Measuring retailer performance: Towards an understanding of productivity

This paper argues that there is not a satisfactory measure of retailer performance. Too many measures are based on accounting and financial measures. These measures do not, however, account for the underlying forces that affect bottom-line performance. To fully understand retailer performance, its productivity must be measured. Here, the concept of productivity is reviewed with regards to retail firms, specifically focusing on input and output constructs, as well as parametric and non-parametric measures of productivity. A research agenda and managerial implications are also presented

Evolution of the book publishing industry: Structural changes and strategic implications

The book publishing industry, compared with other more “glamorous” industries such as automobiles or computers, has received relatively scant attention from academic researchers. Little has been written on the subject, despite the fact that it is an US$18 billion industry (in USA). The general perception is that publishing is a staid and old-fashioned industry, with few changes since the invention of the movable type by Gutenberg in the fifteenth century. This view no longer holds true. In the past 15 years, many exciting challenges and changes have taken place that have altered the very foundations of the industry. The first major wave of change took place in the early 1980s, with the advent of the personal computing. Following that, shifts in consumer demand, and merger and acquisition activities have also affected the industry. The onset of the information superhighway promises even greater changes, but has also given rise to confusion and uncertainty as to the industry’s future

Customer reactions to service separation

Recent research suggests that inseparability is not a universal distinguishing characteristic of services and that the consumption of many services is or can be separated from their production. This research defines service separation as customers' absence from service production, which denotes the spatial separation between service production and consumption. In a series of qualitative and quantitative studies across different services, the authors examine customer reactions to service separation. The results indicate that service separation increases customers' perceptions of not only access convenience and benefit convenience but also performance risk and psychological risk. Furthermore, these effects differ across services. Specifically, relative to experience services, for credence services, the effects of separation on service convenience are mitigated, and the effects on perceived risk are magnified. Subsequently, the convenience and risk perceptions induced by service separation can influence customers' purchase decisions and postexperience evaluations. Customers prefer separation for experience services and when they have an established relationship with the service provider. Finally, the authors discuss the theoretical contributions and managerial implications and offer directions for further research

Corporate reputation and customer behavioral intentions: The roles of trust, identification and commitment

How does corporate reputation influence customer behavioral intentions? This article proposes a model with customer trust, customer identification and customer commitment as the key intervening factors between corporate reputation and customer purchase intention and willingness to pay a price premium. We test the model by using data from 351 customers of three Chinese B2B service firms. Results indicate that corporate reputation has positive influence on both customer trust and customer identification. Customer commitment mediates the relationships between the two relational constructs (customer trust and customer identification) and behavioral intentions. Customer identification and customer commitment relate closely, but they are distinct constructs in the B2B setting

Strategic Asian Marketing An Essential Guide for Managers

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