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

Loyalty Programmes: Practices, Avenues and Challenges

<div align=justify>Complexity of modern business requires managers to strive for innovative strategies to acquire and retain customers in any product market field. As acquiring new customers is getting costlier day by day, business organizations have offered continuity/loyalty programmes to retain/reward existing customers and maintain relationships. The premise of CRM is that once a customer is locked in, it will be advantageous to both the organization as well as customer to maintain relationships and would be a win-win situation for both. Consumers find it beneficial to join such programmes to earn rewards for staying loyal. Through loyalty programmes, firms can potentially gain more repeat business, get opportunity to cross-sell and obtain rich customer data for future CRM efforts (Yuping Liu, 2007). This paper, exploratory in nature, attempts to provide a conceptual overview of Loyalty in organized retail sector, outlines practices of grocery retail outlets in Ahmedabad, the largest city in the state of Gujarat and the seventh-largest urban agglomeration in India, with a population of 56 lakhs (5.6 million). It also throws light on consumer expectations, perceptions and problems faced through indepth exploration. Based on literature review and environment in India, an emerging economy, it attempts to predict future of such programmes specifically in Indian organised retail sector and discusses managerial challenges of managing loyalty programmes and provides agenda for future research directions.</div>

Tourism supply chain & strategic partnerships for managing the complexity in tourism industry

The paper aims to investigate the possible relationship between Tourism Supply Chain and Strategic Partnership, read as a way to reduce and better manage the complexity in Tourism Industry. This last has been analysed under multi-disciplinary approaches (economic, sociological, psychological, anthropological and geographic) to better understand its main components. A synthesis of origin of Tourism Supply Chain term was provided. VRIO framework and PEST analysis was used with the aim to better understand the strategic decision of integration the chain with a single or multiple rings. Starting from this, a theoretical framework from a holistic analysis is provided

The role of effective communication and trustworthiness in determining guests’ loyalty

The file attached to this record is the author's final peer reviewed version. The Publisher's final version can be found by following the DOI link.This study investigates the role of trustworthiness and effective communication in the development of guests’ loyalty within the hotel sector. We propose and test a conceptual model that differentiates between two types of loyalty: attitudinal and behavioral. As hotels can control and manage how they communicate their desired characteristics to guests, we posit effective communication and a hotel’s trustworthiness as the key concepts in building loyalty. This study reports on the findings of a study based on 322 hotel guests. Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling. The results reveal that implementing effective communication methods leads to a trustworthy image, which in turn has a positive impact on attitudinal and behavioral loyalty. This research provides hotel managers with strategic directions for cultivating guest loyalty

Customer empowerment in tourism through Consumer Centric Marketing (CCM)

We explain Consumer Centric Marketing (CCM) and adopt this new technique to travel context. Benefits and disadvantages of the CCM are outlined together with warnings of typical caveats Value: CCM will be expected as the norm in the travel industry by customers of the future, yet it is only the innovators who gain real tangible benefits from this development. We outline current and future opportunities to truly place your customer at the centre and provide the organisation with some real savings/gains through the use of ICT Practical Implications: We offer tangible examples for travel industry on how to utilise this new technology. The technology is already available and the ICT companies are keen to establish ways how consumers can utilise it, i.e. by providing ‘content’ for these ICT products the travel industry can fully gain from these developments and also enhance consumers’ gains from it. This can result in more satisfied customers for the travel (as well as ICT) companies thus truly adopting the basic philosophy of marketin

Identifying the Key Issues Measuring Loyalty

In the past researchers have chosen to measure loyalty using purely behavioural or attitudinal measures or attitude-behaviour combinations. The authors recommend that both attitudinal and behavioural loyalty should be measured to gain an appreciation of the loyalty make-up of the firm's customer base. Knowing the proportion of each type of loyalty is important as customer reactions to marketing efforts will differ depending on the factors underlying consistent purchase behaviour

The Governance of Services

The problem of assessing a system of governance for composite services in the social economy is approached by means of original methods.The main innovation is that the welfare structure of a society is separated from the legal transaction- or institutional structure.As both the various types of services and the various modes of management are defined in terms of relations between sets of persons, these structures can be compared and the performance of a managementsystem can be assessed.The dynamics of a wide range of hybrid forms of organization - between market and hierarchy - is analyzed in this framework. The approach elaborates on the new institutional economics, and the social theory of micromotives and macrobehavior in exchange and transactions.welfare and transactions;hybrid organizations;typology of services;typology of modes of governance;institutional economics

The internet: strategy and boundaries of the firm

Many advantages have been ascribed to the Internet. Although it lacks the necessary elements to be regarded as a strategic resource, the Internet seems to be a useful tool to provide support for business strategies.In this work we discuss how the Internet can be used to support the development of capabilities and define firm boundaries. Using a sample of Spanish firms, empirically analysed, we find positive relationships between the use of the Internet and product differentiation, as well as the introduction of organizational changes. In addition, we present evidence that the Internet reduces both internal coordination costs and transaction costs as a result of the positive relationships found between the use of the Internet, the degree of vertical integration and the establishment of technological agreements with suppliers and customers

A comprehensive structural model of factors affecting online consumer travel purchasing

The purpose of this research was to develop a comprehensive model to study consumers\u27 online purchase intention of travel products. Related literature reviews suggested antecedents of consumers\u27 online purchase intention including EC travel web site design, past purchase experience, consumer trust, consumer\u27s attitudes toward online shopping of travel products; The model was developed by integrating one existing theoretical model (Shim\u27s Online Pre-purchase Intentions Model) with several important factors which were guided by theories: (1) social cognitive theory, (2) self-efficacy theory, (3) theory of planned behavior (TPB), (4) attitude-behavior consistency theory, (5) theory of consumer trust, and (6) communication theory. As a prior attempt to integrate these theories in the context of hospitality industry, the scope of this study was limited to empirically test the model with data collected from leisure travelers in United States. The study proposed seven hypotheses. The data was collected via Internet survey. A structural equation modeling analysis revealed that six hypotheses hold true in this study; The overall results indicated that the Theory of Planned Behavior, attitude-behavior consistency theory, theory of consumer trust, and communication theory provide a good understanding those factors. The results revealed a strong support for the importance of designing a travel Web site. In consumers\u27 perspective, a good travel Web site should provide consumers with detailed, timely, and accurate information, reliable system operation, and excellent service quality. A well design e-travel agency can significantly influence consumers\u27 attitude, purchase experience, consumer trust, and online purchase intention. The findings also showed the significance of managing consumers\u27 attitude by creating convenience perception, good merchant image, and value perception in consumers\u27 mind. The importance of previous online shopping experience illustrates the strategic point of turning existing online consumers into repeat customers by providing them with satisfying online shopping experience. Although there is one contradicting finding in the hypotheses, this study still provided a more comprehensive model to explore consumers\u27 online purchase intention of travel products; Future researchers can use result of this study to create a new model to explore customer\u27s repurchase intention and to develop an effective consumer loyalty program

Franchising: A literature review on management and control issues.

Franchising; Literature review; Management control;