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Virtual Store Layout: An Experimental Comparison in the Context of Grocery Retail
Abstract
Interface design and the interaction between customer and computer are factors critical to business effectiveness over the Web. A key aspect of conventional retailing is store layout; an analogous aspect in virtual retail is virtual store layout. This paper reports on an experimental investigation into the use of three different layouts in online grocery retailing: freeform, grid, and racetrack. These three most common conventional retailing layout types were transformed into virtual layouts for computer-mediated interfaces. Subjects in Greece and the UK participated in a laboratory experiment: they were given a planned shopping task with money to spend, and performed their shopping through a virtual store with layout as the manipulated variable. The results show that layout significantly affects online consumer behavior, but that predictions generated from the literature of conventional retailing about differences in the outcome of layouts do not generally hold in a virtual setting. Some of the findings can be explained by reference to research in Human Computer Interaction (HCI).
... It has been established in several studies that the effect of interaction and the method which needs to be used for optimal purchase intention and conversion differs widely by category and type [11,26,44,45]. Very limited research has been conducted, specifically into the home décor segment with the majority centred on apparel retail [14,26,29,[46][47][48][49][50][51], electronics [18,34,52,53], sunglasses [54], books [11,55,56], wine [57] and food retail [11,30,47,58]. Office furniture was considered in an earlier study [59], but since this is a potentially utilitarian product by its nature rather than a décor product (which are often categorised as hedonic), the findings are not necessarily comparable and optimal display methods not necessarily aligned [60]. ...
... Textual information in studies considered books when "extensive and higher-quality" may affect consumer satisfaction [55,56] and increase purchase intention. The research indicates that for some products the use of textual information increases purchase intention, whereas for others it reduces it due to information overload. ...
... This was a between-subject design, with each participant being exposed to a single experimental condition to avoid order effects [24,73,74]. An initial collection of demographic data such as age, gender, years of internet experience [60], online shopping frequency and spending [29] was conducted to assess levels of prior experience, whether demographics correlate with those found in the general internet population similar to that used in previous studies [31,55,59] and facilitate the removal of outliers if appropriate. ...
As e-commerce approaches 17% of total retail sales companies are looking for opportunities to increase customer purchase conversion. In a competitive marketplace it becomes increasingly important to consider the effects of display techniques on purchase intention. Limited research has been conducted into interactivity, product display and their effect on purchase intentions on real-world retail websites, predominantly choosing to use random or student samples. This study investigates whether interactivity within retail websites positively correlates with purchase intentions for both low-cost and high-cost products and whether this effect is proportionally higher in high-cost products. It considers whether this purchase intention in high-cost products is influenced by higher levels of supplementary information. 405 participants experienced a simulated environment within a real-world retail website they had previously shopped at. Questionnaire results were analysed using ANCOVA and principal components analysis with three new components (purchase intention, attitude towards products and repeat product enjoyment) emerging. Results showed a higher purchase intention for more interactive products particularly more expensive ones. Interactive products produced a 54% higher purchase intention overall. In this paper, a new three-component solution to assess purchase intention for online home décor products is presented along with results which indicate that interactivity levels positively affect purchase intention for this particular product segment, particularly higher-cost products.
... The spatial atmosphere in the store has a greater impact on the emotional arousal of consumers, and a well-designed store layout can help promote a positive shopping atmosphere, which in turn increases retail store sales (Juel-Jacobsen, 2015). Scholars such as Vrechopoulos et al., (2004) stated in their research that the three most commonly used layout types in stores are: freeform layout, grid layout, and racetrack layout. For consumers, different layout types play an important role in the impression of a store in consumers' minds. ...
... It is currently the preferred layout type for supermarkets. (Levy & Weitz, 2008;Vrechopoulos et al., 2004). This type of layout coexists with vertical and horizontal shelf arrangement in an orderly manner, which can help consumers quickly find what they need (Levy & Weitz, 2008). ...
... In the study of Lee, et al., (2001), it is also shown that the grid layout can maximize the sales efficiency of the space, and effectively control and guide the flow of people passing through the store through parallel aisles. Freeform layout: An unstructured arrangement of aisles, shelves, and displays, as opposed to a grid layout (Vrechopoulos et al., 2004). This type of layout is usually dominated by relatively low shelves, which can enable consumers to extend the shopping time in the layout, thereby promoting consumption, which is more common in clothing stores (Anić & Radas, 2006). ...
The aging of the world's population will have a considerable impact on the consumer market. Basically, the elderly is less able to accept online purchases than young people. Therefore, many elderly consumers are still accustomed to buying in physical stores. The spatial visual complexity of the store may have an impact on the elderly consumers’ perception, which in turn affects their shopping emotions and behavior. The primary purpose of this study is to empirically explore how visual complexity affects consumers’ perception and psychology in a retail environment; and to further explore the effects on the experiences of the elderly and young consumers. The findings of this study indicate that the combinations of spatial layout and pattern decoration have different influences on the elderly and young consumers’ perceptions and psychological responses in a clothing store. The elderly consumers believe that the higher visual complexity, the more easily their attention is disturbed, and they do not like shopping in the highest spatial visual complexity. In terms of the impact of visual complexity on pleasant emotions, the elderly consumers have stronger impact than the young consumers. The finding suggests that if retailers want the elderly consumers to concentrate on searching for merchandise, they can simplify spatial layouts and decoration patterns to reduce the visual complexity of the space.
... In brick-and-mortar retail stores, atmospheric factors such as color, and music influence emotional responses and purchase intentions. With the advent of e-commerce, many researchers have investigated whether the established knowledge of offline stores can also be applied to online stores (Vrechopoulos et al., 2004;Wu et al., 2015;Lombart et al., 2020). The same stands for more recent commerce channels, such as mobile and 3D online (Baek et al., 2018;Krasonikolakis et al., 2018;Schnack et al., 2021). ...
... A great number of scholars have offered diverse definitions of webbased and virtual store atmosphere in the past two decades. Nevertheless, existing publications have concluded that e-store layout, design, and atmosphere (Vrechopoulos et al., 2004;Manganari et al., 2009), website navigation (Floh & Madlberger, 2013), and presence of information (Oh et al., 2008) are essential components of web store atmospheres. Wu et al. (2021) recently defined the state-of-the-art store atmospheric categories in personalizing 3D virtual shopping contexts: pathfinding assistance, environment, and the manner of product presentation. ...
... Table 3 presents the most-examined SA-related variables of our review sample that contribute to a comprehensive understanding of the components of store atmosphere. Store layout has received considerable attention (n = 21) due to the direct influence on store performance and, in turn, consumers' purchase behavior (Vrechopoulos et al., 2004;Griffith, 2005;Page et al., 2019). Store ambient cues (e.g., music, lighting, color, and scent) have been studied frequently (n = 17) since these elements drive consumers' moods, emotions, and responses (Baker et al., 1994;Spangenberg et al., 2006;Mari & Poggesi, 2013). ...
The importance of store atmospherics on consumers’ shopping behavior has been widely studied since the 1970s. Over the years, and with the development of technology, store atmosphere has changed form and shape in alternative retail commerce channels, such as brick-and-mortar, 2D and 3D online, mobile, and virtual and augmented reality. However, despite its importance, there is not a holistic analysis of the components and dimensions of store atmosphere in retailing. This research fills this gap by denoting integrated knowledge and outcomes in alternative commerce channels and developing a unifying integrative framework that includes the components, the antecedents, and the consequences of store atmosphere. We follow a systematic literature review approach to (1) review past research and directions, (2) develop a map of the components of store atmosphere in the last 45 years, (3) explicate 208 variables that are directly linked with store atmosphere, and (4) draw an integrative framework and present future research directions and managerial implications.
... 4) Tactile -Temperature, touch and Softness. Many customers look for similarities in a store and its relatively online store, and this was a result of a research by (Vrechopoulos, M O"Keefe, Doukidis, & George , 2004). Nonetheless, the atmospheric qualities classifications used in traditional stores do not apply simply to the online environment (Eroglu, Machleit, & Davis, 2000). ...
... Nonetheless, the atmospheric qualities classifications used in traditional stores do not apply simply to the online environment (Eroglu, Machleit, & Davis, 2000). Vrechopoulos, M O"Keefe, Doukidis, & George (2004) matched the components of a traditional retail environment to the corresponding settings of a virtual retail environment by using Lewison (1994) framework. (Vrechopoulos, M O"Keefe, Doukidis, & George , 2004). ...
... Vrechopoulos, M O"Keefe, Doukidis, & George (2004) matched the components of a traditional retail environment to the corresponding settings of a virtual retail environment by using Lewison (1994) framework. (Vrechopoulos, M O"Keefe, Doukidis, & George , 2004). Specifically, they introduced the Virtual Component Presentation Framework (VCPF), which consists of three components (1) Virtual Layout and Design. ...
... The ultimate goal of layout design is to increase the sale of stores by navigating consumer behavior (Vrechopoulos et al. 2004). Store layout aims to provide four factors such as perceived usefulness, ease of use, entertainment, and time-consuming (Hansen et al. 2010). ...
... Grouping products in this way replaces consumers finding tea in the beverage section, cheese in fresh cheese, and cereal in the cereal section. This layout leads the customer along specific paths to visit as many store sections as possible (Kim and Kim 2008;Vrechopoulos et al. 2004). In addition, the industrial store layout normally arranges related products together such as in the bakery area (with bread, cakes, biscuits, and so on), and the vegetable area (with carrots, beans, and so on). ...
... Fixtures and displays are laid parallel to the walls (Barghash et al. 2017). This type of layout is a popular choice for supermarkets, grocery stores and chain pharmacies (Vrechopoulos et al. 2004). The grid layout is known as end caps, and staple items such as milk and eggs are put at the back of the store. ...
... The ultimate goal of layout design is to increase the sale of stores by navigating consumer behavior (Vrechopoulos et al. 2004). Store layout aims to provide four factors such as perceived usefulness, ease of use, entertainment, and time-consuming (Hansen et al. 2010). ...
... Grouping products in this way replaces consumers finding tea in the beverage section, cheese in fresh cheese, and cereal in the cereal section. This layout leads the customer along specific paths to visit as many store sections as possible (Kim and Kim 2008;Vrechopoulos et al. 2004). In addition, the industrial store layout normally arranges related products together such as in the bakery area (with bread, cakes, biscuits, and so on), and the vegetable area (with carrots, beans, and so on). ...
