch, New Zealand electronics cluster were interviewed about the extent to which they perceive benefits from externalities. A statistical cluster analysis reveals two patterns of responses. Both groups of responses report benefiting from passive externalities. However, about 40% of the firms also benefit from active externalities. These firms are typically smaller and less export intense. The notion of active externalities has implications for the management of firms located in clusters. To benefit from active externalities, managers must develop capabilities that maximise network opportunities. There is also an implication for economic development policy: Resources should be targeted at encouraging active externalities rather than passive, as passive externalities occur without public intervention.     

Consumer Perceptions of Nonnutritive Sweetened Coffee in the Quick Service Restaurant Industry

This study aims to explore consumer perceptions of sugar-free specialty coffee in the quick-service restaurant (QSR) segment. Sugar-free specialty coffee products are made using nonnutritive sweeteners (NNS). Participants from a nationwide panel were surveyed about purchase intent of two categories of specialty coffee: syrup-sweetened with sugar or NNS in four popular flavors. Consumer demographics were used in a multistep multiple regression. The study found that, overall, females and younger consumers are most likely to purchase specialty coffee beverages. Additionally, an interaction revealed that younger consumers are most likely to purchase sugar-sweetened coffee beverages, whereas little variation in purchase intent was found between NNS and sugar-sweetened coffee beverages in older consumers.     

Restaurants and the Bring-Your-Own-Bottle of Wine Paradox: Involvement Influences,Consumption Occasions,and Risk Perception

The current study focuses on differences between high- and low-involvement consumers in terms of the bring-your-own-bottle of wine phenomenon, influence of consumption occasion(s), and how bring-your-own-bottle is used by consumers as purchase risk-reduction strategy. Results show that level of wine involvement determines the importance of bring-your-own-bottle of wine. The consumption situation in which bring-your-own-bottle of wine might occur is a main factor when buying wine. Bring-your-own-bottle of wine is largely the result of risk-reduction strategies where high-involvement wine consumers are more susceptible to perceived risk in the full-service casual restaurant sector and reduce this risk through bring-your-own-bottle.     

Capturing flexible correlations in multiple-discrete choice outcomes using copulas

This paper aims to examine three purchase patterns which frequently occur in multiple-discrete choice situations: joint-purchase, quantity-preference, and quantity-concordance. First, “joint-purchase” refers to the tendency that two products are either purchased together or separately. Second, “quantity-preference” refers to the tendency to purchase a product in preferred amounts. Third, “quantity-concordance” refers to the tendency that purchase quantities of two products are either concordant or discordant. These patterns are mainly attributed to unobserved factors such as economic reasons, habits, time pressure, mood, and/or physical environment. No study has fully incorporated the three purchase patterns simultaneously.In this study, we develop a unified copula-based approach which can incorporate all the three purchase patterns simultaneously. The proposed approach is so flexible that any copula function or parametric distribution can be used. We use a simulation study to illustrate the trade-off between the Gaussian copula and the FGM copula. We show the Gaussian copula which captures the full range of correlations quickly becomes infeasible as the number of choice alternatives increases. On the contrary, the FGM copula substantially reduces the computational complexity and is scalable to larger dimensions. Furthermore, we extend the range of correlations of the FGM copula at almost no cost by introducing the sine generating function. To show the scalability, we apply this approach to IRI scanner panel data with 13 alternatives. Throughout two empirical studies, we show that the three purchase patterns indeed exist in our data. Moreover, we find that ignoring the three purchase patterns distorts key managerial metrics such as demand predictions and price elasticities. This results in suboptimal managerial decisions regarding peelies promotions, bundling, and package size. Furthermore, we illustrate that managers can improve the profitability of promotions by implementing a joint promotion strategy based on the three purchase patterns.     

