Assessing the impact of recommender agents on on-line consumer unplanned purchase behavior

Recommendation agents (RAs) have been used by many Internet businesses such as Amazon and Netflix. However, few authors have studied how consumer behavior is affected by those that make suggestions to online consumers based on their recent shopping behavior. Fewer still have examined the role that RAs play in influencing impulse purchasing decisions online. Our study developed a theoretical model to illustrate the impact of RAs on online consumer behavior. The model was tested through an online shopping simulation which used a collaborative filtering based product RA. Particular attention was paid to the effects of an RA on consumer behavior; we found that it increased promotion and product search effectiveness, user satisfaction with the website, and unplanned purchases. Results showed that our model provided insights into the impact of an RA on online consumer behavior and thus provided suggestions for implementing effective systems.     

Disentangling utilitarian and hedonic consumption behavior in online shopping: An expectation disconfirmation perspective

Increasingly, researchers have come to acknowledge that consumption activities entail both utilitarian and hedonic components. Whereas utilitarian consumption accentuates the achievement of predetermined outcomes typical of cognitive consumer behavior, its hedonic counterpart relates to affective consumer behavior in dealing with the emotive and multisensory aspects of the shopping experience. Consequently, while utilitarian consumption activities appeal to the rationality of customers in inducing their intellectual buy-in of the shopping experience, customers’ corresponding emotional buy-in can only be attained through the presence of hedonic consumption activities. The same can be said for online shopping. Because the online shopping environment is characterized by the existence of an IT-enabled web interface that acts as the focal point of contact between customers and vendors, its design should embed utilitarian and hedonic elements to create a holistic shopping experience. Building on Expectation Disconfirmation Theory (EDT), this study advances a research model that not only delineates between customers’ utilitarian and hedonic expectations for online shopping but also highlights how these expectations can be best served through functional and esthetic performance, respectively. Furthermore, we introduce online shopping experience (i.e., transactional frequency) as a moderator affecting not only how customers form utilitarian and hedonic expectations but also how they evaluate the functional and esthetic performances of e-commerce sites. The model is then empirically validated via an online survey questionnaire administered on a sample of 303 respondents. Theoretical contributions and pragmatic implications to be gleaned from our research model and its subsequent empirical validation are discussed.     

基于考虑滞后性LSTM模型的电商需求预测

消费者网络购物浏览时间碎片化、对价格更敏感的特征带来滞后性消费。为了掌握顾客消费趋势,通过获取Q企业纸类商品的历史销售数据和消费者购买行为数据,分析消费者行为对销售数据的影响,并利用随机森林分别选取不考虑滞后性和考虑滞后性的特征因子;基于LSTM神经网络建立快消品的需求预测模型;根据Q企业纸类商品的数据进行预测及验证,结果表明考虑滞后性LSTM模型预测相对误差更小,预测精度更高。     

Consumer's decision to shop online: The moderating role of positive informational social influence

While much of the current literature tends to focus on the direct effect of social influence on consumer online shopping behavior, our study drew heavily on social influence theory and argued for an alternative theory focusing on the moderating role of social influence. In particular, we explored how positive messages in online discussion forums may affect consumers’ decisions to shop online. We used a laboratory experiment in which the treatment group was required to read positive messages about online shopping experience in an online discussion forum. Positive social influence was found to reinforce the relationship between beliefs about and attitude toward online shopping, as well as the relationship between attitude and intention to shop. We believe our alternative theory provides new insight into the complex processes through which social influence is brought to bear on consumers’ online shopping decisions. Implications of our work are discussed.     

The moderating effects of psychological reactance and product involvement on online shopping recommendation mechanisms based on a causal map

The use of the Internet in the daily activities of individuals and firms has become entrenched, and online shopping has become commonplace. However, debates about how online shopping recommendation mechanisms (OREMs) should be designed have not been completely resolved. The challenge with traditional online shopping recommendation mechanisms (TR-OREMs) is that they focus too much on quantitative factors. Thus, they ignore causal interrelationships with qualitative factors that are believed to significantly impact quantitative factors. Considering only quantitative factors and ignoring qualitative ones likely distorts the final recommendation results. Another problem with TR-OREMs is that they ignore the perceived psychological reactance of consumers against the recommended products. Such consumer reactance may be reduced when the causal interrelationships among all the quantitative and qualitative factors are analyzed and incorporated properly into the OREM. To overcome these problems, we propose a causal map – online shopping recommendation mechanisms (CM-OREMs) based on a causal map. We analyzed possible causal relationships among quantitative and qualitative factors and incorporated them in the recommendation process to reduce consumer reactance against the recommendation results. Furthermore, an elaboration likelihood model (ELM) was used to build hypotheses about how the online shopping behavior of consumers is affected by OREMs based on the proposed causal map. Specifically, the performance of the proposed OREM was empirically analyzed by gathering experiment data from qualified respondents who were asked to refer to the proposed OREM before making purchasing decisions via mobile phones. Statistical results showed that the proposed OREMs could enhance consumer decision satisfaction, decision confidence, and attitude toward the recommended products. It could also positively affect consumer purchasing intentions. The OREM had a greater effect on the high-reactance group of participants than on the low-reactance group as well as on a high-involvement product versus a low-involvement product.     

