Automated technologies: how do they enable value co-creation, value co-destruction & customer brand engagement?

As novel automated technologies continue to play an increasingly prominent role in value- based service settings, there is an increased likelihood that the way in which value is co-created and co-destructed will concomitantly change (Paschen et al., 2021; Van Esch et al., 2019). Such technology-induced changes, along with their impacts on customers’ experiences of value co-creation and value co-destruction, are the focus of this research. To this end, this research unveils a more accurate understanding of how novel automated technologies enable value co-creation, value co-destruction and customer brand engagement (CBE). On this basis, the thesis addresses four research objectives: (1) to explore how customers perceive the impact of brands’ automated technology on their experiences of value co-creation and value co-destruction; (2) to examine the variables influencing CBE when customers interact with brands’ automated technology; (3) to examine the CBE outcomes/consequences that occur when customers interact with brands’ automated technology; and (4) to examine customers’ reasons for using brands’ automated technology during service encounters. A mixed-method (qualitative and quantitative) approach is used for this research, consisting of semi-structured interviews and an online survey. Previous value co-creation research has primarily been qualitative or conceptual. For the first stage of data collection, 12 in-depth interviews were carried out. The sample included consumers who had interactions with the chatbot of at least one of the following brands: Asos, Amazon, Skyscanner and Vodafone. These interviews were conducted to explore how customers perceive the impact of brands’ automated technology (chatbots) on their experiences of value co-creation and value co- destruction. The findings indicate that customers’ experiences of value co-creation or value co- destruction are largely dependent on the characteristics of the chatbots they interact with. The chatbot characteristics identified include social presence, information quality, interactivity, personalisation, comprehension and empathy. For the second stage of data collection, an online survey was administered. The sample consisted of 736 consumers divided across Amazon, Vodafone, O2 and H&M. The respondents had prior interactions with these specific brands’/service providers’ chatbots. An online survey was conducted to examine the variables influencing CBE when customers interact with brands’ automated technology, the CBE outcomes/consequences that occur following automated service interactions and customers’ reasons for using these brands’ automated technology. The findings indicate that nine variables influence CBE in chatbot-enabled service settings: social presence, information quality, interactivity, personalisation and empathy, comprehension, utilitarian value, value co-creation and value co-destruction. Moreover, CBE was found to have a significant effect on customers’ continuance intention with the chatbot and brand intention. This research contributes to the value co-creation and CBE literature. Firstly, this research extends the value co-creation literature by exploring experiences of value co-creation and value co-destruction between customers and non-human actors (chatbots) within value-based service networks. Previous value co-creation research falls short in addressing the role nonhuman actors play in the value co-creation and value co-destruction process. Secondly, this research extends the value co-creation literature by revealing six key characteristics of chatbots and the role they play in the value co-creation and/or value co-destruction process. Previous value co-creation does not highlight the key characteristics of technology that facilitate customers' experiences of value co-creation or value co-destruction. Thirdly, this research extends the CBE literature by examining the 12 variables that influence CBE in automated (chatbot-enabled) service settings. Prior CBE research is yet to examine the variables that influence CBE in service settings that are chatbot driven. Fourth, this research extends the CBE literature by examining the impact of value co-creation and value co-destruction on CBE in settings where chatbots facilitate customer-brand interactions. Previous CBE research has not examined the impact value co-creation and value co-destruction have on CBE in chatbot driven service settings. Fifth, this research extends the CBE literature by examining customers’ intention to continue using the chatbot as a consequence/outcome of CBE fostered in chatbot-enabled service settings. Previous CBE research is yet to examine the customers’ continuance intention with the chatbot as an outcome of CBE in chatbot driven service settings.As novel automated technologies continue to play an increasingly prominent role in value- based service settings, there is an increased likelihood that the way in which value is co-created and co-destructed will concomitantly change (Paschen et al., 2021; Van Esch et al., 2019). Such technology-induced changes, along with their impacts on customers’ experiences of value co-creation and value co-destruction, are the focus of this research. To this end, this research unveils a more accurate understanding of how novel automated technologies enable value co-creation, value co-destruction and customer brand engagement (CBE). On this basis, the thesis addresses four research objectives: (1) to explore how customers perceive the impact of brands’ automated technology on their experiences of value co-creation and value co-destruction; (2) to examine the variables influencing CBE when customers interact with brands’ automated technology; (3) to examine the CBE outcomes/consequences that occur when customers interact with brands’ automated technology; and (4) to examine customers’ reasons for using brands’ automated technology during service encounters. A mixed-method (qualitative and quantitative) approach is used for this research, consisting of semi-structured interviews and an online survey. Previous value co-creation research has primarily been qualitative or conceptual. For the first stage of data collection, 12 in-depth interviews were carried out. The sample included consumers who had interactions with the chatbot of at least one of the following brands: Asos, Amazon, Skyscanner and Vodafone. These interviews were conducted to explore how customers perceive the impact of brands’ automated technology (chatbots) on their experiences of value co-creation and value co- destruction. The findings indicate that customers’ experiences of value co-creation or value co- destruction are largely dependent on the characteristics of the chatbots they interact with. The chatbot characteristics identified include social presence, information quality, interactivity, personalisation, comprehension and empathy. For the second stage of data collection, an online survey was administered. The sample consisted of 736 consumers divided across Amazon, Vodafone, O2 and H&M. The respondents had prior interactions with these specific brands’/service providers’ chatbots. An online survey was conducted to examine the variables influencing CBE when customers interact with brands’ automated technology, the CBE outcomes/consequences that occur following automated service interactions and customers’ reasons for using these brands’ automated technology. The findings indicate that nine variables influence CBE in chatbot-enabled service settings: social presence, information quality, interactivity, personalisation and empathy, comprehension, utilitarian value, value co-creation and value co-destruction. Moreover, CBE was found to have a significant effect on customers’ continuance intention with the chatbot and brand intention. This research contributes to the value co-creation and CBE literature. Firstly, this research extends the value co-creation literature by exploring experiences of value co-creation and value co-destruction between customers and non-human actors (chatbots) within value-based service networks. Previous value co-creation research falls short in addressing the role nonhuman actors play in the value co-creation and value co-destruction process. Secondly, this research extends the value co-creation literature by revealing six key characteristics of chatbots and the role they play in the value co-creation and/or value co-destruction process. Previous value co-creation does not highlight the key characteristics of technology that facilitate customers' experiences of value co-creation or value co-destruction. Thirdly, this research extends the CBE literature by examining the 12 variables that influence CBE in automated (chatbot-enabled) service settings. Prior CBE research is yet to examine the variables that influence CBE in service settings that are chatbot driven. Fourth, this research extends the CBE literature by examining the impact of value co-creation and value co-destruction on CBE in settings where chatbots facilitate customer-brand interactions. Previous CBE research has not examined the impact value co-creation and value co-destruction have on CBE in chatbot driven service settings. Fifth, this research extends the CBE literature by examining customers’ intention to continue using the chatbot as a consequence/outcome of CBE fostered in chatbot-enabled service settings. Previous CBE research is yet to examine the customers’ continuance intention with the chatbot as an outcome of CBE in chatbot driven service settings

