In this study, the case of brand IMC communication of LG Hausys’ total interior solution brand Z:IN was dealt with. The target consumer of the Z:IN brand is a general end consumer and also shows the character of industrial goods. Accordingly, there should be a unique aspect that brand management and communication methods must be made from more angles. For many companies which are active in the industry, this case study should be significant. This case study was researched in terms of consumer’s purchase decision-making process and consumer participation and experience. Brand Zi:in developed a brand communication strategy following the flow of the consumer purchasing decision process. And the brand actively induces consumer experience and participation so that consumers can communicate more closely with the brand. Brand communication from the perspective of consumer purchasing decision-making and consumer experience and participation is a crystal that fully considers LG Hausys’ products, markets, and competitors, and will be an effective strategy to continue to preoccupy the market not only in the present but in the future.

With the advancement of digital technologies, the importance of inbound marketing in the B2B is increasing rapidly. Previous studies on B2B marketing suggested that compelling content is a key component in B2B suppliers' inbound marketing. The most representative marketing content of B2B supplier firms is BRC (business reference content). BRC refers to a content, such as a ‘case study’ and/or a ‘success story’ that describes, in detail, deliveries of existing satisfied customers. Prior researchers argued that using existing customers as referrers enhances the confidence of potential customers, lowers perception of purchase risk. For these reasons, many B2B marketing experts consider BRC as the core of B2B digital marketing. Nonetheless, little is known regarding with researches on BRC in the academic domain. Therefore, there is urgent need for empirical research and an integrated model that can clarify the underlying mechanism of BRC. The focus of this study is to identify how BRC influences prospective customers' purchase decisions. To examine the underlying mechanism of BRC, our research focused on two unique aspects of BRC: 1) BRC format (narrative formant vs non-narrative format), and 2) ‘transportation’ to explain BRC effect process. Using a scenario-based online experiment, our results provide several interesting insights on the BRC. Results showed that stronger transportation takes place in narrative BRC (vs non-narrative BRC). In addition, narrative BRC has a positive impact on a favorable attitude toward referrer through transportation, which in turn lowers purchase risks (e.g. product performance risk, psychosocial risk, potential financial risk, and potential time risk). The results provide a clear basis for why it is important to use BRC in B2B supplier firms' marketing communication.

This study examined the risk components and risk types perceived in the context of purchasing decisions of paper fashion products. This study also identified the levels of perceived risk by consumers and the differences between age groups in risk perception. First, qualitative data were collected through a focus group interview with 7 Korean females in their 20s to 50s. The interviewees were presented with two types of paper materials (undyed and dyed Jumchi-Hanji) and products (bags and wallets) made with the papers. The interviewees mentioned 11 risk components which were classified into five types of risks: performance (easily torn/lack of durableness, lint/pilling/wear-out, lack of water-resistant, no washability, and deformation and discoloration over time), social-psychological (old and traditional image), aesthetic (lack of design diversity, unsatisfactory appearance due to repair), financial (expensive price, lack of usability in daily life) and time/convenience (difficulty in handling) risks. Based on the results of the interview, a measurement for evaluating the risk perception of paper fashion products was developed. Second, quantitative data were collected from 64 Korean women in their 20s to 50s using the measurement. Respondents who were presented with the paper materials and the products perceived the performance risk more strongly than the social-psychological risk and aesthetic risk. In addition, differences between age groups were found: younger respondents perceived performance risk and social-psychological risk more strongly than older respondents, but older respondents perceived financial risk more than younger respondents. Based on this study, strategies for the risk reduction of paper fashion products were proposed.

