Beyond posted prices: the past, present and future of participative pricing mechanisms

Driven by the low transaction costs and interactive nature of the internet, customer participation in the price-setting process has increased. These changes were first brought about by the rise of online auctions in the early 2000s, followed by the emergence of newer participative mechanisms. Today, platforms such as eBay have popularized online auctions on a global scale, Priceline has made headlines with its name-your-own-price (NYOP) business model, and Humble Bundle has enabled independent musicians and game developers to market their works through pay-what-you-want (PWYW) pricing. Advertising exchanges conduct several hundred million individual auctions per day to sell online advertising slots. These are just a few examples of participative pricing in transactions among consumers or businesses. In parallel, academic research on participative pricing has blossomed in recent years, with an overarching concern over the profitability and other marketing implications these mechanisms have on sellers and buyers. The present paper contributes to this literature in three ways. First, we propose a definition of participative pricing mechanisms, as well as a useful taxonomy. Second, we discuss the current understanding by synthesizing conceptual and empirical academic literature. Third, we outline promising research questions with a key focus on the related behavioral aspects of buyers and sellers

Dashboards as a service why, what, how, and what research is needed?

Due to copyright restrictions, the access to the full text of this article is only available via subscription.Recent years have seen the introduction of a “marketing dashboard” that brings the firm’s key marketing metrics into a single display. Service firms across industries have created such dashboards either by themselves or together with a dashboardservice provider. This article examines the reasons for this development and explains what dashboards are, how to develop them, what drives their adoption, and which academic research is needed to fully exploit their potential. Overcoming the challenges faced in dashboard development and operation provides many opportunities for marketing to exercise a stronger influence on top management decisions. The article outlines five stages of dashboard development and discusses the relationships among demand for dashboards, supply of dashboards, and the implementation process in driving adoption and use of dashboard systems. Key topics for future research include metrics selection, relationships among metrics, and the ultimate question of whether dashboards provide sufficient benefits to justify their adoption

Regulation of vacuolar H+-pyrophosphatase by free calcium: a reaction kinetic analysis

The H(+)-translocating inorganic pyrophosphatase (H(+)-PPase) associated with vesicles of the vacuolar membrane (tonoplast) isolated from beet (Beta vulgaris L.) is subject to direct inhibition by Ca(2+) and a number of other divalent cations (Co(2+), Mn(2+), Zn(2+)). By contrast, the H(+)-translocating ATPase (H(+)-ATPase) located on the same membrane is insensitive to Ca(2+). Here we examine the mechanism and feasibility of regulation of the vacuolar H(+)-PPase by cytosolic free Ca(2+) under the conditions thought to prevail in vivo with respect to Mg(2+), inorganic pyrophosphate (PPi), and pH. The minimal reaction scheme that satisfactorily describes the effects of elevated Ca(2+) or CaPPi on the enzyme is one that invokes equilibrium binding of substrate (Mg(2)PPi) at one site, inhibitory binding of Mg(2)PPi to a lower-affinity second site, binding of activator (Mg(2+)) at a third site, and direct binding of Ca(2+) or CaPPi to a fourth site. Changes in enzyme activity in response to selective manipulation of either Ca(2+) or CaPPi are explicable only if Ca(2+), rather than CaPPi, is the inhibitory ligand. This conclusion is supported by the finding that CaPPi fails to mimic substrate in protection of the enzyme from inhibition by N-ethylmaleimide. Furthermore, the reaction scheme quantitatively and independently predicts the observed noncompetitive effects of free Ca(2+) on the substrate concentration dependence of H(+)-PPase activity. The results are discussed in relation to the previous proposal that CaPPi is the principal inhibitory ligand of the vacuolar H(+)-PPase (M. Maeshima [1991] Eur J Biochem 196: 11-17) and the possibility that in vivo modulation of cytosolic free Ca(2+) might constitute a specific mechanism for selective regulation of this enzyme, and consequently for stabilization of PPi levels in the cytoplasm of plant cells