Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Internet retailing'

Thesis (MTech (Business Information Systems))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2005
Where customers have freedom of choice, their level of satisfaction will determine if they are loyal, long-term and profitable customers. If customers are not satisfied they will take their business elsewhere. The increase in the level of satisfaction in key element areas would increase overall customer satisfaction and increase customers' future behaviours such as purchasing on the Internet and recommending the e-retail websites to others. This thesis also explains in the previous chapters that early adopters of eretailing exhibited more of the elements of service transactions than goods transactions and that these elements best explain the e-retailer-consumer relationship. Creating the trust between a customer and its service provider {e-retailer} is one of the key factors in ensuring customer loyalty and retention. Other challenges that were discussed include controlling customer data, integrating on-offline orders, delivering goods cost effectively and handling of returns. Strategies e-retail businesses implement and use in improving product and service quality, gain market share and maintain greater customer loyalty were discussed in this research. If the e-retail businesses can continue to improve consumers' satisfaction they will be rewarded with continued improvement in overall customer satisfaction, customer loyalty and retention and increase profitability. While the Internet certainly poses new challenges for e-retailers, and offers them invaluable new tools, a spate of new research suggests that there is no reason for traditional retailers to consider themselves doomed. The big question is: how does Internet technology assist e-retail businesses to create loyal e-customers?

E-commerce is increasingly recognised as an integrated, rather than independent, part of the retail industry. As online competition grows and online marketing activities intensify, the importance of customer loyalty in e-retailing has also taken central stage in marketing research. This study explores the nature and characteristics of e-loyalty and its direct and indirect antecedents. Drawing from the literature on customer loyalty in the traditional, offline business context, it contends that e-loyalty is determined primarily by the quality of the relationship between an Internet retailer and its customers, and the customers' overall satisfaction with the retailer. Relationship quality, in turn, is influenced by the levels of perceived safety, trust and commitment that customers have in relation to their retailer, while service quality, Web site quality and value perception contribute to overall customer satisfaction in this context. Thus, relationship quality and overall satisfaction mediate the relationship between e-loyalty and its indirect predictors. To test these relationships, over 500 customers of four Australian Internet retailers were surveyed online. The questionnaire contains 92 indicators that have been either employed in prior research, or newly developed based on existing theory. These indicators were first factor analysed to determine the underlying dimensions of the research constructs. The relationships between these constructs were subsequently tested using structural equation modelling (SEM). In general, most hypothesised relationships were well supported, suggesting a consistency in the relationships between these constructs across online and offline settings. To this extent, the results indicate that existing offline marketing theories can provide a platform to create a body of knowledge pertinent to Web-based marketing. The results of the analysis, however, also show that not all hypothesised relationships could be upheld. Also, the findings indicate that the dimensionality of some constructs differs, to varying degrees, from what is reported in prior studies. These suggest that online consumer perception and behaviour are likely to differ, in some way, from those in the offline context, signalling a need for more context-specific research into this domain. On the whole, the study confirms the existence and benefits of customer loyalty in online retailing. In addition, it identifies four underlying dimensions of e-loyalty. Dimension 1 comprises behaviours commonly cited as the most prominent and beneficial indicators of customer loyalty (such as repurchase behaviour and word-of-mouth communication). Dimension 2 reflects the level of attachment that loyal customers feel towards their retailers. Dimension 3 indicates customer willingness to adjust their consumption patterns in favour of the retailer's range of offerings. The last dimension is related to customer willingness to move beyond a pure buyer-seller relationship, and to engage in partner-like behaviours (e.g., tolerating mistakes and providing feedback). With regard to relationships between the research constructs, the SEM results confirm that service quality, web site quality, and value perception are major predictors of overall satisfaction, while trust and commitment, but not safety perception, are antecedents of relationship quality. E-loyalty is not found to be significantly affected by overall satisfaction, whereas relationship quality only has a slightly noticeable impact on this construct. The findings thus fail to support the notion that customer satisfaction and relationship quality are two major antecedents of e-loyalty. The results also do not support the speculation that satisfaction and relationship quality are the main mediators of the relationship between e-loyalty and its primary antecedents. On the contrary, e-loyalty is found to be influenced directly by customer commitment, value perception and service quality, and indirectly by Web site quality, safety perception and trust. With online shopping growing in popularity, insights into the dimensionality of e-loyalty, as well as the factors that engender e-loyalty, can provide a useful framework on which appropriate marketing strategies could be developed to enhance the loyalty of online shoppers. To this extent, findings from this research are meaningful not only for marketing academics but, also, for Internet retailers.

Structural changes on the grocery market usually take place when the consumer is persuaded to take on the more labourintense parts of the distributionprocess. Internettrade changes this by causing competition between the unpaid work done by consumers and the labor performed by employees. In this master thesis grocery shopping on the internet is analyzed in a economic perspective with focus on distribution, changing marketstructures, driving forces and the future potential of internet as a saleschannel. The main conclusions are that consumerdemand and the belief in electronic commerceas a costreducing mechanism as well as a powerful new marketing tool were the driving forces behind the fast growth of grocery shopping on the internet. Electronic commerce introduces a new model of distribution with changing roles for consumers and grocerychains. In the thesis different scenarios concerning the future of grocery shopping on the Internet are presented, where an increase in the demand for internetservices is an important factor for success.

This research is an exploration of how the capabilities of the Internet may have influenced customer preference structures and how these influences may, in turn, have affected loyalty behaviours. These relationships are explored from both customers’ and companies’ perspectives. A theoretical model is developed which comprises four main components. These are (1) pre-purchase preference structures; (2) post-purchase preference structures (3) the Internet channel and (4) loyalty behaviours. The Internet channel is shown as having a modifying effect on pre- and post-purchase preference structures, which in turn relate to influences in loyalty behaviours. From the customer’s perspective the theoretical model was quantitatively tested by developing pre- and post-purchase preference structures from a choice-based conjoint experiment on a sample of online and offline grocery shoppers. The results showed that these preference structures differed significantly on a number of attributes. The theoretical model was further tested by linking the utility values from the choice-based conjoint experiment to loyalty variables in a structural equation model. The results showed that the theoretical model needed adjustment to fit the underlying data. The offline shoppers’ group model had a better fit to the data than did the online group. The company perspective was developed through a longitudinal study of four U.K. companies in different industries. The qualitative data collected in these studies was compared and contrasted with the theoretical model. The emergent pattern within this analysis showed that companies with a strong understanding of customer preference structures in a traditional marketing channel, was no guarantee that the capabilities of the Internet would be used to strengthen performance on those preferences. One common theme that emerged from interviews with companies was that those who rapidly developed new levels of performance on customer preferences using the capabilities of the Internet had made the Internet a major component of their business model. The qualitative data showed companies as either adopting a transactional or an informational approach to their Internet channel strategy with radically different implications for their business models.