... Fixtures and displays are laid parallel to the walls (Barghash et al. 2017). This type of layout is a popular choice for supermarkets, grocery stores and chain pharmacies (Vrechopoulos et al. 2004). The grid layout is known as end caps, and staple items such as milk and eggs are put at the back of the store. ...
An efficient store layout presents merchandise to attract customer attention and encourages customers to walk down more aisles which exposes them to more merchandise, which has been shown to be positively correlated with the sales. It is one of the most effective in-store marketing tactics which can directly influence customer decisions to boost store sales and profitability. The recent development of Artificial Intelligence techniques, especially with its sub-fields in Computer Vision and Deep Learning, has enabled retail stores to take advantage of existing CCTV infrastructure to extract in-store customer and business insights. This research aims to conduct a comprehensive review on existing approaches in store layout design and modern AI techniques that can be utilized in the layout design task. Based on this review, we propose an AI-powered store layout design framework. This framework applies advanced AI and data analysis techniques on top of existing CCTV video surveillance infrastructure to understand, predict and suggest a better store layout.
... The ultimate goal of layout design is to increase the sale of stores by navigating consumer behavior (Vrechopoulos et al. 2004). Store layout aims to provide four factors such as perceived usefulness, ease of use, entertainment, and time-consuming (Hansen et al. 2010). ...
... Grouping products in this way replaces consumers finding tea in the beverage section, cheese in fresh cheese, and cereal in the cereal section. This layout leads the customer along specific paths to visit as many store sections as possible (Kim and Kim 2008;Vrechopoulos et al. 2004). In addition, the industrial store layout normally arranges related products together such as in the bakery area (with bread, cakes, biscuits, and so on), and the vegetable area (with carrots, beans, and so on). ...
... Fixtures and displays are laid parallel to the walls (Barghash et al. 2017). This type of layout is a popular choice for supermarkets, grocery stores and chain pharmacies (Vrechopoulos et al. 2004). The grid layout is known as end caps, and staple items such as milk and eggs are put at the back of the store. ...
An efficient store layout presents merchandise to attract customer attention and encourages customers to walk down more aisles which exposes them to more merchandise, which has been shown to be positively correlated with the sales. It is one of the most effective in-store marketing tactics which can directly influence customer decisions to boost store sales and profitability. The recent development of Artificial Intelligence techniques, especially with its sub-fields in Computer Vision and Deep Learning, has enabled retail stores to take advantage of existing CCTV infrastructure to extract in-store customer and business insights. This research aims to conduct a comprehensive review on existing approaches in store layout design and modern AI techniques that can be utilized in the layout design task. Based on this review, we propose an AI-powered store layout design framework. This framework applies advanced AI and data analysis techniques on top of existing CCTV video surveillance infrastructure to understand, predict and suggest a better store layout.
... Ainsworth and Foster (2017) argued that PC plays a significant role in determining the customer perception of customer experience quality. Similarly, Vrechopoulos et al. (2004) highlighted that the customer's positive evaluation of the customer experience positively influences the comfort level. In high credence services such as FS, customers may undergo feelings of uncertainty and risk (Fernandes and Pinto, 2019), and therefore, developing and maintaining customer's PC becomes even more important. ...
... Findings reveal that among all relationships, customer experience has the most significant and positive impact on PC that corroborates to the claims of previous researchers (Ainsworth and Foster, 2017;Lloyd and Luk, 2011;Vrechopoulos et al., 2004) as customer experience successfully generates a positive emotional feeling in customers (Al-Wugayan, 2019; Silva et al., 2021). The four dimensions of customer experience were positive and significant, of which "Moments-of-Truth" emerged as the most important dimension given that it is linked to the bank being flexible and quick in responding and resolving customer's concerns leading to improving customer experience (Klaus and Maklan, 2013). ...
... Findings revealed that customer experience significantly influences customer's PC. These findings add a new dimension to the literature by empirically proving the conceptual relationship (Vrechopoulos et al., 2004). These findings also add to Ainsworth and Foster (2017) findings in the service environment that when customers receive a positive customer experience, their PC is developed and strengthened, with numerous relational advantages (Gaur et al., 2019;Spake et al., 2003). ...
Psychological comfort reflects the customer's peace of mind and a sense of ease during a service encounter that helps in maintaining strong relationships. However, the role of psychological comfort (PC) in retail service relationships is not fully explored. To fill this research gap, this study presents a unique conceptual model grounded in the stimulus organism response (S–O-R) framework to empirically explore the stimulating effect of customer experience on psychological comfort (PC), which influences relationships quality and customer retention as the response. To evaluate the model a quantitative survey was administered on 432 bank customers followed by in depth interviews of 10 bank employees. It was found that customer experience stimulates customer's PC that leads to relationship quality and retention as the response. It was also found that relationship duration influences the customer experience-PC relationship. The theoretical and managerial implications of the findings are discussed.
... The present study is positioned in the electronic retailing domain and more specifically in the store atmosphere field. According to store atmosphere theory, store layout, as a component of store atmosphere, has been shown to affect various consumer perceptions and behaviors both in traditional and online environments (e.g., Siomkos and Vrechopoulos 2002;Levy and Weitz 2004;Vrechopoulos et al. 2004;Griffith 2005). Krasonikolakis et al. (2010) report that store layout is a key factor influencing consumer behavior in 3D online environments, prompting further research in the 3D online retail context on how store design affects consumer behavior (Krasonikolakis et al. 2014;Kang 2017;). ...
... Exploiting store atmosphere theory and relevant research insights, we build our research model drawing primarily from research showing that in the 2D and 3D online contexts the design, atmospherics or layout of the selling outlet play a critical role in the way customers perceive various aspects of a store (Dailey 2004;Griffith 2005;Manganari et al. 2009;Lai et al. 2014;Krishnaraju et al. 2016;Barros et al. 2019;Xue et al. 2020b). These aspects include merchandise quality perceptions (Zeithaml 1988;Kerin et al. 1992;Baker et al. 2002;Ladhari et al. 2017;Lin et al. 2018;Vries et al. 2018), perceived usefulness (Lee et al. 2003;Vrechopoulos et al. 2004;Yang et al. 2019), perceived ease of use (Lightner et al. 1996;Vrechopoulos et al. 2004;Wei and Ozok 2005;Tandon et al. 2018), and overall store perception (Park and Kim 2003;Kim et al. 2007;Hewawalpita and Perera 2017;Loupiac and Goudey 2019;Byram 2021). Our model is based on store atmosphere theory (Manganari et al. 2009;Krasonikolakis et al. 2010), which asserts that offline and online store layout is an important component that influences consumer behavior. ...
... Exploiting store atmosphere theory and relevant research insights, we build our research model drawing primarily from research showing that in the 2D and 3D online contexts the design, atmospherics or layout of the selling outlet play a critical role in the way customers perceive various aspects of a store (Dailey 2004;Griffith 2005;Manganari et al. 2009;Lai et al. 2014;Krishnaraju et al. 2016;Barros et al. 2019;Xue et al. 2020b). These aspects include merchandise quality perceptions (Zeithaml 1988;Kerin et al. 1992;Baker et al. 2002;Ladhari et al. 2017;Lin et al. 2018;Vries et al. 2018), perceived usefulness (Lee et al. 2003;Vrechopoulos et al. 2004;Yang et al. 2019), perceived ease of use (Lightner et al. 1996;Vrechopoulos et al. 2004;Wei and Ozok 2005;Tandon et al. 2018), and overall store perception (Park and Kim 2003;Kim et al. 2007;Hewawalpita and Perera 2017;Loupiac and Goudey 2019;Byram 2021). Our model is based on store atmosphere theory (Manganari et al. 2009;Krasonikolakis et al. 2010), which asserts that offline and online store layout is an important component that influences consumer behavior. ...
The increasing adoption of three-dimensional (3D) virtual reality technologies in business practices requires an interdisciplinary research approach to study their effect. In this paper we investigate the effects of different 3D online store layouts on user perceptions in the e-retailing context. We build on recent research on store atmosphere that classifies store layouts in 3D environments as “avant-garde”, “warehouse”, “pragmatic”, “boutique” and “department”. Reflecting the dual identity of individuals as both consumers visiting virtual stores and users interacting with graphical user interfaces, we employ key constructs from both the marketing and the information systems literature to build our research model. The study measures how Perceived Usefulness, Perceived Ease of Use, Merchandise Quality Perception and Store Perception vary across the distinct store layouts. We employ a laboratory experiment in the apparel industry to test our model. Our results show that the layouts lead to different perceptions, although the consumers’ Shopping Motivation does not moderate this effect. Building on the differences found on store layout effects on user/consumer behavior in the 3D online context, the paper discusses relevant research and practical implications.
... 16 additional studies were later identified and were added to the analysis. To help the reader navigate through the next sections, in the physical environment the grid layout shows a hierarchy of displays (i.e., from one product category to its product subcategory, then to the end product) (Vrechopoulos et al. 2004), the freeform layout has features and aisles arranged in an asymmetrical form (Levy and Weitz 2008), the racetrack layout (or loop) has fixtures and merchandise arranged around one main aisle (Lin and Lo 2016) (Fig. 3). ...
... In most physical retail settings, the virtual grid layout is most commonly described and used as the quickest way for consumers to find their desired products (Griffith 2005). Vrechopoulos et al. (2004) referred to the virtual grid layout as the use of hierarchical effects models e.g., from one product category, to its product subcategory, then to the end product. The virtual grid layout is most commonly implemented for planned and repeat purchases, like food shopping (Massara and Pelloso 2016). ...
... In the fashion industry, the grid layout is not considered the best solution even in the physical environment (Vrechopoulos et al. 2004;Manganari et al. 2011). In the physical environment, the layout consists of long aisles focused primarily on maximising merchandising, by placing products into categories and groups along with limiting white space (Orvis 2017). ...
