Although the phenomenon of lead categories is well-documented in the marketing literature, our understanding of this important store choice factor remains limited. Lead categories are defined as those product categories that are so important for the shopping trip that they influence the consumer’s store choice decision. The purposes of this paper are to offer theoretical bases that explain why lead categories form and to understand how overall images of product quality, selection, and price affect lead category formation. The authors use theories of anchoring effects and automatic cognitive processing to offer theoretical explanations regarding why consumers form lead categories and how overall images of product quality, selection, and price affect lead category formation. Using survey data collected from consumers at two grocery stores, the authors find that positive overall product quality and selection images facilitate lead category formation and that an overall low-price image hinders it.

From the first inspiration of a desire until a product reaches hands, consumers go through complex and multi-faceted interactions with brands, involving myriads of channels and media. As such, it is important for marketers to understand this shopping “journey” since it is where brands can influence and persuade consumers most effectively and efficiently. In this study, we conduct an exploratory study to understand the patterns and correlates of pre-purchase behaviors and the relationship to actual purchases (made both online and offline) by analyzing survey data obtained in Korea and China. In particular, we examine three key drivers for pre-purchase behaviors: product category, market maturity, and consumer tendencies. To address category-level differences, we compare and contrast grocery and electronics. As for the market maturity, we study Korea and China in which e-commerce is at different stages of development. Finally, consumer tendencies are measured by general shopping tendencies, online activity patterns, and risk perception for e-commerce. Our empirical analyses provide the following findings. First, general shopping tendencies impact the pre-purchase behavior in grocery buying, but not electronics, for both Korea and China. Second, online activity patterns (entertainment and content-creating activities) have an impact on the shopping journey in both categories. Third, risk perceptions for ecommerce only affect pre-purchase behaviors of Chinese consumers. That is, in a developing market at an earlier stage of e-commerce development, consumers perceive online transactions more risky and uncertain, leading to greater pre-purchase behaviors. Lastly, we investigate the link from the information search to the final purchase stages. Consumers buying grocery present a positive and significant relationship between prepurchase and final purchase behaviors whereas electronics present no such relationship across the stages of the consumer shopping journey.