This document discusses the paradoxical relationship between touch and technology in frontline retail and service encounters. It analyzes how technology infusion can both positively and negatively impact customer satisfaction and the customer experience based on marketing models like the Circle of Satisfaction and Holt's taxonomy of consumer behavior. While technology provides benefits like cost savings and new shopping experiences, too much reliance on technology over personal touch risks reducing consumption experiences related to pleasure, social interaction and self-identity. A balanced approach combining technology with human elements is suggested.
Reviewing the Impact Brand Centric Elements on Customer Satisfaction in the I...ijtsrd
Nowadays, companies make use of various strategies to attract new customers, retain existing customers and differentiate their products from those of their competitors. Perhaps, the most critical and practical approach to influence consumer behaviour in the product selection is emphasizing the "brand name" of the products. Brand equity is a set of brand assets and liabilities linked to a brand name and symbol, which add to or subtract from the value provided by a product or service. It enhances the customer's ability to interpret and process information, improves confidence in the purchase decision and affects the quality of the user experience. Since marketing and brand managers often have limited resources in terms of money, time, and human resources to implement branding strategies, these findings can help them prioritize and allocate resources across the dimensions. Mr. Divyaprakash Pandey | Dr. Bharti Shukla | Ms. Anumita Agarwal "Reviewing the Impact Brand Centric Elements on Customer Satisfaction in the Indian FMCG Sector" Published in International Journal of Trend in Scientific Research and Development (ijtsrd), ISSN: 2456-6470, Volume-4 | Issue-4 , June 2020, URL: https://www.ijtsrd.com/papers/ijtsrd31199.pdf Paper Url :https://www.ijtsrd.com/management/marketing/31199/reviewing-the-impact-brand-centric-elements-on-customer-satisfaction-in-the-indian-fmcg-sector/mr-divyaprakash-pandey
DETERMINANTS OF TRUST AND CUSTOMER LOYALTY ON C2C E-MARKETPLACE IN INDONESIA IAEME Publication
Stakeholders in C2C e-marketplace in order to optimize the category of groceries. One way to do this is through customer equity management. Therefore, it is very important to conduct research on the analysis of customer equity, customer loyalty in the context of c2c e-marketplace in Indonesia (study in the product groceries category) which aims to partially determine the effect of brand equity, value equity and relationship equity on trust and customer loyalty and the influence of trust on customer loyalty. The design of this study uses an explanatory approach. The data analysis technique uses structural equation model (SEM) and sampling is limited to certain criteria (purposive sampling). This study used 200 respondents. The results of this study show that there is a partial influence of brand equity and value equity on constructs of trust and customer loyalty. Meanwhile, relationship equity has a direct effect on trust, but not on customer loyalty. Trust affects consumer loyalty. Companies must focus on rewarding systems through cash back reward programs, virtual loyalty cards, incentive programs, and virtual communities that have been proven to be able to increase customer loyalty.
The retail industry is in the throes of transformation. Multi-channel retailing has become the norm of the day with the advent of mobility and self-service models. Retailers are seeking to stay ahead of the technology curve and meet new customers’ demands and buying behavior. Today’s customer is more consummate and discerning and not averse to sharing personal information for a better and perhaps preferential treatment. Thus, retailers are seeking to be ubiquitous in today’s digital world trying to garner customer information in their efforts to maximize their reach and points of sale. The role of modern identity management in the retail industry thus plays a dual role. Managing the identity of the customers while grappling with the employee identities to meet the challenges of the reality of remote operations. In this context, we make a cursive examination on the transformation in the retail industry and the data driven decision making that is expected to drive the industry. We also shed light on one of the world’s most renowned identity management infrastructures—in the United Arab Emirates (UAE)—and examining how reliable identity management systems can facilitate and enable the retail industry in their digital transformation.
Comparative Analysis of Brand Performance and Financial Gains a Case Study of...inventionjournals
Digital marketing is a term for interactive marketing using digital techniques. The main objective is to create brand awareness and to raise sales. This paper finds the effects of mobile marketing of sportswear companies (Nike, Adidas and Puma) by the comparison of their fans/followers on internet and financial gains. In this study, it is found that mobile marketing helps to create awareness and to raise sales of company. Nike spends more on mobile marketing as compared to its both rivals and is also getting more profit and brand value than Adidas and Puma. Nike leads in digital market; the company has more fans and followers on internet(Facebook, Twitter and Youtube). Adidas also made strategies for mobile marketing that helped them to raise brand value and profit in recent years. Statistics shows that Puma is relatively far behind in this race. The company should develop strategies better than its rivals to raise its enterprise value and to compete in the world market
Reviewing the Impact Brand Centric Elements on Customer Satisfaction in the I...ijtsrd
Nowadays, companies make use of various strategies to attract new customers, retain existing customers and differentiate their products from those of their competitors. Perhaps, the most critical and practical approach to influence consumer behaviour in the product selection is emphasizing the "brand name" of the products. Brand equity is a set of brand assets and liabilities linked to a brand name and symbol, which add to or subtract from the value provided by a product or service. It enhances the customer's ability to interpret and process information, improves confidence in the purchase decision and affects the quality of the user experience. Since marketing and brand managers often have limited resources in terms of money, time, and human resources to implement branding strategies, these findings can help them prioritize and allocate resources across the dimensions. Mr. Divyaprakash Pandey | Dr. Bharti Shukla | Ms. Anumita Agarwal "Reviewing the Impact Brand Centric Elements on Customer Satisfaction in the Indian FMCG Sector" Published in International Journal of Trend in Scientific Research and Development (ijtsrd), ISSN: 2456-6470, Volume-4 | Issue-4 , June 2020, URL: https://www.ijtsrd.com/papers/ijtsrd31199.pdf Paper Url :https://www.ijtsrd.com/management/marketing/31199/reviewing-the-impact-brand-centric-elements-on-customer-satisfaction-in-the-indian-fmcg-sector/mr-divyaprakash-pandey
DETERMINANTS OF TRUST AND CUSTOMER LOYALTY ON C2C E-MARKETPLACE IN INDONESIA IAEME Publication
Stakeholders in C2C e-marketplace in order to optimize the category of groceries. One way to do this is through customer equity management. Therefore, it is very important to conduct research on the analysis of customer equity, customer loyalty in the context of c2c e-marketplace in Indonesia (study in the product groceries category) which aims to partially determine the effect of brand equity, value equity and relationship equity on trust and customer loyalty and the influence of trust on customer loyalty. The design of this study uses an explanatory approach. The data analysis technique uses structural equation model (SEM) and sampling is limited to certain criteria (purposive sampling). This study used 200 respondents. The results of this study show that there is a partial influence of brand equity and value equity on constructs of trust and customer loyalty. Meanwhile, relationship equity has a direct effect on trust, but not on customer loyalty. Trust affects consumer loyalty. Companies must focus on rewarding systems through cash back reward programs, virtual loyalty cards, incentive programs, and virtual communities that have been proven to be able to increase customer loyalty.
The retail industry is in the throes of transformation. Multi-channel retailing has become the norm of the day with the advent of mobility and self-service models. Retailers are seeking to stay ahead of the technology curve and meet new customers’ demands and buying behavior. Today’s customer is more consummate and discerning and not averse to sharing personal information for a better and perhaps preferential treatment. Thus, retailers are seeking to be ubiquitous in today’s digital world trying to garner customer information in their efforts to maximize their reach and points of sale. The role of modern identity management in the retail industry thus plays a dual role. Managing the identity of the customers while grappling with the employee identities to meet the challenges of the reality of remote operations. In this context, we make a cursive examination on the transformation in the retail industry and the data driven decision making that is expected to drive the industry. We also shed light on one of the world’s most renowned identity management infrastructures—in the United Arab Emirates (UAE)—and examining how reliable identity management systems can facilitate and enable the retail industry in their digital transformation.
