Generation Gap and the Impact of the Web on Goods Quality Perceptions

This study explores how age and general online shopping experience affect consumer perceptions on product quality uncertainty. Using the survey data collected from 549 consumers, we investigated how they perceive the uncertainty of product quality on six search, experience and credence goods. The ANOVA results show that age and the Web shopping experience of consumers are significant factors. A generation gap is indeed seen for all but one experience good. Web shopping experience is not a significant factor for search goods but is for experience and credence goods. There is an interaction effect between age and Web shopping experience for one credence good. Implications of these results are discussed

Understanding the consumption process through in-branch and e-mortgage service channels: A first-time buyer perspective

This article is (c) Emerald Group Publishing and permission has been granted for this version to appear here (////BURA web address here). Emerald does not grant permission for this article to be further copied/distributed or hosted elsewhere without the express permission from Emerald Group Publishing Limited.Purpose – The twin aims of this paper are to explore the differences in the consumption process between the traditional in-branch and web-based (e-mortgage) service channels and how the differences relate to any problems identified in the electronic service environment, with respect to information search and product evaluation. Design/methodology/approach – A process-oriented approach comparing the two service channels (in-branch vs e-mortgage) was conducted in two study phases. Data from the e-mortgage process were collected using protocol analysis with 12 first-time buyers (FTBs) applying on a website belonging either to a hybrid or to an internet-only bank. Results of the e-mortgage process were mapped on to stages of the in-branch process, which was captured by observation of six FTB mortgage interviews to determine the level of correspondence and emergent issues. Findings – Support for the FTB in the e-mortgage process was problematic and service provision was found to be product- rather than consumer-oriented. Practical implications – The study highlights the importance of design issues in the electronic service environment for creating confidence in the online advice and information available on home mortgages for FTBs. Originality/value – The paper promotes increased understanding by financial service providers of the characteristics that support the consultative selling process for complex products such as mortgages and inform multichannel retailing

WOM or eWOM or Something Else: How Does the Web Affect Our Dependence on Shopping Information Sources?

How does the Web affect our dependence on different shopping information sources? We compared the perceived importance of four decision sources (self-evaluation, traditional word-of-mouth or WOM, electronic WOM or eWOM, and expert opinion) under three circumstances (one cannot use the Web, one can only use the Web, one can use both) for 6 different types of products (2 search, 2 experience, and 2 credence goods). The data collected from 549 consumers show that the importance of eWOM to consumer purchase decision-making is rather limited to credence goods despite the popularity of eWOM. In addition, Web access increases consumers’ confidence in self-evaluation over WOM for search goods. In contrast, the exclusive reliance on the Web does not increase the confidence in self-evaluation for experience and credence goods. Implications and future research agendas are discussed

How the Web Influences the Way We Perceive and Evaluate Goods: An Exploratory Study

Does the Web affect consumer perceptions on the quality of various products before and after purchase? To answer questions on quality perceptions in traditional sales channels, researchers use a classification of products proposed by Nelson (1970, 1974) and other researchers on search, experience and credence (SEC) goods. This classification is very useful in evaluating market structures and advertising effectiveness in economics and marketing studies. Since the Web became a popular medium for shopping, how has the availability of Web decision aids changed the perceptions of consumers on the SEC product categories? A pilot study shows that credence and experience products become closer to search products, while search products can exhibit more search attributes for online purchases. In addition, consumers seem to feel less, not more, certain about what they know on products when they use both the Web and non-Web decision aids. Implications and future research plans are discussed

How Consumers Perceive Risks in Online Shopping: A Comparison Across Product Classes

The literature on Internet shopping has demonstrates that product classes may largely affect consumers’ online purchase intention, which is higher for search products, followed by experience products, then as credence products.However, little is known about why would such a difference in online shopping.In order to give a proper answer to this question, this study try to explore the reason for the difference in purchase intention by discussing the relationship between risk perceptions and product classes. In this study, the author conducted an online consumer survey, and discussed how consumers perceive risks in online shopping across different product types. Management implications and future research directions are also presented at the end of the paper

Exploring Impulse Buying in Services: Toward an Integrative Framework

Prior research on impulse buying focuses mostly on goods, ignoring its incidence in services despite growing evidence about the prevalence of impulsive behaviors across diverse consumption contexts. This paper introduces an integrative conceptual framework to study impulse buying in both goods and services by using perceived risk as a focal construct in the impulse buying process and reports findings from two empirical studies. The first study uses a mall intercept survey to show that perceived risk is lower and likelihood of impulse buying is greater for services with higher tangible (vs. intangible) attributes and higher search (vs. experience and credence) properties. The second study uses a lab-experiment to show significant differences in the influence of three relevant consumer traits (consumer impulsiveness, optimum stimulation level, and self-monitoring) on the level of perceived risk and impulsiveness in purchase decisions for six different services with varying levels of attributes (tangible vs. intangible) and evaluation properties (search, experience, and credence). Overall, the two studies provide substantial evidence of the presence of impulse buying in services and useful insights for researchers and services marketers

Critical review of the e-loyalty literature: a purchase-centred framework

Over the last few years, the concept of online loyalty has been examined extensively in the literature, and it remains a topic of constant inquiry for both academics and marketing managers. The tremendous development of the Internet for both marketing and e-commerce settings, in conjunction with the growing desire of consumers to purchase online, has promoted two main outcomes: (a) increasing numbers of Business-to-Customer companies running businesses online and (b) the development of a variety of different e-loyalty research models. However, current research lacks a systematic review of the literature that provides a general conceptual framework on e-loyalty, which would help managers to understand their customers better, to take advantage of industry-related factors, and to improve their service quality. The present study is an attempt to critically synthesize results from multiple empirical studies on e-loyalty. Our findings illustrate that 62 instruments for measuring e-loyalty are currently in use, influenced predominantly by Zeithaml et al. (J Marketing. 1996;60(2):31-46) and Oliver (1997; Satisfaction: a behavioral perspective on the consumer. New York: McGraw Hill). Additionally, we propose a new general conceptual framework, which leads to antecedents dividing e-loyalty on the basis of the action of purchase into pre-purchase, during-purchase and after-purchase factors. To conclude, a number of managerial implementations are suggested in order to help marketing managers increase their customers’ e-loyalty by making crucial changes in each purchase stage

E-exchange and the Boundary between Households and Organizations

The new information and communication technology, ICT, induces households to take over tasks from firms and government agencies, using tools and systems provided by these very same organizations. The result is often joint production activities. We argue that the importance of ICT for the exchange process between households and organizations is underestimated by only considering the consequences for the last stage of the process, i.e., the final purchase of goods and services. Our analysis of household behavior utilizes a modified version of Gary Becker’s model of the household as a combined producer-consumer.internet information, e-exchange, household production, co-production, household power, exit/voice