Retail layouts and atmospherics have been widely investigated within the physical retail environment, Research suggests that there is limited understanding of these elements in the virtual environment despite the fact that they would appear to be the easiest and most effective combination to implement by online fashion retailers. Considering potential applications in the fashion industry, a review of current literature on layout and atmospherics has identified the freeform layout as a valuable format for online fashion retailing. The freeform layout has been found to increase consumers’ hedonic motivations to purchase. Furthermore, design and visual cues have a significant influence on consumers, while aural cues despite being very important to the consumers’ experience appear to be underexploited in the online fashion space. This paper contributes a review of established retail elements, and identifies those that adapt well from the offline to online retail environment.
... Several researchers have shown the positive relationship between store layout and consumer purchase intentions (Ainsworth & Foster, 2017;Baker et al., 1992;Merrilees & Miller, 2001). Also, store layout should be aligned with in-store operations such as shelf stocking to provide operational efficiency (Lewison, 1994;Vrechopoulos et al., 2004). Consequently, well-designed store layouts appeal to the customers and contribute to both product sales and store profitability (Cil, 2012). ...
... In the present work, we aim to satisfy these desired layout characteristics and rules by introducing them as constraints in our mathematical formulation. Vrechopoulos et al. (2004) identified three major layouts in conventional retail settings: grid, freeform, and racetrack. In grocery retail, we commonly encounter stores combining the grid and racetrack aisles as shown in Figure 1. ...
It is well-established that increased product visibility to shoppers leads to higher sales for retailers. In this study, we propose an optimization methodology which assigns product categories and subcategories to store locations and sublocations to maximize the overall visibility of products to shoppers. The methodology is hierarchically developed to meet strategic and tactical layout planning needs of brick-and-mortar retailers. Layouts in both levels of planning are optimized considering eligibility requirements and complete set of shopper paths, thus, they successfully capture the unique shopping behaviour of consumers in a store’s region. The resulting mathematical optimization problem is recognized as a special instance of the well-known Quadratic Assignment Problem, which is considered computationally as one of the hardest optimization problems. We adopt a linearization technique and demonstrate via a real-world numerical example that our linearized optimization models substantially improve the store layout, hence, can be used in practical applications as a vital decision support model for store layout planning.
... The internet users above all confirm the importance of finding the site navigable and the offer accessible. The design of the merchant website can be useful with search tools in the form of a grid or fun and easy to use with a free-form layout for internet users (Vrechopoulos et al., 2004). In this logic, a design allowing the freedom of arrangement of the sections and spaces of the site (site in tree versus site in tunnel) is able to stimulate positive responses among internet users (Pizzi et al., 2020). ...
... Source: Authors of the online experience. Experiential marketing research has attempted to examine immersion as a specificity of experiential environments (Disztinger et al., 2017;Vrechopoulos et al., 2004). The review of the marketing literature on the concept of immersion shows a conceptual vagueness similar to that of immersion, which has already been addressed and dealt with in the theories of human-machine interaction (Maravilla et al., 2019;Bouvier et al. 2014;Parés and Parés, 2006). ...
The global pandemic of COVID-19 pushed the technological barriers and forced both retailers and potential customers to seek new ways of mutual interaction. Even though considered as mostly exclusive to the gaming industry, virtual reality has been gaining more interest outside its original niche. However, it is not clear how this new technology is going to be accepted by average customers in e-retail. This chapter focuses on defining the concept of virtual reality and providing an overview of aspects associated with virtual immersion. Further, the effects of virtual immersion are examined on a group of university students and put in a perspective with their intention to use this technology for shopping purposes in the future. The main emphasis is put on the comparison of hedonic and utilitarian factors of virtual reality adoption in e-retail.
... Several researchers have shown the positive relationship between store layout and consumer purchase inten-tions (Baker et al., 1992;Merrilees and Miller, 2001;Ainsworth and Foster, 2017). Also, store layout should be aligned with in-store operations such as shelf stocking to provide operational efficiency (Lewison, 1994;Vrechopoulos et al., 2004). Consequently, well-designed store layouts appeal to the customers and contribute to both product sales and store profitability (Cil, 2012). ...
... In the present work, we aim to satisfy these desired layout characteristics and rules by introducing them as constraints in our mathematical formulation. Vrechopoulos et al. (2004) identified three major layouts in conventional retail settings: grid, free-form and racetrack. In grocery retail, we commonly encounter stores combining the grid and racetrack aisles as shown in Figure 1. ...
It is well-established that increased product visibility to shoppers leads to higher sales for retailers. In this study, we propose an optimization methodology which assigns product categories and subcategories to store locations and sublocations to maximize the overall visibility of products to shoppers. The methodology is hierarchically developed to meet strategic and tactical layout planning needs of brick-and-mortar retailers. Layouts in both levels of planning are optimized considering eligibility requirements and complete set of shopper paths, thus, they successfully capture the unique shopping behavior of consumers in a store's region. The resulting mathematical optimization problem is recognized as a special instance of the well-known Quadratic Assignment Problem, which is considered computationally as one of the hardest optimization problems. We adopt a linearization technique and demonstrate via a real-world numerical example that our linearized optimization models substantially improve the store layout, hence, can be used in practical applications as a vital decision support model for store layout planning.
Published article available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/01605682.2022.2056532
... In virtual shopping, consumers would perceive the atmosphere of store layout though sensation. Vrechopoulos et al. [86] also suggest that the atmospheric of virtual store layout significantly affect consumer behavior, including the consumer action and their purchasing intentions. ...
... Also, Couture et al. [87] indicate that virtual web shopping environments could be developed by HTML, with the use of discrete perspective displays. Vrechopoulos et al. [86] suggest that with the use of virtual setting, difference layout of virtual store could result different spatial experience which could induce different consumer action and behavior. Tlauka et al. [88] conduct a research in virtual shopping center, and discover that there are no significant gender differences in spatial performance, including navigation and wayfinding. ...
... Such associations influence marketing activities in retail spaces, where store layout, product positioning and shelf placement are critical determinants of consumer purchase behaviours (Desrochers & Nelson, 2006). Similar to conventional retailing, in online retailing, the virtual store layout can be a critical determinant of business success (Pizzi, Vannucci, & Aiello, 2020;Vrechopoulos, 2004). As an illustration, in the online world, a product's choice probability increases when it is presented on the screen prior to (above) subsequent products (Breugelmans, Campo, & Gijsbrechts, 2007). ...
... In-store or online, visual display elements determine the design of the retail space and thus are fundamental to layout and flow (Roggeveen, Grewal, & Schweiger, 2020). Akin to conventional retailing, in online retailing, the virtual store layout can be a critical determinant of business success (Pizzi et al., 2020;Vrechopoulos, 2004). In this regard, not only does the layout and content of the online store influence shoppers' positive/negative attitudes (Eroglu, Machleit, & Davis, 2003), but vertical (compared to horizontal and diagonal) displays have greater influence on browsing and purchase behaviours (Nordfält, Grewal, Roggeveen, & Hill, 2014;Septianto, Kemper, & Northey, 2020;Septianto, Northey, Chiew, & Ngo, 2020). ...
Consumers describe luxury goods as “high-status” goods that are associated with the “upper class.” If these spatial metaphors are valid, then consumers should prefer luxury goods being positioned higher in the visual field in a consumer setting, which would be because of the psychological theory known as “processing fluency.” Fluency occurs when there is a congruence between two concepts, facilitating ease of processing and thereby liking. We test the effect of high (vs. low) spatial positioning for luxury goods in an online retailing context. Across three experiments, we observe that placing luxury goods higher on a website “matches” consumers’ lay associations about such items, with the positive feelings thereby transferring onto the luxury good. The findings demonstrate that locating luxury products at different heights in the visual field can influence product preference. In doing so, we build on existing theory concerning visual perception, spatial metaphors, and processing fluency.
... There are at least three types of conventional layouts that are commonly applied in retail stores, namely: grid ( Figure 2), freeform (Figure 3), and racetrack layouts ( Figure 4) (Vrechopoulos et al., 2004). Each store layout has its characteristics which are summarized in Table 1. ...
Objectives: The store layout in a minimarket is a strategy to encourage repeat purchases from customers. This study attempts to assess the layout design of the minimarket in Indonesia and comprehend its contribution to purchase intention.Methodology: This research observed two well-known minimarkets in Indonesia, namely Alfamart and Indomaret. A literature review associated with field findings was conducted to find their relationship to consumer purchase intention.Finding: Consumers' shopping behavior in minimarket retail stores in Indonesia does not show much difference from the behavior of consumers in other countries. Consumers will not linger in a store that is generally not too large. They come to minimarket retail stores not for "window shopping" but have planned beforehand on the products that they will buy.Conclusion: A grid design in the minimarket is effective to shape consumer behavior by directing their movement, shopping effectiveness, and control. However, it needs a product display management that arouses interest in buying that invokes the feeling of completion and diversity, but also does not look too full and messy.
... Since the shopping experience occurs through a vendor's website, its design, and how product information is organized and displayed on the screen are essential in facilitating the consumer's experience. Research shows that different interface layouts (e.g., grid vs. racetrack) affect the time it takes to complete shopping tasks (Speicher et al., 2019;Vrechopoulos et al., 2004); spatial location (e.g., horizontal vs. vertical) in the presentation of comparative price promotions affect consumers' speed and accuracy in computing monetary discounts (Feng et al., 2017); organization of information presentation (matrix vs. list) affects consumers' recognition and understanding of products' relevant attributes (Bettman & Zins, 1979;Lacko & Pappalardo, 2010); and search patterns as shown by an eye-tracking differ depending on how the information is organized and displayed by the interface (Bogomolova et al., 2020;Hur et al., 2013;Schmutz et al., 2010;Shi et al., 2013). ...
This study examines design principles for how to display financial information about a consumer loan that supports locating a value (e.g., What is the annual percentage rate (APR) for an 18-month loan?), comparing two values (e.g. Is the APR for a 24-month load greater than for an 18-month loan?), or subtracting two values (e.g., What is the difference in the APR for a 24-month load and an 18-month loan?). 133 college students carried out these three types of tasks at a banking site that displayed information as a list (e.g., listing the value for interest rate, monthly payment, insurance cost, APR, amount financed, and total cost for a given duration ranging from 6 to 48 months) or as one of three types of tables or matrices (containing values for each of 6 variables across one axis and each of 8 loan durations across the other). Accuracy and response time on each of the three types of tasks was tallied for each of the four groups. Consistent with the principle of distraction minimization, the list was the best display for locating a value. Consistent with the principle of conjoint alignment, a vertical matrix (with loan duration across columns) or horizontal matrix (with loan duration across rows) was the best for comparing two values, but an interactive matrix was less effective. Consistent with the principle of canonical form, a vertical matrix (with loan duration across columns) was the best for subtracting two values. Overall, the best information display depended on the type of task, consistent with cognitive theories of information processing.