Comparative Analysis of Brand Performance and Financial Gains a Case Study of...inventionjournals
Digital marketing is a term for interactive marketing using digital techniques. The main objective is to create brand awareness and to raise sales. This paper finds the effects of mobile marketing of sportswear companies (Nike, Adidas and Puma) by the comparison of their fans/followers on internet and financial gains. In this study, it is found that mobile marketing helps to create awareness and to raise sales of company. Nike spends more on mobile marketing as compared to its both rivals and is also getting more profit and brand value than Adidas and Puma. Nike leads in digital market; the company has more fans and followers on internet(Facebook, Twitter and Youtube). Adidas also made strategies for mobile marketing that helped them to raise brand value and profit in recent years. Statistics shows that Puma is relatively far behind in this race. The company should develop strategies better than its rivals to raise its enterprise value and to compete in the world market
The cutting edge for business today is e-commerce.It means dealing in goods and services through the electronic media and internet. On the internet, it relates to a website of the vendor, who sells products or services directly to the customer from the portal using a digital shopping cart or digital shopping basket system and allows payment through credit card, debit card or EFT (Electronic fund transfer) payments. E-commerce or E-business involves carrying on a business with the help of the internet and by using the information technology like Electronic Data Interchange (EDI).
EVALUATION OF EFFECTIVE FACTORS ON CUSTOMER DECISION-MAKING PROCESS IN THE ON...ijmpict
The key effect of the development of online shops not only shifted the method businesses work, it also changed the manner costumer's behaviour. The aim of this study is to assess the impact of social identity,
Electronic word-of-mouth (EWOM), perceived risks, and trust and purchase intentions affecting customer
decision\-making process in online shops. A research model is illustrated, using technology acceptance model (TAM) as scientific base, to describe the relations of these variables that affect purchase intention
and finally leading to actual purchase. With the use of structured questionnaires on 655 respondents via
emails, this research examines online shop site namely, digikala. The analysis explains that purchase
intention and purchase behaviour, EWOM and trust in online shops and trust to purchase intention have
positive relations. As well as, perceived risk with trust and purchase intentions have negative relations.
Further,relation between social identity and trust not confirmed.
Small Commercial Business Analysis for Competitiveness Improvement In Puerto...inventionjournals
International Journal of Business and Management Invention (IJBMI) is an international journal intended for professionals and researchers in all fields of Business and Management. IJBMI publishes research articles and reviews within the whole field Business and Management, new teaching methods, assessment, validation and the impact of new technologies and it will continue to provide information on the latest trends and developments in this ever-expanding subject. The publications of papers are selected through double peer reviewed to ensure originality, relevance, and readability. The articles published in our journal can be accessed online.
A Study on Customer Perception on Retail Services in Select Organized Retail ...Sunil Krishna
Organized retailing in India has been maturing by passing
through many trends with the entry of many big players
trying to build and strengthen their retail business. And in
the light of this situation some feel that the perception of
the customer may loose out their existence. The study
revealed that although organized retail is relatively new
concept in the semi urban area, yet a clear cut perception
has been establishes in the minds of shoppers in semi
urban areas like kadapa city, A.P. In this regard, the data
was collected on 11 factors about the organized retail
store.
The effects of the online customer experience on customer loyalty in e-retailersIJAEMSJORNAL
The modern world has seen significant growth in the e-commerce industry in terms of volume and acceptance among customers. E-commerce has changed the behavior of shoppers depending on various factors such as easy accessibility and availability of a wider range of products and services. Now, customer retention has become a challenge for any company because there is so much competition. This article seeks to further understand the online customer experience and examine the customer experience in online sales and its impact on customer loyalty. However, empirical research on online customer experience and loyalty is scarce. The aims of this study are unique to two cases. The first is to examine the effect of online customer experience on customer responses to e-commerce retailer Digikala in Iran, given that two dimensions of online customer experience including empirical and emotional states are considered as customer experience evaluation tools. Each of these two dimensions is about explaining customer loyalty. Customer Experience is a new field of competition for brands to create an effective customer experience. This is the key to distinguishing brand names from one another, and lacking appropriate solutions for managing the customer experience will affect all aspects of the business, given the importance of the online customer experience in loyalty and maintaining a competitive advantage. Research is important and can have beneficial implications for entrepreneurship and formulating organizational strategies.
For answers go to
https://www.homeworksimple.com/downloads/busi-330-midterm/
BUSI 330 Midterm
1. Which of the following conditions are necessary for marketing to occur?
2. In a marketing context, a market refers to
3. The trade of things of value between buyer and seller so that each is better off after the trade is referred to as __________.
4. Which of the following products mentioned in Chapter 1 of the textbook failed in the marketplace?
5. The marketing manager's controllable factors—product, price, promotion, and place—that can be used to solve a marketing problem are referred to as the __________.
6. An organization that focuses its efforts on: (1) continuously collecting information about customers' needs; (2) sharing this information across departments; and (3) using it to create customer value is said to have a
7. The value to consumers that comes from making an item easy to purchase through the provision of credit cards and financial arrangements constitutes _________ utility.
8. Which of the following statements about marketing departments is most accurate?
Factors Affecting On Customer Retention: A Case Study of Cellular Industry o...paperpublications3
Abstract: The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of price perception, customer satisfaction, brand image, switching barriers (switching cost, interpersonal relationship and attractiveness of alternative) and trust towards the Customer retention in the cellular industry of Pakistan. This study adds many other supporting materials especially for the literature review; a model is used by this study to find the effect of the factors on customer retention. The data was collected from the customers in Lahore who are subscribers one of the cellular company (Mobilink, U-Fone, Telenor, Warid, and Zong) of Pakistan. The data is analyzed with the help of the multiple regression analysis. Out of seven variables tested it is found that switching barriers (interpersonal relationship and switching cost), brand image, price perception, trust and customer satisfaction have the effect on customer retention. However, customer satisfaction has little to do to increase the customer retention. This study also provides evidence that the higher switching barrier of attractiveness of the alternative lower will be the customer retention. This current study has its own limitation since this research is only conducted in Lahore area. Therefore the finding of the study is unable to be generalized for the whole population of mobile users in Pakistan as the sample size is measured small. The findings can help the service providers to find the effect of customer satisfaction, price perception, trust, brand image and switching barriers towards the customer retention.
Keywords: customer satisfaction, brand image, price perception, trust, switching barriers, customer retention.
The day when the sun is overhead at the tropic of cancerFassil
Why do both the Tropics and Temperates remain undiscovered and re-undiscovered?
The Tropics and the Temperates remain undiscovered and re-undiscovered, because both uses of Ethiopian calendar months only in the current Ethiopia and Gregorian calendar months in the Tropics are false and against the solar system.
Use of Ethiopian calendar only in the current Ethiopia is false and against the solar system, because the circumference of current Ethiopia cannot cover 24 hours (half part of Ethiopia is day and other half part is night cannot happen).Figure 5 shows one day is for the Earth which has 12 hours daylight and 12 hours night at the equator and long, longer and longest daylight hours in zone 3,2 and 1, when short, shorter and the shortest daylight hours recur in zone 4,5 and 6 respectively. This day is the day when the sun is overhead on the Tropic of Cancer. The day is called Sene 14 in the Tropics, when it is called June 21 in the Temperates.
Nevertheless, shorter variation of day and night, faster rotation and moderate seasons of the Tropics are revealed by the Ethiopian calendar months. Therefore any one is able to assert one who does use Ethiopian calendar only in the current Ethiopia is he/she does know neither daylight nor night of the day.
