Students' Attitude to the Marketing Communications: Cross-Cultural Aspects

Author(s): Irina Matveevna Romanova,Elena Viktorovna Noskova / Language(s): English Issue: 11/2015

The article points out that the consumers' preferences while choosing marketing communications depend to the great extend on the peculiarities of the target audience. The defining criteria for the target audience are age, lifestyle of consumers and cultural peculiarities of the individuals. The aim of this investigation is the developing of the methodological approach and tools for the assessment of cross-cultural peculiarities influence on the students' attitude to the types of marketing communications (advertising (TV and outdoor)), sales promotion, public relations, personal sales, network communications). During the investigation we defined the influence of different elements of the culture model (cultural values, elements of material and institutional environment) on the Russian and Chinese students' attitude to the marketing communications. We defined the discontinuities in consumers' behaviour which are conditioned by the cross-cultural peculiarities. This is of great interest for the market operators when developing the programmes of sales and services promotion, oriented to the given target audience.

Adaptation of marketing tools in retail companies

Author(s): Marta Pavliková,Viera Čihovská / Language(s): English Issue: 3-4/2017

In today’s highly competitive environment under the conditions of internationalisation and globalisation of trade, retail companies have to know the overall characteristics and culture of different countries, consumer preferences, behaviour and many other facts. This knowledge allows the retailer to carry out proper and effective decisions on adaptation and standardisation of the application of strategies, thus ensuring the successful expansion and activity abroad. This paper deals with the explanation of the need and importance of adaptation of marketing tools in retail companies. The quantitative survey was realised in 2015 among 25 retail companies operating in at least two countries of the European single market. The participants in the survey were the marketing managers or CEOs of these companies in each respective country. 364 questionnaires were distributed. Based on the results of the survey, we define attitudes of retail companies and stakeholders on this matter, the factors leading to the adaptation and standardisation of various marketing strategies and the impact of the adaptation of these strategies on retail sales. The achieved average values of the responses show that the price of the required margins, sales promotions and applied discounts are the most adapted marketing factors in the studied companies.

Consumer behaviour regarding branded and non-branded goods on the mobile phone market: impact of experience, price and loyalty

Author(s): Marie Slaba / Language(s): English Issue: 1-2/2019

This article deals with the consumer behaviour in view of branded and generic (non-branded) goods on the mobile phone market in the Czech Republic. The methodology of this article employs the theory of planned behaviour to investigate how three selected factors - experience, price sensitivity and loyalty influence consumer behaviour on the mobile phone market. The author used a survey of 350 consumers conducted in 2018 to determine the importance of the abovementioned factors for consumer behaviour and loyalty on the mobile phone market. Most of the respondents (59%) own mobile phones of the brands Samsung (20%), Huawei (16%), Xiaomi (12%) and Apple (11%). In terms of brand ownership, the most loyal are the owners of Apple (91%) and Samsung (84%) mobile phones. The respondents who own unspecified brands are ready to switch to another brand in case of lower prices. The empirical evidence of the research suggests that the previous experience with the brand is a critical factor influencing consumer behaviour on the mobile phone market: 64% of all the respondents, regardless of whether they prefer branded or non-branded goods, stated that they are willing to pay more for the brand they have had a good experience with. However, the consumers who prefer branded mobile are more loyal. Answering the question «I am loyal to brands of mobile phones I have had a very good previous experience with», 96% of the respondents who prefer branded mobile phones gave a positive answer in comparison with 63% of the respondents who prefer non-branded mobile phones. The conducted t -test proved statistical differences in responses for male and female respondents and both groups of consumers at the confidence level of 0.005. It has been concluded that the companies operating on the mobile phone market should primarily focus on customers’ positive experience with their products which positively effects customer loyalty to the brand.

Factors influencing customer loyalty towards mobile phones brands - evidence from the Czech market

Author(s): Marie Slaba / Language(s): English Issue: 3-4/2019

The concept of customer loyalty has started to become very important in all spheres and attracted lots of attention in the last decades. Building customer loyalty has become a vital element to achieve competitive advantage and long-term profitability. This article aims to examine the proposed factors influencing customer loyalty toward mobile phone brands and analyse the relationship among different factors for customer loyalty at the mobile phone market in the Czech Republic. The quantitative research was done with a sample of 350 customers in 2018, specifically mobile phone users to determine critical factors influencing customer loyalty in the mobile phone market and the relationship between the proposed factors and customer loyalty. The author’s research revealed a positive correlation between trust, satisfaction, experience, promotion and perceived quality and loyalty at the confidence level of at least 95%.