... However, the shop layout should be designed in a way to facilitate navigation and experience and fit the brand and its values (Gadalla et al., 2013). It is important to note that the store environment influences shopping behaviors by affecting consumers' cognitive, emotional, and physiological reactions (Bitner, 1992;Eroglu et al., 2001), their shopping motivations (Vrechopoulos et al., 2004), and service quality perceptions (Mathwick et al., 2002). Hassouneh and Brengman (2015) analyzed the impact of store atmospherics on consumer behavior and retailer performance by investigating 27 virtual shops in Second Life. ...
With the emergence of web 3.0, the metaverse, and virtual technologies, the retail and consumer goods industry is entering a new era centered on active consumer engagement. Due to the novelty and insufficient research of the topic, this study aims to provide an initial overview of the current status, trends, and potentials in metaverse adoption and its impact on retail.
To this end, the following research question is posed: What are human beings’ responses to the metaverse and virtual technologies in retail? Specifically, the study analyzes the likelihood of individuals to utilize the virtual channel for their shopping needs, the factors that may influence this willingness, and what a metaverse environment in the retail industry might look like.
Thorough literature review describes various applications, opportunities, and challenges of the metaverse. To answer the research question, an exploratory quantitative study was conducted in July 2022. The final survey sample, after quality controls, consisted of 286 participants from different continents. The primary data obtained from the questionnaire was statistically analyzed using Excel and SPSS.
The study shows that more than half of the respondents are not yet ready to buy products, particularly digital assets, within the metaverse. Familiarity, excitement, and conviction are vital drivers for the use of the virtual channel. Consumers who value personalized offers and a sense of belonging to a brand have shown a higher likelihood of shopping in the metaverse. In addition, North Americans and online users represent valuable target groups. The findings reveal promising opportunities for community building and the co-creation of products, with furniture and clothing likely to have the greatest potential in the metaverse. On the other hand, privacy and security risks are a major concern, indicating that there are still many challenges that need to be overcome.
The paper delivers insights on how retail will be affected by disruptive technology, provides strategies for brands, and suggestions for future research.
Keywords: Metaverse; Metaverse Retailing; Virtual Shopping; Customer Experience
... According to Ainsworth and Foster (2017), psychological wellbeing is a key factor in customer experience perceptions. Similarly, Vrechopoulos et al. (2004) emphasized that the level of comfort is positively influenced by the customer's positive evaluation of the customer experience. Since customers who use services with high credibility may experience emotions such as fear and anxiety (Fernandes and Pinto, 2019), it is crucial to keep their psychological comfort level high. ...
How did hospitality customers perceive the experience of going out during the global COVID-19 pandemic? What concerns did they have about hospitality providers? The purpose of this paper was to clarify how consumers perceived the pandemic and whether or not people feared infection when dining out. The first purpose was to determine how many people went out during the pandemic, and the second aim was to determine how they perceived the performance of the hospitality industry. To measure their perceptions, we proposed several variables: psychological well-being, expected positive emotions, expected negative emotions, desire to avoid, and customer satisfaction. The main objective was to investigate the correlation between the selected variables. For the study, a questionnaire was distributed to different target groups: Adolescents, adults, and middle-aged people. It was found that the population of Bucharest felt a need to socialize and go out during the pandemic rather than a reluctance to do so. This study highlights the importance of anticipated perceptions and how they influence consumers' final perceptions.
... A five-point Likert scale was used (1-total disagreement/5-total agreement). The scales for each latent variable measurement were listed as follows: perceived usefulness (Vrechopoulos et al., 2004), personalization (Lee, 2005), privacy and security (Xu et al., 2011), social pressure (Tak and Panwar, 2017), review (Arora and Sharma, 2018), hedonic motivation (Changa et al., 2011), attitude towards fast fashion apps (Srinivasan et al., 2002;Bart et al., 2005), purchase intention towards fast fashion apps (Baker and Churchill, 1977), and COVID-19 elaborated by the authors based on the work of Nguyen et al. (2020). The scales were validated following the approach by Hair et al. (2017), by firstly evaluating the measurement model to determine the internal consistency reliability and validity, then measuring the composite reliability, factor loadings, average variance extracted, and discriminant validity. ...
Nowadays many people use mobile applications for different purposes to manage their daily activities more conveniently and efficiently. Thus, mobile apps contribute to the optimization of consumers' shopping experience during the decision-making process. Based on the S-O-R framework, the present study explores the direct and indirect impact of utilitarian, hedonic and social attributes of mobile apps on consumers' attitudes and purchase intention through fast fashion mobile apps. An online survey was conducted to test the proposed conceptual model, and the partial least squares (PLS) modeling technique was used for the reliability and validity assessment of the reflective constructs. The results indicate that hedonic motivations have a higher impact on consumers' attitudes than utilitarian ones. Attitude has multiple mediation roles, while channel-switching behaviour caused by COVID-19 moderates the relationship between attitude and purchase intention. The findings are relevant for marketers and fashion retailers to optimize branded mobile apps from a utilitarian and hedonic point of view.
... This is an important development since most purchase decisions are made when consumers are in the store [15]. Moreover, retailers are increasingly competing across multiple channels [16] and on more digital dimensions [3,17], and it is predicted that retail will be one of the top industries when it comes to benefiting from VR in the nearest future). Within food, consumer purchase behaviour can also be studied using VR technologies [14] for instance in relation to healthy vs. unhealthy food purchases [18] and price interventions [19]. ...
This study validates a VR supermarket as a research tool by studying the influence of the food shopping setting on consumers’ price memory—an important antecedent for price comparisons in the purchase situation. In a quasi-experiment, two groups of consumers were given a shopping task in either a physical supermarket or a virtual reality supermarket setting. Upon task completion, participants’ explicit and implicit price memory was measured across three food product categories (pizza sauce, pasta, and dark chocolate). Results revealed no significant difference between the two settings, supporting the comparability between the VR shopping experience and the experience in the physical supermarket. The VR supermarket can therefore be a valid tool for studying consumer food choice behaviour in a shopping context. Further results show that explicit price memory is weaker compared to implicit price memory, that even prices are remembered better than odd prices, and that price memory follows the expected pattern in a VR supermarket as well. Finally, exploratory findings indicate that the feeling of physical presence and self-presence is relatively high for this particular VR supermarket, whereas social presence is weaker.
... For instant, how a site is structured is the same as how a store displays. Vrechopoulos et al. (2004) proved that the design of a page influences how one behaves. When the site map is clear and users can find what they require, there is a greater chance that they will place an order. ...
Abstract:
Purpose- The objective of this research was to study the guidelines for applicationtourism human resource digital transformation in Ho Chi Minh City.
Design/methodology/approach- This study empirically examines the factors affectingtourism human resource digital transformation in Ho Chi Minh City, including thequalitative research through in-depth interviews and the quantitative research bycollecting the quantitative data of 266 tourism employees working at (1) the hospitality and catering sector and (2) the travel trade and tourism sector that usedigital technology in their business operations to analyze and improve tourism humanresource digital transformation by using SmartPLS to analyze the structural model toprove the hypothesis, positive influence of construct.
Findings- The findings of this study revealed that employee experience, technologicaland organization positively influences tourism human resource digital transformation
Research limitations/implications- The sample cannot be generalized to the wholepopulation in Ho Chi Minh city annually. In a future research direction, the populationof study could be increased and should replicate the studied model in hotels andrestaurants business.
Originality/value- The results of the factors affecting tourism human resource digitaltransformation help the organization use the digital transformation to improveorganizational performance through their human resources
Keywords: Digital Transformation, Human Resource, Touris
(PDF) The Proceedings of International Conference 2022 Covid-19, Digital Transformation and Tourism Resilience. Available from: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/359539161_The_Proceedings_of_International_Conference_2022_Covid-19_Digital_Transformation_and_Tourism_Resilience#fullTextFileContent [accessed Oct 03 2022].
... For instant, how a site is structured is the same as how a store displays. Vrechopoulos et al. (2004) proved that the design of a page influences how one behaves. When the site map is clear and users can find what they require, there is a greater chance that they will place an order. ...
... Retailers and organizations have been progressively keen to build their marketing propositions based upon senses that determine the consumer experience, to attract customers' attention and make the experience memorable [12][13][14]. The increased usage of sensory cues is mainly undertaken by organizations and retailers to provide product scent, background music, user interface designs, and so on [11,[15][16][17][18]. ...
Retailers are increasingly aware of the importance of store atmosphere on consumers’ emotions. The results of four experimental studies demonstrate that the sensory cues by which customers sense products and the amount of (in)congruency among the sensory stimuli of the products affect consumers’ emotions, willingness to purchase, and experience. In the presence of moderators such as colors, jingles, prices, and scent imagery, when facing sensory-rich experiential products (e.g., juice, coffee, hamburger, soda) with different sensory cues, consumers’ emotions, willingness to purchase, and experience depend on affective primacy and sensory congruency. The results (1) facilitate an improved consideration of the role of the interaction of sensory cues on customer emotions, (2) have consequences for outcomes linked with sensory congruency and affective primacy, and (3) help clarify possible incoherence in preceding studies on cross-modal outcomes in the setting of multi-sensory marketing.
... Store layout has a strong impact on in-store traffic patterns, shopping impressions, shopping atmosphere, and efficiency of retail operations. The store layout is also a critical factor in the creation of store image (Anic et al., 2010;Behera and Mishra, 2017;Vrechopoulos, O'Keefe, Doukidis, and Siomkos, 2004;Wu, Kim, and Koo, 2015). The success of store traffic management relies on the placement of supermarket brands within the retail market (Russell and Kamakura, 1997). ...