Business Administration/Interdisciplinary
D.B.A.
Retail automotive literature that examines how the distance between a retail automotive facility and the prospective purchaser affects market performance is limited. Primary data for this study indicates that distance and purchase in the retail automotive sector move in opposite directions. This study examines similar goods that have high barriers of entry and proposes other methods of increasing market reach. This is a study of the conditions that affect the market performance for imported luxury vehicles. First, is the effect of distance on purchase decisions. Vehicular sales drop the further away a customer is from a car dealership. We call this phenomenon distance decay. Distance decay is defined as: the interaction between two locations declines as the distance between then increases. Secondly, when similar brands are viewed as substitutes, the consumer will choose the brand with the closest automotive service department to their residence or place of employment. Thirdly, door-to-door selling can decrease distance decay. Lastly, pick-up and delivery service can decrease distance decay. Data from 30,936 prospects and individuals who entered, phoned, or emailed a dealership inquiring about purchasing a new Audi were used in the study. These prospects will be categorized by who intended to buy and who actually purchased a car. In addition to the prospects, data from 6,153 individuals who purchased a new Audi from four Audi dealerships in the greater Philadelphia area and from the framed field experiment were used in the study. These categories will then be further labeled by ZIP code and city to determine the effects of distance. Then, possible solutions will be performed on test groups to determine what alternatives from other industries can be used to improve market performance involving long distances.
Temple University--Theses

The research presented in this dissertation is concerned with the effects of the "virtual store atmosphere" on consumer buying behaviour within the context of Internet retailing. More specifically, the focus of this research is to investigate whether the virtual store layout, as a major virtual store atmosphere determinant, affects consumer buying behaviour during shopping activity within a virtual grocery store over the Web. The present research is of a multidisciplinary nature and belongs to the field of Internet Retailing, in which there is not to date an exhaustive established theory available as the case is for conventional retailing. Therefore, the relevant literature covers the established theories in the areas of Marketing, Retailing and Consumer Behaviour along with current research in Internet retailing. Moreover, Human Computer Interaction (HCI) served as an important theoretical tool as far as Web site design principles and guidelines are concerned. The research hypotheses were mainly generated based on the conventional retail store layout literature review. They were tested through a laboratory experiment employing a causal research approach. To that end, a virtual retail laboratory store employing the three most common conventional retailing layouts (i.e., grid, freeform, and racetrack) was developed in three versions (i.e., one version per layout), following the concept and rules applied in each specific layout type. Therefore, the layout was the only manipulated variable (treatment), since all other potential influencing factors remained the same. The findings of the present study indicate that conventional retailing store layout theory is not applicable on its present form in the context of Internet retailing. Furthermore, the layout was found to affect consumer buying behaviour regarding "perceived usefulness towards searching for and buying shopping list products," "perceived ease of using the store," "perceived entertainment during shopping activity" and "time spent for shopping." However, it was found that the layout does not significantly affect "promotion effectiveness" and "impulse purchases." Based on the research findings, the "freegrid" layout (i.e., a new layout type) was introduced as an emerging layout for Internet retailing. The suggested layout contributes toward the Internet retailing theory development, as well as toward the provision of direct managerial implications. Finally, the present research provides several future research directions dealing with the virtual store atmosphere effects on consumer buying behaviour.

In 1995, few retailers considered the Internet important to the future of their businesses. By 2000 the prevailing wisdom suggests that it has become almost imperative to incorporate the Internet into a company's business activities. However, whilst some areas of the U.K. retail sector are successfully integrating the Internet into their businesses others remain unconnected. This work is a study of Internet adoption amongst UK retailers from 1995 to 2000. It explores the level of adoption in terms of the technical progression and extent of adoption, in terms of the range of features included in retail Web-sites. Additionally, the project explores the factors that are likely to influence the retailers' Internet adoption progress. A multi-method research strategy was used combining qualitative and quantitative methods: an on-line survey of retail Web activities followed by in-depth interviews and finally, a postal survey. The results of the on-line survey reveal that Internet adoption varies according to retailer size and product assortment. Some retailers' Web-sites include a range of informational, interactive or transactional features, while others have yet to be developed sufficiently to be available via the Web. The results of the Interviews and postal survey indicate that some retail organisations may be better positioned to take advantage of the Internet than others. Indeed, nine critical factors are found to have a significant influence upon the retailers' level of Internet adoption. In particular, operating in an appropriate market sector and having a positive view of the viability of the Internet, in-conjunction with the development of an appropriate Internet strategy, can strongly facilitate a retailer's adoption progress. From the, researcher's perspective, this study is important as it identifies many new variables and factors, and provides insights into how to devise a robust, multi-faceted methodology.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2004.
Document formatted into pages; contains 255 p. Includes bibliographical references. Abstract available online via OhioLINK's ETD Center; full text release delayed at author's request until 2005 June 21.

Con la presente ricerca si pone in essere uno studio sulla dimensione del business del Retail, mediante un approccio teorico al quale sono stati correlati alcuni casi aziendali. Negli ultimi anni, l’evoluzione dello spettro di abitudini del consumatore, con la rapida diffusione delle tecnologie di rete, ha richiesto alle aziende di attuare approcci e strategie nuove ed integrate per il raggiungimento del successo aziendale. L’analisi dei segmenti di clientela ha dimostrato come l’avvento di Internet abbia inevitabilmente generato impatti sia sulla vita delle persone sia sul modo di fare impresa. Ciò ha creato delle opportunità, come ad esempio una maggiore visione globale del mercato, ma anche fenomeni quali lo ShowRooming e il WebRooming, che devono essere contrastati se incontrollati o altrimenti sfruttati. Oggi i clienti interagiscono con le aziende attraverso diversi punti di contatto su più canali e media. Questi cambiamenti richiedono alle aziende di integrare più funzioni per offrire esperienze positive ai clienti. Il Retail infatti, si è fisiologicamente evoluto negli anni passando dal classico negozio mono canale, fino ad un concetto più complesso che integra l' online e l'offline. Ciò porta le aziende a rivedere l’intera supply chain. L’analisi del business di Apple, Burberry e Morrisons/ Amazon ha permesso di studiare l’applicazione della strategia Omni-Channel nel rispettivo settore di competenza, approfondendo i vantaggi/ i problemi riscontrati. Infatti, seppur oggi non sia utilizzata da tutte le aziende a causa degli sforzi necessari per l’adottamento, la strategia Omni-Channel è ancora inevitabilmente destinata a prospettive di crescita capillare che porterà ad una evoluzione del concetto stesso di negozio verso una dimensione integrata di vendita al dettaglio. Infine, l’analisi dei trend di business di DHL e UKMail ha permesso di porre l’enfasi sui temi del fullfillment e del last mile delivery.