Use of Gregorian calendar in the Tropics is false and against the solar system because longer variation of day and night, slower rotation and extreme seasons of the Temperates which are revealed by the Gregorian calendar month’s were/are/will not be recurring in the Tropics. Thus any one is able to assert that one who does use Gregorian calendar in the Tropics is neither his or her body nor soul is connected with where he/she stands on.
The cutting edge for business today is e-commerce.It means dealing in goods and services through the electronic media and internet. On the internet, it relates to a website of the vendor, who sells products or services directly to the customer from the portal using a digital shopping cart or digital shopping basket system and allows payment through credit card, debit card or EFT (Electronic fund transfer) payments. E-commerce or E-business involves carrying on a business with the help of the internet and by using the information technology like Electronic Data Interchange (EDI).
EVALUATION OF EFFECTIVE FACTORS ON CUSTOMER DECISION-MAKING PROCESS IN THE ON...ijmpict
The key effect of the development of online shops not only shifted the method businesses work, it also changed the manner costumer's behaviour. The aim of this study is to assess the impact of social identity,
Electronic word-of-mouth (EWOM), perceived risks, and trust and purchase intentions affecting customer
decision\-making process in online shops. A research model is illustrated, using technology acceptance model (TAM) as scientific base, to describe the relations of these variables that affect purchase intention
and finally leading to actual purchase. With the use of structured questionnaires on 655 respondents via
emails, this research examines online shop site namely, digikala. The analysis explains that purchase
intention and purchase behaviour, EWOM and trust in online shops and trust to purchase intention have
positive relations. As well as, perceived risk with trust and purchase intentions have negative relations.
Further,relation between social identity and trust not confirmed.
Small Commercial Business Analysis for Competitiveness Improvement In Puerto...inventionjournals
International Journal of Business and Management Invention (IJBMI) is an international journal intended for professionals and researchers in all fields of Business and Management. IJBMI publishes research articles and reviews within the whole field Business and Management, new teaching methods, assessment, validation and the impact of new technologies and it will continue to provide information on the latest trends and developments in this ever-expanding subject. The publications of papers are selected through double peer reviewed to ensure originality, relevance, and readability. The articles published in our journal can be accessed online.
A Study on Customer Perception on Retail Services in Select Organized Retail ...Sunil Krishna
Organized retailing in India has been maturing by passing
through many trends with the entry of many big players
trying to build and strengthen their retail business. And in
the light of this situation some feel that the perception of
the customer may loose out their existence. The study
revealed that although organized retail is relatively new
concept in the semi urban area, yet a clear cut perception
has been establishes in the minds of shoppers in semi
urban areas like kadapa city, A.P. In this regard, the data
was collected on 11 factors about the organized retail
store.
The effects of the online customer experience on customer loyalty in e-retailersIJAEMSJORNAL
The modern world has seen significant growth in the e-commerce industry in terms of volume and acceptance among customers. E-commerce has changed the behavior of shoppers depending on various factors such as easy accessibility and availability of a wider range of products and services. Now, customer retention has become a challenge for any company because there is so much competition. This article seeks to further understand the online customer experience and examine the customer experience in online sales and its impact on customer loyalty. However, empirical research on online customer experience and loyalty is scarce. The aims of this study are unique to two cases. The first is to examine the effect of online customer experience on customer responses to e-commerce retailer Digikala in Iran, given that two dimensions of online customer experience including empirical and emotional states are considered as customer experience evaluation tools. Each of these two dimensions is about explaining customer loyalty. Customer Experience is a new field of competition for brands to create an effective customer experience. This is the key to distinguishing brand names from one another, and lacking appropriate solutions for managing the customer experience will affect all aspects of the business, given the importance of the online customer experience in loyalty and maintaining a competitive advantage. Research is important and can have beneficial implications for entrepreneurship and formulating organizational strategies.
For answers go to
https://www.homeworksimple.com/downloads/busi-330-midterm/
BUSI 330 Midterm
1. Which of the following conditions are necessary for marketing to occur?
2. In a marketing context, a market refers to
3. The trade of things of value between buyer and seller so that each is better off after the trade is referred to as __________.
4. Which of the following products mentioned in Chapter 1 of the textbook failed in the marketplace?
5. The marketing manager's controllable factors—product, price, promotion, and place—that can be used to solve a marketing problem are referred to as the __________.
6. An organization that focuses its efforts on: (1) continuously collecting information about customers' needs; (2) sharing this information across departments; and (3) using it to create customer value is said to have a
7. The value to consumers that comes from making an item easy to purchase through the provision of credit cards and financial arrangements constitutes _________ utility.
8. Which of the following statements about marketing departments is most accurate?
Factors Affecting On Customer Retention: A Case Study of Cellular Industry o...paperpublications3
Abstract: The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of price perception, customer satisfaction, brand image, switching barriers (switching cost, interpersonal relationship and attractiveness of alternative) and trust towards the Customer retention in the cellular industry of Pakistan. This study adds many other supporting materials especially for the literature review; a model is used by this study to find the effect of the factors on customer retention. The data was collected from the customers in Lahore who are subscribers one of the cellular company (Mobilink, U-Fone, Telenor, Warid, and Zong) of Pakistan. The data is analyzed with the help of the multiple regression analysis. Out of seven variables tested it is found that switching barriers (interpersonal relationship and switching cost), brand image, price perception, trust and customer satisfaction have the effect on customer retention. However, customer satisfaction has little to do to increase the customer retention. This study also provides evidence that the higher switching barrier of attractiveness of the alternative lower will be the customer retention. This current study has its own limitation since this research is only conducted in Lahore area. Therefore the finding of the study is unable to be generalized for the whole population of mobile users in Pakistan as the sample size is measured small. The findings can help the service providers to find the effect of customer satisfaction, price perception, trust, brand image and switching barriers towards the customer retention.
Keywords: customer satisfaction, brand image, price perception, trust, switching barriers, customer retention.
The day when the sun is overhead at the tropic of cancerFassil
Why do both the Tropics and Temperates remain undiscovered and re-undiscovered?
The Tropics and the Temperates remain undiscovered and re-undiscovered, because both uses of Ethiopian calendar months only in the current Ethiopia and Gregorian calendar months in the Tropics are false and against the solar system.
Use of Ethiopian calendar only in the current Ethiopia is false and against the solar system, because the circumference of current Ethiopia cannot cover 24 hours (half part of Ethiopia is day and other half part is night cannot happen).Figure 5 shows one day is for the Earth which has 12 hours daylight and 12 hours night at the equator and long, longer and longest daylight hours in zone 3,2 and 1, when short, shorter and the shortest daylight hours recur in zone 4,5 and 6 respectively. This day is the day when the sun is overhead on the Tropic of Cancer. The day is called Sene 14 in the Tropics, when it is called June 21 in the Temperates.
Nevertheless, shorter variation of day and night, faster rotation and moderate seasons of the Tropics are revealed by the Ethiopian calendar months. Therefore any one is able to assert one who does use Ethiopian calendar only in the current Ethiopia is he/she does know neither daylight nor night of the day.
Use of Gregorian calendar in the Tropics is false and against the solar system because longer variation of day and night, slower rotation and extreme seasons of the Temperates which are revealed by the Gregorian calendar month’s were/are/will not be recurring in the Tropics. Thus any one is able to assert that one who does use Gregorian calendar in the Tropics is neither his or her body nor soul is connected with where he/she stands on.
