Who is innovating? An exploratory research of digital technologies diffusion in retail industry

To date, the diffusion of digital technologies is rapidly increasingly in the physical stores as prompt by the continuous advancements in technology and consumers' expectation of new technologies. To the authors' knowledge, the evaluation of the extent to which retailers are meeting this challenge is still at an early stage. Thus, the aim of this study is to investigate the actual level of diffusion of these technologies to understand retailers' effective response. In particular, drawing upon Rogers' Theory of Innovation Diffusion (1962), the present study is based on the direct observation of 208 stores located in Oxford Street (between Marble Arch and Tottenham Court Road tube stations), London, UK in October and November 2017. Results provide an overview of the actual innovation adoption strategies in terms of innovation diffusion and the main digital technologies adopted by different retail categories considering size and store typology. Finally, the Retailing Innovation Market framework is proposed as a combination between actual technological offer and retailer demand of innovation technology, while impact for scholars and practitioners is further discussed

I, chatbot! the impact of anthropomorphism and gaze direction on willingness to disclose personal information and behavioral intentions

The present research focuses on the interplay between two common features of the customer service chatbot experience: gaze direction and anthropomorphism. Although the dominant approach in marketing theory and practice is to make chatbots as human-like as possible, the current study, built on the humanness-value-loyalty model, addresses the chain of effects through which chatbots' nonverbal behaviors affect customers' willingness to disclose personal information and purchase intentions. By means of two experiments that adopt a real chatbot in a simulated shopping environment (i.e., car rental and travel insurance), the present work allows us to understand how to reduce individuals' tendency to see conversational agents as less knowledgeable and empathetic compared with humans. The results show that warmth perceptions are affected by gaze direction, whereas competence perceptions are affected by anthropomorphism. Warmth and competence perceptions are found to be key drivers of consumers' skepticism toward the chatbot, which, in turn, affects consumers' trust toward the service provider hosting the chatbot, ultimately leading consumers to be more willing to disclose their personal information and to repatronize the e-tailer in the future. Building on the Theory of Mind, our results show that perceiving competence from a chatbot makes individuals less skeptical as long as they feel they are good at detecting others' ultimate intentions

Digital or human touchpoints? Insights from consumer-facing in-store services

Purpose Prior research highlights the extent to which consumers largely appreciate the possibility to choose among different digital touchpoints during the in-store experience, which results in a pervasive introduction of digital touchpoints as the first point of contact between retailers and consumers. However, consumers also give value to the human interactions in the service channels. The previous studies do not conclusively indicate the best balance of digital and human services. The purpose of this paper is to understand consumer-facing in-store services in new technology-enriched retail settings. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative approach involving face-to-face semi structured interviews was applied. To this end, the authors recruited 26 participants in Northern Italy between October and November 2017. Findings Results reveal motivations, preferences and discouraging factors leading consumers' interactions with digital or human touchpoints. Findings ultimately provide useful guidelines to managers on understanding consumers' attitudes toward digital vs human touchpoints phenomenon. Originality/value By identifying the key drivers of either digital and human touchpoints selection in offline retail settings, the present study figured out the attributes playing the crucial role in determining consumers' preference regarding the in-store alternatives. Findings allow a further greater clarification of the practical issues, with emphasis on the new of human-machine integration

Virtual reality or real virtuality? The impact of digital retailing on consumer perceptions between virtual and physical channels

This doctoral thesis falls within the area of digital retailing, a topic which has been greatly debated in the last few years and which is, undoubtedly, characterized by blurred boundaries. The relevant literature acknowledges the digitalization of retail, and the birth of the so-called ‘multichannel retailing’, which then evolved into ‘omnichannel retailing’. Exhibiting significant scientific interest, a considerable number of topics have been addressed and explored within this vast and not very well delimited line of research. Within this framework, the present work aims to identify the boundaries of digital retailing and to thoroughly analyze the impact of a new channel, namely the virtual one, on both consumers' perceptions, as well as on the overall perception of the store brand which adopts this virtual reality technology. To this end, the present project comprises three different papers, with each one making an essential contribution towards achieving the research objectives of this doctoral thesis. More precisely, the first paper defines the concept of ‘digital retailing’ and traces its evolution over time by identifying the majority of research topics associated with it, together with the lines of future research for each research strand identified. In the second paper, and in alignment with one of the macro themes identified in the first one, I analyze the role of a technology or tool, that of virtual reality as an alternative sales channel with regard to consumer perceptions. Lastly, in the third paper, I examine and further elaborate on the influence of virtual reality as an alternative sales channel, but, at the same time, evaluating its effects on the retailer brand image. In order to introduce the papers of this doctoral thesis and to outline the leitmotif of the thesis, the theoretical background and the state of current research on the topic are provided in the following section. As it will be highlighted in the theoretical background, retail management has emerged in recent years from the advent of multi-channel retailing, developing from cross-channel and omni-channel retailing to the digitalization of retail with the introduction of numerous digital technologies, especially in physical stores. Subsequently, the structure of this thesis, the research questions addressed and the thesis aims will be explained. Finally, following the analysis of the three pivotal papers of the current thesis, the conclusions and implications for the theory and practice will be presented, along with the limitations of this work

