Customer value from a customer perspective: a comprehensive review

The value concept is one of marketing theory’s basic elements. Identifying and creating customer value (CV) – understood as value for customers – is regarded as an essential prerequisite for future company success. Nevertheless, not until quite recently has CV received much research attention. Ideas on how to conceptualize and link the concept to other constructs vary widely. The literature contains a multitude of different definitions, models, and measurement approaches. This article provides a broad overview, analysis, and critical evaluation of the different trends and approaches found to date in this research field, encompassing the development of perceived and desired customer value research, the relationships between the CV construct and other central marketing constructs, and the linkage between CV and the company interpretation of the value of the customer, like customer lifetime value (CLV). The article concludes by pointing out some of the challenges this field of research will face in the future.      

Gemeinsame Agrarpolitik der EU

Die Gemeinsame Agrarpolitik geh?rt zu den Kernbereichen der europ?ischen Integration. Was waren ihre ursprünglichen Ziele und welche Auswirkungen hatte sie? Welche Reformma?nahmen wurden durchgeführt? Wie ist die europ?ische Agrarpolitik innerhalb der WTO zu beurteilen? Welchen Herausforderungen muss sie sich in Zukunft stellen? Prof. Dr. P. Michael Schmitz, 57, ist Inhaber der Professur für Agrar- und Entwicklungspolitik an der Universit?t Giessen; Sarah Maas, 24, ist dort Mitarbeiterin.     

The sanitization of colonial history: authenticity,heritage interpretation and the case of Macau's tour guides

Macau was founded by the Portuguese in the mid-sixteenth century. The centuries of colonial rule that preceded its recent return to China gave it a distinctive character unique in China. The tangible and intangible imprint of the colonial history of Macau is central to its attractiveness as a cultural tourism destination. A literature review reveals worldwide examples of the manipulation of history for both political and tourism purposes. This research uses in-depth thematic interviews with 14 local tour guides to show how Macau's colonial heritage is presented and interpreted to tourist groups by the local tour guides, as regards both what they are shown and what they are told. It is found that the guides adjust their interpretation to the geographical origin of the tourists in a significant way; in particular, they tend to almost totally eschew any reference to its colonial history when addressing a Chinese audience, in contrast to the interpretation presented to non-Chinese visitors. The use of Hall's three-fold interpretative message framework (dominant – hegemonic/negotiated/oppositional) is discussed, as is Langer's concept of mindless and mindful tourists. Some consequences for the sustainability of heritage tourism in Macau are also explored.     

Day tour itineraries: Searching for the balance between commercial needs and experiential desires

Little research has been conducted examining the factors that influence the development of day tour itineraries. While the literature suggests that a combination of commercial, operational, political and experiential factors contribute to itinerary development, this article argues that it is the business model chosen that affects it the most. Essentially two business models predominate: commission-based and noncommission-based. This study examines the impact of the business model on the selection of day tour itineraries in the Macau Special Administrative Region of China. It finds that experiential values are traded off almost entirely in the itineraries of commission-based tours, while a better balance between experiential and operational considerations drives itinerary choices for noncommission-based tours.     

Bounds for Unknown Elements of Input–Output Matrices

For unknown elements of input–output matrices, strict lower and upper bounds are computed using the column and row sums of the matrix. Furthermore, matrix elements are identified that are only virtually unknown. Also, it it discussed how additional information will affect the set of possible values for the unknown elements.     

Forecasting inflation using time‐varying Bayesian model averaging

This paper presents a Bayesian model averaging regression framework for forecasting US inflation, in which the set of predictors included in the model is automatically selected from a large pool of potential predictors and the set of regressors is allowed to change over time. Using real‐time data on the 1960–2011 period, this model is applied to forecast personal consumption expenditures and gross domestic product deflator inflation. The results of this forecasting exercise show that, although it is not able to beat a simple random‐walk model in terms of point forecasts, it does produce superior density forecasts compared with a range of alternative forecasting models. Moreover, a sensitivity analysis shows that the forecasting results are relatively insensitive to prior choices and the forecasting performance is not affected by the inclusion of a very large set of potential predictors.     

Environmental damage and the question of liability

The most effective way of preventing damage of any kind is to make the originator of the damage liable and to require him to rectify it. How can this principle, that works perfectly if a private good is damaged, be applied to the environment? Which are the advantages and limitations of a liability-based approach to environmental protection?