Journal of Theoretical and Applied Electronic Commerce Research

This paper’s primary objective is to segment the online marketplace of the Canary Islands’ museums by using different conversion funnel metrics. Little systematic research exists on digital user behaviour, and much less is known about how to segment cultural users with structured data from manually extracted and SEO software sources. With this aim in mind, we built a database with data related to the different phases of the conversion funnel of the museums to segment this online museum marketplace. In the findings, not only do we acknowledge the existence of different segments, but we also provide insight into the user’s digital behaviour by considering different metrics from the different phases of the conversion model process (awareness, consideration, conversion and loyalty). The originality of this paper is multifold. Firstly, it estimates the potential optimisation of these websites to improve the digital marketing implemented by the museum sector of the Canary Islands. Secondly, it sheds light on what benchmarking tactics and statistics procedures can be followed to carry out a non-hierarchical segmentation with standardised and comparable data. Thirdly, it contributes to the literature of digital marketing by eclectically combining the conversion funnel model, benchmarking techniques and non-hierarchical segmentation procedures. Full article

With the rapid technological developments, cross-border e-commerce (CBEC) as a sector is also expanding rapidly. In the past couple of decades, China has become a major force in promoting and developing CBEC and, therefore, it was needed to explore the various antecedents and outcomes of Chinese CBEC to expand the understanding and existing CBEC scholarship. Ample studies have been conducted to understand the antecedents and outcomes of CBEC. However, limited studies have explored such variables which can mitigate the adoption of CBEC. With this background, this empirical study was focused on addressing this gap by studying the moderating role of environmental context between organizational context and the four levels of CBEC adoption with the help of a technology-organization-environment framework. SMEs operating in China were targeted for data collection, where data were collected through an online survey. A final sample size of 208 was recorded. It was found that the organizational context has a direct and positive impact on all four levels of CBEC adoption. Furthermore, the moderating role of environmental context on Level 1 and 2 was not supported. Finally, the moderating role of environmental context on Level 3 and 4 was supported by the data. It was concluded that the organizational context plays a significant role in shaping CBEC at all four levels, whereas the environmental context has the potential to mitigate the relationships between organizational context and CBEC Level 3 and 4. Full article

The peer-to-peer lending market has developed rapidly over the past decade and reveals a severe problem of information asymmetry. This research constructed a four-party evolutionary game model to analyze the influence pathway of the guarantee mechanism on the users’ participation of the peer-to-peer lending platform and conducted an empirical study applying the mediating effect model and simultaneous equation model based on data of China’s peer-to-peer lending platform. The theoretical model shows that the guarantee mechanism reduced the participation of borrowers of the peer-to-peer lending platform through a screening effect, but increased the participation of investors through a signal effect. In the case of the platform self-guarantee, there existed a self-screening effect, whose influence on the participation of investors depended on the strength of external constraints imposed on the platform enterprises. Further, the empirical study shows that during the sample period, the platform self-guarantee mechanism reduced the scale of borrowers and investors of the peer-to-peer lending platform at the same time, thus reducing the transaction volume of the platform. Although the third-party guarantee mechanism reduced the scale of borrowers, it increased the scale of investors, and the comprehensive effect was to increase the transaction volume of the platform. On this basis, this research puts forward suggestions such as strengthening the qualification examination of the platform enterprises, transforming the platform self-guarantee mechanism into the third-party guarantee mechanism, and introducing more signal mechanisms. Full article

The technological development of online product presentation modes (e.g., augmented reality, virtual reality) will greatly impact the future of e-retailing. The potential benefits of applying these new technologies for e-retailers need further investigation. Based upon the stimulus-organism-response (S–O-R) model, this study examines the effect of AR-based presentation modes on consumer patronage intention, with the mediating role of immersion, enjoyment, perceived product risk and attractiveness of the online store. Furthermore, it explores the moderating effect of technophilia that reflects consumers’ positive attitude towards technology. A single factor between-subject experiment study was conducted with a sample of 420 university students. Results suggest that the serial indirect effects of AR presentation on patronage intention through immersion/enjoyment/perceived product risk and attractiveness of online store are conditional upon the level of technophilia. Technophilia is a critical factor that explains consumers’ psychological and behavioral responses when they are using new technologies. The study provides new knowledge for e-marketing practitioners, as well as AR literature by indicating how and when new technology-based presentation works in evoking consumers’ patronage intention. Full article