... Choose strategic layouts. The idea that product layout affects shoppers' perceptions is not new (see e.g., Morales et al. 2005;Norm, Farris, and Freeland, 1994;Vrechopoulos et al. 2004). Retailers have long known the manner in which products are displayed affects interest and purchase. ...
The evolving retail landscape in the digital age has resulted in opportunities and novel capabilities for retailers. This paper identifies four key challenges facing retailers based on insights from practitioners and academics using the customer journey framework as a guide. It then considers evidence from both practice and theory on how contemporary retailers might best innovate in the face of these challenges, to get “the right message to the right shopper at the right time.” Historically, retail was largely constrained to focus on individual touchpoints as manufacturers drove the majority of communication decisions. More recently, with the ability of e-commerce to capture the shopper decision journey more comprehensively, retailers are better able to understand what the right message would be as well as where, when, and how to deliver it to reach the most responsive shoppers to achieve the retailer’s strategic objectives in each phase of the journey. It is within this context that this paper considers the following key challenges: 1) When is the right time to communicate with a given shopper?, 2) What is the right way to communicate with a given shopper?, 3) What is the right way to leverage in-store collateral?, and 4) How do we cultivate the right long-term relationship with a shopper?
With the high growth and prosperity of e-commerce, the retail industry needs to explore new technologies that improve digital shopping experiences. In the current technological scenario, Virtual Reality (VR) emerges as a tool and an opportunity for enhancing shopping activities, especially for the fashion industry. This study explores whether using Immersive Virtual Reality (IVR) technologies enhances the shopping experience in the fashion industry compared to Desktop Virtual Reality (DVR). A within-subject experiment was carried out involving a sample of 60 participants who completed a simulated shopping experience. In the first mode (DVR), a desktop computer setup was used to test the shopping experience using a mouse and keyboard for navigation. The second mode (IVR) exploited a Head-Mounted Display (HMD), and controllers, that allowed navigation while seated on a workstation to avoid sickness. Participants had to find a bag in the virtual shop and explore its features until they were ready to purchase it. Post-hoc measures of time duration of the shopping experience, hedonic and utilitarian values, user experience, and cognitive load were compared. Results showed that participants experienced higher hedonism and utilitarianism in the IVR shop compared to DVR. The cognitive load was comparable in both modes, while user experience was higher in IVR. In addition, the time duration of the shopping experience was higher in IVR, where users stayed immersed and enjoyed it for longer. This study has implications for fashion industry research, as the use of IVR can potentially lead to novel shopping patterns by enhancing the shopping experience.
A novel approach was used to evaluate the impact of retail store layouts on consumer responses, by triangulating subjective feedback, behavioural data and electroencephalogram (EEG) data in the context of a virtual environment. Participants (n = 45) were assigned to one of three store layout conditions. While there were no significant differences in participants subjective/conscious evaluations of the layout complexity, they demonstrated reduced product-recall scores, and greater cognitive workload in visual/spatial-processing brain regions, in store environments with more complex layouts. This study explores the correlation between perceived visual complexity and perceived store attractiveness and examines how pleasure and processing fluency mediate this relationship. The results demonstrate a strong association between these factors, with processing fluency playing a more significant role in mediating the effect (78%) compared to pleasure (22%). Overall, this study provides valuable insights into the psychological factors that influence consumer perceptions of store environments. The findings demonstrate the value of an EEG/VR-based approach in studying human behaviour during the building design process for identifying neural mechanisms and responses that self-reported feedback may obscure. The result of this study has implications for building designers and retailers, suggesting that simpler store layouts might be more effective in terms of product recall and reduced cognitive workload.
Günümüzde online ticaret bir çok açıdan sunduğu avantajlar sayesinde büyük ilgi görmeye başlamış ve sanal mağazalardan alışveriş yapan tüketicilerin sayısı artmaya başlamıştır. Sanal mağaza atmosferi, site tasarımında kullanılan elemanların belirli bir müşteri çıktısı elde etmek adına bilinçli bir şekilde bir araya getirilmesi olarak tanımlanabilir. Sanal mağaza anlayışı geleneksel mağaza anlayışına göre pazarlama stratejilerine yeni boyutlar kazandırmayı başarmıştır. Günümüz rekabet ortamında sanal mağaza alışverişi, firmaların minimum maliyetler eşliğinde kar oranlarını yükseltmelerine imkan tanımıştır. Bu imkanlardan bazıları tüketicilerin davranışsal niyetleriyle ortaya çıkmıştır ve işletmelerin pazarlama faaliyetlerinde sanal mağaza atmosferinin ne kadar önemli olduğunu göstermiştir. E-perakendeciler için rekabet avantajı sağlamak, müşteriyi site içerisinde kalmasını sağlamak, satın alma davranışını olumlu yönde etkilemek ve müşterinin site ile alakalı nihai kararını şekillendirebilmek adına sanal mağaza atmosferi pazarlamanın önemli bir elemanıdır. Araştırmada tüketicilerde 255adet veri toplanmıştır ve veriler anket yöntemi kullanılarak toplanmıştır. Bu yöntem ile topladığımız verilere ilk olarak normallik testi uygulanmıştır. Toplanan verilerin bulguların istatiksel bakımdan farklılık gösterip göstermediğini belirlemek adına ise non-parametrik testlerden biri olan Mann-Whitney–U ve Kruskal-WallisH testlerinden yararlanılmıştır. Elde ettiğimiz verilerin analizleri gerçekleştirilirken tanımlayıcı istatistik testlerinden frekans, yüzde, ortalama ve standart sapma, çıkarımsal istatistik testlerinden ise, regresyon ve korelasyon analizleri gerçekleştirilmiştir. Ulaşılan bulgular neticesinde; sanal mağaza atmosferinin tüketicilerin davranışsal niyetleri üzerinde anlamlı ve pozitif yönlü bir etkisi olduğu görülmektedir.
The choice of furniture in a retail store is usually based on a product catalog and simplistic product renderings with different configurations. We present a preliminary field study that tests a Multi-Sensory In-Store Virtual Reality Customer Journey (MSISVRCJ) through a virtual catalog and a product configurator to support furnishings sales. The system allows customers to stay immersed in the virtual environment (VE) while the sales expert changes the colors, textures, and finishes of the furniture, also exploring different VEs. In addition, customers can experience realistic tactile feedback with in-store samples of furniture they can test. The journey is implemented for a furniture manufacturer and tested in a flagship store. Fifty real customers show positive feedback in terms of general satisfaction, perceived realism, and acceptance. This method can increase purchase confidence, reduce entrepreneurial costs, and leverage in-store versus online shopping.
Tüketicilerin satın alma karar süreci demografik, sosyal, kültürel, kişisel, psikolojik faktörlerin ya da pazarlama araçları tarafından şekillenen faktörlerin etkisi altında ortaya çıkmaktadır. Bu anlamda dışsal ve içsel faktörler olarak ele alınabilecek olan bu türden faktörler, tüketicilerin zihninde gerçekleşen değerlendirmeyi etkileyerek bazı yanıtlar (tepkiler) meydana getirmektedir. Bu araştırma, sanal mağaza atmosferi, satış promosyonları, akış deneyimi ve impulsif satın alma değişkenleri arasındaki ilişkileri S-O-R paradigması kapsamında incelemeyi amaçlamıştır. Bu doğrultuda sanal mağaza atmosferi ve satış promosyonları dışsal uyaranlar, akış deneyimi organizma (zihinsel süreç) ve impulsif satın alma bir tüketici tepkisi olarak ele alınmış ve bir nicel araştırma kapsamında araştırmanın teorik modeli değerlendirilmiştir. Araştırmanın verilerini online anket yoluyla erişilen 407 tüketicinin yanıtları oluşturmuş ve veriler SPSS 24 ve AMOS 24 istatistik yazılımlarında çözümlenmiştir. Yapılan analizler sonucunda iyi uyum iyiliği gösteren bir yapısal eşitlik modeli kapsamında elde edilen bulgular, sanal mağaza atmosferi, satış promosyonları, akış deneyimi ve impulsif satın alma davranışı arasında istatistiksel olarak anlamlı ilişkiler bulunduğunu ortaya koymuştur. Sonuçlara göre akış deneyimi, hem sanal mağaza atmosferi ile impulsif satın alma arasında hem de satış promosyonları ile impulsif satın alma arasında aracılık rolü üstlenmektedir. Ayrıca sosyo-demografik özellikler ile alışveriş alışkanlıklarına ilişkin bazı faktörlerin istatistiksel olarak anlamlı gruplararası farklılıklar sergilediği ortaya çıkmıştır.
Visual merchandising has gained importance in contemporary retail research and practice. Initially considered as an essential element of retail store atmospherics, the scope of visual merchandising has now extended well beyond the usual reference of a visual stimulus. As research on visual merchandising and store atmospherics continues to converge, this systematic literature review aims to identify the research gaps and overlaps to help researchers with directions on formulating original research ideas in this cross-over domain. A framework-based review using Theory, Context, Characteristics, and Methods (TCCM) typology with an integrated analysis of 88 research articles published between 2000 and 2020 was carried out. It was found that visual merchandising as a product-driven display function has been closely related to store atmosphere as a store-wide display function. Hence an integrated framework of research in visual merchandising and store atmospherics becomes imperative to understand their interplay in the evolving scope of traditional and e-tailers' environments. The paper contributes as the first and most comprehensive review of research on visual merchandising with the closely substitutable domain- store atmospherics.