본 논문은 개인의 비합리적인 이타주의 행동을 설명하는 규범활성화모델을 활용하여 공정무역제품 구매행동을 촉진하는 개인적, 규범적, 문화적 요인을 통합적으로 다루고 있다. 모델 관련, 예기된 감정(예기된 자부심과 예기된 죄책감)과 두 가지 상충하는 개인가치(박애주의 가치와 권력 가치)를 공정무역 관련 개인규범 활성화 선행요인으 로 개념화 하였다. 그리고 활성화된 개인규범이 공정무역제품 구매행동에 영향을 주는 것으로 보았고 특히 이들 간의 관계를 문화 클러스터(유교, 라틴 유럽)가 조절하는 것으로 개념화 하였다. 구조방정식을 통해 얻은 실증결 과는 예기된 자부심이 개인규범에 미치는 영향력이 예기된 죄책감 보다 크고, 상충되는 두 가지 개인가치 중 이 타적 가치인 박애주의 가치만이 개인규범에 유의한 영향을 미치는 것으로 나타났다. 그리고 활성화된 개인규범은 공정무역제품구매 행동에 유의한 영향을 주는 것으로 조사되었다. 문화 클러스터의 조절효과는 다집단비교 구조 방정식을 통해 분석하였다. 검증결과, 해당 경로에 대한 영향력이 라틴 유럽 클러스터 보다 유교 클러스터에서 더 강한 것으로 나타났다. 이러한 결과는 유교 클러스터가 라틴 유럽 클러스터에 비해 직접적인 비용지불에 따른 자기희생 정도가 더 크고, 사회 구성원 기대에 상응하는 도의적 의무감을 강하게 느끼기 때문에 공정무역제품 구 매 행위가 더 강하게 나타난 것으로 해석 가능하다. 본 논문은 규범활성화모델을 활용하여 공정무역제품 구매행 동을 비교 문화적 관점에서 접근하여 윤리적 소비자의 의사결정과정을 실증적으로 구명했다는데 의의가 있다.

Emotion has been discussed as a key element in the purchase decision process across several products and services by several researchers (Bagozzi, Gopinath, & Nyer, 1999; Kang, Jin, & Gavin, 2010; Lee & Park, 2013). Although a variety of products and services have been utilized to address the relationship between emotions and the purchase decision process, books, especially an online-book purchase environment, have been neglected in existing research of the relationship between emotions and the purchase decision process. Thus, the purposes of this study are 1) to investigate how book covers influence consumers’ purchase decisions in an online setting, 2) to examine the influence of two different criteria of book covers (the color of the book cover and the picture or photo on it) on consumers’ emotions of delight, and 3) to explore the cross-cultural differences (i.e., Japan vs. France) in the online book purchase decision process. Emotion is referred to “an affective, subjective, experimental, temporary, multidimensional phenomenon and a source of motivation caused by exogenous factors to the individual that interact with the process of treatment of the collected information for the purpose of experience of consumption” (Graillot, 1998, p. 12). In marketing, emotion is considered to be the beginning of the choice made by consumers (Derbaix & Pham, 1989), and many researchers have tried to find dimensions of emotion which better explain the consumer’s purchase decision process, such as circumstances (e.g., hope, relief, and joy), external cues (e.g., like, dislike, and anger), or self-created cues (e.g., regret, shame, and guilt) (Roseman, Antoniou, & Jose, 1996). In order to fill in gaps from previous research, in this study we present the following research hypotheses: H1: There will be a positive relationship between the color of the book cover and the consumer’s emotion of delight when purchasing a book from an online bookstore. H2: There will be a positive relationship between the picture or photo on the book cover and the consumer’s emotion of delight when purchasing a book from an online bookstore.H3: There will be a positive relationship between the consumer’s emotion of delight and a book’s perceived usefulness when purchasing a book from an online bookstore. H4: There will be a positive relationship between a book’s perceived usefulness and the purchase of the book. H5: The impact of the book cover on the purchase decision process will vary by country. Japan and France were chosen as the countries for the study as they are significantly similar in terms of the size of the book market on the global stage (Oricon, 2015), however the two countries are very dissimilar in terms of culture. In addition, there is no existing research that compares consumers in these two countries in an online book purchase setting. A total of 398 usable date sets were collected in Japan (n = 191) and France (n = 207) using a questionnaire survey. Two sets of questionnaires were developed in Japanese and French for the respondents and the respondents were randomly chosen for this study. All measurement items of each construct (i.e., the importance of the color of the book cover, the importance of the picture on the book cover, the emotions of delight, the perceived usefulness of the book, and the book purchase) were adopted from previous studies and measured using a 5-point Likert scale. To test the proposed research framework, in this study we developed a structural equation modeling method. Multigroup confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to test construct validity, which showed satisfactory evidence of convergent and discriminant validity. Based on Table 1, there is no significant relationship between the color of the book cover and the emotion of delight, therefore Hypothesis 1 was rejected. On the other hand, Hypotheses 2 (the relationship between the picture on the cover and the emotion of delight), Hypotheses 3 (the relationship between the emotion of delight and a book’s perceived usefulness), and Hypotheses 4 (the relationship between a book’s perceived usefulness and the book purchase) were found to be statistically significant. Finally, Hypothesis 5, indicating that the impact of the book cover on the purchase decision process varies across countries, was supported. In other words, the χ² difference test between the two countries revealed that an unconstrained model indicated a significantly better model fit than a fully constrained model (Δχ²(7) = 117.58, p < .001), indicating the evidence of differences in the path relationships between the two countries (Laukkanen et al., 2013). Since Hypothesis 5 was indicated to be significant, a further analysis of each path from Hypothesis 1 to Hypothesis 4 was conducted. This revealed that only the relationship between a book’s perceived usefulness and the book purchase was significantly different by country (Δχ²(1) = 3.91, p < .05). The study provides meaningful academic implications. This study examines the influence of the book cover on consumers’ emotions, which lead to the actual purchase of the book in an online setting and accurately explains the role of consumers’ emotions in the relationship. Furthermore, this study proved that the relationship between the book’s perceived usefulness and the purchase of the book was different by country. Given this, marketers should develop tailored marketing strategies for the two countries. For French consumers, practitioners should focus more on the usefulness of the book itself, such as the meaning of the book to readers, the impact of the book on readers, the potential for improving reader’s knowledge andhappiness, etc. In other words, marketers should emphasize and promote the concept of the usefulness of the book itself rather than the design components, such as the color of the book cover. Additionally, consumers’ emotions of delight have a significant role on the online book purchase decision, therefore promoting and arousing consumers’ positive emotions, for example, with music, easy transactions, easy access, etc., may be critical while shopping for books online.