As centrais de carga são um importante mecanismo de coordenação do mercado de fretes, tendo como um de seus objetivos ampliar as informações sobre este mercado, reduzindo a incerteza na obtenção de cargas e os custos de transportes. Com o avanço da internet, a possibilidade de criação de centrais de cargas abrangendo grandes áreas e um grande número de usuários tornou-se uma alternativa atraente, utilizada cada vez com maior freqüência. Entretanto, pouco se conhece sobre a sua utilização em atividades ligadas à área de logística. Assim, este trabalho objetivou caracterizar as centrais de cargas na internet, a sua utilização, por embarcadores e transportadoras, em atividades logísticas e testar a hipótese de que diferentes empresas, trabalhando com diferentes tipos de produtos, terão percepções e necessidades diferentes em relação aos serviços oferecidos. As análises fatorial e de conglomerados foram utilizadas para se atingir esses objetivos. No período estudado observou-se um aumento significativo no número de serviços disponíveis em diversos países e que as empresas possuem uma série de características comuns, como a orientação voltada tanto para embarcadores como transportadores, a formação de preços por meio de leilões e o aumento no número de centrais com participação na transação efetuada por seus usuários. O grupo de empresas estudadas caracterizou-se por transportar/produzir cargas gerais e produtos agrícolas, empregando a internet principalmente nas áreas administrativas, para a contratação de fretes e tomadas de preço. Os serviços oferecidos atualmente pelas centrais foram considerados importantes pelas empresas pesquisadas, que ressaltaram a necessidade de conhecer e identificar os parceiros com que se negocia na rede. A análise fatorial permitiu agrupar as características e serviços que aparecem com mais freqüências nos sites, gerando 6 fatores identificados como: serviços prestados, segurança e tamanho da comunidade de usuários, serviços adicionais, pré-seleção de participantes e abrangência dos serviços, integração e forma de negociação e imparcialidade do site. Esses fatores indicam quais os pontos que devem ser considerados para o estabelecimento de novos sistemas ou na melhoria dos existentes. Na análise de conglomerados foram obtidos 3 grupos de empresas. O grupo 1 apresentou um número equivalente de embarcadores e transportadores, que trabalham principalmente com cargas gerais e agrícolas, estando dividido entre empresas que utilizam, ou não, a internet. Esse grupo apresenta a melhor distinção entre a importância atribuída aos serviços, quando comparado aos outros dois. O conglomerado 2 possui principalmente operadores logísticos e transportadoras, que trabalham com a maior variedade de cargas entre os grupos. No grupo predominam as empresas que não utilizam a internet. Esse conglomerado atribuiu os maiores valores às questões referentes aos serviços oferecidos pelas centrais, considerando-as como importantes. O c onglomerado 3 é formado principalmente por embarcadores, possui o maior número de usuários da internet e atribuiu os menores valores aos serviços avaliados. Com base nesses resultados, pode-se inferir que empresas diferentes, no caso embarcadores e transportadores, atribuem importância diferente aos serviços oferecidos pelas centrais de cargas. Deve -se considerar que os resultados encontrados são válidos apenas para as empresas pesquisadas e focam a realidade de um período determinado, exigindo um acompanhamento de seu desenvolvimento ao longo do tempo.
Load matching services are a ve ry important mechanism for coordination of the freight market and enlarging the information on such market is one of their targets, in order to reduce the uncertainty in the load obtainment and transportation costs. With the advance of the internet, the possibility of creation of load matching services including large areas and a large number of users became an attractive alternative, which is used in larger frequency. Nevertheless its application related to activities in the Logistics is not well known yet. This study aims at the characterization of load matching services in the internet, its use by shippers and carriers in Logistic activities and also the test of the hypothesis that different types of companies dealing with different types of products will have different perceptions and needs on the available services. The factor analyses and cluster analyses were used in order to reach such objectives. During the period the study was conducted it has been observed a significant increase in the number of services available in several countries and that the companies have a series of common characteristics, such as the orientation either to shippers as well as tocarriers; price formation by means of auction and the increase of the load matching services with participation of their users in the transaction. Transporting/producing general cargoes and agricultural products using the internet mainly in the administrative areas for hiring the freights and price checkouts have characterized the group of companies that was studied. The current services offered by the load matching services were considered important by the companies that were surveyed; such companies highlighted the need of knowing and identifying the partners with whom they deal in the web. The factor analyses allowed to group up the characteristics and services that are more common in the sites, generating 6 factors identified as services offered, safety and size of the user's community, additional services, pre-selection of participants and wide ranging of services, integration and negotiation style and impartiality on the site. These factors indicate which aspects must be taken into account in order to establish new systems or to improve the existing ones. In the cluster analyses, three different groups were identified. Group 1 presented an equivalent number of shippers and carriers that deal mainly with general and agricultural cargoes and that are split into companies that use or not the internet. This group shows the best distinction between the importance given to the services when compared with the other groups. Group 2 has mainly logistic operators and carriers that work with the biggest variety of loads among the groups. In this group there is a predominance of companies that do not use the i nternet. This group has attributed the biggest values to aspects referring to the services offered by the load matching services, considering them as very important. Group 3 is made up mainly by shippers, has the largest number of the internet users and has the least values to the evaluated services. Based on these results, one can infer that different companies (in the case shippers and carriers) give different importance to the services offered by the load matching services. One must have in mind that the results obtained are valid only to the companies that were studied and that the research focuses the day-to-day reality of a specific period of time what, in turn, creates the need of its posterior development in time.

Background - Luxury companies have long been reluctant to adopt the internet as a mode of distribution. A luxury brand’s concept of exclusiveness is seemingly incompatible with the ubiquitous nature of the internet. Hence, many luxury brands are fearful that distributing their products on third-party online retail platforms might decrease the brands’ vital aura of luxury. Purpose - The purpose of this study is to explore consumer perceptions, attitudes and purchase intention towards a luxury brand being distributed on an online multibrand marketplace. This research aims to fill the existing gap on the ambiguous nature of luxury branding and distribution in an online multibrand context. Methodology - A qualitative approach including ten semi-structured interviews with Swedish millennials were conducted. A case study of a hypothetical brand alliance between Louis Vuitton and Amazon was developed, presented and discussed. Collected data was analyzed through thematic analysis. Findings - Results show that the online distribution of a luxury brand did influence consumer perceptions of the luxury brand when seen online. However, it did not result in a change in their overall attitude or purchase intention towards the luxury brand. Additionally, it was found that consumers were not willing to buy luxury on an multibrand marketplace platform.

The purpose of this essay is to examine the possibilities for Farsta Centrum so they can increase their visitor count to avoid losing customers in favor of online shopping. It is investigated through several hypotheses that were formed. To accomplish this, a case study which consists of two parts has been completed. Firstly, a literature review was the basis for the hypotheses that investigates previous work concerning the subject. Secondly a questionnaire has been designed based on a standard model with attitude statements and a 7- point Likert scale. The questionnaire was then handed out to consumers as well as employees with a managerial role in the stores at Farsta Centrum. After this the answers were reviewed and analyzed based on average values. The results show that multi-channel shopping is not yet fully integrated with online shopping at Farsta Centrum. However other hypotheses were confirmed, for example that customer loyalty is important and that customers will prefer self-scanning. Therefore, two ways are presented to increase the visitor count to the center based on the results of the report. Firstly to pressure the stores to maintain a virtual store and secondly to force them to use self-scanning where appropriate.
Uppsatsens syfte är att undersöka om och i så fall hur Farsta Centrum kan öka besöksfrekvensen för att undvika att kunderna istället handlar online. För att problemet ska kunna diskuteras har en fallstudie av centrumet utförts vilken består av två delar. Först har en litteraturstudie gjorts där tidigare forskningsrapporter och litteratur presenteras. Här ligger också grunden till hypotesformuleringarna. Del två är en enkätundersökning med attitydfrågor som ställts till konsumenter respektive butiksansvariga i Farsta Centrum. Konsumenterna har fått besvara frågor relaterade till bland annat handelsmönster, hur det digitala integreras i handeln eller självscanning. Frågorna är kopplade till hypoteserna och svaren har utvärderats med medelvärden. Skalan som användes var en 7-gradig Likertskala. I resultatet framgår att Farsta Centrum inte är i framkant av den digitala handeln än. Hemsidor och telefoner är inte det viktigaste för konsumenterna och därför behöver inga anpassningar utföras än. Dock framgår till exempel att köptrohet är viktigt såväl som att självscanning är attraktivt. Det finns därför två sätt för Farsta Centrum att förvalta på ett bättre sätt för att öka besöksfrekvensen till centrumet utifrån rapportens resultat. De kan sätta mer press på butikerna att också tillhandahålla en virtuell butik samt forcera butiker att använda sig av självscanning där det är möjligt och passande.

