Laurens De Gauquier

Vrije Universiteit Brussel | VUB · Department of Business (BUSI)

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to empirically investigate the role of the placement (i.e., location) of humanoid service robots (HSRs) for entertainment applications in retailing by inspecting a multitude of performance metrics along the point-of-sale (POS) conversion funnel. Design/Methodology The study was conducted using unobtrusive obs...

This study investigates the effectiveness of a humanoid service robot (HSR) versus a tablet service kiosk (TSK) along the stages of the point-of-sale (POS) conversion funnel. The observational data gathered by means of a field experiment show that the HSR elicited 26 times more interactions (i.e., passersby touching the screen) than the TSK and tha...

This chapter provides a literature overview on service robots in retailing and their impact on customers. Our search stems from a Scopus database search, resulting in 18 relevant studies (2009-2019). Current research trends are discussed and future research opportunities are provided. https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?arnumber=9209559&ca...

As new advertising formats emerge, research regarding their effectiveness is called for. Since the emergence of virtual reality (VR) technology, several brands have started implementing VR advertising in their communication strategies. The research objective of this study is to examine whether mobile VR advertising can positively impact manageriall...

robots; retailing; shopping; consumer; humanoid service robot; pepper

Humanoid robots can serve as in‐store communication medium, providing functional as well as hedonic value. Previous studies have demonstrated their proficiency in providing functional value, such as guiding customers, advertising products, or carrying groceries. However, in a retailing context, engaging customers often requires more than meeting th...

This study investigates shopper behavior when interacting with an employee-robot team (vs. both actors in isolation), along the metrics of the POS conversion funnel. An unobtrusive field study was conducted using video observations, evenly spread over four conditions: (1) a control condition (i.e., no stimulus), (2) a frontline employee, (3) a huma...

Purpose Service robots have increasingly been utilized in retail settings, yet empirical research on how frontline employees (FLEs) might deal with this new reality remains scarce. This mixed-methods study aims to examine how FLEs expect physical service robots to impact job characteristics and affect their job engagement and well-being. Design/me...

Despite the power of VR in immersing viewers in an experience, it generally only targets viewers via visual and auditory cues. Human beings use more senses to gather information, so expectedly, the full potential of this medium is currently not yet tapped. This study contributes in answering two research questions: (1) How can conventional VR ads b...

robots; kleinhandel; consument; humanoïde service robots; Pepper

Humanoid robots hold potential to offer customer experience for bricks-and-mortar stores. Participants took part in a quiz on the topic chocolate in an experimental field study at »The Belgian Chocolate House» in Brussels airport in which a tablet kiosk and a Pepper robot were compared. The experiments showed that offering the quiz on a humanoid ro...

The purpose of the current study is to examine whether VR advertising can positively impact managerially relevant brand outcome variables, such as brand personality perceptions, consumer attitudes toward the brand and purchase intentions.