Street Markets Influencing Urban Consumer Behavior in Mexico

Street markets in the urban setting form the bottom of the pyramid market structure, which caters to consumers of semi-urban settlements. Consumers favor these markets for farm-fresh agricultural products and low-priced consumer goods. This study empirically investigates the role of street markets in urban sociodemographic clusters in the shift of consumer behavior against large shopping malls and supermarkets. Data were gathered from 490 respondents engaged in buying products at 373 vending stalls across 14 street market locations in Mexico City. Data were collected on 31 variables and analyzed using structural equation model. The study also addresses street markets as change agents of consumer behavior in the context of marketplace ambience, vending patterns, ethnic values, and interactive customer relations. The conventional shopping wisdom of customers, competitive gains, and socio-cultural advantages are also addressed based on an empirical survey. The study revealed that shopping behavior is largely motivated by the physical factors such as location of marketplace, distance, and vending stall type within the street market. Findings also indicate that consumers possess a strong conviction that street markets offer fresh products of farm and animal origin as well as ethnic food irrespective of hygiene standard.     

Consumer Attitudes and Preferences Concerning Shopping On-Line

Abstract

The emergence of e-commerce is having a substantial impact on consumer purchasing behavior. Yet, the rate of consumers' acceptance of e-commerce has been slower than many predicted. Using the view of consumption as an institution, this study examines consumers' preferences for shopping on-line. Analysis of data collected from focus groups and surveys suggests consumers perceive relative advantages and disadvantages of shopping on-line vs. shopping in traditional stores. In addition, the results suggest consumers have substantive reservations about shopping on-line which may be adversely affecting the acceptance rate of this new channel. Study limitations and suggestions for future research are also presented.     

Chinese consumer decision-making styles: A comparison between the coastal and inland regions

China is rapidly becoming an important market for consumer goods, but relatively little is known about variations in consumer shopping patterns in different regions of China. We employ a cultural materialism perspective in understanding decision-making styles of inland and coastal shoppers. Our findings reveal that consumers in the two regional markets do not differ in utilitarian shopping styles but they do in hedonic shopping styles. Marketers need to understand these differences to be able to market effectively to consumers in different regional markets within China.     

Main-format dominance in consumers’ FMCG cross-format shopping patterns

Although cross-format patronage has become a common phenomenon in markets for Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG), research on consumers’ specific cross-format combinations is limited. We study such shopping patterns by focusing on retail format utilization. A qualitative pre-study demonstrates consumers’ patronizing combinations of typical retail formats in FMCG with main-format usage and provides underlying differences in consumers’ perceived shopping utility for cross-format selection, which results from their utilized main-format. Our quantitative study reveals three clusters with main-format dominance, that is, mainly supermarket, discount store, and hypermarket shoppers complementarily utilizing fill-in formats to a much lesser extent. Whereas we found high inter-format loyalty in each consumer group, intra-format loyalty significantly varies between clusters. ANOVA and post hoc-tests concerning perceived shopping utility dimensions show that consumers’ perceived acquisition utility rather than perceived transaction costs significantly differs between consumer groups.     

Measuring ease of use of mobile applications in e-commerce retailing from the perspective of consumer online shopping behaviour patterns

Scientifically judging and comparing different mobile e-commerce retailing applications (apps) are essential to increase online shopping efficiency and enhance design for system improvement. In this research, the use of mobile apps in e-commerce retailing is viewed as an information operation process, and distance of information-state transition (DIT) theory is introduced to measure the “convenience” of mobile apps to obtain service information. Thus, a novel DIT-based evaluation method for the ease of use of mobile apps in e-commerce retailing from the perspective of consumer online shopping behaviour patterns is proposed. Three representative Chinese enterprises, namely, Tianmao Mall, Jingdong Mall and Suning Easy-to-buy, are chosen as study objects. Moreover, the corresponding ease-of-use indicators of three mobile apps under typical online shopping behaviour patterns are evaluated quantitatively. Results show that this research has important implications not only for online consumers but also for designers of online shopping systems.     

The combined influence of time pressure and time orientation on consumers’ multichannel choice: evidence from China

This article deals with the influence of time pressure and time orientation on consumers’ multichannel shopping behaviour. Previous studies have documented the role of time pressure on customers’ channel choice in developed countries, without examining the moderating effects of time orientation on the relationship between perceived time pressure and consumers’ attitudes towards online/offline channels. To fill this gap, this article aims to investigate the combined influences of time pressure and time orientation on consumers’ attitude towards both online and offline shopping. The results show that time pressure helps consumers form more favourable attitudes towards online shopping than towards offline shopping. Further, the effect of time pressure on consumers’ channel attitudes depends on one's time orientations. The implications for marketing channel strategies and market segmentation in Asian emerging markets are discussed.     