The influence of image interactivity upon user engagement when using mobile touch screens

Touch screens are a key component of consumer mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets, as well as an increasingly common self-service component of information retrieval on fixed screens and mobile devices in-store. The ubiquity of touch screens in daily life increases consumer accessibility and extended use for shopping, whilst software innovations have increased the functionality of touch screens, for example the extent to which images respond to fingertip control. This study examines how users engage with interactive visual rotation and tactile simulation features while browsing fashion clothing products on touch screen devices and thus contributes to retail touch screen research that previously focused on in-store kiosks and window displays. Findings show that three dimensions of user engagement (endurability, novelty and felt involvement) are positively influenced by both forms of manipulation. In order to examine the extent to which touch screen user engagement varies with individual preferences for an in-store experience, the paper also examines whether user engagement outcomes are mediated by an individual's need for physical touch. Findings indicate that the need for touch does not explain the variance between individuals. We conclude that touch screen technology complements the physical retail environment.     

The effect of mobile retailing on consumers' purchasing experiences: A dynamic perspective

The emerging retail culture is characterized by the extensive use of mobile technologies, high connectivity, ubiquitous computing and contactless technologies, which enable consumers to experience shopping differently. In fact, innovative mobile technologies provide new tools (apps) which are able to separate the moment of purchase from the moment of effective consumption, by allowing consumers to make purchases by mobile phone and collect them at home or at a store (a pick-up boutique or collection point), in addition to the traditional in-store service (purchase in the store and collect/consume in the store). The aim of this paper is to understand the extent to which mobile technologies have an impact on consumer behaviour, with emphasis on the drivers motivating consumers to adopt the consumer experience of mobile shopping. To achieve this goal we used a qualitative approach involving 29 consumers in the Italian market, where mobile shopping is still at an early stage. The findings shed a light on the extent to which consumers are moving from e-channels to mobile channels and take into account the effect of these technological innovations in retail settings from a cognitive standpoint, where studies are limited. The implications for researchers and practitioners are then discussed, with emphasis on retailers need to develop new mobile service competences, and integrate and synthetize physical retail settings with mobile opportunities and functionalities.     

An empirical study on consumer first purchase intention in online shopping: integrating initial trust and TAM

To understand the first purchase mechanism in online shopping, this study established an integrated model of initial trust and TAM. According to the analysis results, initial trust beliefs were significantly influenced by initial trust bases such as company reputation, structural assurance, and trusting stance, and initial trust beliefs indirectly influenced the first purchase intention through consumer attitude. In TAM constructs, only perceived usefulness directly influenced the usage attitude of online shopping systems, then indirectly influenced the first purchase intention. These results imply that online consumers consider perceived ease of use as a basic requirement for system design. It was also found that there is a time cushion between the time of first purchase and the time of belief formation. On the whole, these results reinforced the theory that a relationship between belief (trust and perceived usefulness) and intention was better explained when it was mediated by attitude.     

Consumer shopping behaviour on the Internet: insights from Malaysia

Shopping on the Internet enables consumers to search for information on products or services and make purchases through direct interaction with online retailers. This study investigates consumer shopping behaviour on the Internet based on four aspects, i.e. the Internet marketing environment, product characteristics, familiarity, and promotional offers. The impact of influencing factors was checked by questionnaire survey, which was then processed and evaluated. Two hundred randomly selected respondents (students and employees in a public higher learning institution in the Federal Territory of Labuan, Malaysia) participated in the survey. Multiple regression analysis was used as a statistical measure to determine the most influential relationship aspect among a series of independent variables of consumer shopping on the Internet. The results revealed that familiarity has a great influence on consumer shopping on the Internet, followed by promotional offers. The assimilation of these aspects, and the empirical examination of the factors that influence consumer shopping on the Internet, advanced understanding of these constructs and their link to dynamic technology deployment for shopping. The paper suggests managerially actionable implications, and future research directions.     

