New insights into the impact of digital signage as a retail atmospheric tool

This paper investigates the previously little-researched role of digital signage (DS) in retail atmospherics, using an environmental psychology framework, drawing support from the Limited Capacity Model of Mediated Message Processing (LCM). DS consists of screen displays in public spaces showing video. The method consisted of a structured questionnaires quasi-experiment (n=357), comparing before and after DS installation against an unchanged control mall. Results demonstrate the effectiveness of DS, which has a positive effect on shoppers’ approach behaviours such as spending, mediated by perceptions of the retail environment and positive affect. Results are limited as the DS screens content was information-based, whereas according to LCM, people pay more attention to emotion-eliciting communications. The results have practical implications as digital signage appeals to employed shoppers. This study contributes to theory by providing a rare longitudinal environmental psychology study of the effects of an atmospheric stimulus on real shoppers in a real retail context

The impact of the package opening process on product returns

Abstract High product return rates are an increasingly pressing challenge for many e-retailers around the world. To address this problem, this paper offers a new perspective by focusing on the critical moment of the package-opening process. Going beyond previous research, which has primarily focused on website information and the product itself, we examine the effects of the outside appearance (i.e., the color of the delivery package) and contents of the delivery package (i.e., extra gifts, coupons, and preprinted return labels) on consumer return behavior. Our findings across two experimental studies and an observational field study show that a well-considered package design, including colorful packaging and extra gifts, significantly lowers consumers’ return intentions and actual returns. We also explore the process of consumers’ cognitive–affective reactions after opening a delivery package. During this two-stage reaction process, pleasure plays a crucial role in the consumer’s return choice