Factors affecting the marketing of livestock in South Omo Zone: The case of Hammer woreda

Author(s): Getachew Alene Chekol / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2021

Pastoralism is important to the society for poverty alleviation, food security and economic growth. It is the backbone of many African countries’ economy, particularly Ethiopia. The main objective of this study was to investigate factors affecting the marketing of livestock in terms of sales volume in South Omo Zone: the case of Hammer woreda. From 35 potential pastoralist kebeles in the woreda, 3 kebeles were selected purposively. The multi-stage sampling technique and the proportional stratified sampling technique were used to select sample pastoralists from each stratum. A total of 388 pastoralists were selected by using the systematic sampling technique. The study identified that price, infrastructure, middlemen and promotional factors significantly affect livestock marketing. The findings of this study recommend that the government should formulate and implement appropriate market and pricing policies, disseminate market information in proper media and improve road networks to enhance the effectiveness of livestock marketing in the woreda.

Gizli Alkol Tüketimi Üzerine Nitel Bir Araştırma: İzmir İli Örneği

Author(s): Dogan Basaran / Language(s): Turkish Issue: 1/2022

Secrecy is defined as an act of omission of information from a social environment or inclusion of other information to divert social attention by masking private information. Consumers may need secrecy to protect privacy, conform to the social environment without attracting unwanted attention, and/or avoid discrepancies between actual and ideal, and normative “ought” selves. Secret consumption experiences may differ based on product characteristics and social and cultural context. The present phenomenological study aims to explore the secret consumption of alcoholic beverages, which is described as a demerit good, and was carried out to find out the reasons for confidentiality, how it is experienced in purchasing and consumption practices, and its effects on consumer behavior. Qualitative data analysis was conducted using data collected from a sample of young and educated secret alcohol consumers residing in the province of Izmir. The findings show that participants keep their consumption secret from immediate environment and families. Consumers use various coping strategies that enable protecting their privacy and social identities, while maintaining their consumption at a minimum risk. It has been found that secret alcohol consumption leads to mental preoccupation and reduces satisfaction with consumption.

Tüketicilerin Kombi Tercihlerini Etkileyen Faktörler: Teknoloji Kabul Modeli Çerçevesinde Bir Araştırma

Author(s): Volkan Ozbek,Izay Tahtaci / Language(s): Turkish Issue: 1/2022

The main purpose of this research is to determine the factors affecting the combi boiler preferences of consumers within the scope of the Technology Acceptance Model. In the research model, as well as the Technology Acceptance Model variables, there are perceived risk and subjective norm variables that are thought to be effective in combi boiler preference. In order to achieve the research aim, an online questionnaire was applied to 267 people who purchased natural gas combi boilers in the last year, selected by guided sampling method. Structural equation modeling was used in the analysis of the collected data. When the findings obtained as a result of the analyzes were evaluated, it was concluded that the variables of perceived ease of use, perceived benefit, perceived risk, and subjective norm were effective on attitude. In addition, it was observed that the relationship between the attitude variable and the intention variable, which was tested in this study, was positive and statistically significant. In addition, the expected relationship between the subjective norm variable and the perceived benefit variable could not be confirmed in this study.

Joining the Anti-Brand Communities on the Internet: Who and Why

Author(s): Amélia Brandão,Paolo Popoli,Inês Passos Tomás / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2022

This paper aimed to empirically deepen our understanding of the growing phenomenon of negative consumer-brand relationships in the Internet, striving to investigate “who and why” consumers join anti-brand communities against the top ten global brands. In particular, this study aims to investigate whether the consumers’ profile affects whether they develop negative feelings or not, and the main reasons for their negative feelings. Methodologically, this study is based on the quantitative methodology of the survey and on the statistical verification of several research hypotheses formulated on the impact of the main consumer characteristics (gender, age, country of origin, education, empathy) on their behavior towards the hated brands. Regarding “who”, our findings show that gender, age and country of origin are the main consumer characteristics affecting both their negative feelings towards brands and their willingness to join an anti-brand community. Regarding “why”, low quality of products/services and a lack of corporate social responsibility are the main reasons for hating brands. Finally, this study contributes to knowledge of negative consumer-brand relationships in the Internet domain and provides advanced insights into consumer behavior with reference to the top global brands. It also encourages further research on the interconnections among the central questions of this paper, i.e., who and why individuals join anti-brand communities, and represents a starting point for further studies aimed at expanding the consumer characteristics investigated in this paper, including personality traits. This study also pioneers the profile of anti-brand community participants in the Internet, which is so pertinent in the rise of marketing 5.0.