Intertemporal pricing strategies for fashion tech products with consumption externalities

With the rapid development of technology, more and more products tend to both meet customers’ functional needs and provide stylish consumption experiences at thesame time. We define them as “fashion tech” products. In practice there exist two opposite consumption externalities associated with “fashion tech” products. One, some customers are more likely to purchase the product if fewer customers can afford or have access to it to advertise their prosperity or good taste. In contrast, other customers’ utility increases with the rising number of other customers. Thus the firm needs to consider such consumption externalities in their pricing decisions in order to appropriately position products and maximize profits. In such contexts, this paper optimizes intertemporal pricing strategies for fashion tech products selling to strategic customers with two kinds of externalities. We find that a markdown strategy is always optimal. In addition, it is appropriate for the firm to use slight markdowns when both the fraction of snobs and probability of stockout are small or use sharp markdowns otherwise.     

Consumers' Choice Factors of an Upscale Ethnic Restaurant

The demand for ethnic foods has increased worldwide, due to the influences of ethnic diversity, globally sourced food, cultural experiences, and media exposure. Despite the importance of restaurant choice criteria and a growth in the popularity of ethnic foods, published research on consumers' restaurant selection behavior that focuses on the ethnic restaurant segment is sparse. This research aims to fill this gap in the literature by empirically identifying the factors (and their relative importance) that influence consumers to dine at an upscale ethnic restaurant.

Focus group discussions and the literature review assist in identifying a set of factors that influence restaurant choice. A mail survey is used to collect the data. Factor analysis is applied to refine the decision factors. Logistic regression analysis identifies five significant factors that influence restaurant choice: dining experience, social status, service quality, food quality, and value for money.     

Applying an extended theory of planned behavior to examine state-branded food product purchase behavior: The moderating effect of gender

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to use an extended model of the theory of planned behavior to investigate the antecedents which lead to consumers’ purchase of state-branded food products. Relationships among attitude, subjective norm, perceived behavioral control, health-consciousness, intention to purchase, and actual purchase were examined. In addition, the moderating role of gender on consumer purchasing was assessed. The hypothetical model was empirically tested using data collected via Amazon Mechanical Turk (Mturk). Results implicated that consumers’ attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control of purchasing state-branded products significantly predicted their intention to purchase, and consumers’ intention to purchase significantly predicted their actual purchase of state-branded products. The relationship between health-consciousness and intention to purchase, however, was not found. Gender differences were found only between consumers’ perceived behavioral control of state-branded purchasing and their intention to purchase. Implications for marketers, farmers, and restaurant owners are provided.     

The influence of scarcity cues and price bundling on menu item selection

Judgmental heuristics are applied in an experiment investigating the influence of availability cues on restaurant purchase decisions. Participants evaluated menu items in a restaurant scenario that manipulated scarcity cues, bundling, and price. The findings indicate that server scarcity influences food choice more than menu scarcity. Bundled pricing reduces selection of a limited quantity item compared to a la carte pricing. Participants will pay more for a scarce item with a scarcity message delivered by the server. The findings suggest that restaurants can promote menu items effectively through server delivery, but those items should not be part of a price bundle.     

An integrated model for predicting consumer's intention to write online reviews

For marketers, consumers’ increasing use of online reviews in arriving at purchase decisions is a double edged sword. On one hand, it presents opportunity for manufacturers and sellers to be highlighted for their good work, but at the same time, there remains a possibility of negative review impacting goodwill and reputation. Hence, it is important for managers to identify factors that impact consumers’ intentions to write online reviews. This research delves into this aspect by trying to identify the factors that impact reviews writing intentions of consumers for restaurants. The study extends the theory of planned behaviour with additions of variables such as ego involvement, taking vengeance and helping a restaurant. For this, 252 valid responses were obtained, and structural equation modeling was used to test the proposed model. Results indicate that perceived behavioural control, subjective norms, ego involvement and taking vengeance are significant predictors of intention to write online reviews for the restaurants.     

