Here Today,Gone Tomorrow? Mapping and modeling the pop-up retail customer journey

Pop-up retail and customer journey mapping are widely adopted in the retail industry, yet they have received modest coverage within academic literature to date. Through a qualitative field study of five marketplace-based pop-ups (MBPUs), this research defines and identifies differences and similarities between marketplace-based pop-ups (MBPUs) and brand-based pop-ups (BBPUs), seeks to understand how marketplace-based pop-ups fit within the customer journey and experience, and explores how touchpoint ownership and influence illuminates the understanding of the marketplace-based pop-up customer journey. Further, this research extends an existing conceptual customer journey framework to visually map and model the purchase stages, touchpoint categories and types of marketplace-based pop-up customer journeys. As a result, this research presents and discusses three emerging themes (here today gone tomorrow; high-touch low-tech; and ownership and influence) to further the understanding of MBPUs. Pop-ups are more than a single encounter; they are a complex customer journey process, whereby the customer travels through pre-purchase, purchase and post-purchase stages, and across multiple touchpoints.     

An investigation of the moderating effects of current job position level and hotel work experience between technology readiness and technology acceptance

Rapid technology development has greatly changed the hotel structure in operation or customer relationship management. Most previous studies simply employed either the technology readiness index (TRI) or considered the technology acceptance model (TAM) to predict consumer behavior from the perceptions of consumers. Nonetheless, only limited studies, if ever any, integrated technology readiness (TR) into technology acceptance model in hospitality. Hence, to bridge the aforementioned research gap, the purpose of the present study is to advance and modify TAM by proposing a new research framework which integrates TR into TAM. Online questionnaire survey was conducted with hotel employees through a well-known survey company Qualtrics. Data were then analyzed by structural equation modelling. Findings indicate the direct relationship between technology readiness (TR) and technology acceptance (TA), and reveal the moderating effects of current job position level and hotel work experience on the proposed research framework. Implications are further discussed.     

When gamification backfires: the impact of perceived justice on online community contributions

ABSTRACT

While online communities may enhance firm performance, they commonly fail to retain members. To address this challenge, scholars and managers call for the use of gamification. However, despite gamification’s growing use in online communities, insight into its effect on member experience and behaviours remain limited. We hypothesise that gamification affects member-perceived distributive and procedural justice. In experimental studies, we assess the impact of in-gamification perceived justice on member contributions. We find that while high in-gamification perceived procedural justice acts as a necessary prerequisite for member contributions, high distributive justice can reduce game-related uncertainty, thereby rendering gamified practices less fun, particularly for low-engaged community members that tend to value rewards. We add to the literature by (a) pinpointing the core role of perceived justice in the persistence of online communities, and (b) unveiling that high distributive justice can lead gamification to backfire in online communities by affecting member experience and contributions.     

西藏民族宗教领域立法工作初探

作为西藏地方立法重要组成部分的民族宗教领域立法,因其政治性、政策性、敏感性等要强于一般地方性立法,理应加以重点关注和研究。西藏自治区成立至今,西藏民族宗教领域立法既取得了显著成效,也形成了具有浓郁西藏特色的宝贵经验,这些都是西藏地方性立法应该坚持和加以发扬的。面向新时代,西藏从当初的社会管理走向深层次的社会治理,涉及民族宗教领域立法存在的诸多问题也日益凸显。正视问题才能建立并逐步完善具有中国特色、西藏特点的民族自治地方立法体系。     

Analysis of the adoption of customer facing InStore technologies in retail SMEs

Brick and mortar stores are suffering the dramatic revolution of the retail sector. Customer facing in-store technologies (CFIST) are a key component of the inevitable transformation of retail stores; yet the reasons to adopt such technologies by business owners may be little known. Based on a TOE and TAM inspired framework, this study analyses the drivers of such decision by small and medium size enterprises using a survey methodology. The results show that the attitude towards technology is the strongest predictor of the intention to adopt CFIST, highlighting the role of the top management in technology decisions. This conclusion has important implications for practitioners. This research is the first to address the adoption of CFIST by SMEs and therefore set the path for further studies about the impact and adoption of in-store technology in SMEs.     