ICLR Friday Forum: Climate data in Ontario (November 13, 2015)glennmcgillivray
Preparing for the anticipated effects of climate change intuitively suggests that we need the best possible understanding and quantification of those effects. However, it can be challenging for practitioners to navigate the world of climate data. Not only can it be difficult to obtain information about our past and future climate and to discern which of the many sources should be used, but it is also a challenge to understand the limitations of the data and how it can be used appropriately and defensibly. The presentation described the current state and availability of climate data in Ontario, which is an illustrative case typical of most Canadian jurisdictions. The many sources of historic and future climate data were described, along with a discussion about the pitfalls of pursuing precision in climate data when its application is inherently uncertain.
Ryan Ness is Senior Manager of Research and Development at the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority. In this role, he is responsible for developing policy and technical solutions that allow the Authority to fulfill its water resources and ecological conservation mandate in the face of new and emerging challenges, including climate change. Ryan is a professional engineer with 16 years experience, 12 of which have been with the TRCA. He is currently pursuing a PhD in sustainability studies at the University of Waterloo.
This presentation goes over what risks are commonly modeled. This presentation was given at the Natural Hazard Mitigation Association's annual Symposium held every July in Broomfield, Colorado.
This presentation was given by Brandon Katz of JLT Re.
The Tasks of Marketing in the Digital EraYogeshIJTSRD
This article has a qualitative approach, where the main challenges that Marketing areas have in the era of disruptive technologies are raised. At the same time, it examines the opportunities offered by the same technologies to deal with the capture, management and treatment of large volumes of information dispersed in different sources, whose heterogeneous, unstructured data concentrates the basic elements to develop invaluable information to the departments Marketing, given that there would be obtained market trends, attributes and ideal characteristics to develop products and services tailored to consumers. Asqar Samadov "The Tasks of Marketing in the Digital Era" Published in International Journal of Trend in Scientific Research and Development (ijtsrd), ISSN: 2456-6470, Volume-5 | Issue-4 , June 2021, URL: https://www.ijtsrd.compapers/ijtsrd41164.pdf Paper URL: https://www.ijtsrd.comeconomics/market-economy/41164/the-tasks-of-marketing-in-the-digital-era/asqar-samadov
THE WASTES IN THE LEAN MARKETING. A PROPOSED TAXONOMYAndrea Payaro
The lean management is doing more with less by employing “lean thinking.” It involves never ending efforts to eliminate or reduce wastes in design, manufacturing, distribution, and customer service processes. This paper aims to develop a tools that help companies to identify the wastes present in their strategies and give a priority to different issues identified. Moreover this study, by an explanatory study, aims to measure the results of the application of this tools in the marketing strategies in a sample of 12 SMEs. The main results are that the companies involved in the project have a positive verdict on the model. In particular, the companies say that the model helps to identify more quickly which tools use to improve the level of customer satisfaction. It is easy to use and it can be used by all employees. Above all the model increases the level of knowledge of customers and their needs.
Understanding consumer's acceptance of technology based innovations in retailingMinor33
La disponibilidad de un gran número de estudios sobre el Modelo de Aceptación de Tecnología (TAM) para predecir la aceptación de los consumidores y el uso de las innovaciones en los puntos de venta motiva redactar el presente.
Running head MARKETING PLAN MARKETING PLANMarketi.docxcowinhelen
Running head: MARKETING PLAN
MARKETING PLAN
Marketing plan
Developing a marketing plan
William Fiedler
Columbia Southern University
Introduction
The scenario that I have selected for this project is IT to seniors. The company specializes in making the lives of senior citizens of over sixty-five years and older easier using technology. In the past twenty years, the world has experienced tremendous change due to technology. Technology has disrupted all industries and made it easier and more convenient to shop, work, bank, and relax among other activities (Noort, Willemsen, Kerkhof, & Verhoeven, 2015). However, for all the touted advantages of technology, Silicon Valley has neglected senior citizens. Technological advancements such as the smartphone hold plenty of potential for improving one’s life; however, senior citizens miss this potential because the technologies are often too complicated. IT for senior citizens aims to bring the benefits of technology to senior citizens by providing an array of gadgets and software tools that make it easier for old people to communicate, shop, and document their lives among other activities.
In the United States of America, the market for smartphones is saturated with almost all adults having a smartphone (Mooij, 2013). However, there is a disparity in how individuals use the smartphone. While young individuals are proficient with using smartphones and use a plethora of applications for communication, information, social media, and entertainment, the same is not true for old people. One of the products aimed towards making it easier for old people to interact with their smartphones is an application launcher that removes most of the complexity found in the android operating system interface and provides a clean layout with the most essential services. The launcher removes complexity by making the process of searching the internet or making a call only a one-step process. The launcher is just but one product that the company has in the pipeline, intended to help senior citizens benefit from the wave of technological changes.
Market research strategies
For the successful launch of any product, one of the most essential steps that a company must first engage in is market research. Market research helps outline the feasibility of the business model and the existence of a niche that a company can fill with innovative products. One of the market research analysis that IT for seniors will use to test new products is a focus group. A focus group helps assess the violability of a product and to iron out kinks in a product by presenting a prototype to a group of individuals (Babin & Zikmund, 2015). To test new products in the pipeline, IT for seniors will gather diverse groups of individuals over the age of sixty-five, present them with the product, and observe as they interact with it. The company factors the information from the focus group into the production and marketing of the produc ...
This paper is an analysis on the impact machine learning, Artificial Intelligence, and robotics has on the supply chain management. The analysis covers the basis of AI in the SCM mechanisms while defining it from the ground up. Later on, to shed a true light on supply first the paper zooms in on the effects of machines in marketing. From what particular methodologies are deployed in today’s environment extending all the way to its anticipated outcomes. As the reader progresses he/she will find valuable studies on the main segments of machine learning within the supply chain itself. Certain novelties and innovations are scrutinized regarding SCM alongside these studies. These innovations are exemplified by certain cases presented in Part 3. The penultimate section briefly examines the possible drawbacks of the surge in machine application in SCM. The final section compiles the ideas presented in the paper as a whole and gives a glimpse of an estimate for the near future.
The impact of technology onevolving roles of salespeople.docxcherry686017
The impact of technology on
evolving roles of salespeople
Paul Christ
West Chester University, West Chester, Pennsylvania, USA, and
Rolph Anderson
LeBow College of Business, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
Abstract
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to bridge the glaring gap in the sales literature due to the
deficiency of historical research on the adoption of technology in personal selling and the resultant
impacts on sales roles.
Design/methodology/approach – This paper traces the early adoption of technology by the sales
force through information obtained from an extensive review of published works covering a nearly
130-year timeframe. Where possible, efforts are made to chronicle the early use of these technologies
by citing examples from historical publications of applications in selling situations.
Findings – In the exciting internet era, it is often unrecognized that adopting the latest technology in
selling is a long, ongoing process which can be traced back at least to the beginning of professional
personal selling in the mid-1800s when the industrial revolution enabled dramatic increases in
manufactured products. A review of the literature suggests that sales forces were often early adopters of
new technologies that laid the groundwork for taking on new or expanded sales roles. With each new
invention and its creative adoption and adaption to selling, new sales roles have been created or ongoing
ones expanded or significantly modified. Many of the roles still entrusted to today’s sales force are
arguably linked to a succession of technological adoptions that occurred between the 1850s and 1980s.
Originality/value – From a historical perspective, this paper examines sales force technology
development from the 1850s through the 1980s and the resultant impacts on sales force roles. To date, this
historic technology-sales force role relationship has not been adequately recognized or addressed in the
sale literature. The analyses presented in the present study should prove useful for academics, students,
and practitioners in the sales and marketing fields as well as researchers examining business history.
