This study focuses on the effectiveness of two commercial stimuli: displays and advertising flyers. While displays work within the point of sale and trigger a more immediate and impulsive purchase decision, advertising flyers work out of the point of sale and, therefore, favor a more reasoned purchase decision. It is used the cue utilization theory that distinguish two dimensions for perceived quality, extrinsic quality (linked to the brand) and intrinsic quality (related with internal product characteristics), in order to analyze the role of quality perception in determining the effectiveness of both commercial incentives for selling products that induce high purchase involvement and perceived risk. The empirical analysis focuses on computer products sold by one of Europe’s largest computer retailers and, combines scanner, observational and survey data. The results show that both dimensions of quality perceptions moderate the influence of displays and advertising flyers on sales, but their impact differ on each commercial stimuli. Extrinsic quality perception increases to a greater extent the effect of displays which is linked to unplanned purchases. However, intrinsic quality perceptions improves to a greater extent the effect of advertising flyers, which encourage are related more closely to planned purchases.

The past decades showed an increase in the number of meals consumed away from home. Restaurants could therefore play a pivotal role in improve diet quality by offering healthier food on their menus (Glanz and Hoelscher, 2004). One of the instruments that restaurants can use to increase healthier food intake is by making use of portion size. When people are served larger portions, they eat more (Steenhuis & Vermeer, 2009). In this study, we investigate the effectiveness of increased portion sizes of vegetables and lower portion sizes of meat (or fish) in a restaurant setting. Three restaurant locations from a restaurant chain in the Netherlands were selected for a field experiment. A cross-over design was used in which each restaurant was randomly assigned to a sequence of two conditions (i.e., intervention and control condition). In the intervention period, portion sizes of vegetables on plates were doubled (150 grams versus 75 grams) and portion sizes of meat and fish were cut on average with 12.5%. Consumption was calculated by subtracting the residues from the plates from the average served amount. Additionally, p3rticipants received a questionnaire in which a number of questions were asked, i.a., about their satisfaction with the meal and restaurant. In total, 536 participants in the control condition and 470 participants in the experimental condition were obtained. Vegetable consumption was higher in intervention weeks (M = 115.5 grams) than in control weeks (M = 61.7 grams; p < .001). Meat consumption was lower in intervention weeks (M = 183.1 grams) as compared to control weeks (M = 211.1 grams; p < .001). Finally, satisfaction with the restaurant visit did not differ between intervention weeks (M = 4.27) and control weeks (M = 4.35; p > .05). The results are robust given that we found the same effects across the three restaurants. An important implication of this study is that portion sizes could indeed be used as an effective instrument in stimulating healthy consumption behavior without affecting customer’s satisfaction.

To the extent that luxury products and services become more easily accessible, luxury brand marketers must make luxury even more exclusive by making the consumer feel special and unique. Art lends itself willingly to this mission, because its accessibility is complex and its comprehensibility difficult. From an in-depth analysis of the practices of the major worldwide brands in the luxury industry we identified that four main types of collaboration between a luxury brand and art exist, which are Business collaboration, Patronage, Foundations and Artistic mentoring. The underlying mechanisms of these modes of connection between art and luxury brands are presented. A model is presented which allows assessing the relevance of each of the ‘art to luxury brand’ binding modes, in accordance with the brand time perspective and the intensity of its engagement.

How stable are shopping styles of women and men across cultures? To find out, the authors develop a new scale that reliably measures differences between male and female shopping styles and is stable across cultures. They develop a conceptual model and hypotheses to test whether observed differences in gender shopping styles are likely to be innate or arise from socialization. Through a survey of consumers in seven countries, they show that males and females are evolutionary predisposed to have different shopping styles. Counter to social structural theory, the observed differences in shopping style between females and males are greater in low-context cultures (higher gender equality countries) than in high-context cultures (lower gender equality countries). Empathizing—the ability to tune into another person’s thoughts and feelings—mediates shopping style more for female shoppers; systemizing—the degree to which an individual possesses spatial skills—mediates shopping style more for male shoppers. Therefore, retail segmentation between females and males appears to be of more managerial relevance than segmentation between cultures. Other managerial implications are also discussed.