In a world where opportunities and chances are common, the phenomenon referred to as “generation maybe” describes people in their 20s and early 30s who are usually being indecisive. With the increase in breadth of information and choices, the number of people who are hesitant in deciding whether to purchase increases at a fast pace, as does the number of products and services targeting this group. In order to enhance our understanding of the phenomenon of consumer hesitation, this study explores contextual factors and consumer characteristics that affect consumer hesitation in the purchase decision-making process. Specifically, this study examines whether seven contextual factors, self-determination tendencies, and five decision-making styles influence consumer hesitation in the product decision making process. An online survey was administered to test our research questions. A total of 309 Korean consumers (female= 48.9%) aged from 20 to 35 were surveyed. A regression analysis revealed that four contextual factors (product involvement, need for information on alternatives, relative price, and uncertain need), two sub-dimensions of self-determination (perceived competence and relatedness), and two decision-making styles (price seeking and advice seeking) have noticeable influences on consumer hesitation. We also found that the degree of consumer hesitation positively influences consumer post-purchase satisfaction. The study concludes with discussions and practical implications.

This research was conducted in order to examine the influence of corporate reputation in terms of as an employer towards both brand reputation and customer purchase decisions represented by brand perception, purchase frequency and category of items purchased. In this study, customers’ perception of the brand was also explored to identify the core blocks that form customers’ perception of the brand. The results indicate that corporate reputation did not have a strong influence on brand reputation, as customers viewed them as separate entities. Customers tended to form their brand perception based on the product features as opposed to the corporate reputation. In terms of purchase decision, the results showed that they were made and driven based on the customers’ brand perception with category of items purchased reflecting aspects of the brand perception. The study demonstrates that customers’ awareness of the corporate reputation does not affect purchase behavior, while brand perception is hardly impacted by the awareness of corporate reputation based on a survey focusing on a renowned domestic fashion-clothing retailer conducted among Japanese shoppers. Reputation is formed from a synthesis of the perception, opinions and attitudes of an organization’s stakeholders including employees, customers and community (Post and Griffin, 1997). It basically is a perceptual representation of a company’s past actions and future prospects that describe the firm’s appeal to all of its key constituents (Fombrun, 1966). Corporate reputations and brands are important assets in enabling organizations to exploit opportunities and mitigate threats (Argenti and Druckenmiller, 2004). A favourable reputation correlates with superior overall returns (Robert and Dowling, 1997; Vergin and Qoronfleh, 1998) as it encourages investments from shareholders, attracts good staff and retains customers (Markham, 1972). While corporate reputation is a stakeholder’s perception and evaluation of the organization over an extended period of time, corporate brands involve the organization’s efforts and initiatives in the form of corporate expression. Literature states that corporate brand comprises of two aspects: first corporate expression, which covers all mechanisms employed by the organization to express its identity and second, stakeholder images that are formed from interaction and experience with the brand (Abratt and Kleyn, 2011). Consumers judge brands based on trust that is developed from the way consumers view brand reputation, brand competence and brand constituent (Lau and Lee, 1999). The intricate relationship between reputation and brands leads to the heart of the study whether both are positively correlated, where the more positive the reputation, the stronger the brand is. In the fashion industry, labels play an important role hence among other aspects this study covers an interesting point where it looks at a fashion brand that has a fairly bad reputation and examines the extent of which the reputation is able to influence the brand perception as well as the customers’ purchase decisions.