With the revitalization of the online grocery trading market, many consumers are using mobile applications to purchase groceries. Although past studies were conducted on online grocery purchases, few measured mobile app users in a conceptual model that combines both motivational needs and behavioral components. Grounded in the uses and gratifications theory and the theory of planned behavior, this study investigated utilitarian motives, hedonic motives, experiential motives, attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, purchase intention, and purchase behavior among mobile grocery app users in South Korea. As an additional analysis, a comparison between users and non-users of mobile grocery apps was implemented. The results showed that the utilitarian motives of grocery app users significantly influenced attitudes, attitudes and subjective norms influenced user intention, and user intention influenced grocery purchase behavior. Users showed statistically higher utilitarian motives, hedonic motives, and attitudes than non-users. The results suggest that South Korean consumers hold positive attitudes toward mobile grocery shopping and that the opinions of others may influence the decision to use the services. Mobile groceries in South Korea may have the potential for continued growth if individuals’ perceived control of the service improves. Implications and suggestions for future research are discussed. Full article

The evolution of e-commerce drives suppliers to develop online direct selling channels to encroach on the retail market, in addition to the traditional distribution channels through the retailer. A systematic literature review (SLR) approach is adopted in this paper to review the existing studies using theoretical models to capture supplier encroachment behavior, as well as the related industry practice phenomena and strategic factors in the supply chain. We present the major research streams according to the selected encroachment literature from two aspects: channel conflict and coordination as well as information structures. We also generalize the significant practical strategies and strategic factors that have been investigated, combined with supplier encroachment, such as investment and spillover effects, the retailer’s store brand introduction, strategic inventory, and contract mechanism designs. More importantly, we summarize the classical theoretical models which include the basic models, the signaling game model, and the Hotelling model, and these have been widely used by scholars to capture the supplier’s encroachment behavior. Finally, we provide several suggestions which may be valuable for researchers to identify future potential research directions. Full article

Customer engagement has emerged as a vital component in social media marketing strategies, prompting considerable interest from both marketers and academics. This study investigates customer engagement (CE) in a framework that includes three antecedents and a main outcome (loyalty). Based on the survey method, we test a proposed model on social media users. The data analysis focuses on exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses, as well as structural equation modeling to test the hypotheses, and a multi-group analysis. The results validate CE as a multidimensional construct and support all hypotheses of the conceptual model. As key contributions, the study reveals involvement as the strongest antecedent of customer engagement and emphasizes the importance of CE in predicting and fostering customer loyalty. This paper adds to the existing body of knowledge on customer–brand relationships by establishing the main drivers for customer engagement in digital settings, with valuable theoretical and practical perspectives. Finally, our findings provide managerial recommendations on the development of social media marketing strategies conveyed to enhance customer engagement. Full article

Social network sites (SNS) facilitate eWOM communication among consumers of different cultures. Building on contact theory and the theory of planned behavior, we propose a conceptual framework that integrates intercultural factors as predictors of minority consumers’ engagement with eWOM communicated by and to individuals of the dominant culture on social media. A partial least squares (PLS) analysis on data collected from the Israeli-Arab minority shows that intercultural factors (i.e., acculturation, social interaction, and language proficiency) are antecedents of minority consumer engagement with eWOM. However, this relationship is mediated by consumer beliefs (attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control) concerning this behavior, and moderated by the cultural distance between minority and dominant culture consumers. The findings help marketers plan marketing communications that engage audiences meaningfully and generate positive eWOM when targeting ethnic-cultural minorities. The current study contributes to our understanding of minority consumers’ engagement with eWOM communicated by and to members of the hegemonic culture. It further contributes to consumer engagement theory and acculturation research by supporting the post-assimilationist view. The proposed model is highly valuable in light of the importance of the concept of consumer engagement in marketing research. Full article

This study utilized the Kano model to practically identify the key attributes of online service quality of e-learning education companies. Along with a review of theoretical sources related to service quality, this paper placed similar attributes into the same cluster and finalized four constructs, i.e., reliability, responsiveness, competence, and engagement. In addition, consumer perception plays a mediating role in the relationship between online service quality and online purchase intention, while online customer referral is taken as a moderator indirectly influencing customer perceptions because people like to share their purchasing and usage experiences online. Subsequently, a structured questionnaire was designed and survey data were collected from 418 respondents through various social media. Hypotheses were tested using the structural equation modeling (SEM) and SPSS Process Model 4 and 7. The outcomes show (1) consumer perception significantly mediates the relationship between online service quality and online purchase intention, and (2) online customer referral has a profound effect on consumer perception, indicating that it indirectly affects purchase intention. Online customer referral, therefore, may help e-learning education companies to improve service quality with key features that better positions them to target online learners. Full article