Tourism experience co-creation: a service-dominant logic-driven model.

336 p.For some time now, new marketing paradigms are trying to set aside traditional and product-focused views of management and marketing strategies. Technological challenges, volatile customer needs, and alternative marketing application subjects and fields have pushed the discipline of marketing towards more adapted and generalizable marketing perspectives, leaving behind the long-established four Ps of marketing (Product, Place, Promotion, Price) and similar. These new paradigms emphasize especially the active role of customers in value creation, the inherent service-for-service nature of exchanges, the relevance of multisided resources, the formation of both planned and unintentional institutionally handled networks, and the interest on `experiences'. Among the propositions found, value co-creation is one of the most appealing and recurring. However, the lack of specification has transformed co-creation into an overused interpretation, a jumble of many different ideas (e.g., co-production, interactions, citizenship behaviors), and a concept at risk of turning into an "all and nothing"-type useless expression. Therefore, we need first, a conceptual underlying support that would lead the definition and implications of co-creation, and second, a practical backing that would demonstrate its empirical and contextual convenience.The objective of this study is to provide an empirical and context-driven approach of value co-creation, based on the service-dominant logic (SDL). In the conceptual concern, we believe that though in a meta-theoretical level, SDL provides a well-founded baseline framework for value co-creation, supplying a complete narrative and a number of premises centered on a comprehensive view of value co-creation. In the empirical concern, we chose place marketing in general and tourism in particular to situate our co-creation framework. Specifically, the research is focused on the tourism experience co-creation, which is thought to match the investigation requirements due to the experiential character of vacations, the multiple actors involved along the whole travel-related process, the main position of tourists in value creation, and the need of a marketing cut off from the traditional and commercial views in the tourism field.The study carries out an extensive and systematic literature review about value co-creation, SDL and similar concepts in place marketing, including urban, hospitality and destination environments. The literature review is then used, together with the SDL assumptions, to build an extended conceptual model of tourism experience co-creation, including antecedents and outcomes, represented by tourist and destination resources, and by functional, emotional, and social value dimensions, respectively. Value co-creation is defined as service exchange and resource integration represented by a set of tourist-driven processes, including interactional, behavioral, attitudinal, and mental processes before, during, and after the travel experience. Results show that tourist's specific travel-related knowledge and skills facilitate value co-creation processes, especially those connected with self-arrangement behaviors. At the same time, tourist co-creation processes are found to affect predominantly the emotional and social value dimensions, even more than destination resources. On the contrary, the latter positively affect the functional value of the experience. Among the co-creation processes, interactional and behavioral processes influence the tourism experience value perceived by the consumer. Concretely, interaction with local people is found to be one of the most influential. Mental co-creation processes deserve especial attention. Memorability is found to significantly and positively affect value, as well as representing a moderator role between other co-creative processes and value. This means that recalling the lived experience helps increasing the tourist's perceived value. On the contrary, attitudinal processes related to customer citizenship behaviors do not present any relevance. Therefore, the study contributes mostly in four aspects. First, an exhaustive literature review of place marketing co-creation allows acknowledging the efforts made previously on the field, in terms of identifying the different co-creation approaches, and registering the scarce variables used to precisely measure value co-creation (proxies are prevailing). Second, a verified measurement tool of value co-creation set up on a conceptually-based definition and composed of nine variables contributes to unfold the black box of "service exchange and resource integration". Third, the proposition and testing of various study hypotheses build on an expertise co-creation processes value chain helps identifying the most relevant tourist co-creation processes that increase perceived value, thus assisting destination and hospitality managers. Fourth, the two-phase data collection methodology used in the empirical part of the study provides a more rigorous research method that encourages alternative information gathering processes