Title: How does the buying decision process really function within e-commerce? - A qualitative study of consumer behavior when they consume on Internet. Institution: School of Economics, Linnaeus University, Växjö. Course code: 2FE16E. Authors: Sara Hjärne, Mathilda Perem, Ewelina Wallin. Tutor: Dan Halvarsson. Examiner: Åsa Devine. Key words: Buying decision process, purchase decision process need recognition, information search, evaluation, purchase decision, postpurchase behavior, consumer decision making, E-commerce, E- commerce channels, online shopping, online purchase, e-retail, internet shopping, electronic shopping, consumer behavior, online appereal shopping, social media, decision making, online retailing, website design, customer satisfaction, webshopping, perceived risk, convinience, price, online consumption behavior. Background: Buying decision process is a model that marketers use to get a better understanding of their customers and their behavior when purchasing a product. This process consists of five different steps; need recognition, information search, evaluation of alternatives, purchase decision and evaluation. Buying decision process has for a long time been an accepted model but scientists argue that the introduction of Internet as a channel for consumption has changed this process. The Internet has also led to a change of power in which customers today have greater influence, which greatly affects the buying decision process in e-commerce Purpose: The purpose is to explore how consumers perceive their behavior when they consume through e-commerce. Research questions:How do consumers perceive the buying decision process they experience when they consume through e-commerce?How do consumers perceive different factors that are important to them when they consume through e-commerce? Methodology: Qualitative study, cross-sectional design, semi-structured interviews. Conclusion: This thesis shows that the traditional model of the buying decision process is not consistent with consumers' perception of how they are undergoing the process when applied to an e-commerce context. This process is influenced by different factors, which is influence, convenience, webpage's atmosphere, risk, price, supply, consumption occasions, expectations, delivery and return.
Titel: Hur fungerar egentligen köpbeslutsprocessen inom e-handel?- En kvalitativ studie om konsumenternas beteende vid konsumtion på Internet. Institution: Ekonomihögskolan, Linnéuniversitetet, Växjö. Kurskod: 2FE16E. Författare: Sara Hjärne, Mathilda Perem, Ewelina Wallin. Handledare: Dan Halvarsson. Examinator: Åsa Devine. Nyckelord: Buying decision process, purchase decision process need recognition, information search, evaluation, purchase decision, postpurchase behavior, consumer decision making, E-commerce, E- commerce channels, online shopping, online purchase, e-retail, internet shopping, electronic shopping, consumer behavior, online appereal shopping, social media, decision making, online retailing, website design, customer satisfaction, webshopping, perceived risk, convinience, price, online consumption behavior. Bakgrund: Köpbeslutsprocessen är en modell som marknadsförare använder för att få en bättre förståelse för sina kunder och deras beteende vid köp av en produkt. Denna process består av fem olika steg; behov, informationssökning, värdering av alternativ, köpbeslut och utvärdering. Köpbeslutsprocessen har länge varit en accepterad modell men forskare menar att introduktionen av Internet som en kanal för konsumtion har även förändrat denna process. Internet har även lett till ett maktskifte där kunderna idag har större inflytande, vilket i hög grad påverkar köpbeslutsprocessen inom e-handel Syfte: Syftet är att utforska hur konsumenterna uppfattar sitt beteende när de konsumerar genom e-handel. Forskningsfrågor: Hur uppfattar konsumenter den köpbeslutsprocess de går igenom när de konsumerar genom e-handel?Hur uppfattar konsumenterna olika faktorer som är betydelsefulla för dem när de konsumerar genom e-handel? Metod: Kvalitativ studie, Tvärsnittsdesign, Semi-strukturerade intervjuer. Slutsats: Studien visar att den traditionella modellen för köpbeslutsprocessen inte stämmer överens med konsumenternas uppfattning om hur de genomgår processen i en e-handel kontext. Denna process påverkas av faktorerna inflytande, bekvämlighet, webbsidans atmosfär, risk, pris, utbud, konsumtionstillfällen, förväntningar, leverans och retur.

Internet når idag över 8 miljoner människor i Sverige och är en naturlig del av vardagen för många. För företag betyder detta en viktig marknadsföringskanal som inte bör underskattas. Genom att kommunicera med målgruppen via plattformer såsom sociala nätverk, bloggar och mikrobloggar kan företag erbjuda mervärde och bygga relationer online. Genom att utnyttja rätt marknadsföringskanal kan onlinemarknadsföring undvika att uppfattas som påträngande för konsumenten och istället inspirera på ett hjälpfullt sätt.Syftet med studien är att med en kartläggning av fast-fashionkonsumenters nätbeteende och attityder fastställa hur modeföretaget Gina Tricot som har flera försäljningskanaler kan öka besöksfrekvensen till den virtuella butiken genom marknadsföring online. Uppsatsen har en kvalitativ ansats med en fallstudiedesign. De insamlade empiriska data är av både kvalitativ och kvantitativ natur då både en bredd och ett djup har eftersträvats. Datamaterialet består av en webbenkät med 181 respondenter, strukturerade intervjuer på stan med 120 respondenter, två gruppintervjuer samt en personlig intervju med en marknadskoordinator.Det empiriska materialet har analyserats utifrån den teoretiska referensramen bestående av teorier om onlinemarknadsföring, konsumentbeteende samt multi-channel-återförsäljning. Studien har visat att bloggar är en stark marknadsföringskanal för modeföretag då konsumenterna känner en stor tillit till bloggare samt då det hjälper dem att förkorta köpprocessen. Analysen visar även att det genom sociala nätverk är viktigt för modeföretag att bygga relationer samt aktivt kommunicera med målgruppen för att skapa lojalitet. Andra starka kanaler har visat sig vara nyhetsbrev samt banners. För att stärka Gina Tricots webbutik har ett behov observerats av att uppmärksamma det breda sortiment som finns representerat på Internet då större utbud visat sig vara det starkaste motivet till onlineshopping i studien. Resultatet visade även att webbutiken behöver erbjuda en högre visuell upplevelse då exponeringen av produkterna på ginatricot.com idag inte överkommer den stora riskuppfattning som köp av kläder online innebär för konsumenten. Sett utifrån ett marknadsföringsperspektiv kan denna förändring ha en positiv word of mouth effekt samt kan till fördel användas vid exponering av produkter på sociala nätverk.Internet reaches today over 8 million people in Sweden and has become a natural part of the everyday life. For companies this means a marketing channel too important to ignore. By communicating with the target group via social networks, blogs and micro blogs the company is able to offer an added value and to build relationships online. By choosing the right marketing channel and strategy the online marketing is able to avoid being seen as intrusive and the consumer could instead perceive the marketing as inspiring and helpful. When using a multichannel perspective offering e-commerce, marketing online becomes important to manage increased awareness and generate more traffic to the web site.The purpose of the study is by the identification of fast fashion consumer’s behavior and attitudes determine how the fashion company Gina Tricot is able to increase the traffic to their virtual store through marketing online. The paper has a case study design with a qualitative approach. The empirical data are both qualitative and quantitative to ensure a depth and a width to the thesis. The gathering of the data has been made through a web survey which consists of 181 respondents, 120 structured interviews, two group interviews and one interview with a market coordinator. The gathered empirics have been analyzed according to the theoretical framework which consists of theories regarding online marketing, consumer behavior and multi-channel retailing.The findings made in the thesis show that blogs are a strong marketing channel because of the great trust consumers feel towards bloggers and since blogs also help consumers to abbreviate the buying process. The analysis also shows that it is important to build relationships on social networks and to actively keep a two-way communication in order to create loyalty. Other effective marketing channels are companies’ newsletters and banner ads. To strengthen the image of the online store of Gina Tricot we have observed a need to inform the consumer of the wide and more unique assortment they offer online since a larger assortment and uniqueness has shown being the strongest reason for online shopping in this thesis. The result also showed that the web shop needs to provide a higher visual experience since the exposure of today’s products on ginatricot.com do not overcome the consumer’s risk perception of buying clothes online. From a marketing perspective this change can have a positive word of mouth effect among consumers and can be used positively when displaying products on social networks.
Program: Textilekonomutbildningen

