Marketing Commons^™

Metaverse Marketing: How The Metaverse Will Shape The Future Of Consumer Research And Practice, Yogesh K. Dwivedi, Laurie Hughes, Yichuan Wang, Ali A. Alalwan, Sun J. (Grace) Ahn, Janarthanan Balakrishnan, Sergio Barta, Russell Belk, Dimitrios Buhalis, Reto Felix

Marketing Faculty Publications and Presentations

The initial hype and fanfare from the Meta Platforms view of how the metaverse could be brought to life has evolved into an ongoing discussion of not only the metaverse's impact on users and organizations but also the societal and cultural implications of widespread usage. The potential of consumer interaction with brands within the metaverse has engendered significant debate within the marketing‐ focused discourse on the key challenges and transformative opportunities for marketers. Drawing on insights from expert contributors, this study examines the marketing implications of the hypothetical widespread adoption of the metaverse. We identify new research directions and propose …

Extending The Diversity Conversation: Fashion Consumption Experiences Of Underrepresented And Underserved Women, Lena Cavusoglu, Deniz Atik

Marketing Faculty Publications and Presentations

This research brings in the voice of underserved and underrepresented women of various racial or ethnic origins and social classes, who have differing buying powers, sexual orientations, body shapes, and physical appearances, into the conversation of fashion diversity. Through a qualitative inquiry with 38 semi-structured in-depth interviews, the researchers analyzed the consumption experiences of diverse women to expose what the fashion scene is lacking. The study's main contribution is the depiction of overlooked diversity categories in fashion, such as the non-White and non-Black women of color, women of average sizes, and women with characteristics that the fashion industry has long …

Harnessing The Power Within: The Consequences Of Salesperson Moral Identity And The Moderating Role Of Internal Competitive Climate, Omar S. Itani, Nawar N. Chaker

Marketing Faculty Publications and Presentations

The purpose of this research is to examine the notion of salesperson moral identity as a prosocial individual trait and its associated effects on customer and coworker relationships. In addition, this study examines the underlying processes in which these effects occur as well as the moderating role of internal competitive climate. Our empirical investigation of business-to-business (B2B) sales professionals reveals that moral identity has both direct and indirect effects on a salesperson’s customer- and team-directed outcomes. Specifically, our results demonstrate that salesperson moral identity positively affects both salesperson-customer identification and organizational identification, which, in turn, impact customer service provision and …

Engaging With Omnichannel Brands: The Role Of Consumer Empowerment, Omar S. Itani, Sandra Maria Correia Loureiro, Zahy Ramadan

Marketing Faculty Publications and Presentations

Purpose

This study aims to integrate brand and retailer levels variables to examine the direct and indirect relationships between omnichannel retailing and consumer engagement.

Design/methodology/approach

Survey data are collected from a sample consumers of different omnichannel retailing brands operating in the skin care industry. Partial least squares structural equation modeling is utilized.

Findings

The study finds brand channels' integrated interactions (process and content consistency) to increase consumer brand engagement. Findings show retailer consumer empowerment to intensify the impact of omnichannel retailing on consumer engagement. Results also show brand channels' integrated interactions to increase consumer brand familiarity, which mediates the effect …

How Do Consumers In General Evaluate, Judge, And Act Toward Shoplifting? The Moderating Effects Of Personal Characteristics And Motives, Juehui Shi, Ngoc Cindy Pham, Claudio Schapsis, Tofazzal Hossain, Arturo Z. Vasquez-Parraga

Marketing Faculty Publications and Presentations

Despite the seriousness of shoplifting, consumers’ evaluations, judgements, and intentions toward shoplifting remain underexplored by scholars from business ethics, marketing, retailing, and consumer behavior. We propose a new shoplifting ethics model, which integrates Hunt and Vitell’s theory of ethics with Nadeau, Rochlen, and Tyminski’s typology of shoplifting, by incorporating the moderators of consumers’ personal characteristics (i.e., age, gender, marital status, income) and shoplifting motives (i.e., social, experiential, economic, emotional) onto the relationships among deontological evaluation, teleological evaluation, ethical judgment, and intention. Based on a two-by-two randomized experimental design, two shoplifting cases (i.e., swapping price tags, stealing products) are investigated in …

Metaverse Beyond The Hype: Multidisciplinary Perspectives On Emerging Challenges, Opportunities, And Agenda For Research, Practice And Policy, Yogesh K. Dwivedi, Laurie Hughes, Abdullah M. Baabdullah, Samuel Ribeiro-Navarrete, Mihalis Giannakis, Mutaz M. Al-Debei, Denis Dennehy, Bhimaraya Metri, Dimitrios Buhalis, Reto Felix

