The influence of website quality dimensions on e-purchasing behaviour and e-loyalty: a comparative study of Egyptian travel agents and hotels

Websites have become a channel for tourism enterprises to market and sell their services online. These enterprises are committed to improving their online services to retain customers and improving their competitiveness. This study aims to measure the effect of website quality dimensions on customer purchasing behaviour, and how this behaviour affects customer electronic (e)-loyalty. It compares the perceptions of 275 customers of travel agencies and 355 hotels using structural equation modelling. Findings revealed that website quality dimensions significantly affect the customer purchasing behaviour. The study highlighted the dimensions with a negative effect to help managers improve their website quality.     

Managing solid waste in small hotels

Collectively, small hotels constitute a significant solid waste management (SWM) problem. Little research has focused on the SWM practices of small hotels. In the United Kingdom, much of the solid waste generated by small hotels goes to landfill. This study uses a constructionist approach to investigate SWM issues in small hotels in a local authority in Wales and examines the role of the public sector in helping small hotels manage their solid waste effectively. The results revealed that only a minority of small hotels were considering the adoption of sustainable SWM practices, either because hoteliers felt negatively about sustainable SWM alternatives or perceived challenges – an issue which necessitates government intervention. At the time of this study, the public sector provided only very modest services to enhance SWM practices. This study proposes a best practice model for the public sector to encourage small hotels to manage their solid waste effectively, in order to reduce or even eliminate waste for landfill. Local authorities' support is required to make waste management hierarchy options more accessible to small hotels and should incentivise better waste management through increasing the gap between the costs of landfill and recycling waste.     

Purchasing Behavior of Tourists Towards Tennessee-Made Products

Abstract

Purchasing behaviors of tourists for Tennessee-made food products were examined. Amount of units purchased, approximate expenditures, and where products were purchased were recorded. Over 95% of the individuals purchased Tennessee-made food products for themselves and 64% purchased the products as gifts. The majority of the products were purchased at speciality stores or tourist sites. Products most often purchased included candies/confections and chocolates. Quality of the products was the most important factor in the decision to purchase. The average tourist visiting Tennessee purchased 4.9 items and spent $34.60 on these products. Processors of state-made products and tourism departments need to market the quality and uniqueness of their products at speciality shops and tourist sites.     

Effects of Label on Consumer Preferences: Focus on Hawaiian Avocado Industry

This study examines market challenges facing a local agriculture industry in a small island setting. Examination of the Hawai‘i local avocado industry indicates labeling can address the product information gap between consumers and producers, improve market share, and increase import substitution by local products. Currently, local avocados occupy only 33% of market share, compared with 67% captured by imports. Consumer preferences among local labeled, local unlabeled, and imported avocados were analyzed using multinomial logistic regression. Statistical results showed that labels influence consumers’ decisions to buy local or imported avocados, and their preferences were also influenced by sociodemographic variables, avocado characteristics, and purchasing behavior. Key market segments to target and policy implications are also discussed.     

人民币均衡汇率研究

解释两个购买力平价的难题上,平滑门限自回归模型是到目前为止最成功的模型.STAR模型的非线性抓住了贸易中存在大量交易成本、外国投资中的沉没成本和代理人异质性这三点特质.使用STAR模型中的一个变体,指数化平滑门限自回归模型,研究1979-2006年中国的汇率变动情况.首先,用一个保证内外部都平衡的一般均衡模型来估计均衡汇率;然后,判断出对于中国汇率最好的ESTAR应该是一个一期滞后的模型.根据用最小二乘法得出的估计参数,模拟分析出一个程度在50％的冲击半衰期会稍微多于两年.也就是说,偏离均衡汇率10％以上就将会带来严重的套汇压力.     

Modeling the Factors Affecting Organic or Local Cucumber Purchasing Motivations in Northern Iran

This article has attempted to examine the impact of motivation on the purchasing and represents a model for organic or local cucumbers buying dimensions. Data were collected by a sample of 300 people in two northern provinces of Iran during 7 months and were tested using structural equation modeling (SEM) technique. Results indicate that not using pesticides, preserving people’s health, conservation, better taste, and region of origin of organic or local cucumbers have significant positive impacts on purchasing dimensions and persistence has no significant effect on purchasing dimensions.     

The Moderating Role of Strategic Integration in Performance Improvement Through Purchasing Social Responsibility in Thailand

This research aims to understand the performance of purchasing social responsibility (PSR) through moderating effect of purchasing strategic integration. The results show that PSR directly influences purchasing performance, while the relationship between PSR and purchasing performance is partially mediated by organizational learning. Moreover, strategic integration negatively moderates the relationship between PSR and purchasing performance. This study suggests that the adoption of PSR affects the operations of both buyers and suppliers in a supply chain that further encourage organizational learning and increases purchasing efficiency. The results also show that organizations may realize this effect of PSR practices but may focus on other purchasing practices, which affects purchasing performance. Copyright © 2018 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A penny saved is a penny earned? Differences in male and female savings and consumption tradeoffs on online retail platforms

Online retailers in Asia are increasingly offering interest paying accounts to their users. Based on temporal discounting theory, however, customers might consider tradeoffs in opportunities to save money (offered yield by the online retailer × the account balance) versus withdrawing money from the account for online purchases. Based on a sample of 1.95 million transactions from 24,591 customers, when short-term savings opportunities (7-day annualized yield × account balance) are greater, customers withdraw less money for purchase. Relative to females, males tend to withdraw less money for purchase from their account when long-term savings opportunities (1-year annualized yield × account balance) are higher. The findings have implications for temporal discounting behavior in online retail saving opportunities versus purchase transactions, and implications for online retailers who may cannibalize online sales by offering higher yields to online customers.     

高校大型仪器设备采购中应重点把握的几个环节

近几年国家对于高校的投入逐年递增,而且增幅相当可观,各高校也有了不少经费可以用来购置大型仪器设备以完善实验室的建设与科研的发展。大型仪器设备同样也是一个实验室乃至整所高校科研实力的象征,是科研及技术开发的硬件基础,但是此类设备往往价格相对较高,为了保证采购质量,提高采购效益,强化监督机制,本文结合了在高校工作的实际情况,就各高校在大型仪器设备的采购过程中应把握的几个环节进行初步的思考与研究。     

汽车零部件联合采购运作模式研究

文章在分析传统汽车零部件采购和零部件联合采购的基础上,构建了汽车零部件联合采购模型,探索性的提出三种汽车零部件采购联盟的运作模式:委托代理式汽车零部件采购联盟、合资式汽车零部件采购联盟、第三方运营的汽车零部件采购联盟。并对每种模式进行了详细的分析,同时提出采购联盟组建过程中需要注意的问题,为汽车零部件联合采购提供了理论基础。