Food Products Vending in Street Markets Held in Urban Habitat

This study explores the influence of street markets in urban geodemographic settings and analyzes vending patterns with ethnic values enhancing consumer satisfaction. Interrelationship among urban dwellers, marketplace ambiance, and conventional shopping wisdom of customers and interactive customer relations are also addressed in the study based on empirical survey. Research on street markets is very limited though some studies are available on street vendors with focus on spatial planning, political interventions, and legal rights. This study on street markets contributes significantly to the existing literature in reference to shopping behavior and perceptional values of urban consumers.     

基于信任的移动社交电子商务购买意愿影响因素

近年来,越来越多的个体、商家加入移动社交网络平台开展电子商务活动,对网络零售产生了重要影响。但由于缺乏监管和行业规范的引导,消费者感知风险存在,影响消费者交易行为,且理论研究较少,也不能为此类电子商务模式的发展提供理论指导。信任是电子商务活动的基础,信任对消费者购买意愿产生直接影响,平台可用性、消费者内在特征和行为以及商家会直接或间接影响非移动社交电子商务模式消费者的购买意愿。而在移动社交电子商务中,由于其模式的独特性,以往影响消费者信任的因素已难以有效反映移动社交电子商务消费者的购买意愿。此外,商家通过社群与若干消费者建立不同程度的连接,需要研究连接中强弱关系对消费者购买意愿的影响程度。因此,基于移动社交电子商务的特点假设影响消费者信任和购买意愿的因素,即除系统质量、信息质量、产品质量、服务质量四个影响非移动社交电子商务消费者信任的因素外,还包括社群关系和网购认知这两个影响移动社交电子商务消费者信任的新因素,接下来假设上述因素对消费者感知信任和感知风险两个中介变量存在影响,并进一步影响消费者购买意愿,继而再通过构建结构方程模型进行实证分析。实证结果显示,系统质量、信息质量、产品质量、服务质量均不同程度正向影响消费者感知信任,负向影响感知风险,而社群强弱关系对购买意愿的影响与弱关系理论结论相反,网购认知对增强消费者感知信任作用明显,消除消费者感知风险是增强消费者信任的重要途径。     

Consumer Decision Making on the Web: A Theoretical Analysis and Research Guidelines

Recent empirical data on online shopping suggests that consumers have the potential to make better quality decisions while shopping on the web. But whether such potential is being realized by most consumers is an unresolved matter. Hence, the purpose of this research is to understand how (1) certain features of electronic environments have a favorable effect on the abilities of consumers to make better decisions, and (2) identify information‐processing strategies that would enable consumers to make better quality decisions while shopping online. A cross‐disciplinary theoretical analysis based on constructs drawn from economics (e.g., time costs), computing (e.g., recommendation agents), and psychology (e.g., decision strategies) is conducted to identify factors that potentially influence decision quality in electronic environments. The research is important from a theoretical standpoint because it examines an important aspect of online consumer decision making, namely, the impact of the electronic environment on the capabilities of consumers. It is important from both a managerial and public policy standpoint because the ability of shoppers to make better quality decisions while shopping online is directly related to improving market efficiency and enhancing consumer welfare in electronic markets.     

The Impact of Price Disclosure on Dynamic Shopping Decisions

A potentially powerful way to assist consumers in making dynamic shopping decisions is to disclose price information to them before they shop, for example by posting prices on the Internet. This paper addresses the differential impact of disclosing either only current, or both current and future prices, on consumer shopping decisions in multi-period tasks involving multiple product purchases. In the context of an Internet-based experiment, we find that consumer expenditure deviates more strongly from that of a normative model when both current and future prices are disclosed than if only current prices are disclosed. We investigate the behavioral effects underlying this finding by estimating a model that allows for variations in consumer discounting, strength of store price format preferences, as well as choice consistency between different price disclosure conditions.     