Marketing Faculty Publications and Presentations

The metaverse has the potential to extend the physical world using augmented and virtual reality technologies allowing users to seamlessly interact within real and simulated environments using avatars and holograms. Virtual environments and immersive games (such as, Second Life, Fortnite, Roblox and VRChat) have been described as antecedents of the metaverse and offer some insight to the potential socio-economic impact of a fully functional persistent cross platform metaverse. Separating the hype and “meta…” rebranding from current reality is difficult, as “big tech” paints a picture of the transformative nature of the metaverse and how it will positively …

Financial Literacy And Consumer Well-Being: Examining The Role Of Gender Role Ideology, Lorena Garcia Ramon

Theses and Dissertations

Financial literacy, or the ability to process economic information and make informed decisions about financial planning, wealth accumulation, debt, and pensions, has been linked to beneficial financial behaviors that support financial well-being. Despite these benefits, consumers tend to underperform in financial literacy tests with women generally faring worse than men. This dissertation draws from gender roles literature and Expectancy-Value Theory to examine how, why, and when traditional attitudes regarding societal gender roles (i.e., gender role ideology) hinder women’s financial literacy and willingness to acquire financial knowledge. Moreover, it examines how financial literacy and willingness to …

Conspicuous Asceticism: Collapsing Consumers' Hungry Ghosts, Ash Zareian

Theses and Dissertations

The author investigates an emerging construct called conspicuous asceticism expositioned from a narcissism-centric view. The understanding of this construct is approached by drawing an idiomatic semantic parallel in opposition to conspicuous consumption and by utilizing its current theoretical framework of narcissism. Moreover, this paper seeks to extend conspicuous consumption’s theoretical framework as synonymous with the construct of compulsive consumption. Furthermore, I illustrate that consumers must transcend narcissism through engaging in treatment modalities requisite to operationalize a pioneering effort in which consumers can engage in marketing campaign efforts to advertise conspicuous ascetic contexts. This dissertation gleans from extant literature in sociology, …

What Is Xr? Towards A Framework For Augmented And Virtual Reality, Philipp A. Rauschnabel, Reto Felix, Chris Hinsch, Hamza Shahab, Florian Alt

Marketing Faculty Publications and Presentations

Augmented Reality (AR), Virtual Reality (VR), Mixed Reality, and Extended Reality (often – misleadingly – abbreviated as XR) are commonly used terms to describe how technologies generate or modify reality. However, academics and professionals have been inconsistent in their use of these terms. This has led to conceptual confusion and unclear demarcations. Inspired by prior research and qualitative insights from XR professionals, we discuss the meaning and definitions of various terms and organize them in our proposed framework. As a result, we conclude that (1) XR should not be used to connote extended reality, but as a more open approach …

The Examination Of Psychophysiological Effects Of Multisensory Imagery Marketing Strategy. A Triangulation In 3 Studies, Sasawan Heingraj

Theses and Dissertations

Multisensory imagery marketing strategy has been extensively suggested to be one of the advertising strategies that can generate long-term brand awareness, brand image, and authentic experience in a highly competitive market condition. This dissertation explored the psychophysiological effects of multisensory imagery marketing strategy on consumers' attitudes. Results from study 1 suggested that consumers’ masculine-feminine self-concept played an important role when evaluating multisensory imagery marketing messages. Specifically, consumers who exhibited a lower degree of masculine self-concept and those with feminine self-concept were likely to evaluate multisensory imagery marketing messages more positively than their higher masculine self-concept counterparts. We also found that …

Self-Service Technologies That Appear Human Interacting With Customers: Effects On Third-Party Observers, Ross Paul Murray

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examines the effects of viewing and hearing service failure and recovery interactions between self-service technologies (SSTs) and customers on third-party observers. Third-party observers are those that observe the actions of other customers as they interact with a firm in some way. These observations could occur in the present (face-to-face) or past (watching a video or listening to an audio recording). Third-party observers provide a unique perspective as they can provide a more neutral perspective of a failed service transaction and recovery as compared to the involved customer and firm.

This dissertation contributes to the SST literature and to …

B2b Ewom On Alibaba: Signaling Through Online Reviews In Platform-Based Social Exchange, Zsófia Tóth, Mona Mrad, Omar S. Itani, Jun Luo, Martin J. Liu

Marketing Faculty Publications and Presentations

Highlights

• The study explores buyers' signaling of observable and unobservable supplier characteristics on the Alibaba e-platform.

• Key B2B eWOM themes that the study identifies are: product/service quality, human touch, responsiveness, and resilience.

• Findings demonstrate that human touch is vital in B2B e-platform environments too, not only in physical reality.

• Buyers' signals aim at suppliers as well as at prospective buyers and implicitly buyers send signals about themselves too.

• Signaling Theory is applied to address the signaling process, while Social Exchange Theory informs relevant cost-benefit assessments.