Marketing after COVID-19: Crisis adaptation, innovation and sustainable technological advances

Author(s): / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2022

Today’s world changed tremendously after the COVID-19 pandemic. This crisis has, in turn, started or accelerated some of the globalisation processes that took root after the fall of the Berlin wall. A free to movement of people and goods without borders restrictions has allowed free zones, foreign direct investment, and so forth. This continuous evolution was perceived to be unbounded. With COVID 19, the beginning of a new era started. The increased closure of countries, appearance of regional differences, and the return to the state as a player limiting and regulating the markets is a reality. This was not anticipated before the COVID-19 global crisis. On the backdrop of this, technological advancements have facilitated the raise of new global powers. There seems to be an involution to the times of the cold war with all its mechanisms of restrictions. To complicate matters further, the use of the medical discoveries such as COVID vaccination have been deployed in the battle for political and economic influence.

DOES WORD-OF-MOUTH’S EFFECT ON PRODUCTS/BRANDS DIFFER BETWEEN COUNTRIES? A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF ENGLAND AND RUSSIA

Author(s): Adnane Alaoui,Natalia Sulikashvili / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2022

The aim of this paper is to investigate the effect that Word-Of-Mouth (WOM) could have on consumers in different countries, with respect to brand-choice, brand-image, product-category choice, the quantity purchased of a product/brand, and with respect to the likelihood of sharing a product/brand experience depending on a consumer’s level of satisfaction with a specific product-category or brand (Satisfied, Dissatisfied, or Delighted). The hypotheses to be investigated were generated from the literature, and then used to define the variables that were later integrated in a Discriminant-Analysis, to help differentiate between the effects that WOM could have on the product/brand-related decisions stated above, in different countries. The effect of WOM on products categories and brands differs from one country to another on several facets, as illustrated here through the case of England and Russia. The findings of this paper advise marketers on whether to standardize their reliance on WOM to support their brands in different countries, or adapt its extent and manner to each specific country. Ability to predict consumers’ country of origin, merely by analysing their answers to survey questions, and therefore foresee the differentiated effect of WOM on products and brands in each country.

THE DEVELOPMENT OF SUSTAINABLE TRANSPORTATION FOR E-GROCERY

Author(s): Valentas Gružauskas,Aurelija Burinskienė / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2022

Growing demand for organic food products requires to rethink the current supply chain approaches for e-grocery. The shifting trend for e-commerce is requiring products to be delivered in small quantities, to multiple delivery points, which causes negative effect from sustainability perspective. The distribution of goods in urban areas, together with private traffics flow, are among the main sources of energy consumption, air pollution and noise. Thus, the goal of the research is to conduct a literature review on development of sustainable transportation for e-grocery. The literature analysis indicated that the majority of vehicle routing approaches are design for general transportation problems, not specifically related to e-grocery. Also, the changing economic trends related to growing urbanization levels and traffic congestions are not taken into consideration. Thus, the authors of the publication indicate the need to develop dynamic routing algorithms for autonomous vehicles to cope with the traffic congestions and maintain higher sustainability levels from social, economic, and environmental perspectives.

MARKETING MIX FEATURES

Author(s): Margarita Išoraitė / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2020

Every company is profit-making, so it has to face the constantly changing and changing environment and the changes taking place in it. The focus of the marketing complex is the consumer and his wishes. Therefore, the primary goal of each company is to meet the needs of consumers and maximize profits. To achieve this, the company uses marketing tools, a set of interrelated actions and solutions to meet customer needs and achieve.

Brand Presence in Decision-Making Involving Decoys

Author(s): Radka Kubalová,Martin Klepek / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2022