Padded outers (jackets, jumpers or coats) are a popular and “must have” item for cold weather because they provide light weight warmth and good style. This study investigates Korean female’ attitudes and factors on purchase decisions for luxury padding outers by level of involvement. A total of 287 female respondents participated in the survey with data obtained using a random sampling method from on and off line respondents aged20’sto40’sinthe Seoul and Gyeonggi area. The study was based on the Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs and Zaichkowsky’s concept. Respondents were asked to indicate their degree of agreement on a 5 point Likert scaled that measured involvement, attitudes, and decision purchased factors. Factor analysis, cluster analysis, correlation and T test were conducted. A factor analysis on 9 needs/motivation measures about padded outer products indicated two factors of a motivation factor and physiological factor for “expectations to have a more positive outcome”. Involvement related to 10 measures about padded outer products indicated two factors of “personality/desires” and “interest/value”. In addition, two other factors were extracted in attitude measure variables of “positive attitudes” and “negative attitudes” towards premium outers. We realized that “expectations to have a more positive outcome” motivation influenced positive attitudes more than “physiological” motivation about premium padded outers. “Personality” involvement factor correlated highly with “positive” attitude factor towards exclusive padded outers (Pearson r=0.766), while the “interest” involvement factor correlated slightly. We can interpret individuals are very positive towards premium products if someone has expectancy to achieve desirable outcomes and wants to express personality. Clustering from involvement measures based on needs, values and interests were classified into two groups. There was a significant difference in the respondents’ purchase decision factors between two segments based on the levels of involvement (p<0.001). The high product involvement group was brand and country of origin conscious, material conscious, trend sensitive, luxury image seeking, and less padding outer price conscious. The low product involvement group was more color conscious in purchases. The findings imply that different marketing approaches are recommended to target each segment in the outer clothing markets.

This study focuses on consumer knowledge which is one of the determinants of consumer behavior, referring to difference in consumer knowledge at each stage of the purchase decision making-process. Thus, for that reason, the consumer behavior specified by consumer knowledge is difference at each stage of purchase decision making-process.

The multiplicity of channels and the ubiquitous access to product information represent major service innovations that new technologies have incorporated into the purchase process. This research analyzes how consumer and seller recommendations affect the consumer’s purchase decision and confidence in a multichannel service context based on an online-offline sequence.

The number of domestic smartphone users exceeded 30 million people, and the time in the future everyone will use a smartphone that will come with ago. Past purchase decisions, related research and product from the competition between the past case and the relevant literature for the smartphone market smartphone type to derive a purchase decision factors in the decision to purchase any difference between the factors. Literature and practices through performance, switching costs, product loyalty, design, brand, after-sales service, the price more than 7 variables were analyzed. One hundred people surveyed, respectively, did not obtain the response of a variety of ages and occupations , age of the sample used in the analysis of this study, and is concentrated as a student at the university of smartphones used to facilitate users analysis was done. We expect smartphone companies and related companies to be able to give guidelines for effective technology management.