Tüketicilerin geleneksel alışveriş süreçlerine kıyasla elektronik ortamda farklı alışveriş davranışları sergilediğini literatürde birçok çalışmada ifade edilen bir görüştür. Bu bağlamda, pazarlama disiplininin merkezinde yer alan bir kavram olarak memnuniyet algısının, tüketici davranışlarının değişim gösterdiği elektronik ortamda araştırılması büyük önem arz etmektedir. Bu çalışmada pazarlama yazınında yer alan memnuniyet ve e-memnuniyete ilişkin mevcut modeller incelendikten sonra, e-memnuniyet (elektronik memnuniyet) kavramının açıklanmasında bilişim sistemleri disiplininden de yararlanarak e-perakendecilik sektörü için genişletilmiş bir e-memnuniyet modeli önerilerek, söz konusu modelin geçerliliği test edilmeye çalışılmıştır. Araştırma bağlamında önerilen modelin test edilmesi amacıyla oluşturulmuş olan anket online olarak online alışveriş yapmış olan tüketiciler üzerinde uygulanmıştır. Toplam 795 analize uygun anket geri dönüşü olmuştur. Elde edilen veriler üzerinde tanımlayıcı istatistik analizleri, açıklayıcı faktör analizi ve doğrulayıcı faktör analizi ile güvenirlilik ve yapı geçerlilik yönünden sınanmakta ve yapısal eşitlik modeli ile test edilmektedir. Araştırma bulguları verilerin önerilen modeli desteklemekte olduğunu ortaya koymaktadır. Bulgular ışığında, elektronik ortamda müşteri memnuniyetinin belirleyicileri olarak ortaya çıkan 10 faktörün (rahatlık ve zaman tasarrufu, ürün çeşitliliği ve bilgi zenginliği, promosyon etkinlikleri, ürün yorumlama, müşteri ilişkileri ve teslimatın yerine getirilmesi, güven, algılanan risk, görsel unsurlar, e-işlem etkinliği ve eğlence) üç ana boyut altında (web sayfası etkinliği, algılanan fayda ve güvenlik algısı) özetlenebileceğini ortaya koymaktadır. Bu üç boyuttan web sayfası etkinliği ile güvenlik algısının görece olarak daha yüksek belirleyiciliğe sahip olduğu gözlenmiştir. Yine bulgular e-sadakatin en önemli belirleyicisinin e-memnuniyet olduğunu ortaya koymaktadır.
The present study attempts to examine how the various emotions expressed in customer engagement content available on online product review videos reflect purchase intentions. The study identified 97 popular review videos of different technical products on YouTube, with a total of 93,181 comments posted between January 2018 and June 2021. After filtering, the final set of data consisted of 18,452 comments. The paper employed both Poisson and negative binomial regression to test the hypotheses and strengthen the findings. The study explores new insights for predicting purchase intentions of potential customers with the help of a four-factor model based on customer engagement content available on online product review videos. Thus, this research supports the applicability of MRT, CET and SOR theories in the existing literature on retailing and e-tailing by developing a four-factor model. A wide range of consumer responses, both quantitative and qualitative, have been taken into account to predict purchase intentions using sentiment analysis, which makes this study unique and robust. Additionally, the paper entails several significant managerial implications for retailing and e-tailing firms to reformulate their marketing strategies.
Abstract
The study focusses on the store design and store environment of the garment retail stores situated in malls of Mumbai. For this purpose, observation checklist was used; layout and lighting measurements of the store were recorded. The findings of the study revealed that size of the stores and changing rooms were almost same. All the stores had a free flow store layout with adequate circulation spaces between racks except in one international brand store; the shelf height and rods were within the reach except in one Indian brand store that was little high, while clearances spaces between the shelves were adequate, but the clearance in-between the merchandises, rods and hangers was not adequate. The walls of all the stores had smooth finishes and painted in light colours and vitrified tiles, and vinyl was used for flooring. The trial rooms had better privacy in Indian stores, and the lighting levels in store were as per standards. Finally, it can be concluded that some of the design features like counter heights, privacy, clearances and efficient shelves spaces for easy accessibility needs to be considered.
Keywords
Design
Garment store
Shelves
Lighting
Clearances
Teknolojinin gelişmesiyle birlikte internet kullanımının artması, bireylerin yaşamlarını etkilemekle kalmayıp, firmaların da işleyiş biçimlerini etkilemiştir. Dünyada yaşanan bu gelişmeler sonucunda e-perakendecilik kavramı ortaya çıkmıştır. Sanal mağazalar rakiplere karşı fark yaratmak, öne çıkabilmek ve tüketicilerde memnuniyet duygusu yaratmak adına sanal mağaza atmosferi tasarımına gereken önemi vermeye başlamışlardır. Bu çalışmanın amacı giyim sektöründe sanal mağaza atmosferinin E-memnuniyet, e-yapışkanlık ve e-sadakat üzerindeki etkisini araştırmaktır. Bu doğrultuda, kolayda örnekleme yöntemiyle seçilen 399 tüketici üzerinde çevrimiçi anket uygulaması gerçekleştirilmiştir. Elde edilen veriler Yapısal EşitlikModellemesi aracılığıyla analiz edilmiştir. Araştırmanın bulguları, sanal mağaza atmosferi boyutlarından“mağaza önü tasarımı, mağazanın iç dekorasyonu, yerleşim düzeni ve görsel sunumlar” boyutlarının e-memnuniyet üzerinde etkili olduğunu; fakat “insan ve ödeme” boyutunun e-memnuniyet üzerinde etkili olmadığını göstermektedir. Bununla birlikte, araştırma sonuçları, e-memnuniyetin e-yapışkanlık ve e-sadakat üzerinde etkili olduğunu fakat e-yapışkanlığın e-sadakat üzerinde anlamlı bir etkisinin bulunmadığını ortaya koymaktadır.
The present study numerically analyzes, from an evacuation perspective, the heat and smoke propagation in case of a fire incident in typical informal shopping malls with air curtains employed at critical locations and compared the same with no air curtains in place. Three different designs of shopping malls, having the commonly observed geometric and architectural features and multiple origins of fire with clothing as fuel, are examined. The effect of the distribution and arrangement of clothing fuel inside the stores on the propagation of heat and smoke is evaluated. Encouraging results are obtained in terms of the effectiveness of the air curtains in mitigating the spread of heat and smoke and in increasing the safe evacuation time. About 37% of the fire-generated heat could be confined within the fire-source store by discharging the air curtain jet at a velocity of 10 m/s. Implementation of a two-stage air curtain barrier, at the fire-origin and the staircase, might confine up to 68% of the heat towards the staircase. Since the practically observed fuel density within these stores inevitably shows flashover to occur, the effect of an alternate and more standardized clothing arrangement on the fire safety is also analyzed. The findings of the present study could provide a comprehensive insight into the role and effectiveness of air curtains in confining the heat/smoke and hence assisting safe evacuation in case of fire incidents in informal shopping malls.
This research draws on the stimulus-organism-response framework to explore how traditional, physical atmospheric variables relate to consumers’ internal value responses to the m-shopping experience. Further, this research exposes how fulfillment of consumers’ utilitarian and hedonic values relate to consumers’ experience of flow while shopping and their intentions to return to the m-shopping platform. Findings suggest the stimulus-organism-response framework provides a viable perspective on the design of mobile shopping experiences. Moreover, traditional atmospheric variables influence consumers’ shopping experiences in the mobile context. Theoretical and practical implications are provided.
The layout of a store is an important aspect influencing consumer buying behaviour and a significant determinant in the formation of a retail image. Well-designed store layouts are critical because they have a strong influence on in-store movement designs, shopping environment, shopping behaviour, and operational productivity (Behera & Mishra, 2017). When there is inconsistency in the layout of the store, some clients will abandon that establishment in search of one that delivers faster, more convenient, and better services. Taking a more thoughtful approach to retail layout can pay huge returns in terms of higher sales, customer loyalty, and, ultimately, turnover (Clark, 2003). The overarching study goal was to determine whether independent convenience stores in Kwa Mashu are aware of the effects of store layout on consumer purchasing patterns. To achieve the study's aims, a quantitative study was undertaken at Kwa Mashu convenience stores using self-administered questionnaires. A total sample of 400 respondents participated in the study. Non-probability sampling was used to select the respondents, and convenience sampling was utilized. Following that, conclusions and recommendations were derived from the literature and the study's findings. According to the findings of this survey, consumers have issues with store layout. It was discovered that the appearance of the store, merchandise display, retail atmosphere, in-store service, and accessibility are the key contributors to this pain. As a result, it is recommended that convenience shop owners in Kwa Mashu attend to the above-highlighted areas and ensure that strategies are implemented to assist customers where there is a need.Keywords: consumer buying behaviour, merchandise display, merchandise mix, retail strategy, store layoutJEL Classifications: M3, M30, M31, M310 DOI: https://doi.org/10.32479/irmm.11583
Customer concentration inside a store is of pivotal importance for retail management, acquiring controversial contributions about the best number of consumers in the floor space to ensure an enjoyable and pleasant experience. Indeed, the excessive concentration of people (crowd) might discourage from shopping in that location, while on the other hand, a certain traffic to the store generates profit for retailers.
The aim of this paper is to support retailers’ informed decisions by refining our understanding of the extent to which store layouts influences consumer density. To this end, we conduct a large field study using a unique dataset covering customers in a real grocery store with agent-based simulations. Results clearly show the extent to which this kind of simulations help predicting the changes in store layout able to affect customer density in the areas, while ensuring the same number of individuals.
This research, drawing on dyadic data, is one of the first to assess the significance of employee satisfaction in driving customer satisfaction and service quality within a utilitarian context. Multi-level structural equation modelling is employed to analyse 974 customers directly matched to 95 employees across 15 retail grocery stores. Our key empirical finding is that within a utilitarian context, and using a multi-level approach, employee satisfaction does not have a significant direct effect on either customer satisfaction or customer service quality perceptions. Perceptions of price competitiveness assume a more significant role in both customer satisfaction and service quality perceptions than employee satisfaction. Utilitarian store managers should focus their efforts on appropriate service strategies where employee satisfaction still plays a key role.
This research develops a typology of atmospherics that contains user-identified modules and modular options for personalizing 3D virtual fashion stores. A content analysis of 46 focus group discussions (n = 170) was conducted to understand the user’s perspective for personalizing 3D virtual fashion store atmospherics. Based on three atmospheric categories (pathfinding assistant, environment, and the manner of product presentation), 17 modules and 207 modular options were identified for personalizing 3D virtual stores. This research pioneers the development of an atmospherics typology for personalizing 3D virtual shopping environments as a persuasive selling tool in the emerging field of 3D virtual reality (VR) retailing.
Purpose: This Impact Pathways paper aims to provide a timely and structured discussion of real-world problems at Marks & Spencer and in retail in general, evoked through the current COVID-19 pandemic.
