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COMMENTARY Enhancing consumer empowerment
Purpose of this paper:
Much of the literature on consumer empowerment focuses on consumersâ efforts to regain control of their consumption processes from suppliers. Our purpose is to argue that many suppliers achieve success by trying hard to empower consumers. The mechanism by which this takes place consists of researching and providing what
consumers want. Consumers feel empowered when they are able to enjoy the consumption process. This is of particular note in shopping, which is not simply obtaining products but also experience and enjoyment.
Design/methodology/approach:
Research is examined into the links between firmsâ efforts to understand what consumers want, atmospheric stimuli, emotions and buying behaviour.
Findings:
We find that successful firmsâ try hard to understand what consumers want and to improve consumer satisfaction and empowerment by providing pleasant marketing environments and apt, relevant information.
Research limitations/implications:
The approach is based on prior literature. We examine marketing to consumers in company locations, e.g. stores, malls, restaurants and banks to examine specific evidence of the effects of atmospheric stimuli such as aroma, music and video screen media.
Practical implications:
We contend that firms can and do become successful in a competitive arena by providing pleasant environments and information that people want.
What is original/value of paper?:
We show how consumer empowerment is an important concept. This paper contributes since there is a dearth of writings specifically about consumer empowerment in the marketing literature. Far from the popular view of consumers being manipulated by firms, successful firms try hard to and succeed in empowering consumers in their marketing activities
Consumers pnline: Intentions, orientations and segmentation
Purpose â This paper examines the purchase intentions of online retail consumers,
segmented by their purchase orientation.
Design/methodology/approach â An e-mail/web survey was addressed to a consumer panel
concerning their online shopping experiences and motivations, n = 396.
Findings â It is empirically shown that consumer purchase orientations have no significant
effect on their propensity to shop online. This contradicts the pervasive view that Internet
consumers are principally motivated by convenience. It was found that aspects that do have a
significant effect on purchase intention are prior purchase and gender.
Research limitations/implications â There are two limitations. First, the sample contained
only UK Internet users, thus generalisations about the entire population of Internet users may
be questionable. Second, in our measurement of purchase intentions, we did not measure
purchase intent per se.
Practical implications â These findings indicate that consumer purchase orientations in both
the traditional world and on the Internet are largely similar. Therefore, both academics and
businesses are advised to treat the Internet as an extension to existing traditional activities
brought about by advances in technology, i.e. the multi-channel approach.
Originality/value â The paper adds to the understanding of the purchase orientations of
different clusters of e-consumer
e-Consumer Behaviour
Purpose â The primary purpose of this article is to bring together apparently disparate and yet
interconnected strands of research and present an integrated model of e-consumer behaviour. It
has a secondary objective of stimulating more research in areas identified as still being underexplored.
Design/methodology/approach â The paper is discursive, based on analysis and synthesis of econsumer
literature.
Findings â Despite a broad spectrum of disciplines that investigate e-consumer behaviour and
despite this special issue in the area of marketing, there are still areas open for research into econsumer
behaviour in marketing, for example the role of image, trust and e-interactivity. The
paper develops a model to explain e-consumer behaviour.
Research limitations/implications â As a conceptual paper, this study is limited to literature and
prior empirical research. It offers the benefit of new research directions for e-retailers in
understanding and satisfying e-consumers. The paper provides researchers with a proposed
integrated model of e-consumer behaviour.
Originality/value â The value of the paper lies in linking a significant body of literature within a
unifying theoretical framework and the identification of under-researched areas of e-consumer
behaviour in a marketing context
A commentary on social & experiential (e-)retailing and (e-)shopping deserts
Purpose â The last ten years have seen a gradual withdrawal of retail facilities from
many local areas and the consequent growth of âshopping desertsâ, resulting in social
and health disbenefits. This paper examines the potential for e-shopping to fill the
vacuum and to assist disadvantaged shoppers.
Design/methodology/approach â The paper uses prior published research to
comment on the extent to which e-retailing may be the shopping solution of the
future?
Findings â The Internet has limited potential to compensate for shopping deserts, as
consumers who do not have a good range of physical shops within walking distance
also tend to lack access to the Internet.
Research limitations/implications â The paper is based solely on prior research. The
authors recommend action research that may hopefully help excluded shoppers to
become more included by addressing the problems of access to e-shopping.
Practical implications â Government, service providers and e-retailers are may
consider interventions such as subsidised Internet access, training and the provision of
e-cash.
Originality/value â The paper links research from diverse fields relating to shopping
deserts, the digital divide, health, wellbeing, social and experiential aspects of (e-)shopping
Myopia, customer returns and the theory of planned behaviour
As a prevalent and growing form of customer behaviour, deshopping is on the
rise. Retailers' focus on good customer service and the offering of lenient
returns polices has led to the growth in this fraudulent behaviour of customers
in returning goods. This paper considers retailer myopia in the context of
dishonest customer returns, applying the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) using
a quantitative questionnaire with 535 female consumers. The findings highlight
the extent of the behaviour with 50% admitting to partaking in deshopping. The
TPB variables can be utilised to manage and prevent deshopping. The results
indicate that currently these customers perceive it to be easy to deshop as
there are no consequences with the result that such behaviour continues to grow.
If retailers were less myopic they would monitor returns more thoroughly and
make it less easy for such customers to get away with undesirable deshopping
behaviour. The paper makes recommendations for retailers to manage or alter
perceived behavioural characteristics for customers, which in turn, would reduce
tendencies for dishonesty in customers returning goods for refunds. Retail
myopia is evident with deshopping behaviour with consequences for retailers in
time, effort and costs
Options for Hay Mechanization: Collecting and Storing Small Square Bales
A producer\u27s evaluation of the various available methods for collecting hay, including traditional flat wagon, stack wagon, accumulators, and bale banders
Team Cognitive Ability as a Predictor of Team Performance
This manuscript presents two studies of the relationship between team cognitive ability (average Scholastic Aptitude Test score of team members) and team performance (a subjective coach\u27s evaluation and an objective measure using Sagarin\u27s Power Rankings) among NCAA Division 1 Men\u27s Basketball teams. Study 1 was conducted following the 1991-92 season whereas Study 2 was conducted during the 1993-94 season. Both studies indicated that team cognitive ability was significantly related to the coach\u27s evaluation but not to the power ranking measure, and that team strategy moderated the relationship between cognitive ability and the coach\u27s evaluation of performance. Cognitive ability moderated the relationship between team strategy and power ranking, but the nature of the interaction was different across the two studies
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