Avec l'avènement de l'internet et du processus de digitalisation, le monde du commerce de détail a connu de nombreux changements. En fait, ce processus a incité tous les secteurs à intégrer la technologie dans leurs processus de vente. Dans le commerce de détail en particulier, ce processus a permis aux mondes physique et digital de commencer à se rencontrer. Dans ce scénario, on est passé de la vente multicanale, comprise comme un ensemble d'activités où les biens sont vendus par différents canaux (en ligne et hors ligne), à une omnicanale, où les deux canaux (en ligne et hors ligne) sont intégrés au cours du processus de vente. De cette manière, les barrières géographiques et physiques existantes ont été supprimées, laissant la place à une expérience complète pour le consommateur. Dans ce scénario se situe le travail de cette thèse de doctorat, qui découle de l'intérêt d'étudier la perception des consommateurs et des distributeurs dans l'utilisation des technologies immersives, avec un accent particulier sur ce qui est prédit par les rapports comme la technologie immersive la plus utilisée dans les cinq prochaines années : la réalité augmentée.A travers trois études exploratoires (deux études qualitatives -un côté des consommateurs et l’autre côté des détaillants- et la dernière quantitative), le présent travail de thèse vise à étendre les connaissances sur le comportement des consommateurs et des distributeurs inhérents à cette technologie. Au chapitre 2, la perception qu'ont les consommateurs de la réalité augmentée pendant les phases d'un processus d'achat est analysée au moyen de 20 entretiens semi-structurés, qui décrivent les principaux avantages et inconvénients perçus. Le chapitre 3 analyse le côté des distributeurs à travers 4 études de cas, dans le but d'étudier leur perception de la préparation à l'adoption de cette technologie immersive. Enfin, le chapitre 5 vise à mesurer la relation entre l'implication d'un produit et son comportement de consommation, médiatisé par l'immersion dans l'expérience d'achat en réalité augmentée de 254 consommateurs italiens.Les résultats mettent en évidence le rôle de la technologie immersive lorsqu'elle est associée à une implication émotionnelle avec un produit, sans laquelle elle reste un simple instrument hédonique. En fait, d'une part, les consommateurs perçoivent la technologie comme un outil supplémentaire et autonome, si elle n'est pas combinée avec des produits particuliers qui les intéressent. D'autre part, les distributeurs sont conscients des principaux avantages apportés par l'introduction de nouvelles technologies, mais sont réticents à les inclure. Cela est principalement dû à deux facteurs : la petite et moyenne taille des entreprises en Italie et une faible propension à éviter le risque et l'incertitude donnés par toutes les innovations non testées par leur secteur. Les implications de la relation entre l'implication du produit et les intentions comportementales médiatisées par l'expérience immersive avec la réalité augmentée décrite dans le modèle développé dans cette thèse de doctorat ouvrent de nouveaux horizons managériaux pour toutes les entreprises qui sont conscientes des avantages de ces technologies et souhaitent les mettre en œuvre pour améliorer leurs performances
With the advent of the internet and the digitisation process, the retail world has undergone numerous changes. As a matter of fact, this process has prompted all sectors to integrate technology into their sales processes. Particularly in retail, this process has meant that the physical and digital worlds have begun to find a meeting point. In this scenario there has been a shift from multi-channel, understood as a set of activities where goods are sold through different channels (online and offline), to a omnichannel retailing, where the two channels (online and offline) are integrated during the sales process. In this way, existing geographical and physical barriers are removed, leaving room for an all-round experience for the consumer. In this scenario is placed the work of this doctoral thesis, which stems from the interest of investigating the perception of consumers and sellers in the use of immersive technologies, with a particular focus on what is predicted by the reports as the most used immersive technology in the next five years: augmented reality.Through three exploratory studies (two qualitative studies on the consumer and retailer side and the last quantitative one), the present work aims to extend knowledge on the consumers’ and retailers’ perception on this technology. In chapter 2 consumers’ perception on augmented reality during the phases of a purchasing process is analysed through 20 semi-structured interviews, outlining the main perceived benefits and disadvantages. Chapter 3 analyses retailers’ side through 4 case studies, with the aim of studying their perception and readiness to adopt this immersive technology. Finally, chapter 5 aims to measure the relationship between the involvement of a product and its consumption behaviour, mediated through the immersion in the augmented reality shopping experience by 254 Italian consumers.Results highlight the role of immersive technology when combined with emotional product involvement, without which it remains a mere hedonic instrument. In fact, on the one hand consumers perceive technology as an additional, stand-alone tool, if not combined with specific products of their interest. On the other, retailers are aware of the main benefits brought by the introduction of a new technology, but they are reluctant to adopt it into their business. This is mainly due to two factors: the small and medium size of companies in Italy and a high uncertainty avoidance given by all the innovations not tested by their sector. The relationship between product involvement and behavioural intentions mediated by the immersive experience with augmented reality described in the model of this PhD thesis opens new managerial horizons for all those companies, which are aware of the benefits of these technologies and that would like to improve their performance using immersive tools
Con l’avvento di internet e il processo di digitalizzazione, il mondo della vendita al dettaglio ha subito numerosi cambiamenti. Infatti, questo processo ha spinto tutti i settori a integrare la tecnologia nei propri processi di vendita. In particolar modo, nella vendita al dettaglio questo processo ha fatto sì che il mondo fisico e quello digitale iniziassero a trovare un punto di incontro. In questo scenario sì è assistito infatti al passaggio dalla vendita multicanale, intesa come un insieme di attività dove le merci vengono vendute attraverso diversi canali (online e offline), ad una vendita omnicanale, dove i due canali (online e offline) sono integrati durante il processo di vendita. In questo modo, le barriere geografiche e fisiche esistenti vengono eliminate, lasciando spazio ad un’esperienza a tutto tondo per il consumatore. In questo scenario si colloca il lavoro di questa tesi di dottorato, che nasce dall’interesse di investigare la percezione dei consumatori e dei venditori nell’utilizzo delle tecnologie immersive, con un particolare focus a quella che viene predetta dai report come la tecnologia immersiva più utilizzata nei prossimi cinque anni: la realtà aumentata.Attraverso tre studi esplorativi (due qualitativi lato consumer e retailer e l’ultimo quantitativo), il presente lavoro ha l’obiettivo di estendere la conoscenza sul comportamento dei consumatori e dei venditori inerente a questa tecnologia. Nel capitolo 2 viene infatti analizzata attraverso 20 interviste semi-strutturate la percezione che hanno i consumatori della realtà aumentata durante le fasi di un processo di acquisto, delineando i principali benefici e svantaggi percepiti. Il capitolo 3 analizza il lato dei venditori attraverso 4 casi studio, con l’obiettivo di studiare la loro percezione di preparazione a adottare questa tecnologia immersiva. Infine, il capitolo 5 si pone l’obiettivo di misurare la relazione esistente tra il coinvolgimento di un prodotto e il relativo comportamento di consumo, mediato attraverso l’immersione nell’esperienza di acquisto con realtà aumentata da parte di 254 consumatori italiani.I risultati mettono in evidenza il ruolo della tecnologia immersiva se affiancata da un coinvolgimento emotivo ad un prodotto, senza il quale resta un mero strumento edonico. Infatti, da un lato i consumatori percepiscono la tecnologia come uno strumento aggiuntivo, stand alone, se non abbinato a particolari prodotti di loro interesse. Dall’altro i venditori conoscono i principali benefici apportati dall’introduzione delle nuove tecnologie, ma sono poco propensi ad inserirle. Questo è dovuto principalmente da due fattori: le piccole e medie dimensioni delle imprese in Italia e da una bassa propensione ad evitare il rischio e l’incertezza dato da tutte le innovazioni non testate dal loro settore. Le implicazioni della relazione tra coinvolgimento del prodotto e intenzioni di comportamento mediate dall’esperienza immersiva con realtà aumentata descritte nel modello sviluppato nella presente tesi di dottorato apre nuovi orizzonti manageriali per tutte quelle imprese che consce dei benefici di queste tecnologie, desiderano implementare per migliorare le loro performance