Keywords History, Innovation, Information technology, Sales force, Selling methods
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
Over a half century ago, Hollander (1953, p. 5) defined sales devices as “tools or methods
used by the salesman to help in plying his trade”. In plying their trade, twenty-first
century sales forces use an impressive array of sales devices or technological tools to
carry out various important sales roles, including gathering market information,
gaining prospect trust, presenting their companies’ products and services, providing
customer service, and building long-term buyer-seller relationships. Their technology
“sales bags” include multiple telecommunications and internet-enabled devices to
readily access and provide timely information before, during, and after sales
presentations a ...
The impact of technology onevolving roles of salespeople.docxoreo10
The impact of technology on
evolving roles of salespeople
Paul Christ
West Chester University, West Chester, Pennsylvania, USA, and
Rolph Anderson
LeBow College of Business, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
Abstract
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to bridge the glaring gap in the sales literature due to the
deficiency of historical research on the adoption of technology in personal selling and the resultant
impacts on sales roles.
Design/methodology/approach – This paper traces the early adoption of technology by the sales
force through information obtained from an extensive review of published works covering a nearly
130-year timeframe. Where possible, efforts are made to chronicle the early use of these technologies
by citing examples from historical publications of applications in selling situations.
Findings – In the exciting internet era, it is often unrecognized that adopting the latest technology in
selling is a long, ongoing process which can be traced back at least to the beginning of professional
personal selling in the mid-1800s when the industrial revolution enabled dramatic increases in
manufactured products. A review of the literature suggests that sales forces were often early adopters of
new technologies that laid the groundwork for taking on new or expanded sales roles. With each new
invention and its creative adoption and adaption to selling, new sales roles have been created or ongoing
ones expanded or significantly modified. Many of the roles still entrusted to today’s sales force are
arguably linked to a succession of technological adoptions that occurred between the 1850s and 1980s.
Originality/value – From a historical perspective, this paper examines sales force technology
development from the 1850s through the 1980s and the resultant impacts on sales force roles. To date, this
historic technology-sales force role relationship has not been adequately recognized or addressed in the
sale literature. The analyses presented in the present study should prove useful for academics, students,
and practitioners in the sales and marketing fields as well as researchers examining business history.
Keywords History, Innovation, Information technology, Sales force, Selling methods
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
Over a half century ago, Hollander (1953, p. 5) defined sales devices as “tools or methods
used by the salesman to help in plying his trade”. In plying their trade, twenty-first
century sales forces use an impressive array of sales devices or technological tools to
carry out various important sales roles, including gathering market information,
gaining prospect trust, presenting their companies’ products and services, providing
customer service, and building long-term buyer-seller relationships. Their technology
“sales bags” include multiple telecommunications and internet-enabled devices to
readily access and provide timely information before, during, and after sales
presentations a ...
Running Head: HR CLOUD TECHNOLOGY
HR CLOUD TECHNOLOGY 7
HR Cloud Technology
Student Name
University Affiliation
Instructor’s Name
Explain how the marketing plan targets the market segment
HR cloud technology is becoming a basic requirement for most companies within the consumer goods industry. The industry is mainly composed of firms which deal in food production, beverages, clothing, electronics, and automobiles, among other major goods directly purchased by customers. The marketing plan, therefore, targets the market segment by showing the major reasons why HR cloud technology is significant in the consumer goods industry through conducting a needs analysis. Most of the activities in which the consumer industry companies engage in require a centralized location from which various HR functions should be conducted. Cloud computing technology provides the best platform to ensure there is consumer satisfaction, effectiveness in sales and also better employee engagement that is crucial to the success of various organizations (Buyya & Venugopal, 2008).
Provide a positioning statement for your project
The HR cloud technology will be a combination of both customer and employee information system. In many occasions, organizations only have a cloud technology which strictly deals with matters associated with the employees. Others will strictly have information related to customers, but fail to show the link between the two. For this project, both customers and employees are crucial to the success of an organization. If employees are not happy, there is a likelihood they will interfere with service delivery to the customers (Graham, 2008). With this HR cloud technology, firms will be able to see the interactions between customers and the employees. In addition to that, the management of employees will become easier as all data will be centralized within one system. Management of customers will as well be made better due to the centralization of all consumer data. The project, therefore, aims at providing an efficient system for the management of employees and customers and also provides the opportunity for the organization to have a better view of the relationship between employees and customers, who form part of major stakeholders within organizations.
Define the products and services you will offer
The main product that will be offered is the HR Cloud software in which various firms in the consumer industry will have to purchase. Once the product has been purchased, there are different services the company will offer. For instances, constant improvement of the software is expected; firms will thus be charged with the role of downloading updates to ensure their software is working in the best manner possible. The project will also offer security services to the different firms that will acquire the HR Cloud.
This paper is an analysis on the impact machine learning, Artificial Intelligence, and robotics has on
the supply chain management. The analysis covers the basis of AI in the SCM mechanisms while defining it
from the ground up. Later on, to shed a true light on supply first the paper zooms in on the effects of machines
in marketing.
Developing Relationships; consumers as a source for sustainable competitive a...Kevin Rommen
The world is changing thus business units should also be changing. The influences of social media and internet can no longer be neglected, case in point “Nestlé’s epic social media #fail”1. These changes are giving consumers more and more power in their relationship with business units. Furthermore the enormous amount of products available give consumers more and more possibilities to choose from. For example, at supermarkets in the USA you’ll find in the average week about 110 cereal brands in stock (Shum, 2004). The availability of that amount of different products/product-ranges within an industry raises the question to how business units can create competitive advantage within this enormous amount of competition, especially when the consumer is gaining power?
The integration between innovation and business is a key factor in competitiveness between organizations. That is, innovation applied to a business makes no sense if not considered as an integral tool for the processes of the organization. Companies should therefore adopt a policy where innovation plays a strategic role in the design of business models to become lean, effective and competitive entities (Moraleda, 2004). The objective of this paper is to show the importance of innovation within companies, identifying the concept, the various models that different entities might adopt in order to develop better processes of innovation, as well as indicators that represent innovation at global and national levels in order to develop strategies that lead to an increase in competitiveness. For this work the method used was a bibliographical review of relevant articles from a range of authors was conducted.
Hi, I did my master's programme at the prestigious university of Dundee. Do find my thesis report on the topic Digital marketing of Hilton Hotel in The Netherland. It was great. During my bachelor study at Hoge school Rotterdam, I wrote a thsis on Export of Martenal Mobile Hospital to Nigeria. I enjoyed my studies in The Netherlands and in Scotland as well.
Instructions for the Business Research Project OptionIf the stu.docxnormanibarber20063
Instructions for the Business Research Project Option:
If the student picks the Business Research Project option, the guidelines below outline the project's expectations:
The purpose of this project is to pick a current issue or force affecting businesses, important to many businesses, and to research it. Examples would include globalization, increased focus on diversity of the workforce, greater competition, etc.
The research performed should focus on history and background of the issue and how it is affecting businesses today.
The remainder of the paper will address the possible trends of the issue [such as increasing globalization or increasing competition] and alternatives business managers have to address the issue.
Required Major parts for paper:
I. Introduction [What is the topic, why it is important….to whom]
II. Review of existing literature [history, background, current company experiences]
III. Impact on business [in the past, now, going forward]
IV. Going forward [projected trends, pending legislation, likely regulation, political pressures]
V. Management options to address likely trends going forward; these could include actions to mitigate risks of the trends or actions to take advantage of the trends
VI. Conclusion
Topic
The issue chosen for research is the role of new media on marketing in 2017 and beyond. The research project will explore available figures to find out if businesses are still spending big on traditional media advertising, including radio, television, and print media. The data will be compared to spending on online advertising over the past half decade. If indeed businesses are changing their advertising strategies, it will be important to show the effectiveness of new media. According to Forbes, people are watching more videos online and thus businesses may have to take note and create not only interesting but also informative content for their consumers. Social media has already been embraced by most corporations as a form of communication to customers. However, the paper will try and see the importance of having an actual social media strategy and the importance of well trained persons to handle these accounts.