Purpose – Context effects have emerged as an area of interest in cognitive psychology. In the majority of experiments in the field, product alternatives are typically labeled with letters rather than with actual brand names. However, neglecting the ubiquitous brand in research design imposes unrealistic conditions. Thus, the aim of this paper is twofold. The first aim is to replicate classic decoy and compromise effect studies to create space for future meta-analytical research. The second aim is to explore the impact of brand presence on the two previously mentioned effects. Design/Methodology/Approach – A survey experiment was conducted with a 2x2 fully between-subjects factorial design. Data was collected from 1,050 members of a consumer panel through an online survey and analyzed using the Chi-squared test and binary logistic regression. The effect sizes were computed using Cramer’s phi. Findings and Implications – While the research found no statistically significant decoy effect, regardless of brand presence, the compromise effect was significant and more robust, although of reduced magnitude due to the presence of brands. Limitations – The major limitation of this study with regard to result interpretation is the fact that the respondents were faced with making hypothetical purchase decisions and expressed their preference without facing any economic consequences of their choice. Originality – Although the study builds on previous research on context effects and the role of brands, it also focuses on their impact on decision making by Central/Eastern European consumers. A sample representative of the Czech population was used instead of the convenient student samples most often found in the literature.

The Importance and Realization of Personal Values and Cognitive Age

Author(s): Ágnes Hofmeister-Tóth,Ágnes Neulinger / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2022

Purpose – Population aging has emerged as a powerful megatrend affecting many countries, including Hungary. This demographic change will impact on many aspects of life, especially on consumption. The senior consumer market is becoming an increasingly important market for marketing professionals to understand and address. With this in mind, this paper is aimed at gaining a better understanding of older Hungarian consumers by exploring cognitive age and the importance and realization of personal values. Design/Methodology/Approach – An online study carried out on a sample of 281 respondents among the Hungarian population aged 50–65 to collect data which was analyzed to answer the research questions. Measurement scales were adapted to measure the importance and realization of personal values and the cognitive age of the respondents. Findings and Implications – A comparison of the importance and realization value scales revealed differences in the value rankings among the cognitive age groups. The correspondence between the realization and importance of values differed among the values, with the highest consistency found for modesty, generosity, sincerity, and honesty. An understanding of the values which are the most important to potential consumers (as life goals) and realized to the highest degree can provide useful information for decision-making on product positioning, branding, and communications. Limitations – One of the limitations of our research online concerns data collection, which excluded persons who are not active online. Further research is needed to investigate the relationship between measures of values in terms of their importance and realization and other aspects of consumption behavior that are driven by personal value perspectives. Originality – This paper contributes to the state of the field of research on older consumers in general and Hungarianolder consumers in particular. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study in marketing to directly investigate the importance and realization of personal values and their relationship with cognitive age on a sample of older Hungarian consumers. Unlike most of the research in this field, the paper explores not only the importance of personal values but also their realization according to the identified cognitive age groups of older consumers.

Impact of the Congruence Between Brand Personality and Consumer Personality on Emotional Loyalty: What Makes Apple and Samsung Different

Author(s): Neda Letukytė,Sigitas Urbonavičius / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2022

Purpose – This study aims to explore how brand personality (BP) traits and the congruence between consumer personality (CP) and BP affect emotional loyalty to two types of brands. Design/Methodology/Approach – The research was conducted using an online questionnaire on a sample of 287 respondents from Lithuania. The questionnaire included Aaker’s Brand Personality Scale and the Big Five personality traits to assess the congruence between the matching pairs. Apple and Samsung brands were used as examples of the brands with a prevailing emotional and rational content. The empirical check was based on regression analysis. Findings and Implementations – The findings revealed the impact of BP traits and their congruence with CP on emotional loyalty. Different sets of BP traits were found to impact loyalty to Apple and Samsung brands. The emotional loyalty appeared to be higher for the brand with a prevailing emotional content (Apple). Limitations – The limitations may be linked to the selection of brands since the companies implement different branding strategies. The convenience sampling method and the disproportion in terms of gender in the sample may also be seen as limitations. Originality – The study addresses the research gap of the impact of BP traits and their congruence with consumer personality on emotional loyalty to brands that emphasize emotional versus rational aspects. Differences in the sets of BP traits affecting emotional loyalty were discovered regarding the two types of brands. This constitutes new scientific knowledge within the scope of studies on emotional loyalty to brands.