The impact of international electronic commerce (IEC) on export trade increases along with its expanding scale. Based on relevant data and the gravity model of China’s IEC export trade, this paper develops a theoretical model that can be used in IEC scenarios, applies regression equations, a Hausman test, and other empirical methods to verify relevant data, and performs a robustness test. The purpose of this paper is to explore the mechanism of IEC impact on China’s trade, and hopefully to study the temporal structural changes of the impact of IEC activities on China’s export trade based on the financial crisis and European debt crisis variables. The innovation of this paper is mainly reflected in the large sample of China’s trade selected in this paper. It can also determine the changes in the distance effect of international trade in the era of IEC, and reveal the mechanism by which IEC applications help foreign trade enterprises overcome economic crises. Four key conclusions are obtained as follows. First, the development of IEC has significantly promoted the expansion of China’s export trade scale. Second, in the context of the global financial crisis and European debt crisis, the positive promotion effect of IEC on exports is not significant. Third, the promotion effects of IEC on China’s exports to both developing and industrialized countries are significant, with the impact on developed country exports being slightly greater. Fourth, although the geographical distance for measuring transportation costs has a negative effect on China’s exports, such effect has been greatly weakened. Full article

Characterizing the demand curve of products is important for pricing them optimally. However, in deriving empirical demand curves, econometricians have to contend with identification issues. Furthermore, theoretical demand curves derived using standard economic theory are divorced from empirical realities: firms rarely have information on customers’ budget constraints; theoretical utility functions are seldom derived empirically. Recognizing these issues, we propose an experimental approach for determining a product’s demand curve and, in turn, its profit-maximizing price in online environments. The proposed approach yields precise estimates and is quick and inexpensive to implement. Full article

Carbon emission constraints and trading policies in e-commerce environments have brought huge challenges to the operation of supply chain enterprises. In order to ensure the good operation of the e-commerce supply chain in a low-carbon environment, a supply chain scheduling optimization method based on integration of production and transportation with carbon emission constraints is proposed; we use it to analyze the impact of centralized decision-making mode and decentralized decision-making mode on supply chain scheduling and establish a scheduling optimization model that aims at optimal carbon emissions and costs. A multilevel genetic algorithm was designed according to the characteristics of the model, and numerical examples are used to verify the effectiveness of the model and algorithm. The results show that the centralized decision-making mode plays the role of the carbon emission constraints to the greatest extent; the carbon emissions and the cost are smallest in the centralized decision-making mode. The decentralized decision-making mode leads to the overall cost preference of the supply chain due to separate decisions made by enterprises, and the carbon emissions in the supply chain are greater. Transportation experts, business managers and government departments are interesting for integrated production and transportation scheduling in e-commerce supply chain with carbon emission constraints. Further research should address integrated production and transportation scheduling in dual-channel low supply chains. Full article

As consumers spend more time on social media, brands can take advantage of this opportunity to better serve and communicate with their followers. Still, given the characteristics of luxury, luxury brands may be reluctant to use social media. To determine the extent to which Millennials and Generation Z consumers perceive compatibility between social media marketing and luxury brands, a purposive sampling technique was employed. We collected data from 303 Romanian visitors of the Facebook page entitled Do You Like Luxury? This page, with postings from luxury producers, was specially created and sponsored in order to raise interest in completing the questionnaires. For data analysis, we used statistical tests, including confirmatory factorial analysis, regression, and independent-samples t-test. Our research shows that, for Millennials and Generation Z, luxury brands are compatible with social media apps as marketing channels. Even in the case of inadequacy, managers can still use the facilities of digital technologies to depict exclusivity, emotions, and sensory experiences specific to luxury. Unlike other studies, which only focused on a few dimensions, we proposed a multidimensional approach of the perceived value of luxury and social media marketing. Moreover, this is one of the few studies to focus on Eastern European consumers. Full article

Understanding the dynamics of online karaoke virtual gift sending helps maximize its utility for all participants, including viewers, broadcasters, and platforms. However, extant paid gift-sending studies lack an integrated theoretical explanation of its incentives as well as practical implications that can facilitate the quantifiable implementation of service improvement. This study has successfully uncovered the motivation of paid gift-sending in an online karaoke context from a social exchange perspective using social exchange theory. By observing the activities of 11,640 online karaoke users over one year, it was discovered that their gift-sending behaviors adhere to the patterns of more-follower-more-gift-sending and receive-more-send-more. Moreover, such patterns are more pronounced for collaborative users and are accentuated over time. Theoretically, this study extends the scope of social commerce studies from B2C to C2C scenarios with more complicated interpersonal dynamics. Meanwhile, managers are advised to encourage following, stimulate collaboration, inject additional virtual gifts into the “market”, and retain their customers to generate long-term profits. Full article