BUSINESS RESEARCH OUTLINE 2
Business Research Outline
I. Introduction
The topic of this research is new media marketing. This is a form of marketing that is anchored on promotion of brands and the sale of products through emerging online channels. New media marketing leverages on the elements of both established and emerging online channels to engage potential and current customers. This channels include display advertising, content marketing and social networking platforms (Calder, Malthouse, & Maslowska, 2016). New media marketing aims at getting the consumer to interact with the brand and engaging them in a way that increases awareness and ultimately product sales. New media marketing has become significantly vital in the digital era and huge a.
Artificial intelligence and machine learning (AI/ML) present us with novel and efficient ways to solve challenging and persistent problems, particularly when it comes to predictions. Retail, due to its fast moving, trend powered, and fluid nature coupled to an extended logistics chain, relies heavily on making smart predictions. As improvements in AI/ML over the last several years have proliferated, not only in performance advances but deployability, there are exciting openings for experimentation in many domains of the retail value chain
https://runfrictionless.com/b2b-white-paper-service/
Presentation by Eura Nova on disruptive trends & business models due to cloud computing solutions - presented at sales summit 2 by Minds&More (oct 9, 2013); presented by Eric Delacroix of Eura Nova ...
Similar to Current Issues Literature Review Full Report (20)
1. Battling the Paradoxical Relationship
Between “Touch and Tech”
in Frontline
by:
Karren
Quinio
10371070
MKT6308
Current
Issues
in
Marketing
Assignment
1
Literature
Review
06/04/2016
2. 1
Table of Contents
1.
Introduction
.................................................................................................................
2
2. Technology Infusion and Current Marketing Models
.................................................
3
3. The Current Issues: Causes and Implications
..............................................................
5
4. The Good Side of Frontline Technology Infusion in Retail
..........................................
6
5. Technology as Both a Barrier and Benefit in Frontline Service Encounters
...............
7
6. It is not a Question of Touch or Tech – Viewpoint and Suggested Solution
.................
9
7. Highlighting the Role of the Employees in Service Encounter
...................................
10
8. Conclusion
..................................................................................................................
12
References
......................................................................................................................
13
3. 2
Battling the Paradoxical Relationship
between “Touch and Tech” in Frontline
1. Introduction
The article entitled The Evolution of Marketing emphasized the importance of marketing in
business nowadays (Kumar, 2015). From an aspect of the producer-consumer or seller buyer-
relationship usually pertaining to the movement of excess production to its end consumer,
marketing transformed its definition and significance not just in business but in society in
general (Kumar, 2015) especially with the popularity of Corporate Social Responsibility.
Satisfying or delighting an extended set of stakeholders, from customers to the society, the
environment and the world as a whole, was the response of marketers to the needs of the soul
for sustainability (Webster Jr. & Lusch, 2013). Barbu (2013) like many others stressed the
essentiality of new technology, in this evolution. Just by watching and reading the trends in
marketing one can infer that the significance of technology to marketing nowadays is mostly
linked to data collection to better facilitate matching of products to the correct market in B2C
marketing or marketing the data itself in B2B marketing. This resulted to the popularity of
big data, data analytics and digital marketing (Stone & Woodcock, 2014). I call this
“backroom” marketing.
The other side of marketing for me is frontline where high customer contact normally
happens in the retail and service environment until the emergence of self-service technology
(SST). Even without referring to the literature yet, just by observation, the role of retail store
also has evolved and has now become a good venue to showcase the technology level of the
company through digital gadgets, wide 3d monitor screens, virtual mirrors and wi-fi
capabilities, to cite some, in addition to being a place to sell a product or provide a unique
customer service from employees. This is what this paper will talk about -- the effects of
technology infusion in frontline retail and service. It is a current issue in marketing because
with the increasing channels of marketing as a by-product of big data, the limited resource,
which is the marketing budget has to be allocated more to which marketing tool better
contributes to the bottom line and the higher purpose of marketing. This is related to what
Fanning (2014) has stated as one of the goals of marketing: to minimise the cost as
percentage of sales. This is also a response to the call for marketers to be more aware of the
4. 3
numbers, statistics-wise (proper use of data) and financial-wise (cost minimisation) to fulfil
the new role of marketing in business integration (Kumar, 2015).
In Australia, the two major players in grocery retailing have invested in technology by
increasing self-serve checkouts to replace the traditional checkout counters and significantly
cut down costs on staff salaries (Tonkin, 2016). Another significance of retail technology in
Australian stores is the trend in trying to provide new shopping experience to keep customers
in the shops despite their busy lifestyles. The movement of supermarkets from suburban areas
to closer to CBDs due to population growth can be a factor to this potential use of retail
technology (Tonkin, 2016). If other retailers in Australia can copy this trend for self-service
technology and frontline technology infusion to create a new shopping experience is what
this paper will try to answer.
2. Technology Infusion and Current Marketing Models
The effects of frontline technology infusion will be analysed using the premise of the Circle
of Satisfaction. According to the model created by Fanning (2014) a quality product is
perceived by customer as a product with value to them and the more that a customer is
satisfied with the product value through experience, the more that a customer will trust the
product, show loyalty through repeat purchase, thus, increasing his customer lifetime value
(CLV) to the company. That will ultimately lead to increased profitability to the company
(Fanning, 2014).
SOURCE:
Fanning,
2014
5. 4
Also, a good model that is used is Holt’s taxonomy of consumer behaviour which explained
that the purpose of consumption can either be hedonic or utilitarian and the structure can be
consuming an object or consuming the interaction (interpersonal). Combining purpose and
structure, Holt (1995) came up with four- dimensional typology called consuming as
experience (“involves emotional or physical pleasure”), consuming as integration (assimilates
consumption with self for “richer experience”), consuming as play (“interacts with others”)
and consuming as classification (“delineates associations with others”) (M. M. MacCarthy,
personal communication, August 22, 2015).
SOURCE:
Holt,
1995
If only for the functional benefit of products and if only all consumers have low involvement
with them then in my opinion there will be very minimal argument against the use of
technology in frontline retail and service as it can be more cost and time efficient for both the
6. 5
customer and the organisation. But because more than physical needs, consumers are aiming
to satisfy higher needs pertaining to their psychological needs best described by Holt (1995)
as consuming as experience, social needs (Holt’s consuming as play) and esteem needs
(Holt’s consuming as integration and classification), companies need to exert conscious effort
in combining technology with humanic factors in a social interaction set-up of retail stores.
3. The Current Issues: Causes and Implications
Two major retailing trends identified in module 5 of current issues in marketing are retail
technology and retaining retail staff (H. C. Cripps, personal communication, March 23,
2016). When one says retail technology, one of the first things that will come to mind is a
self-checkout counter, which translates to the seemingly paradoxical relationship between
technology and people components in the stores. In Australia, the two biggest supermarkets
are still receiving criticisms from customers about their increasing self-checkout counters and
the lost personal touch in their grocery shopping (Law, 2015 & Hatch, 2015) but Tonkin
(2016), as mentioned earlier, reported that it was cost and time efficient for both the customer
and the company. However, SST is not part of the key success factors he identified for the
supermarkets and grocery stores industry. His list includes ability to control stock on hand,
attractive product presentation, experienced workforce, proximity to key markets and
availability of car parking (Tonkin, 2016). In the United States, Ikea removed its self-
checkout lanes after customers piled up because they did not know how to use the scanning
and payment terminals (Mullins, 2012).
