The Performance of Service Industries in Canada: A Real Value Analysis

The performance of service industries in Canada has been lower than that of good industries over the last four decades, with noticeable exceptions such as for railways and telecommunication carriers. Service industries were less economically (and technically) efficient in that they generated less output value (quantity) per hour worked (level and growth) or per combined unit of labour and capital (multifactor productivity growth) than good industries. The relative output price of services declined slightly over time compared with goods. At the disaggregated level, changing relative output prices were substantial and proved to be an important factor explaining the relative satisfactory economic performance of many service industries despite their low technical performance. Nevertheless, the output share of service industries increased over that period, sustained, mainly, by the growing recourse of all firms to outsourcing of services.     

CATALOG RETAILER IN‐STOCK PERFORMANCE: AN ASSESSMENT OF CUSTOMER SERVICE LEVELS

The purpose of this article is to study the level of “in‐stock” customer service performance being offered in the catalog channel of distribution. The article provides benchmark information for the catalog industry. More importantly, the article serves as one test of the effectiveness of the modern supply chain, where the expectation is for near perfect orders. Customer service levels are studied by using an empirical observation methodology in which catalog retailer's in‐stock performance was measured. Comparisons are made across item type, season, retailer type, and days from catalog receipt. Overall, items were out‐of‐stock during 15.9% of all checkpoints, compared to an 11.8% stock‐out rate in an earlier study of bricks and mortar retailers.     

Planning food services for a campus setting

Providing appropriate food services in a campus setting is increasingly important due to more demanding customers and because clients have less time to go off-campus when they need to eat. Using a university campus as an example, this research looks at customer satisfaction with existing food services and explores various methods for determining where to locate new facilities. This campus currently has great needs for additional food services, and it is shown clearly where additional food services are required. Also, the methods used are compared in terms of their effectiveness in finding the solution.     

中美政府职能比较

经过30年的改革开放,我国已经基本建立社会主义市场经济体制,但政府职能在许多方面仍然不能适应市场经济体制要求。作为发达国家代表,美国政府职能体系已发展得较为完善。将我国和美国政府职能结构相比较,探讨我国政府与美国联邦政府在职能结构配置上的差距,以便提出改进建议。     

How do customers meet their needs in in-store and online fashion shopping? A comparative study based on the jobs-to-be-done theory

Understanding customer needs is key for fashion retailers to stay competitive and innovative. Surprisingly, however, extant literature mainly explores customer needs in terms of a garment and its attributes rather than viewing shopping as a problem-solving process to meet customer needs. Moreover, these studies fail to address how customers meet their needs in-store (ISFR) and online fashion retailing (OFR). To fill this research gap, we empirically investigate customers' personal and social needs and how they can be met through the jobs-to-be-done theory. Findings reveal that, beyond the purchase of a garment, customer needs can be fulfilled through different ways, such as smart technology or a person's high interaction with social others in ISFR and the online shop experience or a social linkage without social interaction in OFR. Additionally, our findings offer potential service innovations for fashion retailing managers.     

The new wave of AI-powered luxury brands online shopping experience: The role of digital multisensory cues and customers’ engagement

Academic literature retains a dearth of empirical evidence of the cutting-edge aspect of artificial intelligence (AI)-powered digital assistance and digital multisensory cues, despite the prospect of these factors on real-life customers' luxury brand online shopping experience. Thus, the aim of this study is to examine the significant pathway and effects of AI-powered digital assistance toward customers’ luxury brand online shopping experience. Drawing on S–O-R (Stimulus, organism, and response) and TRAM (Technology Readiness and Acceptance Model) paradigm, a multi-method research design was deployed to investigate constructs. Firstly, semi-structured interviews were utilized to explore customers' online behavior under the luxury brands and information technology aspect. Secondly, survey data were collected and analyzed by using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) and fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA). The PLS-based analysis of quantitative data confirmed the exploratory insights of qualitative findings, establishing the connections of AI-powered digital assistance, customer engagement, and customers' luxury brand online shopping experience. Research findings also suggest that customer engagement plays a mediation role in the relationship between AI-powered digital assistance and customers' luxury brand online shopping experience. Besides, digital multisensory cues moderate the relationship between AI-powered digital assistance and customer engagement. Further, fsQCA complements the findings of PLS-SEM that reveal the significant combination of factors that lead to the perceptions of customers' luxury brand online shopping experience.     