This study deals with franchising as a form of distribution in the UK food retail environment. Franchise systems have increased their penetration of food retail markets since the mid 1980's and are frequently commented on by industry observers as being a form of distribution likely to expand aggressively. This study comments on the potential for further franchise development and looks at the association and relationship between franchisor Satisfaction and prevailing environmental conditions from a marketing channels perspective. Because of the paucity of literature, data, statistics and law on franchising, this study uses the marketing channels literature as its theoretical basis. This body of theory is principally used to derive and test hypotheses concerning franchisor satisfaction and the environment. The approach focused on interpreting the results of test for an association and relationship between satisfaction and the environment, to comment on the prospects for further franchising development, and to simultaneously contribute to the increased specification of marketing channels theory. The specific objectives of the study were i) To comment on franchising development and its prospects from an operational perspective by understanding the character and valence of franchisor satisfaction. ii). To develop the specification of marketing channels theory in two areas. First, to examine the content, domain and character of channel member satisfaction from a franchisor's perspective, by looking at the relative importance of behavioural, strategic and corporate image based dimensions. Previous marketing channels studies have only considered franchisee satisfaction in relation to franchisor power. Second, to examine whether the variable of franchisor satisfaction has any association or relationship with external concepts of the environment, these were capacity, concentration, stability, complexity and conflict. iii) To utilise and comment on the robustness of the political economy environmental model as a theoretical and methodological approach to empirical testing of organisational and environmental concepts. Two data gathering exercises were undertaken for the study. First, an extensive number of in-depth interviews were conducted with industry practitioners in franchise firms and trade associations, and second an 8 page questionnaire was mailed to the apparent universe of 45 food franchising firms. Franchisor satisfaction was measured using a seven point, bi polar rating scale and instrumentality importance weights. The environmental concepts were measured by seven point monopolar rating scales. Descriptive statistics, correlation analysis and the multivariate techniques of factor analysis and discriminant analysis are used to analyse and interpret the results. The study reveals that i) from an operational perspective, 90% of franchisors were satisfied with their systems performance at the time of the analysis. They scored the behavioural dimensions regarding interaction with franchisees as more important to their organisation achieving its goals and objectives than strategic or image based dimensions. Instrumentality importance weights were shown not to affect franchisor satisfaction scores. ii) From a theoretical point of view, franchisor satisfaction has a negative association with environmental complexity and a positive association with environmental capacity. There is empirical evidence that discriminant functions of independent environmental variables are able to predict franchisor membership of satisfied and non satisfied groups. Statistically significant results were obtained when the analysis was conducted at an individual environmental variable level, but not at the concept level. iii) The political economy model was shown to be a robust theoretical platform for model and measure development. The model provided an approach which in analysis discriminated between concepts and behaved in a nomological way. Confirmatory factor analysis of two environmental concepts. complexity and stability, extracted factors which were consistent with the sectors of the model which were used to develop the concept measures. The findings suggest that i) under conditions of low environmental complexity and high environmental capacity we should expect higher levels of franchisor satisfaction and expansion of franchising systems. ii) The concept of franchisor satisfaction is multi dimensional and ranks behavioural aspects of the franchise relationship ahead of strategic or image attributes in goal and objective achievement. The franchisor is concerned with higher level strategic issues compared to the franchisee. Under these circumstances, franchisor satisfaction was shown to be associated and related to external concepts and variables, which is an advancement in marketing channel theory. This is because it indicates that in considering organisational satisfaction, the researcher may be overlooking important attributes of the concept if only internal organisational phenomena are considered.

An exploratory investigation using a survey study approach was undertaken in two organisations in retailing, to explore whether there is any connection between HOD leadership style and the effectiveness of marketing concept in the organisation. Findings emerged on several levels. Despite the agreement on the importance of leadership in IM, little integration of leadership and IM research is found in the literature. Traditionally, leadership studies relate to job satisfaction, motivation, performance, productivity and communication. The term leadership means different things to different people (De Jong 2006). Although no ultimate definition of leadership exists (Yukl 2002) the majority of definitions reflect some basic elements including influence, motivation, intention, and change. Despite the importance of acknowledging the concept of leadership and its implications on internal marketing, it emerges that empirical studies of the relationship between leadership and internal marketing are unduly under-represented. Looking at the results, the achievement oriented and participative styles are positively associated with internal marketing. The achievement oriented is somewhat a better predictor than participative style in predicting variability in internal marketing. Conversely, the directive style is negatively associated with the internal marketing variable. The only leadership style that has no significant effect on internal marketing is the supportive style. The results also show that staff job satisfaction levels are positively predicted by leadership style. Further analysis shows that only 2 out of 4 leadership styles have positive significant effects on internal marketing; these are: achievement oriented and participative styles. The other two are not significant in predicting the variability in job satisfaction. The regression results show that leadership style has a significant effect on the HOD performance variable. All leadership styles, except supportive style, have significant effects on HOD performance. The achievement oriented and participative styles have positive significant effects, but the directive style has a negative effect on HOD performance. The overall results show that achievement oriented and participative styles have positive significant effects directly and are mediated by internal marketing effects on job satisfaction and HOD performance. But the directive style of leadership has a significant direct negative effect and is mediated by internal marketing on HOD performance only and not on job satisfaction. Survey data at the individual level was aggregated across the two organisations and analysed. While these results cannot be statistically generalisable because of the small and unrepresentative sample used, the findings suggest that the link between individual organisation members’ perceptions of Internal Marketing and HOD leadership would be worthy of a larger study.

While shopping in a retail store today the customers are often interacting with multiple sale channels when making a purchase. These channels can include in‑store terminals, the customers’ smartphone etc. This thesis looks at how physical mobile interaction can be implemented to enhance the experience when using different channels for a purchase. Physical mobile interaction is a way for a user to interact with real world objects using a mobile device. This thesis examines how some of these techniques can be used in a retail store using the customers’ own smartphone device. With todays smartphone market with several different operating systems available it is important to find find an implementation which suits the majority of the users. This paper details which technologies that are available to implement the physical mobile interaction on the major smartphone platforms. It also discusses important design decisions for it to work on these platforms. The paper concludes that it is possible to implement these techniques on todays major smartphone platforms. It also concludes that the best technology can not always be used because of limitations on one or more platforms.

L’omni-canal constitue un idéal que la plupart des distributeurs cherche à atteindre en vue de s’adapter aux nouvelles exigences du marché (i.e. évolution du comportement des consommateurs et des standards concurrentiels). Dans la lignée des recherches en marketing de la distribution, nous cherchons à comprendre comment s’opère la mutation des distributeurs multi-/cross-canal vers l’omni-canal, du point de vue organisationnel. Au-delà de l’aspect technologique (e.g. modernisation des systèmes d’information ou logistiques), nous nous interrogeons sur la dimension culturelle de la transformation de ces acteurs « historiques » (e.g. révision des modes de fonctionnement et de pensée au sein des organisations et auprès de leurs membres). Nous nous intéressons d’abord à l’émergence de l’omni-canal et soulignons le changement culturel qu’il requiert ; la culture organisationnelle permet ensuite d’appréhender ce que recouvre ce changement culturel ; enfin, dans le cadre d’une stratégie de marketing interne, le storytelling contribue à faciliter la mutation auprès des collaborateurs, premiers destinataires du changement. Nous mettons en oeuvre une étude de cas multiples pour explorer la manière dont la mise en récit du changement par les distributeurs permet de favoriser l’émergence et le déploiement d’une « culture omni-canal ». Nos résultats témoignent d’une convergence dans la manière dont le changement s’opère mais aussi dont les distributeurs le racontent au travers d’un « storytailing » commun, dessinant les prémices d’une « révolution culturelle » de la distribution. Celle-ci se traduit par une vision élargie de la notion d’omni-canal à celle « d’omni-commerce » et une volonté des distributeurs de définir leur agency
Most retailers strive to reach the omni-channel ideal in order to meet new market requirements (i.e. evolution of consumer behavior and competition standards). In this study, we seek to understand how multi-/cross-channel retailers transform into omni-channel, from an organizational point of view. Beyond the technological aspect (e.g. modernization of information systems and logistics), we investigate the cultural dimension of the change in “historical” actors (e.g. overhaul of processes and ways of thinking inside organizations and among their members). First, we explore the emergence of omni-channel and outline the cultural change that it requires; then, we investigate organizational culture as a means to achieving such cultural change; finally, when formulating marketing strategy, we propose storytelling as an internal marketing approach with collaborators, who are often the first recipients of change. We conduct multiple case studies to explore the narrative of change whilst favoring the emergence and deployment of an “omni-channel culture”. Our findings show confluent results about the way retailers change and tell this story. Their narrative reveal a shared “storytailing”, shaping the premises of a “cultural revolution” in retailing. It is reflected in the proposition of a widened conception of omni-channel through “omni-commerce” and a wish for retailers to define their agency

