Consumer Behavior in Virtual Shopping Environments and Consequences for Retailing

Important institutions, such as the World Health Organization, recommend reducing alcohol consumption by encouraging healthier drinking habits. This could be achieved, for example, by employing more effective promotion of non-alcoholic beverages. For such purposes, in this study, we assessed the role of experiential beer packaging sounds during the e-commerce experience of a non-alcoholic beer (NAB). Here, we designed two experiments. Experiment 1 evaluated the influence of different experiential beer packaging sounds on consumers’ general emotions and sensory expectations. Experiment 2 assessed how the sounds that evoked more positive results in Experiment 1 would influence emotions and sensory expectations related to a NAB digital image. The obtained results revealed that a beer bottle pouring sound helped suppress some of the negativity that is commonly associated with the experience of a NAB. Based on such findings, brands and organizations interested in more effectively promoting NAB may feel encouraged to involve beer packaging sounds as part of their virtual shopping environments.

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3D Visualisation for Online Retail

International Journal of Market Research ◽

10.2501/ijmr-2016-027 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 58 (3) ◽

pp. 451-472 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Andrew Wodehouse ◽

Mohammed Abba

Keyword(s):

Ease Of Use ◽

Web Based ◽

Online Retail ◽

Product Categories ◽

Shopping Behaviour ◽

Shopping Environments ◽

Potential Impact ◽

Virtual Shopping ◽

2D And 3D ◽

Online Consumer Behaviour

This work investigates the effect of 3D product visualisation on online shopping behaviour. A virtual shopping interface with product categories projected in both 2D and 3D was developed and deployed. The main purpose of this system was to determine the suitability of a 3D virtual catalogue as a shopping outlet for consumers and the potential impact on consumer shopping behaviour. The virtual catalogue was implemented as a web-based interface, with products displayed with the intent of determining whether the level of presence experienced affected consumer motivations to shop. Participants completed an immersive tendency questionnaire to ascertain their alertness and levels of immersion before viewing the interface, and afterwards completed a presence questionnaire related to the viewing experience. The results showed significant correlations between individual immersive tendencies and presence experienced. In addition, items in the presence questionnaire were aligned with ease of use, interactivity and realism. This leads to a number of recommendations for the design of future virtual shopping environments and considerations for the assessment of online consumer behaviour.

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Towards a unified customer experience in online shopping environments

International Journal of Quality and Service Sciences ◽

10.1108/ijqss-07-2015-0054 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 8 (1) ◽

pp. 102-119 ◽

Cited By ~ 60

Author(s):

Anil Bilgihan ◽

Jay Kandampully ◽

Tingting (Christina) Zhang

Keyword(s):

Consumer Behavior ◽

Web Site ◽

Customer Experience ◽

Ease Of Use ◽

Perceived Usefulness ◽

Outcome Variable ◽

Content Type ◽

Brand Engagement ◽

Shopping Environments ◽

Positive Word Of Mouth

Purpose – New developments in e-commerce and m-commerce technologies along with the wide adoption of mobile devices and social media have enabled companies to enhance customers’ shopping experiences and their interaction with brands anytime, anywhere. The purpose of this paper is to develop a theoretical model for a unified online customer experience by drawing from related literature on consumer behavior in the online contexts. Design/methodology/approach – By synthesizing extant consumer behavior and e-commerce literature, this paper seeks further understanding of online customer experience and offers strategies for e-commerce marketers and Web site designers. Findings – The findings of this paper indicate that easiness to locate the Web site/app, ease of use, perceived usefulness, hedonic and utilitarian features, perceived enjoyment, personalization, social interactions and multi-device compatibility are the antecedents of the unified online customer experience. Brand engagement, positive word of mouth (WOM) and repeat purchase are the outcomes of compelling online customer experience. Practical implications – A significant amount of potential revenue is lost globally due to poor online customer experiences, resulting in e-commerce not reach its potential. E-commerce companies should “hook” customers by providing compelling online experiences. Originality/value – Given that customer’s experience has become one of the most important and competitive outcome variable for contemporary companies, the results will benefit e-commerce marketers and Web site designers.

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