Exploring the factors that drive consumers to use contactless delivery services in the context of the continued COVID-19 pandemic

The spread of the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in the launch of contactless delivery services. This research integrates resource matching, service quality evaluation, and perceived value theories to explore the factors that promote the use contactless delivery services. The data was obtained through questionnaire surveys, and research hypotheses were verified through the structural equation modelling approach. With the exception of convenience, the results show that privacy, reliability, security, and flexibility have a significantly positive effect on consumers' intention to use “contactless” delivery services through consumers' perceived value. This study contributes to the literature by introducing theoretical frameworks from various paradigms and enriches the academic research on existing theoretical structure models. It also helps optimize resource allocation and realize the social environment related to coexisting with the COVID-19 pandemic.     

Green cooperation in last-mile logistics and consumer loyalty: An empirical analysis of a theoretical framework

Based on the contingency, transaction, and trust theories, this paper explored how the green cooperation between supplier and customer in last-mile logistics contributes to consumers’ sustainable consumption behaviors and trust and transaction cost's contingency role. We collected survey data from 453 users of green shopping platforms in South Korea (e.g., Homepick and Smart Locker) and analyzed the data using structural equation modeling. The results suggest that green cooperation with companies positively affects consumers’ sustainable consumption behaviors and trust, and transaction costs negatively moderate such relationships. In addition, customer trust positively affects sustainable consumption behavior and loyalty. We also found that improved sustainable consumption behavior can form loyalty, but transaction cost decreases its positive impact. This paper evaluates the last-mile delivery through green cooperation and enriches the literature on contingency, transaction cost, and trust theories.     

On linking the perceived values of mobile shopping apps,customer well-being,and customer citizenship behavior: Moderating role of customer intimacy

Marketing studies that seek to determine the drivers of Customer Citizenship Behavior (CCB) are still relatively rare, especially for its multi-faceted relationship with perceived values in the context of online transactions. This study seeks to bridge this research gap by exploring the relationship between the perceived values of mobile shopping applications (MSApps) and CCB through perceived well-being based upon the social exchange theory. This study also makes another original contribution by investigating the moderating role of customer intimacy. A quantitative approach was adopted by collecting data through a web survey and then applying structural equation modelling, as well as cluster and multigroup analyses to test the proposed hypotheses. Perceived values were found to influence consumer well-being, thus predicting CCB, with consumer intimacy playing a significant moderating role in this relationship. This study is one of a few seeking to verify the drivers of CCB for MSApps, and it is the first of its kind to investigate consumer intimacy as a moderating factor. The findings will prove useful to providers of MSApps and retailers.     

Effects of augmented reality technology characteristics on customer citizenship behavior

In recent years, augmented reality (AR) technology has received considerable attention from academics and practitioners. Although AR technology has a bright side, its dark side has been relatively overlooked. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the effects of AR technology characteristics on customer citizenship behavior via two conflicting mechanisms: customer immersion and customer fatigue. The study also explored the boundary conditions of customer experience. A total of 247 questionnaires were collected from customers who had prior experience of using IKEA's AR mobile shopping application. A structured model was analyzed using SmartPLS 3 and PROCESS Macro for mediation and moderated mediation effects. The study enriches the current knowledge on AR technology by demonstrating that AR technology can lead to customer citizenship behavior in relation to a brand's AR technology. Interestingly, customer immersion was found to positively mediate the relationship, but customer fatigue was found to negatively mediate it. Furthermore, customer experience was found to strengthen the positive mediation effect of customer immersion and weaken the negative mediation effect of customer fatigue.