Design/methodology/approach: The article presents collaborative research based on more than five hours of interviews and several iterative paper writing steps between management scholars and Marks & Spencer’s Head of Procurement - Logistics and Supply Chain. Continuous discussions over a period of more than ten months among the research team assures the timeliness and relevance of the findings. The exceptional position of the executive and his career biography allowed for an integration of a variety of intra- and inter-organisational stakeholders.
Findings: This paper highlights impacts of the current COVID-19 pandemic on operations and supply chain management (OSCM) in the retail industry, structured in upstream, internal and downstream perspectives. The paper concludes with a practice-infused research agenda which aims to trigger relevant research about the current and potential future crises.
Research limitations/implications: Although the research agenda is directly related to the COVID-19 pandemic and the retail industry, the future research pathways are expected to inform business responses to potential future external shocks other than pandemics and in different industries as well.
Originality/value: Despite a plethora of studies already published on COVID-19 and OSCM, little is known on how the outbreak affects specific firms and industries. This paper offers an overview of COVID-19 related change as it happens at the retailer and in the retailing industry in general. This article is among the first to provide a practice-infused call for research on urgent issues being faced by business leaders directly relevant to our domain.
This chapter discusses traditional and online atmospherics as a sport marketing strategy. Though with traditional retail roots, atmospherics have emerged as a strategy that may be utilized in the physical, online, and mobile sport environments. A comprehensive review of major traditional and sports atmospheric variables, online atmospheric variables including augmented and virtual reality, and applications to sport are discussed. In addition, the spectator experience cycle is introduced with atmospheric correlations. The purpose of the chapter is to explain why traditional and online atmospherics are important to the sport industry and to demonstrate how sport marketers may use physical, online, or mobile atmospherics to enhance spectator experience, increase loyalty, impact attitude, consumer choice, and impact purchase behavior. In addition, the chapter is meant to emphasize the importance of atmospherics to ultimately achieve sport promotional/marketing objectives. Finally, future research directions are recommended.
Websites are becoming increasingly complex due to the competing sights and sounds found on each page. Prior research by the authors (Stevenson, Bruner, and Kumar, 2000) has demonstrated the negative consequences that this sort of complexity can have on the effectiveness of a commercial run on such a page. Generalizations of those findings were limited due to the study's student sample so the experiment was replicated using a nonstudent adult sample. In addition, the present experiment included constructs not part of the previous study and allowed for the development and testing of a more elaborate model. Web experience was found to play an important role along with webpage complexity and interestingness on attitude-toward-the-website, which in turn had significant effects on the web advertising hierarchy-of-effects.
In expectation of the expanded use of full-motion commercials on the web to promote goods and services, this study examined the influence of webpage background on commercial effectiveness. More specifically, the research examined what type of background is most appropriate for positively affecting advertising effectiveness as measured by several common attitude measures: attitude-toward-the-ad, attitude-toward-the-brand, attention-to-the-commercial, and purchase intention. The findings of an experiment suggest that simpler webpage backgrounds are more effective than more complex ones. In addition, this research introduces the concept of attitude toward a website (A ws) and shows how it can play an important role in the advertising hierarchy-of-effects.
Research on how store environment cues influence consumers' store choice decision criteria, such as perceived merchandise value and shopping experience costs, is sparse. Especially absent is research on the simultaneous impact of multiple store environment cues. The authors propose a comprehensive store choice model that includes (1) three types of store environment cues (social, design, and ambient) as exogenous constructs, (2) various store choice criteria (including shopping experience costs that heretofore have not been included in store choice models) as mediating constructs, and (3) store patronage intentions as the endogenous construct. They then empirically examine the extent to which environmental cues influence consumers' assessments of a store on various store choice criteria and how those assessments, in turn, influence patronage intentions. The results of two different studies provide support for the model. The authors conclude by discussing the results to develop an agenda for additional research and explore managerial implications.
For companies to realize the benefits of recent innovations in customer interface technology, they need to understand the
value consumers place on technology as part of the shopping process. A national survey of 2,120 online consumers was conducted
to explore how people want to shop in both online and in-store environments and determine how interactive and conventional
media work together to move consumers through the purchase process. The study investigated 128 different aspects of the shopping
experience, from common elements to recent innovations. The results indicated that consumers are generally satisfied with
the convenience, quality, selection, and value provided by retailers today. They are less satisfied with the level of service
provided, the availability of product information, and the speed of the shopping process. The findings suggest that new technologies
can enhance the shopping experience, but applications must be tailored to the unique requirements of consumer segments and
product categories.
Food retailers invest heavily in design expertise to create exciting packaging and to develop store environments to entice customers to buy premium food products, and to strengthen their competitive edge. The process by which food retailers manage design has not been documented and this is an oversight in the field of design management that this paper addresses. Cases of four UK retailers are presented and their approaches to design management are compared and discussed. A model of retail design management is presented which represents current “better practice” in UK food retail; in addition, a model of the seven Ps of design management is presented to foster better understanding of the role of food retail design management function.
The study reported here examines how combinations of specific elements in the retail store environment influence consumers’
inferences about merchandise and service quality and discusses the extent to which these inferences mediate the influence
of the store environment on store image. Results show that ambient and social elements in the store environment provide cues
that consumers use for their quality inferences. In addition, store environment, merchandise quality, and service quality
were posited to be antecedents of store image—with the latter two serving as mediators—rather than components of store image
(as they are typically treated in the store image literature). Theoretical and managerial implications of the findings are
discussed, and future research directions are proposed.
This study extends the Donovan and Rossiter (1982) study which introduced the Mehrabian-Russell (M-R) environmental psychology model into the store atmosphere literature. Donovan and Rossiter's study was exploratory in that student subjects were used and intentions rather than shopping behavior were measured. The present study uses a broader sample of shoppers, measures emotions during the shopping experience rather than before or after, and records the effects on actual shopping behavior. The 1982 study found that experienced pleasantness of the in-store environment was a significant predictor of willingness to spend time in the store and intentions to spend more money than originally planned. This finding was extended behaviorally in the new study: pleasure, as rated five minutes into the shopping duration was a significant predictor of extra time spent in the store and actual incremental spending. Arousal was found to vary in its effects across the two studies and bears further investigation. The effects of the emotional factors of pleasure and arousal were shown to be additional to cognitive factors such as variety and quality of merchandise, price specialing and value for money. The practical significance for retailers is that emotional responses induced by the store environment can affect the time and money that consumers spend in the store.
To address the lack of systematic research on the nature and effectiveness of online retailing, a conceptual model is proposed which examines the potential influence of atmospheric qualities of a virtual store. The underlying premise is that, given the demonstrated impact of store environment on shopper behaviors and outcomes in a traditional retailing setting, such atmospheric cues are likely to play a role in the online shopping context. A Stimulus–Organism–Response (S–O–R) framework is used as the basis of the model which posits that atmospheric cues of the online store, through the intervening effects of affective and cognitive states, influence the outcomes of online retail shopping in terms of approach/avoidance behaviors. Two individual traits, involvement and atmospheric responsiveness, are hypothesized to moderate the relationship between atmospheric cues and shoppers' affective and cognitive reactions. Propositions are derived and the research implications of the model are presented.
This study proposed and tested a model of consumer online buying behavior. The model posits that consumer online buying behavior is affected by demographics, channel knowledge, perceived channel utilities, and shopping orientations. Data were collected by a research company using an online survey of 999 U.S. Internet users, and were cross-validated with other similar national surveys before being used to test the model. Findings of the study indicated that education, convenience orientation, experience orientation, channel knowledge, perceived distribution utility, and perceived accessibility are robust predictors of online buying status (frequent online buyer, occasional online buyer, or non-online buyer) of Internet users. Implications of the findings and directions for future research were discussed.
Valid measurement scales for predicting user acceptance of computers are in short supply. Most subjective measures used in practice are unvalidated, and their relationship to system usage is unknown. The present research develops and validates new scales for two specific variables, perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use, which are hypothesized to be fundamental determinants of user acceptance. Definitions for these two variables were used to develop scale items that were pretested for content validity and then tested for reliability and construct validity in two studies involving a total of 152 users and four application programs. The measures were refined and streamlined, resulting in two six-item scales with reliabilities of .98 for usefulness and .94 for ease of use. The scales exhibited high convergent, discriminant, and factorial validity. Perceived usefulness was significantly correlated with both self-reported current usage (r=.63, Study 1) and self-predicted future usage (r =.85, Study 2). Perceived ease of use was also significantly correlated with current usage (r=.45, Study 1) and future usage (r=.59, Study 2). In both studies, usefulness had a significantly greater correlation with usage behavior than did ease of use. Regression analyses suggest that perceived ease of use may actually be a causal antecedent to perceived usefulness, as opposed to a parallel, direct determinant of system usage. Implications are drawn for future research on user acceptance.
Consumers favor retailers that save them time and energy. By understanding a retail experience from drive in to check. out, you can maximize the speed and ease of shopping and build lasting customer relationships.
During the last years, retail stores over the Internet have considerably evolved to satisfy the increasing customer needs while serving varying consumer behaviours. However, little empirical evidence has been provided regarding the effects that the “virtual store atmosphere” has on the consumer buying behaviour. Relevant literature from conventional retailing emphasizes the role of “store atmosphere” as a major influencing factor on the consumer buying behaviour. More specifically, store layout, as one of the basic determinants of the store atmosphere in conventional retailing, composes undoubtedly a corresponding critical success factor for business effectiveness over the Net.
The aim of this paper is to present the current status of the Internet retailing business-to-consumer interfaces and navigational capabilities through the development and use of a corresponding attribute selection framework, while producing meaningful layout-based categories of virtual retail stores. To that end, conventional types of store layouts along with their corresponding alternatives for virtual retailing, served as a guide. Firstly, this research contributes to the provision of a best business practice guide for e-commerce practitioners as far as the interface design issues of virtual retail stores are concerned. On the other hand, a two-fold research objective is achieved with the creation of a sound basis for the realisation of empirical research in respect to the effects different interfaces have on the consumers, taking into account not only technology but also cultural issues.