Retail digitale: evidenze empiriche sull'utilizzo della realt\ue0 virtuale

La realt\ue0 virtuale risulta essere una tecnologia ampiamente studiata e sperimentata sia nel mondo accademico che in quello aziendale. Il volume analizza attraverso una revisione sistematica della letteratura accademica, gli studi pubblicati nell\u2019ambito del retail digitale, arrivando a darne una definizione. Inoltre, attraverso un esperimento, dimostra che la realt\ue0 virtuale, in quanto tecnologia altamente immersiva e realistica, impatta positivamente sul senso di presenza sociale del consumatore immerso in ambiente virtuale e questo a sua volta influisce positivamente sul divertimento nello svolgere l\u2019esperienza di acquisto. Gli elevati livelli di presenza sociale percepita e di divertimento nell\u2019esperienza di acquisto sviluppano un atteggiamento positivo del consumatore nei confronti del negozio virtuale

Do I Lose my Privacy for a Better Service? Investigating the Interplay between Big Data Analytics and Privacy Loss from Young Consumers' Perspective

The large usage of digital technologies has largely increased the amount of data that companies can collect, store and use about consumers. However, issues related to the ethical management of those data dramatically emerge. Indeed, consumers raised some doubts about the extent to which the big data analytics provide benefits not only for retailers, while their privacy loss might occur. This study aims at understanding the extent to which consumers believe that retailers' usage of big data analytics involves risks for their privacy, while identifying the main factors influencing consumers towards this belief. To this end, the research employs a qualitative approach with 26 in-depth interviews with young consumers (Generation Z), collected in London (UK) in July 2019. From the analysis, three main standpoints emerge: (1) the influence of social environment, (2) the information about retailers' usage of data and (3) the characteristics of the data collected. Implications for theory and practice are further discussed

Technology-driven store format: from impact on practice to impact on theory

Despite the many theories that support and explain the evolution of retailing, none is supporting the evolution of retailing due to the advent of digital technologies in store that reshape the store format and impact in consumer experience. This research aims to overlap this gap in the literature starting from the direct observation of what happened to the format of stores that has implemented digital technologies. Particularly, the purpose is to deeply analyze: How change the sales area with the introduction of digital technologies? How change the disposition of the spaces in the store after the introduction of digital technology? If there are effectively changes on the store format due to the introduction of digital technologies in store, how they impact also on the theories of retailing evolution

"See no evil, hear no evil": inattentional blindness for retail brands between physical and virtual channels

This research aims at investigating if consumers display similar levels of store brand recognition between physical and virtual store environments, by exploring the set of causal relationships through which the virtual store experience affects consumers\u2019 perceptions and intentions toward the retailer\u2019s brand. Results from an experimental study manipulating the store environment (virtual vs. physical) reveal that individuals exposed to a VR-based retail environment perceive higher levels of presence than those exposed to a more traditional, physical store environment, and that such a positive effect is not mediated by individuals\u2019 technological self-efficacy perceptions. Higher levels of presence positively affect involvement that translates in perceptions of enthusiastic personality by the retailer. Store enthusiasm, in turn, affects attitude toward the store that generates higher levels of patronage intentions. Despite the huge presence of inattentional blindness found with regards to the virtual environment, results show that such an image transfer from the store environment to patronage intention still holds even when individuals are not able to correctly recall the store brand

THE IMPACT OF DIGITAL TECHNOLOGIES ON LUXURY RETAILERS\u2019 SUSTAINABILITY

In recent years, the retailing world has changed dramatically due to several factors; anyway, two of them have a greater relevance among the others. The first one concerns the proliferation of distribution channels and the advent and the affirmation of digital technologies (Hagberg et al., 2016). The second one regards the growing managerial attention that retailers have towards the environment and the social issues that brought the academic literature to define the concept of sustainable retailing (Wiese et al., 2012). Indeed, retailers play a key role in the transmission of sustainability values being in close contact with the ultimate consumer (Lehner, 2015). At the same time, digital technology can be a powerful tool for both the diffusion of sustainability values and the valorization of sustainable retail business models. Particularly, it is interesting the analysis of luxury retailers\u2019 ability to transmit to the consumer both the green and social aspects of sustainability. For this reason, this research aims to analyze a case study (Yin, 2004) of an Italian luxury retailer that has invested in digital points of sale where digital technologies and sales personnel coexist. Through the case study, this research aims to determine how digital technologies and sales personnel can be combined within a luxury store to give a unique shopping experience. Most importantly, a shopping experience that also respects the ethical and sustainable principles of employees