The cause of the criticisms on losing personal touch in the Australian supermarkets and the
failure of Ikea’s SST in the U.S. can be linked to Holt’s taxonomy’s consuming as experience
and consuming as play. Consumers will only continue to go to either Coles or Woolworths if
they experience pleasure while shopping. But they experienced the opposite when SST was
introduced. They felt sorry instead for the employees who lost their jobs because the
machines replaced them (Law, 2015 & Hatch, 2015). Also, it would not be a very pleasurable
experience for customers if every time they would use the self-checkout counter the noise
that would say “unexpected item in the bagging area” would annoy them. In Ikea’s case, on
the other hand, shoppers experienced cognitive dissonance, which is also not a pleasurable
experience because using the machines in the self-checkout lanes was a deviation from the
normal “script” that they followed every time they would pay when they go shopping. The
7. 6
cases of SST in Australian supermarkets and Ikea in the U.S. are nonconformities to Holt’s
consuming as play. As stated earlier, one of the reasons why people consume is to interact
with others. Consumers who are highly social might not really like the idea of removing the
“personal touch” in shopping.
The more obvious cost implication to business of introducing SST is due to shop theft.
British survey found $3 billion worth of stolen items from supermarkets annually while
Australian retail experts say pilfering cost for Coles and Woolworths could be as much as
$2.9 billion annually (Carter, 2014). Marketing implications include customer dissatisfaction,
negative brand image, as others may take it as against Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
to lay-off employees and replace them with machines, and thus negative word of mouth
(WOM) and e-WOM.
4. The Good Side of Frontline Technology Infusion in Retail
Here Holt’s taxonomy is used again to analyse the potential positive effects of frontline
technology to encourage buying behaviour but this time using consuming as integration
(assimilates consumption with self for “richer experience”) and consuming as classification
(“delineates associations with other”) (M. M. MacCarthy, personal communication, August
22, 2015). Even with the seemingly budding competition between online and offline channels
in retail, Blazquez (2014) still gives importance to stores as the main venue for employee-
customer interaction. For her, the role of stores as a channel of retail is built on the need for
instant gratification and multi-sensory stimuli to affect perception and thus consumer
behaviour, which is consistent to Holt’s consuming as integration. Blazquez (2014) gathered
classic work of Kotler (1972) about atmospherics (intentionally organising the store space in
such a way that subconsciously tells customers to buy) and newer studies of Baker, Grewal
and Parasuraman (2009); and Puccinelli, Goodstein, Grewal, Price, Raghubir and Stewart
(2009) mentioning ways to influence consumer behaviour through different cues like design,
social cues (floor staff and people looking or buying) and ambient cues (e.g. technology
infusion like ipads and virtual mirrors). In the Consumer Buying Decision Process, this is
situational influence under personal influences (other two are psychological and social
influences) (Simkin, 2000). She then referred to Drapers (2012), Rosenblum and Rowen
(2012), and Euromonitor International (2009) in saying that technology can be an attraction
and can promote engagement in shopping and thus must be used to meet customer
8. 7
expectations (Blazquez, 2014). Also, as much as frontline technology became a novelty in
merchandise layout it serves another purpose of integrating experience between channels
through click-and-collect services and fashion industry’s interactive fitting rooms that
connect with social networks (Blazquez, 2014). However, relevance and added value to the
customers are still the criteria in adopting new technology in retail (Blazquez, 2014).
The result of this quantitative survey of 439 fashion consumers in the UK by Blazquez (2014)
is also consistent with Holt’s consuming as classification. Clothing or fashion in general is
used for self-branding and people who wear “fashionable” clothes are classified as trendy or
cool. Thus, by association, going to retail outlets with technology that has multisensory,
fantasy and emotive effects can rub on these consumer’s trendy or cool preferences.
Based on IBISWorld’s clothing retailing report, this result can be applied in Australia as one
of the key success factors identified for the industry is to keep up with trends to improve
CLV of fashion-conscious customers (Magner, 2016).
5. Technology as Both a Barrier and Benefit in Frontline Service
Encounters
The premise used by Gielbelhausen, Robinson, Sirianni and Brady (2014) that service
encounters are social interactions is likewise consistent to Holt’s consuming as play. They
studied the secondary data from hotel industry’s J.D. Power Guest Satisfaction Index (GSI)
and first-hand data from a controlled experiment. In service encounter as in any social
interaction, the presence of rapport is of utmost important. “Customer rapport” is defined as
“customer’s perception of having an enjoyable interaction with a service provider employee,
characterised by a personal connection between the two interactants” (Gremler and Gwinner
2000, p. 92). The literature recognises the importance of using both nonverbal cues such as
smiling and eye contact and verbal communication such as knowledge sharing in rapport
building (Gielbelhausen et al., 2014). As confirmed by the succeeding studies of Gremler and
Gwinner (2008), Hennig-Thurau, Thorsten, Groth Paul and Gremler (2006), its importance in
service encounter is related to its positive effect to the goals of customer satisfaction and
loyalty which convert to the long-term success of customer-firm relationships (Gielbelhausen
et al., 2014). It is also the presence of rapport between the customer and the employee that
determines whether technology is a barrier or a benefit in the service encounter
(Gielbelhausen et al., 2014). The findings of their study suggest that the use of technology in
9. 8
the form of point-of-sale terminals, tablets and kiosks becomes an interpersonal barrier when
customer cannot respond to the employee rapport-building efforts because he is paying his
full attention to a self-check in for example. Technology becomes beneficial in the service
encounter when the employee is not engaging in rapport building because it allows the
customer to avoid the unpleasant service interaction (Gielbelhausen et al., 2014).
Gielbelhausen et al. (2014) also used the Role and Script Theories to explain the effect of
frontline technology infusion to this service encounter as form of social interaction. It was
mentioned that in the service encounter, customer and employees assume roles and customer
evaluates his experience based on a script which are normative standards dictated by his
previous experiences. When customer thinks that there is a violation in the script from both
ends, he will feel psychological discomfort (Gielbelhausen et al., 2014). Technology is like a
third wheel in the employee-customer interaction in this case. Customer feels that when he
pays attention to the frontline technology, he feels that he is not fulfilling his role in the script
of being able to reciprocate to the employee according to the normative standard. On the
other hand, if the violation from the script is from the employee’s end (e.g. if the employee is
not very accommodating), frontline technology serves as an escape for the customer to avoid
the negative encounter and maintain his good mood, decreasing psychological discomfort
(Gielbelhausen et al., 2014).
Gielbelhausen et al. (2014) talked about the following implications of their study: 1.) As
independent factors, both building employee-customer rapport and technology infusion have
positive effect in service encounter and thus, customer experience, but can have negative
effects when combined together. Considering this, the authors suggest that further research be
done on seamless integration of frontline technology with high-rapport service encounters by
evaluating specific strategies to do so. 2.) Frontline technology infusion can also be used as a
strategy to offset touch point weaknesses and other negative branding as it can have the same
buffering effects as brand personality, commitment, brand equity and relationship type.
Per IBISWorld, one of the key success factors in the Hotels and Resorts Industry in Australia
is access to multiskilled and flexible workforce and it has no mention in technology
(Williams, 2016). This is why this analysis is relevant to Australian market.