Tourism experience co-creation: a service-dominant logic-driven model.

336 p.For some time now, new marketing paradigms are trying to set aside traditional and product-focused views of management and marketing strategies. Technological challenges, volatile customer needs, and alternative marketing application subjects and fields have pushed the discipline of marketing towards more adapted and generalizable marketing perspectives, leaving behind the long-established four Ps of marketing (Product, Place, Promotion, Price) and similar. These new paradigms emphasize especially the active role of customers in value creation, the inherent service-for-service nature of exchanges, the relevance of multisided resources, the formation of both planned and unintentional institutionally handled networks, and the interest on `experiences'. Among the propositions found, value co-creation is one of the most appealing and recurring. However, the lack of specification has transformed co-creation into an overused interpretation, a jumble of many different ideas (e.g., co-production, interactions, citizenship behaviors), and a concept at risk of turning into an "all and nothing"-type useless expression. Therefore, we need first, a conceptual underlying support that would lead the definition and implications of co-creation, and second, a practical backing that would demonstrate its empirical and contextual convenience.The objective of this study is to provide an empirical and context-driven approach of value co-creation, based on the service-dominant logic (SDL). In the conceptual concern, we believe that though in a meta-theoretical level, SDL provides a well-founded baseline framework for value co-creation, supplying a complete narrative and a number of premises centered on a comprehensive view of value co-creation. In the empirical concern, we chose place marketing in general and tourism in particular to situate our co-creation framework. Specifically, the research is focused on the tourism experience co-creation, which is thought to match the investigation requirements due to the experiential character of vacations, the multiple actors involved along the whole travel-related process, the main position of tourists in value creation, and the need of a marketing cut off from the traditional and commercial views in the tourism field.The study carries out an extensive and systematic literature review about value co-creation, SDL and similar concepts in place marketing, including urban, hospitality and destination environments. The literature review is then used, together with the SDL assumptions, to build an extended conceptual model of tourism experience co-creation, including antecedents and outcomes, represented by tourist and destination resources, and by functional, emotional, and social value dimensions, respectively. Value co-creation is defined as service exchange and resource integration represented by a set of tourist-driven processes, including interactional, behavioral, attitudinal, and mental processes before, during, and after the travel experience. Results show that tourist's specific travel-related knowledge and skills facilitate value co-creation processes, especially those connected with self-arrangement behaviors. At the same time, tourist co-creation processes are found to affect predominantly the emotional and social value dimensions, even more than destination resources. On the contrary, the latter positively affect the functional value of the experience. Among the co-creation processes, interactional and behavioral processes influence the tourism experience value perceived by the consumer. Concretely, interaction with local people is found to be one of the most influential. Mental co-creation processes deserve especial attention. Memorability is found to significantly and positively affect value, as well as representing a moderator role between other co-creative processes and value. This means that recalling the lived experience helps increasing the tourist's perceived value. On the contrary, attitudinal processes related to customer citizenship behaviors do not present any relevance. Therefore, the study contributes mostly in four aspects. First, an exhaustive literature review of place marketing co-creation allows acknowledging the efforts made previously on the field, in terms of identifying the different co-creation approaches, and registering the scarce variables used to precisely measure value co-creation (proxies are prevailing). Second, a verified measurement tool of value co-creation set up on a conceptually-based definition and composed of nine variables contributes to unfold the black box of "service exchange and resource integration". Third, the proposition and testing of various study hypotheses build on an expertise co-creation processes value chain helps identifying the most relevant tourist co-creation processes that increase perceived value, thus assisting destination and hospitality managers. Fourth, the two-phase data collection methodology used in the empirical part of the study provides a more rigorous research method that encourages alternative information gathering processes