Technology-mediated communication is established as a key channel for firms to interact with consumers, who can choose between a rapidly expanding variety of devices types and interaction modes such as live-chats, video calls, voice-controlled virtual assistants, or online avatars. However, frustrated consumers report publicly about their negative experience and attribute their discontent to a lack of authenticity of the technology-mediated encounter. In technology-mediated contexts consumers often cannot relate to tangible products and observable behavior of a service employee to judge the authenticity of the encounter. Thus, it is unknown how consumers form their authenticity evaluation. We address this gap by exploring the concept of authenticity in technology-mediated consumer-firm interactions. Based on 41 qualitative in-depth interviews we provide a framework of consequences and antecedents of authenticity perception. Most importantly, we identify three different categories of cues from which consumers infer to judge the authenticity of an encounter: the interaction counterpart, the communication quality and the brand experience

In the business market, prices are typically subject to negotiation between exchange partners and buyers’ perceptions of the relationships with suppliers have a central role for supplier success and for establishing profitable prices (Hinterhuber & Liozu, 2015). Suppliers that seek to achieve price levels above the average market prices of offerings need to convince buyers of a favorable price/quality ratio (Töytäri, Rajala, & Alejandro, 2015). To date, however, research on absolute prices paid by buyers to suppliers, relative prices paid as compared to the average price level in a product category, or exchange partners’ perceptions of prices charged in business relationships remains limited. Extant work on buyer-supplier relationships has most commonly focused on costs rather than prices as economic outcomes of interest (e.g., Cannon & Homburg, 2001; Kalwani & Narayandas, 1995). The purpose of this research is to deepen the understanding of buyers’ price assessments in business relationships. Specifically, this research seeks to further illuminate how relationship inputs provided by suppliers influence buyers’ assessments of the price level charged and their satisfaction with the price/quality ratio provided by the suppliers. The relationship inputs examined include buyers’ perceptions of supplier relationship-specific investments, long-term orientation, and relationship planning. In addition, this research considers two relationship parameters, that is, buyers’ commitment to the supplier and dependence from the supplier. Based on a sample of executives of different buyer firms, this research examines net effects and combinatory effects of the relationship factors on buyers’ evaluations of economic outlay. While the study of net effects offers insights into the effects of single antecedents on the outcomes across a sample of cases, the analysis of combinatory effects delineates (configurations of) antecedents sufficient for bringing about the outcomes of interest (e.g., Leischnig, Henneberg, & Thornton, 2016). Knowledge of these effects helps assess what relationship inputs and what combinations thereof may act as potential remedies for buyers’ price-related resentment in business The findings of this research show alternative configurations of relationship inputs and relationship characteristics sufficient for the two outcomes of interest. In addition, this research shows that individual relationship inputs and characteristics can have opposite effects on the outcomes, depending on how they combine with other antecedent conditions. Moreover, the results of this research reveal that specific antecedent factors differ in terms of causal coreness for the two outcomes of interest. In summary, these findings add to the net effect analysis and provide a more detailed and nuanced understanding of how relationship attributes impact buyers’ price assessments in business relationships.

Magic words are words used to encourage consumers to buy a product in that consumers who previously did not want to buy were finally made to buy the product. This study is limited to the case of Gedong Gincu mangos in West Java, Indonesia . This type of mango is unique and has a high selling price; however, its promotion has not been conducted extensively. The promotion has been limited to exhibitions facilitated by West Java provincial government, Department of Agriculture and Department of Trade and Industry. The promotions conducted by supermarkets have not shown any optimum results because the costs spent on the promotion are not balanced with the profit they earn. So far, the supermarket promotion only includes the word discount (buy one get one free) or sold cheaply. Such words are perceived to be less encouraging for consumers. Promotion for agricultural products, especially mangos is very unique because such products are perishable, voluminous, and bulky. Being seasonal in nature, prices of agricultural products are fluctuating, which are different from industrial products which are uniform, durable, and can be stored and have fixed prices

Negative publicity is widespread in the current marketplace, and may be of different forms ranging from sourcing garment products from sweatshops to recent Volkswagen emission crisis. Negative publicity may cause weak customer satisfaction, drop in sales, increased vulnerability to competitors’ marketing mix actions, and spill over effects on other brands (Pullig, Netemeyer, & Biswas, 2006; Van Heerde, Helsen, & Dekimpe, 2007). Existing research has focused on different response strategies for dealing with such crises. For example, Coombs (1995) listed five alternative strategies available to handle such a crisis situation: denial, distance, ingratiation, mortification, and suffering. Xi and Peng (2009) examined the effectiveness of affective, functional and informational repair strategies in restoring consumer trust after a negative publicity. However, no prior research thus far explored the role of cause related marketing in dealing with a negative publicity.