Using an Eye-Tracking Approach to Explore Gender Differences in Visual Attention and Shopping Attitudes in an Online Shopping Environment

Growth in online marketing has been unprecedented, and mainstream shopping is shifting from traditional stores to online shopping channels. However, many aspects of online consumer behavior remain unaddressed. In particular, the effects of gender differences in visual attention on shopping attitudes are a great challenge in online retailers’ attempts to understand consumers’ cognitive processing and strategies. This study was designed to investigate the effects of gender on visual attention to online shopping information and its influence on attitudes about the products displayed. Using an eye-tracking approach, the results identified significant gender differences in visual attention to online shopping information and shopping attitudes about the products presented. Female participants attended visually to most of the online shopping information areas to a greater degree than did males, and their attitudes about products were influenced to some degree by visual attention to the consumer opinion areas. Although males’ visual attention was lower than females’, their shopping attitudes were influenced extensively by visual attention to product information and consumer opinion areas.     

Gender differences in consumers’ perception of online consumer reviews

Since the early days of the Internet, gender gap has existed in using the Internet, and it is particularly evident for online shopping. Females perceive higher level of risk for online shopping, and as a result, they tend to hesitate to make purchase online. Online consumer reviews can effectively mitigate such perceived risk by females and thereby attract them to buy online. This study investigates the effect of online consumer reviews on consumer’s purchase intention. In particular, we examine whether there are gender differences in responding to online consumer reviews. The results show that the effect of online consumer reviews on purchase intention is stronger for females than males. The negativity effect, that consumers are influenced by a negative review more than by a positive review, is also found to be more evident for females. These findings have practical implications for online sellers to guide them to effectively use online consumer reviews to engage females in online shopping.     

Will you spend more money and time on internet shopping when the product and situation are right?

Different from past online shopping research which focuses on exploring the cognitive and attitudinal aspects of online consumption behaviors, this study focuses on examining how online shopping motivation and product type affect the searching and spending behavior in an online website. In particular, the interactive effect between online shopping motivation and product type are explored in the study. A 2 × 2 between-subjects factorial experiment with two shopping motivations (i.e., goal-oriented and experiential) and two product types (i.e., hedonic and utilitarian product) was conducted. In addition to the main effects of online shopping motivation and product type, the results show that there is an interactive effect between online shopping motivation and product type on budget control. Participants conducted the loosest budget control when purchasing hedonic products in a goal-oriented online shopping trip because the shopping motivation provides a good justification for online shoppers to purchase hedonic goods without guilt or regret.     

Time series analysis for C2C conversion rate

The rise of online shopping by individuals in recent years has made e-commerce a crucial topic of interest in research and practice. The critical question in this domain is the extent to which online visits convert into purchases. Researchers have proposed decision models to predict consumer conversion behavior that primarily uses click-stream data, path data, panel data, and log data. This paper proposes an empirical mode decomposition (EMD) based ensemble recognition method for conversion rate (EMDER) to explore the potential pattern, business cycles in time series for conversion rate. EMDER builds on some notions, such as the database of candidate factors time series , recognition function, the recognized factor database, cycle function, and residue-trend recognition function. We collect 50 datasets from Taobao.com and find a seasonal pattern, Index of Clothing Consumer Price pattern and the long-term time series pattern with monthly data. For the daily analysis, we discover patterns in the calendar of daily fluctuation, the hesitation window, the consumers’ cash flow determined pattern, the promotion day and holiday influence. A comparison between EMD and Wavelet-based method is conducted, which reveals EMD outperforms the Wavelet-based model in the deposition quality and do not have the model-selection problem. The data analysis results provide support for the proposed method, which indicates that our model enables managers to analyze online consumer purchasing behavior by a new easy approaching way, which is time series of conversion rate.     

How does background music tempo work for online shopping?

This research examines the impact of background music tempo, an emotional stimulus, on consumer attitude in online shopping. The authors conducted two empirical studies based on the same experimental design. The results of both studies supported the study’s main hypothesis: background music tempo positively affects consumer arousal. It also suggests that product category moderates the influence of arousal on pleasure such that a positive effect occurs when shopping online for hedonic products but not for utilitarian products. In addition, consumer trust mediates the positive influence of pleasure on purchase intention. The authors also discuss the managerial implications of the empirical results.     