Defining contextual advantage: exploring the contextual relation between effectuation and entrepreneurial marketing for creating new markets effectually

The paper explores the behaviour of the Entrepreneur and the Effectual use of available resources mainly social capital in new market creation. The study dwells on creating a unique ‘Context’ by leveraging these resources to increase the Entrepreneurial orientation of a firm. The paper further attempts to explore whether the Contextual link between Effectuation and Entrepreneurial Marketing helps develop a ‘Contextual Advantage’, which can be used as a mean of developing a unique business model which differentiates the firm in the market. The paper hence explores contemporary theories of Entrepreneurship and Marketing namely Entrepreneurial Marketing, Effectuation and Contextual Marketing by studying their inter-relation. The nature of these theories is under-explored according to the authors and requires further investigation to evolve the field of Marketing and Entrepreneurship.N/

Managing Service Quality within the Knowledge-Based Economy: Opportunities and Challenges

The knowledge-based economy, along with the impact of information society technologies, presents the service organizations and their customers with many potential opportunities as well as challenges. Therefore, this study explores how the knowledge-based economy could influence the quality management of service organizations. The study reveals that the actors within the service sector have vast new opportunities in terms of communication and value co-creation, but in the same time, the requirements regarding the quality of provided services trigger various problems for managers. The originality and value of this study consist of identifying logical connections between changes in the society, changes in the services, and changes in the service quality management. The findings of this study reveal that service quality management, as an integral part of the management of services, became more important within the knowledge-based economy as compared to the traditional (industrial) economy. Service quality management is knowledge-driven, it relies on people’s continuous development, network-intense collaboration (sharing ideas and knowledge), and value co-creation to attain sustainable competitive advantage. The study was carried out by combining a wide variety of sources, such as research papers, conceptual papers and literature reviews. Our conclusion justifies the effort invested in improving service quality management and also has relevance for service organizations’ managers in a very sensitive area like the service quality management.management, service quality, knowledge-based economy, online services

Business model requirements and challenges in the mobile telecommunication sector

The telecommunications business is undergoing a critical revolution, driven by innovative technologies, globalization, and deregulation. Cellular networks and telecommunications bring radical changes to the way telecom businesses are conducted. Globalization, on the other hand, is tearing down legacy barriers and forcing monopolistic national carriers to compete internationally. Moreover, the noticeable progress of many countries towards deregulation coupled with liberalization is significantly increasing telecom market power and allowing severe competition. The implications of this transition have changed the business rules of the telecom industry. In addition, entrants into the cellular industry have had severe difficulties due to inexistent or weak Business Models (BMs). Designing a BM for a mobile network operator is complex and requires multiple actors to balance different and often conflicting design requirements. Hence, there is a need to enhance operators’ ability in determining what constitutes the most viable business model to meet their strategic objectives within this turbulent environment. In this paper, the authors identify the main mobile BM dimensions along with their interdependencies and further analysis provides mobile network operators with insights to improve their business models in this new ‘boundary-less’ landscape

How collaborative innovation and co-creation can deliver value: a stakeholder approach

This project explores how collaborative innovation and co-creation between stakeholders can deliver value for firms. In today’s increasingly competitive and fast-changing global marketplace, firms must seek to develop more frequent and higher quality innovations (Ngugi et al, 2010). In addition, customers, employees and other stakeholders are demanding opportunities to co-create and collaborate with businesses more and more. As Ramaswamy (2010) comments: “Providers of products and services are challenged by customers who are increasingly informed, connected, networked and empowered. Customers, employees and stakeholders are demanding higher quality interactions and experiences from businesses and a deeper engagement in the value-creation and service delivery processes” (Ramaswamy, 2010, pp. 22). Given this increasing need to collaborate, innovate and co-create, firms need a better understanding of how they can engage in these activities in a way that maximises the value created for all stakeholders; this project, through exploratory, qualitative research interviews and a wide-ranging literature review, seeks to make a contribution in this area

Sustainable business models: integrating employees, customers and technology

This Special Issue of the Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing has the same title as the 23rd International Conference CBIM 2018 (June 18-20, 2018, Madrid, Spain) “Sustainable Business Models: Integrating Employees, Customers and Technology”. In this edition of International Conference, following a competitive blind review process, papers from 126 authors and 25 countries were ultimately accepted. The best papers of the Conference were invited to submit to this Special Issue and we were also open to direct submissions from other authors. We present here the 17 accepted papers for publication in this Special Issue