The Impact of the Position of Shopper Marketing Stands Within a Store on Shopper Purchase Behavior

Author(s): Monika Matušovičová,Martin Kuchta,Monika Stanková / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2022

Purpose – Shopper marketing stands, shelves, and product exposure are types of shopper marketing activities which have the potential to influence the shopping behavior of shoppers and increase revenues for both retailers and manufacturers. This study aims to show the performance of shopper marketing stands located in various zones within a store. The main aim of the paper is to identify the impact that the position of shopper marketing stands has on shoppers’ buying behavior. Design/Methodology/Approach – The method of physical observation was employed as a primary research method on a sample of 666 shoppers in several supermarkets. The observer noted whether the shoppers walked by, stood by, or interacted with a shopper marketing stand in a particular zone of the store. Four zones were identified with respect to shopper marketing stands: entry zone, zone along the store, central zone, and cash or check-out zone. The dependency between the defined variables was evaluated using the Pearson’s Chi-Square test of independence in IBM SPSS statistical software. Findings and Implications – The study found a statistically significant relationship between the location of shopper marketing stands and the shoppers’ buying behavior. The location of special shopper marketing stands within a store has the potential to slightly or moderately affect the possibility of purchase. The results also demonstrate the performance of shopper marketing stands in particular zones of a store. Limitation – The research focused on just one of many shopper marketing tools, namely the location of shopper marketing stands. Future research might focus on other shopper marketing tools, such as financial advantage, particular types of shopper marketing stands, the visual aspect of shopper marketing stands, etc. Originality – The empirical results of the study will help retailers to monetize zones containing shopper marketing stands within a store more precisely and manufacturers to effectively consider the possibility of sales support through the use of special shopper marketing stands.

Improvement in Customer Experience Through the Creation of Virtual Brand Communities

Author(s): Indrė Baubonytė,Justas Nugaras,Živilė Sederevičiūtė-Pačiauskienė / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2022

Purpose – The paper aims to examine the principles of creating customer experience and analyze a novel application of such principles in virtual brand communities (VBC). The Glossier brand has been chosen for the case study of creating the VBC. Design/methodology/approach – The study employs quantitative comparison for the analysis of the social media content of the Glossier brand as part of virtual communities and qualitative semi-structured interviews to uncover how Lithuanian brands create VBCs and broaden the experience of brand users. The components of customer experience have been used as a core theoretical framework for identification based on textual or visual elements in VBCs. Findings and Implications – Content analysis of social media has confirmed that the experience of VBCs is created by applying the components of customer experience. In order to attract customers, brands most frequently use emotional and sensory components, with relationship, lifestyle, pragmatic, and cognitive components used half as often. According to the informants, the sensory and emotional components were recognized as most important for shaping customer experience in virtual communities. They agree that visual and hearing stimulation have the most decisive impact on creating customer experience through the sensory component. By contrast, touch, taste, and smell have a less significant effect on the stimulation of the sensory component. Limitations – This paper is limited by the fact that the conducted analysis covers only the case of one brand, and the professionals’ opinions might depend on their cultural background. Originality – The study examines one of the fastest-growing consumer communication phenomena in virtual brand communities, which has not received sufficient attention of researchers.

CORRIGENDUM: Correction of the first author’s affiliation

Author(s): Matia Torbarina,Lara Jelenc,Ivana Brkljačić / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2022

CHALLENGES OF PROMOTION OF HOTEL SERVICES DUE TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Author(s): Adriana Jović Bogdanović,Vladana Lilić,Suzana Pajić / Language(s): English Issue: 34/2022

The changes that have taken place in the tourism sector, viewed as a whole, have had an impact on the hotel industry, from the perspective of users of hotel services and those who provide these services. In addition to the fact that tourist activities were at their minimum, and at one point almost completely stopped, there was also the fear of contracting a deadly virus. New circumstances require new strategies, both the provision of hotel services and public appearances, promoting and influencing people to start using hotel services again. In order to influence the existing and new users of hotel services, it was necessary not only to offer new services, different from the competitors, but also to convince people that their health will be preserved during their stay. These circumstances put new tasks before marketing managers, who had to apply crisis marketing in a completely new light due to the circumstances of the pandemic. This paper will present recommendations for the implementation of marketing activities in the new circumstances caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Does Gojek as “Super App” Capable of Helping Its Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) Partner During Pandemic? A Case Study in Local Enterprenuer in Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia

Author(s): Fitri Rachmayanti,Raden Bagus Faizal Irany Sidharta / Language(s): English Issue: 13/2022

As the primary generator of economic development impacted by COVID-19, this study examines and compares the situation of SMEs in Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia, before and after collaborating with Gojek to assist them in surviving the pandemic. Gojek can assist its SMEs partners by supporting them in transitioning to digital practices. This study used a t-test paired to compare the same object but in different periods. The researchers implemented purposive sampling, and the sample is 1215 SMEs in Mataram that joined Gojek. Using paired samples correlations, the transaction indicator relationship between before joining Gojek and after joining Gojek is real and positive.