基于消费需求的线下购物环境主题式设计

专卖店是企业销售的终端,在体验经济与网络销售的影响下,专卖店室内设计的关注点从商品展示与销售转向顾客消费行为与心理需求,为顾客体验提供安全、舒适、记忆深刻的购物环境。     

Understanding consumer intention in online shopping: a respecification and validation of the DeLone and McLean model

The increasing popularity of online shopping has led to the emergence of new economic activities. To succeed in the highly competitive e-commerce environment, it is vital to understand consumer intention. Understanding what motivates consumer intention is critical because such intention is key to survival in this fast-paced and hypercompetitive environment. Where prior research has attempted at most a limited adaptation of the information system success model, we propose a comprehensive, empirical model that separates the ‘use’ construct into ‘intention to use’ and ‘actual use’. This makes it possible to test the importance of user intentions in determining their online shopping behaviour. Our results suggest that the consumer's intention to use is quite important, and accurately predicts the usage behaviour of consumers. In contrast, consumer satisfaction has a significant impact on intention to use but no direct causal relation with actual use.     

A consumption system model integrating quality,satisfaction and behavioral intentions in online shopping

A consumption system has two constitutive dimensions: the structural elements and the transaction process. Little attention has been paid to the effect of the consumption system on customer satisfaction and behavioral intentions during online shopping. This paper develops and tests a consumption system model for online shopping that incorporates both product and e-service elements, and the online and offline stages of the transaction process. Applying the transaction process of online shopping, this paper dichotomizes perceived product quality into online perceived product quality (OnPPQ) and offline perceived product quality (OffPPQ), and proposes four dimensions of e-service quality integral to the transaction process. An integrative model is proposed to link OnPPQ, OffPPQ, e-service quality, satisfaction and behavioral intentions. The research was based on empirical data from over 260 university students with experience purchasing apparel from online shops. Structural equation modelling was used to test the model and the hypotheses. The results show that perceived e-service quality, OnPPQ and OffPPQ significantly affect customer satisfaction. However, only customer satisfaction and OffPPQ have a direct effect on behavioral intention. A consumption system model successfully theorizes the dimensions of perceived product quality and e-service quality. The model considers the simultaneous effects of the two structural elements, product and e-service, as well as the temporal effect of the online shopping transaction process. Different structural elements in separate transaction processes have distinct effects on satisfaction and behavioral intentions. The research and its results are especially valuable for online shopping for physical goods.     

基于证据网络的C2C商品购买风险动态评估模型

C2C(consumer to consumer)电子商务市场中的风险认知是消费者网络购物决策的重要依据之一.首先,分析电子商务市场中商家信誉、商品销量和在线商品评论对消费者网购决策的影响;然后,运用信度规则模型推理节点关系,建立基于证据网络的C2C商品购买风险动态评估模型;最后利用从某电子商务网站收集的观测信息,运用多元线性回归分析方法验证购买风险动态评估模型的可行性.借助本模型,可以帮助消费者在网购商品过程中较好地认知商品购买的风险.     

Effects of consumer characteristics on their acceptance of online shopping: Comparisons among different product types

Previous electronic commerce (EC) studies have found that consumer characteristics are important when considering issues related to the acceptance of online shopping. However, most studies have focused on a single product or similar products. The effects of different product types have been relatively neglected. Previous studies have limited the generalizability of their results to a few products at best. To overcome this limitation, the purpose of this study was to explore the effects of different product types. The Internet product and service classification grid proposed by Peterson, Balasubramanian and Bronnenberg (Peterson, R. A., Balasubramanian, S., & Bronnenberg, B. J. (1997). Exploring the implications of the Internet for consumer marketing. Journal of Academy of Marketing Science, 25(4), 329–346) was employed to examine the effects of consumer characteristic differences on online shopping acceptance in the context of different products and services. A survey-based approach was employed to investigate the research questions. Regression analysis demonstrated that the determinants of online shopping acceptance differ among product or service types. Additionally, personal innovativeness of information technology (PIIT), perceived Web security, personal privacy concerns, and product involvement can influence consumer acceptance of online shopping, but their influence varies according to product types.     

The role of sunk costs in online consumer decision-making

Sunk costs, which can cause inconsistencies between consumer behavior and economic theory, have been widely studied in different research areas and among various consumer groups. Nevertheless, the authors found that to date there has been no empirical research examining how sunk costs affect consumer behavior with regard to online shopping in different product types. Therefore, this study used the following 2 × 2 × 2 experimental design to study the effects of sunk costs on consumers’ online shopping decisions. The results show that (1) sunk costs have significant effects on consumer online shopping behavior. However, due to the different product characteristics, the impacts were weaker effective when consumers bought search goods than when they purchased experience goods; (2) the sunk costs (Membership fee vs. Deposit) of an initial choice and a new choice had interaction effects on consumer intention to purchase a new product; and (3) the sunk costs and service quality of an initial choice and new choice would affect the level of regret felt with regard to the consumer’s initial choice. In addition, some recommendations on market positioning and service quality design are made, which practitioners can refer to when formulating marketing strategies.