Sustainability is a topic paying a visit to most industries today and the fashion business is no exception.The development of eco-efficient stores is one of the efforts carried out by Inditex Group with the aim to adopt sustainability into its practices. Such stores distinguish themselves for saving electricity, water and by greatly reducing the amount of CO2 that is yearly produced. The concept was initiated with the Zara brand but it will be introduced to the other six brands that integrate Inditex as well. However, despite the reduction in the carbon footprint it cannot be denied that the fast fashion business model creates a paradox in terms of sustainability.The following is a case study on the Zara Rome eco-efficient store. Being a store benchmark in Europe, it explores how the sustainability concept is communicated through this model and if the identified paradox is addressed. To do so, the study analyzes the external, internal and interactive marketing of the eco-shop based on the service marketing triangle theory and the Mehrabian-Russell stimulus-response model used in visual merchandising. Participant observation on site and a content analysis of relevant documents were carried out as research methods in order to find the messages emitted on each side of the triangle.The analysis shows that the paradox in the Zara eco-shops is not being handled at the customer level, though it is being handled at internal and external levels. As a conclusion, the eco-shops effort is part of a sustainability strategy with long term perspective and it will be addressed at customer level when the company as a whole counts with a more sustainable brand identity. Additionally suggestions are offered to potentialize the communication of sustainability in an eco-shop.
Program: Master in Fashion Management with specialisation in Fashion Marketing and Retailing

碩士
國立政治大學
企業管理學系
86
The business application of the Internet is one of the important issues for companies aiming to succeed in the next century. Some term this application as electronic commerce or e-commerce. 　　The Internet has attracted many companies to exploit this new marketing channel. Many grocery, or food, retailers have shown their interests in this market and are planning to provide online ordering services. 　　This thesis aims to understand grocery retailing on the Internet at present and to provide potential operators with some principles for providing Internet ordering services. 　　This thesis adopts exploratory and qualitative research. Some cases from defferent regions are analyzed and findings from these cases are synthesized to provide factors online operators should consider when planning their online services. Moreover, this thesis also provides some suggestions to potential operators of purely virtual stores.

碩士
淡江大學
資訊管理學系
89
With the popularity of the e-business, more and more products as well as services are sold on the Internet recently. However, only a few of them can survive and get profit from the Web.In this article, we conducted some face-to-face interviews to a few key personnel relating to three domestic Internet retail store. After that,we proposed a research framework including 26 web-based strategies to verify whether an agricultural grocery e-store executes these strategies well or not. Besides, we divide these strategies into more important and less important categories by the characteristic of selling products in this e-store. Based on the framework, we selected a local web-based agricultural grocery partial funded by the government as the subject of our empirical study. After interviewing the executive of the store, collecting data from the web pages, analyzing the architecture of the trading system, and comparing the price between the physical store as well as the virtual one, we selected 300 customers randomly from customer file as the survey population and got 153 valid samples. Through the data analysis, we found that the customers of the e-store are significantly different from the stereotype Internet users and this store executed well on more important strategies category. With this result, we can explain the sales volume increasing monthly. Besides, there was no direct evidence to explain the customers’ satisfaction from the execution degree of more important strategies. Some findings were shown in this article such as obvious gaps between the perceptions as well as the execution of all strategies and no guarantee selling well with low pric

碩士
國立成功大學
交通管理學系碩博士班
95
The emergence of the Internet may have fundamentally altered the mechanisms underlying information exchanges between sellers and end consumers. However, little attention has been given to the impact these mechanisms have on the efficiency of supply chain operations. This paper begins to address this deficiency in the literature by evaluating supply chain transaction efficiency effects from Internet purchases by consumers. It develops and empirically tests a theoretical framework examining the role Internet purchases have in establishing transaction-efficiency levels in product exchanges involving sellers, placed at different supply chain echelons, and consumers. The theoretical framework integrates the transaction-cost and internet economics, inter-organizational information systems, and supply chain management literatures. This progression has been highlighted in previous research on Internet-facilitated consumer transactions. Up until now, the research has centered on four transaction efficiency areas: product-price levels, menu costs, price-elasticity levels, and product-price dispersion. Little is known about efficiency-generating decision-making mechanisms involved in product-exchange operations and transactions stemming from consumers' Internet purchases. Furthermore, studies on Internet transaction efficiency have exclusively concentrated on dyads spanning only consumers and Internet retailers. Little attention has been given to transaction efficiency in the exchange of information and goods across multiple dyads of supply chains supporting the fulfillment of online consumer orders.

No
Reverse e-auctions are increasingly being used in business-to-business procurement and have been reported to yield significant price reductions for buyer firms. However, the adoption of online auction formats has raised many concerns among suppliers, often being criticized for damaging supplier-buyer relationships and for being antithetical to what is currently regarded as good supply chain management. Against this background this paper aims to examine the reverse auction phenomenon in the UK packaging sector. Data were collected from the direct experiences of one large food-packaging supplier, using case studies of reverse e-auctions, and from exploratory interviews with other suppliers in the sector. While buyers are reaping significant short-term price reductions, the benefits to suppliers are less obvious. In fact, little reference was detected to the often-quoted reductions in overall transaction costs for either buyers or suppliers. However, most respondents were not able to specify their transaction costs and associated risks and did not appear to have adequate costing systems to enable such quantification.

The aim of this thesis was to analyze the use of multichannel retailing in Globus hypermarket in České Budějovice. Dispensation was done according to Levy and Weitz (2009) into three main channels {--} retail store, catalogue and the internet which were supplemented by some components of the communication mix. On the basis of the case studies and marketing situation analysis of Globus hypermarket in České Budějovice some measures were proposed to improve the competitive position of this company by the use of multichannel retailing. Partial proposals were devided by particular channels. One of them was also economically evaluate.

碩士
國立中興大學
高階經理人碩士在職專班
106
The purpose of this study is to explore the relationship between customer satisfaction and customer importance from the perspective of customer. The study is conducted through surveys taken from customer of nine stores in the East region RT-Mart as well as through the method of management opportunity grid (MOG) to examine the core competence of RT-Mart, the nine stores include zhabei store, yangpu store and daning store in Shanghai, heshan store, chengnan store in the south of Jiangsu, suqian store and taizhou store in the north of Jiangsu, maanshan store and linquan store in Anhui. This study collected analysis from both local and foreign scholars’ research papers, which conclude RT-Mart’s six approaches of value services: tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, assurance. And base of the thesis by graduate student Chengzhou LIN in 2013, we have survey with 36 questions The effective quantity of survey is 1296, with the basic information, we know the major customer in RT-Mart is woman (73.5%), and 43.66% of customer exceed 46 years old, habitual shopping (45.06%) and proximity shopping (23.51%) are the mainstream shopping way. Supported by the finding of the surveys through the method of Management Opportunity Grid (MOG), the study expected to obtain customers’ satisfaction and customers’ importance to identify customers’ perspective of service on RT-Mart which are: ‘36- Food safety and hygiene’, ‘14- Brand trust (no fake)’, ‘17- RT-Mart identification’, ‘19.Quality guarantee’, that means customer trust RT-Mart with food safety and quality. And then, 24- Traffic convenience of store, ‘26-Good shopping environment (lightness and clean)’, ‘27- Good statement, clear shipping line, significant signs’, ‘32- Diversity commercial activities, and more choice for customer’. These points are related to site selection, planning and size of store. Therefore, the above statements portrayed the core competence of RT-Mart China. The findings also indicated that the general Management Opportunity Grid (MOG) statement number three’s service statement contain fourteen statement that are sales promotion related and service with internet technique, that means diversity consumption model in the internet age, and because of main customer of RT-Mart is aged population, they aren’t target customer of online shopping, so we have a profound developing potential for new customer. And it is worth mentioning that 2 points in four’s service statement: ‘11- DM for member (DM or e-DM)’, ‘33- Minimum price in market’. According to the new technology and so many e-commerce concurrences, RT-Mart needs new idea and innovation for new media (member card, wechat, e-DM…) and promotion model. In addition, this applied self-assessment employees and customers compared with the importance of simultaneous importance-performance analysis (SIPA) also utilized for examination. Supported by the findings through the method of Management Opportunity Grid (MOG), the study expected to obtain customer’s satisfaction on services quality to identify the factors that unfavorable and ones that would provide a productive tool to management improvements. The matrix served to provide the management understanding of the true course of customer satisfaction and other requirements for further improvement. Moreover, the study also concluded that the efficiency of RT-Mart’s resources arrangement is reasonable and efficiently, but we must increase investment to ‘7-Actively and professional business promoter’ and ‘33- Minimum price in market’, that will improve satisfaction of our customer (or employee). The result of this study indicated that the strength of RT-Mart China is standard and size of store with a long-term customer confidence, but we need more investment to meet the needs of customer in this internet age, improve the marketing measures and instrument to meet customer, and use the new media or big data to scratch customer’s diversity need.