Maximising business returns to corporate social responsibility communication: An empirical test

Based on a classic conceptual model of corporate social responsibility (CSR) communication, we developed an empirical research study to test how several aspects of CSR message content (i.e., issue importance, impact, motives, fit, commitment) are associated with external support responses (i.e., purchase, advocacy). We also tested the moderating role of stakeholder‐ and company‐specific factors (i.e., issue support and industry, respectively) in the proposed model. Data were collected from 302 participants who evaluated the same CSR information displayed in the websites of a fictitious bank and a fictitious restaurant chain. The findings suggest that better perceptions on how the CSR message reinforces issue importance, corporate CSR impact and altruistic motives lead to higher purchase and advocacy intentions. CSR fit is related only to advocacy, while CSR commitment does not have any significant impact on participants’ responses. Some new interdependence relationships are also identified among issue importance, motives, fit, and commitment. The moderating role of issue support and industry is confirmed.     

A Study of Consumers' Response to Quick Service Restaurants' Healthy Menu Items

Abstract

Nutritional choices play an important role in the increasing prevalence of overweight and obese adults and children. American consumers are pressuring restaurant companies to offer healthier restaurant menu options. The current study uses a content analysis of the literature to explain consumers' attitudes toward nutrition and healthy eating and a repeated measures ANOVA of key menu items from 31 quick service hamburger restaurants to analyze actual consumer eating behavior. Based on the content analysis, it was determined that consumer attitudes regarding healthy eating have declined in the last twenty years. The statistical analysis of the data found a significant increase in the amount of “healthy” menu items purchased and a statistically significant decrease in the number of side items purchased over the past three years. The number of regular entrée menu items purchased did not change. Implications for practice in the restaurant industry and suggestions for future research are discussed.     

物资采购过程中存在的腐败问题及法律介入

企业的物资采购过程是容易滋生问题的环节,采购环节出现问题不仅容易败坏企业经营风气,破坏内部团结,更重要的是它将对企业造成重大损失,直接影响了企业经营的成败。由于采购过程有较多的人为因素介入,因此使得对物资采购过程的监管显得有些办不从心。本文试图通过引入法律因素,探讨在法律背景下加强物资采购过程监控的可能性。     

Time-restricted sales appeals: The importance of offering real value

Time limitations on special-purchase offers may spur consumers to take action, but using time restrictions does not always mean that consumers will buy more of an item. A study of buyers' responses to a supposed time-restricted offer at a quick-service restaurant found that the desirability of the offer helped determine whether imposing some kind of time restriction boosted sales. Purchases increased substantially when customers were presented with both a strong argument for purchase and a time restriction. However, when the argument for purchase was a weak one, the time restriction had no effect on purchases. The authors theorize that a time restriction causes would-be buyers to give focused, careful consideration to the offer. If the product is desirable, that additional consideration can spur more purchases—but the reverse is also true, and thus a weak purchase argument can actually dampen sales.     

The Impact of Cause-Related Marketing on Millennials’ Product Attitudes and Purchase Intentions

This study, using scenarios, examined the impact of two kinds of cause-related marketing (CRM) efforts (a traditional donation of a portion of sales to a related cause and a more strategic one-for-one donation of donating a product to a related cause when that product was purchased) on millennials’ (those born between 1982 and 2000) attitudes and purchase intentions for four different consumer product categories. The four different consumer product categories selected included a specialty good (laptop), a shopping good (hat), a convenience good (bottled water), and a service (food restaurant). Given the importance of social media to millennials, this research also examined the role of social media on CRM awareness. While millennials had relatively low awareness of CRM campaigns, there was a positive correlation between social media use and CRM awareness. Additionally, CRM efforts may not work for all products as there was no impact on attitude or purchase intention for the product category of laptops. Additionally, the positive attitudes created by marketers’ CRM efforts will not always translate to increased purchase intentions. The use of a strategic one-for-one CRM effort though had a greater impact, specifically for products that deal with needed fundamentals, such as food and water.