How to serve online consumers in rural markets: Evidence-based recommendations

Online shopping is growing significantly among rural consumers interested in overcoming product assortment limitations in their local markets. Retailers are taking notice, and some are looking for first-mover-advantage opportunities in rural areas where they see greater potential for growth when compared to saturated urban markets. However, expanding to these areas presents significant and unresolved challenges related to last mile fulfillment caused by low levels of population density as well as other socioeconomic and demographic characteristics. In this article, we present an integrated set of recommendations for online retailers to differentiate strategies to serve rural markets efficiently. To that end, we partnered with an online grocery retailer to examine differences between rural and urban consumers across online shopping preferences that significantly impact fulfillment costs. We draw on those differences and existing knowledge on last mile fulfillment operations to propose a tailored consumer value proposition and operational model for last mile fulfillment in rural markets.     

Who buys from farmers’ markets and farm shops: The case of Germany

In this article, we analyze the influence of sociodemographic factors and consumer attitudes toward direct marketing products and sources (outlets) on the frequency of buying food from farmers’ markets and farm shops. By conducting an intercept survey with pedestrians in 2011 and 2012, we interviewed a total of n = 550 consumers. The target regions of the study were the Eastern German federal states. The study uses two ordered logit regression models to investigate consumers’ shopping behaviour at farmers’ markets and farm shops separately. We find that different factors significantly influence consumers’ buying behaviour at the two direct marketing outlets. Specifically, both a more favorable view toward the freshness of directly marketed foods and the intention to support local producers are positively related to consumers’ purchase frequency from farmers’ markets. In contrast, consumers’ purchase frequency from farm shops is significantly influenced by their perception of the cost of the products, confidence in food producers of directly marketed products, perception of the safety of the food and perception of the accessibility of farm shops. The study results indicate that considering consumer behaviour separately for different direct marketing channels for food rather than considering the entire category of local food outlets may provide new and valuable insights.     

Shopping patterns: An exploration of some situational determinants

Given the importance of specific behaviors, particularly choice behaviors, to marketing decisions, researchers have focused much of their attention on investigating determinants of choice behavior. Broader units of analysis, namely patterns of consumer behaviors, however, may also be useful in shaping marketing strategy. In fact, some research demonstrates that definite consumer shopping patterns exist. The present study goes beyond previous research by investigating the situational influences of time pressure and gift/self shopping on prestore and store visit shopping patterns.     

ChatGPT and consumers: Benefits,Pitfalls and Future Research Agenda

The need of the hour is to encourage research on topics with newness and novelty. In this context, this article discusses multidimensional benefits and potential pitfalls of using artificial intelligence-based Chat Generative Pre-trained Transformer (ChatGPT), and provides numerous ideas for future research in consumer studies and marketing in the context of ChatGPT. ChatGPT provides algorithm-generated conversational responses to text-based prompts. Since its launch in the late 2022, ChatGPT has generated significant debate surrounding its hallmarks, benefits and potential pitfalls. On the one hand, ChatGPT can offer enhanced consumer engagement, improved customer service, personalization and shopping, social interaction and communication practice, cost-effectiveness, insights into consumer behaviour and improved marketing campaigns. On the other hand, potential pitfalls include concerns about consumer well-being, bias, misinformation, lack of context, privacy concerns, ethical considerations and security. The article concludes by outlining a potential future research agenda in the area of ChatGPT and consumer studies. Overall, this article provides valuable insights into the benefits and challenges associated with ChatGPT, shedding light on its potential applications and the need for further research.     

The impact of customer experience on consumer purchase intention in cross-border E-commerce——Taking network structural embeddedness as mediator variable

This study investigates the mediator effect of network structural embeddedness between customer experience and consumer purchase intention in the context of cross-border e-commerce. 321 copies of online questionnaires unfold cross-border online shopping experience. The structural equation model is built to analyze the mediator effect of network structural embeddedness. Network density, Network centrality separately plays a mediating role between website ease of use, website relationship service and consumer purchase intention. In contrast, both of them play a mediating role between customer cost and consumer purchase intention. The research suggests developing the relationship between consumers and e-commerce websites for cross-border e-commerce platforms from a network standpoint, but not only marketing.     

Trustmarks: Strategies for exploiting their full potential in e-commerce

Internet-based commerce has undergone explosive growth over the past decade and is expected to keep growing. With the increasing popularity of online marketplaces, trust is seen as a key foundation for consumers’ willingness to purchase, in particular, from unknown sellers. While trust has been examined in various contexts, limited focus has been placed on the importance of displaying institutional trust assurances such as trustmarks on retailers’ websites. We conducted two studies into how the use of trustmarks impacts consumer trust, consumer risk perceptions, and, consequently, influences consumer purchase intentions. The results of the two studies suggest that the use of trustmarks increases consumer online trust and purchase intentions, as well as reducing their perceived risk. We use these results to inform managerial decision making in e-commerce, particularly for marketers and e-retailers. We provide three important managerial lessons to be learned from our insights. Our implications are important not only for mature e-commerce markets to create a competitive advantage but also for growing and emerging e-commerce markets, where new retailers are trying to establish trust among their consumers to increase market share.     