Non-immersive virtual reality technologies in real estate: How customer experience drives attitudes toward properties and the service provider

Although previous research has highlighted that virtual reality (VR) technologies can enhance customer experience, the efficacy of VR technologies in real estate remains unclear. Therefore, this study examines the effects of offering consumers a non-immersive VR experience via a widely available technology, that allows them to view real estate products. Participants accessed the website of a real estate agency that presented apartments through either static photos or interactive 360° visits. The latter condition was associated with better “visiting” experiences and more positive attitudes toward both the products and the agency. This study highlights the advantages of such technologies in enhancing customer experience and attitudes, particularly in the highly competitive real estate industry.     

Internationalization speed and subsidiary survival of EMNCs: The moderating roles of CEO international experience and state ownership

In the process of internationalization, effective management of dispersed location-specific knowledge is the key to successful internationalization strategies for companies. Rapid internationalization often prevents multinational corporations (MNCs) from absorbing and internalizing internationalized knowledge in a timely manner and achieving ideal performance. Compared with MNCs in developed countries, emerging market multinationals (EMNCs) are more inclined to implement a rapid internationalization strategy to enhance their own competitive advantage. However, their internationalization process is limited by their lack of managerial resources. Why and how would internationalization speed impact the survival of EMNCs Subsidiary? Using the survival analysis method and taking the Chinese A-share listed companies as empirical setting, our results show that the internationalization speed negatively affects the survival of EMNCs Subsidiary; Both CEO international experience and state ownership weaken the negative impact of internationalization speed on the survival of EMNCs Subsidiary. We argue that rapid internationalization underestimates the Penrose effect in the process of internationalization, that is, underestimates the managerial resources required to learn and accumulate absorptive capacity, and effectively manage dispersed knowledge. Based on the dual context of dispersed knowledge management and managerial constraints, this paper expands the understanding of the impact mechanism of internationalization speed on corporate performance, and also has certain guiding significance for the selection of internationalization speed of EMNCs.     

Flagship stores for FMCG national brands: Do they improve brand cognitions and create favorable consumer reactions?

National brands have begun to engage in direct distribution, displaying the brand in its own biotope. Such operation of flagship stores is one means of forward verticalization. From samples of visitors to two flagship stores of fast-moving consumer goods brands, this study analyzes the effects of the flagship store visit on brand experience, brand equity, brand attachment, and loyalty. In the low-involvement FMCG context, flagship stores are useful for reinforcing brand experience. However, flagship store-fueled brand experience does not necessarily lead to favorable consumer reactions; its effect on future purchases is mediated by both brand equity and brand attachment.     

Consumption of Movie Experience: Cognitive and Affective Approaches

This study examines the structural relationships among film quality, value, and satisfaction on the perspective of moviegoers. The experience economy concept is employed as the theoretical framework, where moviegoers’ cognitive and affective evaluations are projected in fulfilling their perceived value. Moviegoers’ perceived movie attributes and experiences are assessed to evaluate the moviegoers’ satisfactions through functional and emotional values. In particular, this article investigates how four dimensions of experience mediate the effect of movie attributes on perceived value and satisfaction. A total of 565 samples were analyzed with structural equation modeling to investigate the relationship of ‘quality—value—satisfaction.’ The findings show that two movie attributes (core and peripheral) affect three dimensions of experience (entertainment, educational, and escapist), which in turn influence functional and emotional values, and moviegoers’ satisfaction. The results also confirm that emotional value is a more powerful predictor of moviegoers’ satisfaction than functional value.     

Antecedents of memorable tourism experience related to behavioral intentions

This study investigates the antecedent factors of memorable tourism experience (MTE) and their relationship to visitors’ behavioral intentions (BIs); Kim, Ritchie, & McCormick, 2012 ). Based on a survey of 314 structured interviews among visitors to the zoo and museum in Rovaniemi, Finland, the study reveals different MTE dimensions than in Kim et al.’s study. Only four factors—hedonism, local culture, involvement, and knowledge—influence visitors’ BIs. The results suggest the need to rebuild the scale of MTE by incorporating other relevant dimensions.