There is no published evidence of examination of convergent and discriminant validity for any set of measures of viewer reaction to television commercials. The present study begins to fill this gap by comparing three Likert-type scales of three copy testing concepts (Relevance, Confusion and Entertainment) with measures obtained from the content analysis of viewer verbatim comments obtained from open questioning. A multiconcept-multimethod covariance matrix of viewer responses is modeled in light of the standards of convergent and discriminant validity with confirmatory factor analysis. The analysis provides evidence for the measurement validity for two of the three scales.
This paper explores the influence of retail store environmental cues on consumers' price acceptability. An empirical study examines the effects of three types of environmental factors; ambient, social and design. Results indicate that the price of an item (a picture frame) is more acceptable in a high-social store environment than is the same product at the same price in a low-social store environment. The results also provide partial support for the effects of store ambient and design factors on the acceptability of the price of the picture frame. Finally, consumers' price acceptability is positively related to purchase intentions.
To address the lack of systematic research on the nature and effectiveness of online retailing, a conceptual model is proposed which examines the potential influence of atmospheric qualities of a virtual store. The underlying premise is that, given the demonstrated impact of store environment on shopper behaviors and outcomes in a traditional retailing setting, such atmospheric cues are likely to play a role in the online shopping context. A Stimulus–Organism–Response (S–O–R) framework is used as the basis of the model which posits that atmospheric cues of the online store, through the intervening effects of affective and cognitive states, influence the outcomes of online retail shopping in terms of approach/avoidance behaviors. Two individual traits, involvement and atmospheric responsiveness, are hypothesized to moderate the relationship between atmospheric cues and shoppers' affective and cognitive reactions. Propositions are derived and the research implications of the model are presented.
Reports the results of an exploratory study of the effects of time pressure on consumer supermarket shopping behaviour. Unique to the study are the use of measures of both actual and relative shopping time and purchase amount, and measures of self-reported perceived time pressure. Measures of relative shopping time and purchase amount potentially provide more accurate methods for measuring time pressure effects in certain shopping situations while the use of self-reported time pressure makes the results applicable to a wider variety of consumers. Results indicate that time-pressured shoppers do not necessarily spend any more or less time or money in supermarkets. Instead, supermarket shoppers tend to spend less time making any given purchase and more money in the time available to them. Provides several suggestions for improving future research of time pressure effects as well as several possible retail strategies for dealing with the time-harried consumer.
Retailing business is greatly affected by the patronage behavioral orientations of shoppers. Understanding these orientations can assist retailers in developing appropriate marketing strategies toward meeting the needs and wants of consumers. One important factor explaining consumer behavioral orientations is their values. Another important factor affecting consumer behavioral orientations is the store image, an image shaped by store attributes. This study examines the linkage between consumer values and the importance of some salient store attributes. Marketing management implications are also discussed.
An abstract is not available.
Much fascination and speculation surrounds the impact of the World Wide Web on consumer shopping behavior. At the same time, there is little empirical evidence underlying all this speculation. This article provides one such data set. It reports on factors that consumers found salient as they browsed through selected electronic malls on the World Wide Web. We gathered consumers' reactions via an open-ended survey using a sample of 220 shoppers. We related the reactions to the factors of product perceptions, shopping experience, customer service, and perceived consumer risk, which we had identified from the existing literature on retail patronage behavior. This study translated these factors to the World Wide Web context and explored their relative salience.With respect to product perceptions, consumers were impressed by the breadth of stores on the World Wide Web but disappointed with the depth of a merchant's offerings. The shopping experience was reported to be generally enjoyable, but at the same time frustrating. Consumers also reported that they could perceive the potential for time savings and reduced effort compared with traditional forms of shopping, but that, at present, goal-directed shopping was difficult. Nearly everyone in the sample had something negative to say about customer service on the World Wide Web, judging that the sites were not designed to be responsive to their needs and that the presentation of goods and services seemed intangible. Risk was cited as a barrier to shopping on the World Wide Web, but was not as salient to our sample as product perceptions, shopping experience, and customer service. Overall, the results suggest that World Wide Web merchants need to think more about how they perform on the factors known to affect consumer behavior; namely, product perceptions, shopping experience, and customer service. We offer advice for enhancing the design of World Wide Web retail sites.
Assessed the extent of planning that occurred prior to entering a grocery store, in terms of product category and specific brand intent for toilet paper and coffee. Of 542 shoppers in 3 grocery stores approached during the study, 227 completed a personal interview and a self-administered questionnaire. The frequency of impulse purchasing for both toilet paper and coffee was very low (11.3 and 13.2%, respectively). The best predictors of the degree of planning were task-related factors such as frequency of purchase, strength of product preference, search time, and package examination. Brand loyalty had the greatest overall influence. Price also was a strong predictor, and it was especially influential for partial planners (those with category but no brand intent). Compared to impulse and planned purchasers, partial purchasers rated the brand decision as less important and had less attitudinal and behavioral commitment to the chosen brand. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
The consumer interface, whereby consumers interact through the World Wide Web to transact consumer commerce, is a vital component of electronic commerce. We are attempting to understand this interface from a perspective that combines concepts from marketing, human–computer interaction and culture.We have conducted an extensive experiment comparing the reactions of subjects in the United Kingdom, United States and Hong Kong to web sites. We used the web sites for the automobile manufacturers VW, Ford and Toyota so we could vary the origin of the site. We used well-known constructs from advertising and marketing research to measure various aspects of the subjects and their reactions to the web site.Our basic finding is that there are fewer differences between subjects than have typically been observed by paper-based marketing experiments. There is no evidence that the origin of the site interacts with the individual. However, after performing a factor analysis on how subjects reported their purpose for using the Internet, we found considerable differences in purpose of use between US and Hong Kong subjects. American subjects are inclined to use the Internet for information search purposes, and the Hong Kong subjects are more inclined to use the Internet for social communication purposes. Further, in both countries there is a relationship between these purposes and subjects having their views on the product transformed.
Using product assortment to gain a sustainable differentiation is becoming increasingly difficult in the current retail environment and is likely to become even more challenging as the importance of location continues to decline and the share of Internet-based retailing increases. Recent research, however, suggests that product assortment can play a key role, not only in satisfying wants, but also in influencing buyer wants and preferences. This article reviews and synthesizes empirical evidence indicating that (a) retailers can use the assortment subset that buyers consider to enhance the likelihood that a purchase will be made and to affect the specific option selected, (b) the manner in which the set of considered options are presented also affects buyer preferences and purchase decisions, and, (c) the effects of the considered options and presentation format interact with other elements of the marketing mix such as sales promotions. The implications of these findings for retailers, including ethical aspects of influencing buyer preferences, are discussed.
Given the resources needed to launch a retail store on the Internet or change an existing online storefront design, it is important to allocate product development resources to interface features that actually improve store traffic and sales. We identified features that impact store traffic and sales using regression models of 1996 store traffic and dollar sales as dependent variables and interface design features such as number of links into the store, hours of promotional ads, number of products, and store navigation features as the independent variables. Product list navigation features that reduce the time to purchase products online account for 61% of the variance in monthly sales. Other factors explaining the variance in monthly sales include: number of hyperlinks into the store (10%), hours of promotion (4%) and customer service feedback (1%). These findings demonstrate that the user interface is an essential link between the customer and the retail store in Web-based shopping environments.
yin comparing multiple products on the samescreen all have adverse effects on electronic shopping[2]. Can customers find what they want in the stores?Are customers aware of what products are available?After all, diligence in browsing a store is not a virtueretailers should expect from its online customers.We review online retail store attributes such as thenumber of links into the store, image sizes, numberof products, and store navigation features. By reviewingthe user...
This paper deals with the use of strategic marketing planning for developing and sustaining competitive advantages in virtual retailing. It develops and presents a useful practical guide for the development of marketing plans by virtual retailers. The paper first examines the role of strategic marketing planning within an electronic commerce context. The notion of value creation in electronic marketing, the strategies for competitive advantage and positioning in retailing are analytically presented and the concept of the virtual retailing mix is then developed. The paper concludes with the step-by-step presentation of the stages of the marketing plan for a virtual retailer. The implementation of the marketing planning process and the development and execution of marketing plans, can help virtual retailers to sustain their competitive advantages.
The nature of retail service varies from personal service to the provision of greater ambience. Indeed, anything that adds value to the merchandise itself can be considered part of the service provided by the retailer. The focus of this paper is on that part of retail service that involves direct interactivity between the store and the customer. There are two main types of physical interactivity, namely personal service and store design and atmosphere. This paper aims to develop constructs of these two types of interactivity and analyse their impact on store loyalty. An extra dimension is added to this study by contrasting the role of service between superstores and traditional specialist stores in two retail categories. A key finding was that the major difference between the service provided by superstores compared to traditional specialist stores relates to store design and atmosphere. This leads to the suggestion that the recent wave of superstores has ushered in a new paradigm of retail service, one with elevated emphasis on self-service principles. A further finding was that store design and atmosphere was one of the more important determinants of store loyalty. The paper shows that superstores have revolutionised the nature of retail service, mainly by more effective configuration of self-service, mediated through store design. Yes Yes
signing a large site requires collaboration between a team of UI professionals, and some UI will prefer to stay with their traditional role of software design rather than moving into the wild world of Web design. There are three possible solutions to the problem: . Make it possible to design reasonably usable sites without having UI expertise; . Train more people in good Web design; and . Live with poorly designed sites that are hard to use. The third option is not acceptable in my opinion. Unless the vast majority of Web sites are improved considerably, we will suffer a usability meltdown of the Web no later than the Year 2000, and most people will refer to the Web as "oh, yes, we tried that last year, but it was no good." Thus, we have to strive for a combination of the first two options: making it easier to design acceptable sites, and increasing the availability of staff who know how to do so. Making it easier to design usable sites will likely involve a combination of template
Retailing management
- M Levy
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The impact of perceived website characteristics on website traffic
- H V D Heijden
Heijden, H. V. D. (2000). The impact of perceived website characteristics on website traffic. In S. Klein, B. O' Keefe, J. Gricar, & M. Podlogar (Eds.), Proceedings of the Bled Electronic Commerce Conference: The End of the Beginning, XIII (Vol. 1, pp. 414–425). Kranj, Slovenia: Moderna organizacija.
Do retail store environment cues affect consumer price perceptions? An empirical examination
- Grewal
Electronic shopping: How do customer interfaces produce sales on the internet
- Lohse