Interactive music for multisensory e-commerce: The moderating role of online consumer involvement in experiential value,cognitive value,and purchase intention

Background music adds a multisensory element to marketing and e-commerce. Applying interactive sensory-enabling technologies (SETs) to online shopping websites is an area of interest in sensory marketing. This research examines interactive background music in e-commerce and investigates how online consumer involvement moderates the effects of interactive music. Single-factor experiments with three conditions (interactive music, static background music, and control) were conducted to investigate its impact on experiential value, cognitive value, and purchase intention of high- and low-involvement consumers among both students (Study 1, N = 251) and nonstudent samples (Study 2, N = 218). Different music genres were applied to stimuli of the two studies to demonstrate the generalizability of the findings. Results find that interactive music enhances the experiential value of e-commerce for low-involvement consumers. By contrast, high-involvement consumers show greater purchase intention under the interactive music condition due to a heightened level of perceived cognitive value. Involvement is an effective predictor of elaboration and purchase intention under the interactive music condition, but not under the other two conditions. The contribution is twofold: (a) it shows the impact of music as an interactive SET and, (b) demonstrates the moderating role of consumer involvement in the context of multisensory integration in e-commerce. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed along with limitations and directions for future research.     

Will Online Shopping Compete More with Traditional Retailing or Catalog Shopping?

This paper examines consumer substitution behavior among three distribution channels: online shopping, traditional retail and catalog shopping. A model of consumer transactions costs is presented in which consumer investments in shopping human capital determine distribution channel choice. This model predicts that consumers who make investments that spillover to multiple channels will tend to have lower transactions costs for those two channels and will tend to consider these two channels to be closer substitutes than other channels. The model implies that, even if these investments are not measured, they will represent a component of the regression models' residual terms, which will predict distribution channel choice. I test this implication using the GVU Center's survey data on channel selection for various product categories. The results strongly suggest that consumers consider online shopping and catalog shopping to be closer substitutes than any other pair of channels.     

Young consumers’ innovativeness in apparel choices: A model including consumer self‐confidence

In industries with network effects, consumer innovators help to trigger the critical mass needed for a product innovation to be successful. Thus, firms can benefit from actions that increase consumer innovativeness in their target markets. Consumer innovativeness has been associated with variables such as hedonic shopping motivation, impulsiveness and status seeking. There is limited work on the impact on consumer innovativeness of consumer characteristics that reflect consumers’ self‐confident ability to choose. This study proposes and tests a model for consumer innovativeness that incorporates variables from previous research and uncovers the importance of consumer self‐confidence. We collect survey data from 534 Chilean girls, ages 10–15. After building constructs with the help of exploratory factor analysis, we analyze the data with linear regression estimation (via OLS). Our results reveal that consumer self‐confidence is positively and significantly related to consumer innovativeness. Our findings also add evidence ‐from a younger age group‐ regarding the significance of status seeking, impulsiveness and hedonic shopping motivation on consumer innovativeness. Results suggest that companies could leverage consumer innovativeness by taking actions to increase consumers’ self‐confidence. Innovative apparel choices in young consumers could possibly also be strengthened by communicating status achievement and by enhancing shopping enjoyment.     

网购食品消费者选择行为的影响因素

利用1 790份网络调查问卷数据,采用相关分析、交叉分析等统计方法,研究网购食品消费者选择行为,分析网购食品市场渗透率不高、用户黏性不足的主要原因,结果表明,消费者个性特征差异会导致对网购食品的不同态度,进而影响消费者对网购食品的选择行为;良好的网购环境、物美价廉的食品、优质的网购服务,是促使消费者选择网购食品的主要因素,对网购食品安全的担忧、习惯于传统购物方式、网购维权难度大,是抑制消费者选择网购食品的主要因素,尤其是网购食品"难维权、维权难"可能会放大消费者对网购食品产生的消极态度。为此,应加强网购食品多主体协同监管,消除消费者怀疑心理和不放心态度;建立以消费者需求为中心的网购食品质量安全供应链管理体系,推动线上市场和线下实体店紧密结合、融合发展;完善网购食品维权制度,畅通维权渠道。