In the trend toward globalization, cross-cultural teams in organizations are becoming more and more common. In particular, the influence of China and Western Europe on the global economy is getting increased. With this trend, it is important to understand cross-cultural characteristics for group decision making in managerial environments. This study aims at analyzing cross-cultural differences between China and Western Europe in light of the effect of group discussion in group decision making. An experiment simulating a decision of a car purchase was conducted. A total of 48 subjects (24 Chinese and 24 Western Europeans) assigned in decision groups were asked to judge relative importance ratios of nine factors affecting their purchase decisions using the AHP program developed for the experiment. Three dependent variables (consistency, satisfaction, and consensus) were measured. Chinese were slightly more consistent than Western Europeans in discussion-involved group decision making. In terms of decision satisfaction, Western Europeans were more satisfied with discussion-included decisions than discussion-excluded decisions. Chinese, on the contrary, did not show a significant difference. There was no significant difference between two cultures in decision consensus.

본 연구는 소비자가 모바일 기기를 구매함에 있어서 어떤 멘탈 모델을 가지고 있는지를 파악하는데 중점을 두고 멘탈 모델의 추출과 분석을 시도하였다. 본 연구는 모바일 기기 구매 의사결정 과정에서 IT 친숙도에 따라 서로 다른 멘탈 모델을 가지고 있을 것이라는 가설을 가지고 크게 두 부분으로 나누어 연구를 진행하여 인지 과제 분석 방법의 하나인 Critical Decision Method를 이용하여 멘탈 모델을 이루는 27가지 구성요소들을 추출하였고, 이렇게 추출된 구성요소들을 바탕으로 IT 친숙도에 따라 소비자의 멘탈 모델을 두 그룹으로 구분하여 Pathfinder 알고리즘과Social Network Analysis를 이용하여 각각의 멘탈 모델을 분석하고 있다. 분석결과 IT 친숙도가 높은 그룹은 멘탈 모델을 구성하는 요소들이 각각의 독자적 특성에 따라 구매 의사결정 과정에서 비교적 조직적이고 분명하게 구분된 역할을 수행하는 것으로 나타난 반면, IT 친숙도가 낮은 그룹은 멘탈 모델 구성 요소들 간의 관계나 역할이 불분명하고 혼재된 경향을 보였으며 구매 의사결정 과정에서 외부 의견이나 사회적 통념을 중시하는 것으로 나타났다.

The study investigates how marketing mix factors are mediated by health consciousness and service quality in creating fresh fruit buying decisions of customers in Vietnam. This study employs samples of customers in Vietnam via the survey questionnaire. The authors have used a total of 256 responses that acquired the valid criteria. The compound of data analysis comprises reliability test, validity test, exploratory factor analysis, group analysis and multiple regression analysis to structure the hypothesized model. Respectively, the structural equation model (SEM) is applied to conduct the multiple multivariate equations. By the assumption of causal-effect relationship between independent variables such as marketing mixed factors, and mediator as health consciousness and service quality, which potentially impact on purchase decision; the SEM method is deployed. The results reveal that consumers have paid no attention to the marketing mix factors, but they care much about service quality and health consciousness. Thus, health consciousness and service quality are effective mediators. These findings are new and contribute to the consumer behavior and retail marketing literature. The findings of this study can provide assistance to managers in the given field to understand more easily the consumer behavior about fresh fruits, then improve their own performance.

The study aims to identify Service Quality factors that affect purchase decision on Click and Collect service through the mediating variable of customer emotions at Mobile World stores in Ho Chi Minh City. This study employs a mixed methods research design. Data were collected through online self-completion questionnaire distributed to 316 customers who used to experience Click and Collect service at the Mobile World stores in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. The theoretical model was tested through two-stage regression analysis (PATH model). The findings show that factors of service quality such as Reliability, Responsiveness, Assurance, Empathy, Tangibility, and Emotions affect the decision to purchase online and receive products directly at Mobile World stores in Ho Chi Minh City. Responsiveness and Assurance have a significant positive impact on the customer's emotions. Consequently, these factors should be considered and addressed when conducting multi-channel services. Obviously, employees must first be trained to be able to deliver the promise of the retailer to their customers. Based on the results of the study, the authors provide managerial implications for retailers in Vietnam in the multi-channel retail environment to develop Click and Collect at retail stores across the country and the world.