10. 9
6. It is not a Question of Touch or Tech – Viewpoint and
Suggested Solution
So far there is no found hard and fast rule in the literature about the use of frontline
technology. However, what is apparent in the mentioned reports by IBISWorld in the three
previous sections is that having skilled employees is almost always on the list of industry key
success factors. Only in the clothing retail industry was it not mentioned. This is consistent to
what the discussed literature about fashion retail is implying. Technology infusion in fashion
retail can facilitate positive consumer behaviour from the fashion-conscious market because
technology is seen as trendy like the market. In my opinion the potential of further frontline
technology infusion in fashion retail is higher than the other two industries discussed.
IBISWorld reports stress the criticality of the internal marketing of retail and service
industries which involve having employees with the right qualities to represent the company
during face-to-face encounters with customers as each customer-employee interaction is a
make or break of customer experience. One of the responsibilities of marketing in B2C is
relationship management to ensure all processes are customer-centric (Vargo & Lusch,
2004). The learning in the literature is both people and technology should serve the purpose
of coming to the store be it consuming as experience, consuming as integration, consuming as
play or consuming as classification or combination of reasons. It is not an either or
decision—touch or tech, because both are important. It is more of how do marketers combine
them in a social interaction bearing in mind that in Australia having the right people in
frontline is still one of the key success factors. Salomann, Duos, Kolbe and Brenner (2007)
suggests that it does not have to be a choice between high-touch or high-tech in service, a
balance can be achieved as proven by UBS and Swiss Re. Two recommended ways to
achieve the balance are: 1.) To convince them of the value added of the self-service option
both to them and the company (e.g. Swisscom by introducing ‘eBill’ platform saves cost for
every paperless invoice at the same time customers who opted to use the self-service gained
knowledge on how to better monitor their expenses through graphic analysis tools provided
to them in the platform.) 2.) Self-service should just supplement not replace personal
assistance in service (e.g. the visibility of ground personal assistance in Lufthansa’s self-
check-in terminals) (Gielbelhausen et al., 2014).
11. 10
7. Highlighting the Role of the Employees in Service Encounter
Having worked for over ten years in a combination of customer service and retail, I agree to
what both the industry reports and literature say are the key success factors. Thus, I choose to
highlight the role of the employees in service encounter because I consider giving the best
possible experience of face-to-face employee-customer encounter essential in every industry.
Further through the literature, two studies put emphasis on the key role of employees’
emotional intelligence in the frontline social interaction. First, Delcourt, Gremler, van Riel
and Birgelen (2013) used the description of high-contact services in the classic articles of
Kellogg and Chase (1995); and Parasuraman, Zeithaml and Berry (1985), saying that in this
type of customer-employee interaction, intimacy, the extent of content-rich information, long
interaction times, and sometimes, intense emotions are present. Delcourt et al. (2013)
recognise the importance of facilitating high-quality interactions in this type of service and
referring to Cartwright and Pappas (2008) acknowledge the key role of employee’s emotional
competence (EEC) in delivering the said high-quality encounter with the customers. They
eliminated the biased result of previous studies using employee-reported or supervisor-
reported measures of EEC by means of customer-perceived EEC (Delcourt et al., 2013). The
findings of their quantitative study using a sample of 247 students and using hairstyling as the
high-contact service confirmed their hypothesis. They concluded that EEC has direct and
positive relationship to both customer satisfaction and loyalty and it is rapport, defined by
Gremler and Gwinner (2000, p. 92) that links this relationship.
To demonstrate their findings:
EEC measured by SEA (self-emotion appraisal or the employee’s ability to
understand and express emotions) + OEA (others’ emotion appraisal or the
employee’s ability to perceive and understand the emotions of others) + ROE
(regulation of emotion or the employee’s ability to regulate his or her own emotions)
+ UOE (use of emotion or the employee’s ability to make use of his or her own
emotions) à rapport à customer satisfaction and loyalty (Delcourt et al., 2013)
Thus, managers of high-contact services should hire emotionally competent employees if
they aim for development of rapport, customer satisfaction and loyalty (Delcourt et al., 2013).
Furthermore, they suggested that service managers can consider scientifically validated
12. 11
training programs of Emotional Competence for existing employees relying on the findings
of researches in psychology by Kotsou, Gregoire, Nelis and Mikolajczak (2011); and Nelis,
Quoidbach, Mikolajczak and Hansenne (2009) that it can be taught, learned and improved.
In the second study found, Barnes, Ponder and Dugar (2011) worked on the premise that
providing customer delight has beneficial effects on service firms. Giving importance to
customer delight or ultimate customer satisfaction is being argued because by the concept of
CLV some customers are not worthy of the limited resources allocated to delight them
(Barnes et al., 2011). In other words, sometimes the ROI does not cover the cost of
investment (cost to satisfy or delight the customer). Barnes et al. (2011) cited the works of
Arnold, Reynolds, Ponder and Lueg (2005); Barnes, Beauchamp and Webster (2010);
Berman (2005); and Keiningham and Vavra (2001) to justify the significance of customer
delight because it creates emotional bonds, stronger memories, higher levels of loyalty,
commitment, willingness to pay, and word of mouth. They then classified the factors that
lead to customer delight into cognitive and affective. Cognitive route to customer delight uses
employee effort, employee skills, core product and service recovery while the affective route
focuses on enhancing self-esteem or maximising hedonic benefits during employee-customer
interaction through factors like friendliness and courtesy (Barnes et al., 2011). Berry, Wall
and Carbone (2006) call this factors allowing the firm to “cultivate emotional connectivity”
with the customer as humanic factors (Barnes et al., 2011). They used qualitative Critical
Incident Technique (CIT) methodology, a qualitative study that eliminates the weakness of
previous researches of limited sampling (Barnes et al., 2011). Using customer’s perspective
in the service environment, Barnes et al. (2011) determined which of the factors best routes to
customer delight. Based on the results of their study, employee affect and employee effort
more than employee skills produces delight from the customer. One important point that
Barnes et al. (2011) pointed out is the difference between retail and service environment in
defining which lead to customer delight. Core product can be a route to customer delight in
retail whereas employee factors usually determine both affective and cognitive routes to
delight in service environment (Barnes et al., 2011). This is consistent to both the industry
reports and literature discussed earlier. It also relates back to the allocation of limited budget
to the selection and training the best employees in service (Barnes et al., 2011).
13. 12
8. Conclusion
Although this report focused to only three industries requiring face-to-face interaction with
customers, a limited number for frontline retail and service, the Australian industry reports
confirm what the literature says. Thus, even though the studies in the reviewed literature are
mostly done in Europe, the findings are good considerations for Australian setting.
The major finding is that the paradox between “touch” or “tech” is not true. Both are essential
now in business and are facilitating the evolving role of marketing in it. “Touch” is there
from the conception of marketing because what is marketing without the people involve in
the exchange. Technology asserted its importance when marketers realise the need for a more
efficient way of data collection and integration aside from virtual reality and augmented
reality. As independent factors, “touch” and “tech” lead to better results. However, at one
point of their convergence, that is frontline retail and service, a balance is needed so that they
supplement each other for a better customer experience. When the relationship between
“touch” and “tech” is challenged in a service interaction, the “touch” element has to surface
because it is a social interaction. The employee has to exhibit his emotional competence to
gain customer satisfaction and loyalty. This will ultimately translate to profits for the
company.
Thus, the task of seamlessly integrating “touch” and “tech” requires a lot of effort for
marketers. Training to improve human skills for a better customer experience requires budget
for internal marketing. On the other hand, technology infusion involves huge capital
requirement. To achieve a good balance requires a critical study to know what combination
gives the best ROI. Bearing in mind externalities such as economic and demographic factors,
marketers should always be guided by company’s vision, mission and values, must have a
marketing strategy to reach marketing and business objectives that is specific, measurable,
attainable, relevant and time-bound.
14. 13
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