This paper aims to explain how storytelling becomes interlinked with social media and the conceptual consequences this development implies. In recent years the interest in storytelling has increased within the marketing discipline. Parallel to this development, the traditional media landscape has been subjected to change as a result of digitization and particularly the expansion of social media. Even though the social nature of these media and its associated electronic word of mouth seem to be well aligned with storytelling, extant literature exhibits few attempts to review the storytelling concept in relation to social media. Based on such a review, the contribution of this paper is condensed into six theoretical propositions that point out how storytelling is expected to become increasingly common and dynamic in social media. Therefore, storytelling is suggested to represent a managerial challenge with regard to professional organizations’ marketing approaches but simultaneously allow for increased customer intimacy for those actors who develop successful ways of attracting the interest and engagement of social media users.

Introduction As many as 44 million people cannot read a newspaper or fill out a job application and another 50 million more cannot read or comprehend above the eighth grade level in the U.S. (Kirsch, Jungeblut, Jenkins, & Kolstad 1993). While basic literacy rates may increase, the percent of adults who have sufficient literacy skills to function adequately in that society may decrease. But a more serious problem that the US is experiencing is the increasing number of people who are aliterate. The aliteracy phenomenon is “increasing numbers of capable readers who are regularly choosing not to read”(Mikulecky, 1978, p.3). Aliteracy is on the rise internationally (Merga, 2014). Less than 66% of Hong Kong’s citizens (Anon., 2011) and less than 50% of Italians (Istat, 2010) reported reading a book in 2010. Aliterate consumer can read. However, while aliterate consumers are capable readers, they may display similar reading outcomes (i.e. poor comprehension) to illiterate or low-literate consumers (i.e., consumers who are not capable readers). We explore underlying reading processes of aliterate consumers from a level of processing perspective (Craik & Lockhart, 1972; Greenwald & Leavitt, 1984). Conceptual Background and Hypotheses Level of processing ranges from shallow to deep. Shallow processing consists of attending to phonetic and orthographic components. Deeper processing involves using semantic processing (Craik & Lockhart, 1972). Greater depth of processing thus entails a higher degree of cognitive involvement for the purpose of comprehension. Deeper processing at the semantic task level results in longer processing time and better memory performance (Gardiner, 1974). Conversely, when readers engage in shallow processing, memory performance is reduced (Treisman, 1964, 1969). For instance, in an advertising context, Saegert (1979) finds that deeper processing of ads resulted in greater recall and recognition. As detailed, literature on reading suggests that aliterate processors do not process written texts at a deep level, preferring instead to skim and scan (Duchei & Mealy 1993). In the domain of consumer behavior in general, and product warnings in particular, consumer aliteracy suggests a shallow level of processing of written marketing materials that will be observable from both a process and an outcome standpoint. In terms of process, aliterate consumers lower level of processing will be manifest in less time spent processing product warnings. As an outcome, comprehension of written product warnings should decrease as consumer aliteracy increases and time spent processing decreases. These baseline differences between more- and less- aliterate consumers is formalized as Hypotheses 1-3. H1. Consumers with higher consumer aliteracy levels will spend less time processing written product warnings. H2. Consumers with higher consumer aliteracy levels will have lower comprehension of written product warnings. H3. Time spent processing written product warnings will mediate the relationship between consumer aliteracy and comprehension of product warnings. Method Sample and Procedure One hundred sixty-one students from a large Southeastern university participated in an online survey. The sample was 51 % female and 57% white/Caucasian. Participants were asked to review an ad for fabric softener and then asked to respond to ten comprehension questions regarding the product warning that was prominent in the ad. Respondents were also asked to evaluate the extent to which they agreed (i.e., seven-point scale) with each of the five-items of the aliteracy scale (Jae & Ferguson 2010). Finally, participants were asked to complete a reading ability scale (Reading Level Indicator, 2000) and demographic information. Stimuli Two versions of ads for a fictitious laundry softener product called “Visatia”were used as the experimental stimuli. Participants were randomly assigned to one of the ad conditions. Both ads featured a picture of a product package a statement about the product’s performance (e.g., you can have a fresh feeling every day with Visatia), and product warning information. The ads differed only in the amount and complexity of information provided regarding product performance. A longer and more difficult version of the product claims and a shorter and less complex version of the product claims were used to ensure that differences between more- and less-aliterate consumers did not arise only for ads of a certain length or complexity. Measures Ten comprehension questions were designed to test how well participants understood the product-warning statements in the ads. Each question offered four answer choices. To measure overall comprehension, each question was scored 1 for the correct answer and 0 for the incorrect answer. The five-item aliteracy scale (Jae & Ferguson, 2010) was measured with seven- point Likert scales (strongly disagree/strongly agree). Participants a reading ability test comprised of twenty vocabulary and twenty sentence completion questions (Reading level indicator, 2000). Participants’time spent in reviewing the ads containing the product warnings was measured electronically. Results The average participant spent 30.29 seconds reviewing the stimuli (e.g., product warning), earned 7 out of 10 on product warning comprehension, and achieved 35 out of 40 on the reading ability index. The Consumer Aliteracy Scale demonstrated high reliability (Cronbach’s alpha = .822). Data were collapsed across ad length/complexity conditions after failing to observe differences in processing across the two ads (p > .1). Path analysis was used to test Hypotheses 1-3. Path analysis allowed us to test multiple relationships consecutively and to test for mediating relationships (Iacobucci, Saldanha, & Deng, 2007). The model was estimated with direct and indirect paths included. The fit statistics were acceptable (i.e., χ2= 10.65, df = 13, p = 0.64, CFI = 1.00, RMSEA = 0.00, SRMR = 0.03) (Hu & Bentler, 1999). To test Hypotheses 1-3, including the mediating effect of time on the aliteracy—product warning comprehension relationship, we estimated the direct effects of aliteracy on product warning comprehension, as well as, the indirect effects of aliteracy on time and of time on product warning comprehension simultaneously. Hypothesis two is supported as aliteracy has a direct, negative effect on product warning comprehension (γ21=-0.245, p <.01). The indirect path of aliteracy to time and time to product warning were also significant. Specifically, Hypothesis three is supported in that consumers who reported higher levels of aliteracy spent less time viewing the product warnings (γ11=-0.191, p <.05), and consumers who spent less time viewing the product warnings scored lower on product warning comprehension (β21= 0.294, p <.01). With significant indirect paths, a significant direct path, and a significant Sobel z (i.e., z =2.013, p <.05), we conclude that time spent viewing product warning partially mediates the relationship between aliteracy and product warning comprehension. The Hypothesis three is supported. Correlation analysis indicates that aliteracy level is not correlated with reading ability level (i.e., r = -.03, p =.70). This suggests evidence that aliteracy is not a function of reading ability. Discussion While aliteracy may be a growing phenomenon, the extant research on the topic is limited. From the viewpoint of consumers, aliteracy could lead to unwise product selection, dangerous misuse of products, product dissatisfaction, and wasted time and money. Aliteracy, by definition, is not an ability issue rather motivation issue. Even though capable readers, aliterate consumers reading comprehension is significantly below non-aliterate consumers, a similar outcome pattern observed for low-literate consumers relative to high-literate consumers (Jae & DelVecchio 2004). Due to their lack of reading habit, aliterate consumers do not take full advantage of available information in the marketplace. The current study demonstrates that aliterate consumers display significantly different reading outcomes relative to non-aliterate consumers; differences that are not driven by reading ability. Aliterate consumers spend less time reading and, in turn, achieve a lower level of comprehension of written product warnings relative to non-aliterate consumers. Thus, the study reveals that aliterate consumers may mirror the reading outcomes of low-literate consumers in reading product warnings who demonstrate poor comprehension relative to literate consumers.