Abstract

This study investigates the contemporary role of electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) in business exchanges through …

The Role Of Wisdom In Navigating Social Media Paradoxes: Implications For Consumers, Firms, And Public Policy, Abigail B. Schneider, Sunaina Chugani, Tavleen Kaur, Jason Stornelli, Michael Luchs, Marat Bakpayev, Tessa Garcia-Collart, Bridget Leonard, Lydia Ottlewski, Laura Pricer

Marketing Faculty Publications and Presentations

Social media has transformed the nature of communication and simultaneously given rise to paradoxes—irresolvable situations where contradictory elements co-exist. These paradoxes are pervasive, and they can jeopardize consumer welfare because they are difficult to navigate. In this conceptual paper, we argue that the principles of wisdom provide a unique and constructive lens through which to view the social media landscape with the aim of maximizing well-being. We illustrate three social media paradoxes at individual, interpersonal, and societal levels of analysis. We also translate wisdom theory into practical recommendations for consumers, marketers, and public policy makers to facilitate wiser use of …

Paralinguistic And Rhetorical Capabilities Of Emojis In Marketing Communication, Jacob Christopher Almaguer

Theses and Dissertations

Consumers and social media marketers have over 3,000 emojis at their fingertips. Despite the popularity of emojis on social media, marketing research on emojis remains limited. Extant marketing research on emojis that does exist primarily focuses on the emotional and reinforcement capabilities, a remnant of the limitations of the emoticon ancestor, and largely ignores the additional paralinguistic and rhetorical potential of emojis. In this dissertation, emojis as a paralanguage are explored with a particular focus on the creation of meaning on social media (Essay 1), and emojis as a full (Essay 2) and partial (Essay 3) substitute for text in …

Complementary Effects Of Crm And Social Media On Customer Co-Creation And Sales Performance In B2b Firms: The Role Of Salesperson Self-Determination Needs, Omar S. Itani, Ashish Kalra, Jen Riley

Marketing Faculty Publications and Presentations

Highlights

• Social media, CRM technology & social CRM enrich the knowledge of salespeople.

• Social media, CRM technology & social CRM support value co-creation efforts.

• Knowledge mediates the effects of social media, CRM technology, and social CRM.

• Job autonomy & sales quota ease moderate the effect of knowledge on value co-creation.

• Value co-creation increases sales performance.

Abstract

This study examines the effects of salespeople's social media and customer relationship management (CRM) technology use on value co-creation through knowledge and the downstream impact on sales performance. Based on task-technology fit and self-determination theories, the findings reveal that social media, CRM technology, and …

Salesperson Moral Identity And Value Co-Creation, Omar S. Itani, Larry Chonko, Raj Agnihotri

Marketing Faculty Publications and Presentations

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to examine the role of salesperson moral identity centrality in value co-creation. This study identified and tested an extended identity-based formation process of selling orientation, customer orientation and value co-creation. This was accomplished by examining the role of inclusion of others in the self and circle of moral regard in the mechanism through which moral identity centrality impacts selling orientation, customer orientation and value co-creation, taking into account the contingency role of salesperson self-construal.

Design/methodology/approach

An extended identity-behavior model grounded in identity theory and the social-cognitive perspective of moral identity centrality was tested. …

Marketing And Market, A. Fuat Firat

Marketing Faculty Publications and Presentations

In this paper, a contradiction that has developed between the key economic institution of modernity, the market, and its institutionalized practices, marketing, is explored. This paper makes observations beyond earlier discussions of this contradiction based on the history of perspectival developments in the orientations of the discipline and in marketing practices. Specifically, separation of marketing practice from consumers resulting in its conceptualization as a provisional set of activities, and the turn from a focus on needs to a focus on exchange resulting in an emphasis on the health of the market rather than on the health of the people are …

Design Power And Potential Future Of Global Organization Of Life, A. Fuat Firat

Marketing Faculty Publications and Presentations

In this essay I propose a definition of design to address its potential role in largely determining power relations in the future. Some foundational discussion of wealth, culturally constructed differently in different historical times, trends of corporatization in the contemporary world, and the birth of control society is presented to help understand the possibilities and difficulties of building future organizations of life. I invite discussions and dialogues to widen and deepen the concept of design power.

Inside Sales Social Media Use And Its Strategic Implications For Salesperson-Customer Digital Engagement And Performance, Nawar N. Chaker, Edward L. Nowlin, Maxwell T. Pivonka, Omar S. Itani, Raj Agnihotri

Marketing Faculty Publications and Presentations

Highlights

• Inside salespeople rely on four main strategies when it comes to using social media in their roles to engage with customers.

• Inside sales strategic social media use leads to higher levels of customer digital engagement and, ultimately, performance.

• Firm digital technology resources may shape the effects of inside sales strategic social media use.

Abstract

The nature of inside sales has shifted, increasing in autonomy, importance, and scope. Moreover, buyers are changing their preferences from face-to-face interactions to virtual-based relationships, leading to a future full of opportunities for inside salespeople using social media. The practitioner literature suggests that inside sales …