With the rapid growth of express delivery industry, service failure has become an increasingly pressing issue. However, there is a lack of research on express service failure risk assessment within the Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA) framework. To address the research gap, we propose an improved FMEA approach based on integrating the uncertainty reasoning cloud model and the Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) method. The cloud model describing randomness and fuzziness in uncertainty environment is adopted to achieve the transformation between the qualitative semantic evaluation of occurrence (O), severity (S), and detection (D) risk factors of FMEA and the quantitative instantiation and set up the comprehensive cloud of risk assessment matrix for express delivery service failure (EDSF). The TOPSIS method calculates and ranks the relative closeness coefficients of EDSF mode. Finally, the rationality and applicability of the proposed method are demonstrated by an empirical study for the express delivery service in China. It is found that among 18 express delivery service failure modes, six service failure modes with high risk are mainly located in the processing and delivery stages, while six service failures with the relatively low risk are involved in the picking-up and transportation stages. This study provides insight on how to explore the risk evaluation of express delivery service failure, and it helps express delivery firms to identify the key service failure points, develop the corresponding service remedy measures, reduce the loss from service failures, and improve the service quality. Full article

This study investigates how the endorsements of Internet celebrities (ICs) may drive consumer trust in their marketing campaigns, and subsequently affect impulse buying in relation to luxury fashion brands. Drawing on the framework of persuasion with a particular emphasis on the role of receivers, this study identifies five main characteristics, namely, the popularity of ICs, identification, IC adoration, social distance, and the perceived fit that may contribute to promoting impulse buying. A survey was conducted with 585 followers of IC in China. The findings reveal that trust is an essential factor that affects impulse buying. Identification and perceived fit both significantly contribute to increasing impulse buying through trust. Alternatively, large social distance may impair the relationship between trust and impulse buying. We conclude with implications for marketers that luxury fashion brands should seek cooperation not only with the most popular, but also with the most relevant ICs. An IC with a humble and relatable image can earn consumers’ trust and lead to an enhanced endorsement effect. Full article

Indonesia’s e-commerce development, with growth forecast of up to USD 300 billion by 2020, encourages many e-commerce companies to create new value in their products/services. Opportunities for e-commerce start-up collaboration programs increase the opportunities for e-commerce to grow. In e-commerce, decision-making for collaborations tends to be intuitive, centralized, and does not use strategic management tools. This study aims to identify critical factors as the main consideration in collaborative decision-making between e-commerce companies and partners. The study was conducted by developing a questionnaire for decision-makers in e-commerce collaborations. The study used the TOE framework, AHP, and TOPSIS methods. As part of the research’s object, the payment method was chosen for an e-commerce company collaborative program. Based on the criteria identified against the existing framework, there are 11 critical factors. The top three criteria are (1) networks and cooperation, (2) management commitment, and (3) knowledge and expertise in digital business. Based on the TOE framework, the main priority is the provision of e-wallet payment methods, which can be done by adding service providers. While research is limited as to the factors’ priority, future studies are suggested to select other collaborative programs or develop a collaborative strategy framework. Full article

Digital transformation is a key driving force of open innovation to capture and transfer knowledge inside and outside of a company’s bounds. New challenges in organizing multiple knowledge flows imply the need for increased competences related to this paradigm of future employees. In this article, we organize and aggregate the competencies required for open innovation collaboration and develop a competence profile that organizes individual competencies in an open innovation context. Based on elements of the European Entrepreneurship Competence Framework, we delineate an OI Competence Profile and list the core competencies to manage and accelerate the inflow and outflow of knowledge. We explore this profile by comparing data from 2332 students from four European universities to find differences in the distribution of OI competencies between countries. The study contributes to understanding the individual competencies that target the future OI needs of companies necessary in the context of digital transformation. It also introduces an interdisciplinary approach to integrate the research streams of management practice, open innovation, and entrepreneurial education. Full article

The study covered by the present paper sought to look into a range of factors affecting the building of trust in brands among social media community groups. For the purpose of the present study, in order to measure the influence of visual content, the authors of the present paper investigated its visual as well as emotional characteristics while factoring in consumer engagement variables. In order to test our hypotheses, two different visual advertisements of an artificial hypothetical apparel brand were created. The robustness of the results was ensured by the findings of the representative consumer survey and a factor and regression analysis. The survey concluded that engagement with the brand-created content by social media community groups may be viewed as a proxy variable when studying the consumer confidence in a brand within consumer groups. The authors of the paper also argue that an image-based content identity does affect the engagement with the content created by a brand within the social network community groups. The difference impact of the cognitive, emotional or behavioral involvement of social media community group members onto the formation of brand trust is revealed. Full article