Within marketing and consumer research, scholars have explored cross-cultural issues, and found that most of the studies are sociologically based and assume intra-cultural homogeneity in mentality and logic among people (Fatehi, Kedia & Priestly, 2015). Research has also explored how acculturation in circumstances of hyperfiliation influences cross-cultural consumption (Bradford & Sherry, 2014). The issue of particular importance within this study is the situation of cultural mixing that takes place when migrants and refugees grow their families away from their home country, and how individual and family identity values are renegotiated given ethnic ties that bind the older generation, and the non-ethnic ties in the host country and amongst the future generations. These ethnic and non-ethnic ties influence the acculturation process (Capellini & Yen, 2013) and re-acculturation process. Given increasing migration across many countries, it becomes important to understand the transcultural experiences of both refugees and migrants, as they mix with the host country’s cultural practices. We take the view that transculturality is an illustration of “the complex relationships between and within cultures today: it emphasises not isolation but intermingling, not separation but disjunctive interactions, not homogenization but heterogenization” (Jung, 2010, p.19). The intermingling of multiple cultures, inevitably has implications on consumption decisions, particularly in cases where many children have been born in the diaspora. Whilst previous studies have explored acculturation as a static and linear process (Chrikov, 2009), our study takes the view that cultural identity formation and it’s resulting cultural orientations are an ongoing, fluid, hybrid and iterative project. Therefore, the objectives of this study are to: (1) explore how cultural identity processes are negotiated by third generation UK born British Sikhs. Here, we focus on 3rd generation British Sikhs with the intention of understanding how hybrid identities emerge, and how these impact on consumption decisions; (2) explore the acculturation and re-acculturation patterns of 3rd generation British Sikhs. It is our contention that the online environment offers opportunities to explore identity projects for those born in the diaspora.