Lemon Jelly is a fashion brand that produces and sells plastic footwear. The brand belongs to the company Procalçado, a family-owned Portuguese company that already had an experience of 40 years as a soles and footwear components producer before creating Lemon Jelly. The company is characterized by innovative production processes that allow them to produce plastic injected shoes. Lemon Jelly is mostly being sold through distributors, however it also has an online presence. The brand’s official website represents from 5 to 10% of the brand’s sales, which were up to 3 million euros in 2015. The motivation for this dissertation was to write a case study about the e-commerce strategy of Lemon Jelly. The main challenge of the brand is to understand how it can increase its online sales, being this analyzed in the Teaching Note chapter that explores some issues relevant to the main problem of the case and proposes recommendations for the future. The previous chapter, Literature Review, was designed to support the Teaching Note through theoretical concepts. It is concluded that there are several factors that can influence a brand’s online sales, therefore Lemon Jelly should select some of them according to its needs, while monitoring the results at the same time. It is also important to benchmark competitors and other players in the industry in order to keep updated through the digital evolution.
A Lemon Jelly é uma marca de moda que produz e vende sapatos de plástico. A marca pertence à Procalçado, uma empresa familiar Portuguesa que já contava com 40 anos de experiência enquanto produtora de solas e componentes de sapatos antes de criar a Lemon Jelly. A empresa é caraterizada por produzir através de processos inovadores, o que lhe permite criar calçado de plástico injetado. A Lemon Jelly é vendida principalmente através de distribuidores, no entanto também está presente online. O website oficial da marca representa entre 5 a 10% das suas vendas totais, que atingiram 3 milhões de euros em 2015. A motivação para esta dissertação passou por escrever um caso de estudo sobre a estratégia de comércio eletrónico da Lemon Jelly. O principal desafio da marca é perceber como pode aumentar as suas vendas online, e para isto é feita uma análise no capítulo da nota de ensino, que explora algumas questões relevantes para o principal problema do caso e onde são propostas recomendações para o futuro. O capítulo anterior, de revisão de literatura, destina-se a apoiar a nota de ensino através de conceitos teóricos. Conclui-se que há vários fatores que podem influenciar as vendas online de uma marca, pelo que a Lemon Jelly deve selecioná-los consoante as suas necessidades, controlando ao mesmo tempo os resultados obtidos. É também importante efetuar comparações com concorrentes e outras empresas da indústria para a marca se manter atualizada perante a evolução digital.

碩士
國立高雄第一科技大學
運輸倉儲營運所
90
Due to the arising of Internet, not only the consumers’ living styles are affected, the traditional retailers are struggling for the survival as well. This is the factor forcing the traditional retailers to enter the battlefield of electronic commerce (E-commerce). In this study, we are to understand the specific characteristic of internet retailing market, and appropriate company operations types and strategies to compete in the E-commerce business environment by reviewing previous research on internet retailing market and structure, and case studies of foreign companies. The results are shown as follows: The economic characteristics of E-commerce are: Economics of scale at demand side, increasing returns, network externality, and positive feedback cycle. Those characteristics make the bigger firms staying big in the internet-retailing market. The core resources for the physical internet-firms are: capital, physical stores, reputation, the relationship with suppliers, the logistic system, and the practical market operation experiences. The core resource for the pure virtual internet-firms is the electronic information technology. In comparison to the pure virtual internet-firms, the physical ones need more time to cumulate their core resources. However, they could also obtain the related technologies by strategic alliance or merger, and then to develop the better potential in internet-retailing market. Moreover, the developing trend of internet-retailing market is predictable to be controlled by the physical internet-companies and superior huge virtual internet-companies. From the trend of internet-retailing market, only the first two biggest Internet companies with their sizes could be probably successful to take the most of market shares. However, the best and only strategy for the medium- and small-sized internet-stations to survive is to differentiate themselves from the others.

The Internet of Things, also known by the acronym IoT, comprises all devices and objects that are enabled to be permanently connected to the Internet, being able to identify on the network and communicate with each other. This technology is incorporated into a variety of products that are available today and designed to make life easier for consumers. The result was the emergence of smart cities, connected factories, connected cars, and an enormous amount of many other applications. All of this is evidence of how the world is adapting to the Internet of Things (IoT). IoT is a hot topic in our days and many business models arise from this trend, in form of new technologies, products, and services. However, when it comes to business strategy and profitability, it is not only about having the best idea or the best product but how to market it in the best way and attract the right target. Techperks is a startup built with the objective of bringing new IoT products to Portugal. However, the concept was not innovative enough to succeed as predicted in the Portuguese market. This case aims to highlight the biggest reasons explaining the brand's low performance and serve as a guide of “mistakes to avoid when launching a new innovative business”. It can also be used to stimulate student’s creativity in developing strategies used by Techperks to exploit the brand's total potential. “How should I begin?”: this is the question which students will be able to answer.
A Internet das Coisas, também conhecida pelo acrónimo IoT, compreende todos os dispositivos e objetos que se conectam permanentemente à Internet, e que comunicam entre si. Daí, surgiram cidades inteligentes, fábricas conectadas, carros conectados e um sem número de outras aplicações que nos trazem, todos os dias, novas funcionalidades. Este é um tópico muito relevante e muitos novos modelos de negócios surgem dessa nova tendência, sob forma de novas tecnologias, produtos e serviços. Espera-se que muitos provavelmente tenham sucesso, dado o crescimento desta nova era da tecnologia. No entanto, quando se trata de estratégia de negócios e lucro, não se trata apenas de ter a melhor ideia ou o melhor produto, mas também como comercializá-lo da melhor maneira e atrair o alvo mais atrativo. A startup Techperks foi criada com vista a trazer novos produtos de IoT para Portugal, através da sua revenda. No entanto, o conceito não foi inovador o suficiente para criar sucesso no mercado português e a startup não conseguiu instigar sua visão no mercado. Embora ainda em operação, a loja tem demonstrado resultados aquém das previsões. Este caso, tem como objetivo destacar os principais motivos que explicam o fraca performance da marca e servir como um guia para "os erros a serem evitados ao iniciar um novo negócio retalhista inovador". Além disso, pode ser utilizado para estimular a criatividade dos alunos no desenvolvimento de estratégias que poderiam ter sido usadas pela Techperks para evitar o insucesso e utilizar todo o potencial da marca.