This essay presents an anthropological approach to embodied skills in brand rituals. In an ethnographic account of an everyday domestic practice of men’s shaving, this essay argues that men who apply skill to ritualized shaving practices evoke particular sensorial dimensions that elicit certain memories and ideals that situate time and place differently for them. Rather than evaluate ritual semiotically for its signs and symbols, this study “brings into being” (Ingold 2013) skilled human activity with branded material in ritual as it explores sensory awareness and environmental-temporal consumer perceptions of time and place. As such, this essay examines the less obvious and less frequently addressed issue of time and place as they occur in embodied practices of everyday consumption. The human body is suggested as a particular consumption site for applying skillful embodiment and a new conception of ritual.

In this paper, we review the influence of crisis response strategies in social media on attitude recovery in relation to customer brand commitment. We extend the situational crisis communication theory and the social-mediated crisis communication model to include the role of audience characteristics (i.e., customer brand commitment). The effects of crisis response strategies (i.e., defensive, accommodative) and electronic word of mouth antecedents are discussed because source factors, message factors, and audience factors lead to attitude recovery. We also introduce a framework of the impacts of brand crisis response strategies on customer attitude recovery after exposure to negative word of mouth and response strategies in social media.

E-commerce has become an irreplaceable sales channel for businesses of any size all around the globe. It is a major source of revenue and sales through this channel continue to gain momentum with an annual growth rate of 20%3). The ubiquity, flexibility, and convenience associated with e-commerce has undoubtedly changed the consumption patterns. However, consumers’ preferences and considerations when making purchasing decisions are not static either. In a global competition, businesses have to adopt quickly to respond emerging trends in retail. An important and persistent trend in this regard is ethical consumption, a development which has been widely researched in an offline context. The present experiment demonstrated that online shop-related ethical labeling positively influences consumers’ willingness to pay and purchase intention across a broad range of products. While any type of ethical labeling showed a positive effect in these regards as compared to no ethical labeling, there was no pronounced difference between the various types of labels used. Accordingly, we assume that consumers make inferences from a specific ethical label about the higher–level ethical “trait”.

Business model of direct selling is the dynamic and complex multi-level structure. Interpersonal face-to-face communication is the key value creation aspect of direct selling business model. Nowadays more and more sellers employ virtual communication channels instead of face-to-face, thus hindering a traditional relational element. The study explores whether usage of Internet technologies for communication with customers brings benefits or extinguish the direct selling industry. The research is based on the quantitative analysis of all-country paper based survey from 5694 respondents. The statistical analysis of total sample revealed that usage of Internet in general does not give advantages for distributors. However, usage of person-to-person internet communication tool, such as e-mail, allows achieving better performance as measured by earnings per hour worked. Surprising is the fact that the most successful young distributors (at the age under 35 years) do not use internet for communication with customers at all. For distributors over 35 years old neither internet nor e-mail usages have got impact on performance. In rural areas users of internet communication tools show lower performance results. In big cities usage of e-mail provides significantly higher performance, but general usage of internet does not. Consequently, the effects from usage of internet technologies for communication with customers are achieved in case of person-to-person communication. Moreover the most productive sellers give priority to the live communication.

Our objective is to explore the nature, the risks and the advantages of emerging countries’ companies branding approaches and to identify factors associated with the successful transfer of information from these brands to the consumer. The research is a conceptual one which proposes an analytical modelisation of brand equity issues in emerging countries’ companies.A comparative analysis of the four strategic branding concepts for emerging countries’ companies when expanding abroad is performed. The four strategic branding intents can be classified according to the motives and benefits as well as the predominant styles of expansion displayed by emerging countries’ companies when internationalizing.

This interpretive and longitudinal study investigates how a group of Chinese students consume global brands of American origins, in China and in the UK. More specifically, this research examines how meanings attached to global food brands travel abroad with consumers and investigates the relationship between brand consistency and brand meanings across national boundaries. Findings from a thematic analysis of longitudinal data collected through focus group interviews over a nine-month period, reveal that some brand meanings are context and culture specific (contextual meanings) while others meanings travel with consumers across borders (core meanings). Theoretically, this study shows how global brands provide a platform of structural meanings, ideas and practices that are global and globalising in themselves, allowing a degree of fluidity and adaptation in relation to the local context of consumption.