Articles

This study explores why some fans in Japanese fandoms engage in ‘refusal-to-share' behaviour—avoiding interactions with others who support the same celebrity to maintain an exclusive emotional bond. Through semi-structured interviews with 21 female fans, we identified four types of refusal-to-share behaviour based on romantic versus non-romantic orientation and level of self-affirmation: Romantic/High Self-Affirmation, Romantic/Low Self-Affirmation, Non-Romantic/High Self-Affirmation, and Non-Romantic/Low Self-Affirmation. Across all groups, this behaviour functioned as a self-protective strategy to preserve a private, idealized ‘dream world' with the celebrity. Linked to narcissistic traits such as possessiveness and psychological ownership, refusal-to-share behaviour can be interpreted through attachment theory and distinctions between grandiose and vulnerable narcissism. While some fans embraced exclusivity, others experienced inner conflict and self-criticism. These findings illuminate the emotional complexity of fandom and offer insights into both positive and potentially ‘toxic' aspects of fan–celebrity relationships.

The paper examines the evolution of marketing concepts from Marketing 1.0 to Marketing 6.0, emphasizing the progressive transformation of marketing from a product-centered discipline to a human-centric, technology-driven, and ethically oriented strategic approach. The main aim of the study is to synthesize the defining characteristics of each stage of marketing evolution, evaluate their practical implications for contemporary organizations, and identify the limitations that have driven the transition toward newer conceptual paradigms. The research adopts a qualitative and descriptive methodology based on an extensive literature review and historical-comparative analysis of academic publications, industry reports, and seminal marketing frameworks. Through thematic and comparative analysis, the study investigates how technological innovation, changing consumer expectations, digitalization, artificial intelligence, and societal values have reshaped marketing theory and practice over time. The findings reveal that marketing has evolved from transactional and mass-production orientations toward relationship marketing, value co-creation, emotional engagement, sustainability, and AI-enhanced personalization. The paper also highlights the growing importance of ethical governance, transparency, data privacy, and responsible AI implementation within contemporary marketing strategies. The study concludes that future marketing success depends on balancing technological advancement with human values, societal responsibility, and sustainable business practices in increasingly immersive and data-driven environments.

Building a successful business goes beyond having a great idea — it demands a rich and diverse set of talents that entrepreneurs must consciously develop throughout their professional journey. This paper explores the core competencies that underpin entrepreneurial success, organizing them into four interconnected categories: hard skills, encompassing technical and business management capabilities; and three dimensions of soft skills — personal and psychological traits, cognitive and creative abilities, and social and interpersonal skills. Drawing on an extensive review of entrepreneurship literature, the study highlights that neither business knowledge alone nor personality traits in isolation are sufficient for sustainable success. Rather, it is the deliberate integration of financial acumen, strategic thinking, resilience, creativity, leadership, and networking that enables entrepreneurs to navigate today's fast-changing business environment. The paper further underlines that these talents are not innate gifts but acquired competencies — shaped through education, mentorship, and lived experience. By offering a structured framework of entrepreneurial talents, this contribution aims to guide educators, practitioners, and aspiring entrepreneurs in identifying the most critical areas for growth and long-term performance.

The integration of online and in-store interactions via omnichannel marketing has become standard in retail. While online channels facilitate repeat purchases through convenience, the in-store experience remains a critical driver of customer loyalty. This study investigated the specific elements of the physical shopping experience that foster such loyalty. Although omnichannel models in supermarkets are well-documented, research in the hypermarket context remains limited. To address this gap, qualitative data were collected through one-on-one interviews with customers of a leading South African hypermarket. A thematic analysis of the responses identified key in-store factors motivating repeat purchases. The findings indicate that customer loyalty is primarily driven by two elements: perceived service quality and perceived price fairness. Service quality appeals to customers' emotional motivations, while price fairness aligns with their personal values. Consistency in delivering both emerged as a crucial determinant of long-term loyalty. These findings contribute to retail literature by pinpointing the in-store experience elements that positively influence omnichannel marketing. The study also offers strategic recommendations for retailers seeking to strengthen the link between their in-store efforts and customer loyalty.

This study investigated the relationship between Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and brand equity to understand how CSR initiatives influenced consumer perceptions and contributed to overall brand value. A quantitative research design was adopted, employing a non-probability convenience sampling approach. Primary data were collected from 120 respondents using a structured survey that measured perceptions of CSR initiatives and their effects on key dimensions of brand equity, including brand image, brand loyalty, and perceived brand value. Data were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistical techniques to examine relationships, trends, and significance. Findings indicated that CSR initiatives positively impacted brand equity by enhancing brand image, fostering consumer trust, and strengthening loyalty. The results demonstrated that socially responsible practices were not only ethical obligations but also strategic tools that contributed to sustainable brand growth and competitive advantage. The study also highlighted the moderating role of consumer–company identification, consistent with social identity theory, revealing that consumers who identified with a company's CSR efforts were more likely to form favourable brand perceptions and exhibit loyalty, thereby reinforcing brand equity. This research contributed to the literature by extending the understanding of the CSR–brand equity relationship and offering practical insights for managers seeking to integrate CSR into corporate strategy. The findings underscored the importance of aligning CSR initiatives with brand objectives to enhance consumer perceptions, build long-term loyalty, and strengthen overall brand value. The study also identified avenues for future research, including exploring the mechanisms through which CSR affected consumer behaviour and examining contextual factors, such as cultural and demographic differences, that influenced responses to CSR initiatives.

Algorithmic marketing is progressively pervading consumer-firm interactions through datafied personalization, predictive analytics, and recommender systems. The rising practices have been welcomed for the convenience, relevance, and efficiency benefits they can provide. However, they also generate user concerns about autonomy, fairness, transparency, and privacy. The scattered research on consumer responses remains underdeveloped and fragmented across marketing, psychology, and information systems. This paper maps recent literature and builds a conceptual framework to explain consumers' evaluations and responses to algorithmic marketing. Four interrelated dimensions have important roles in determining the acceptance or resistance to algorithmic marketing: autonomy, trust, privacy concerns, and cultural factors. The paper connects the perspectives and fills the gap in the fragmented research landscape by clarifying the state of knowledge, uncovering blind spots, and advancing the theoretical and practical understanding of consumer reactions to algorithmic marketing. The paper's main contributions are the mapping of research streams, the proposition of an integrative framework, and the provision of recommendations for future research and responsible marketing practice.

The mobile technology revolution has transformed society and business across the globe, with mobile instant messaging applications (MIM apps) now challenging social networking sites (SNS) as the most widely adopted means of communication for individuals and groups. These apps present a ubiquitous, pervasive, and rich marketing communications (MC) channel that supports interactive and dialogic communications with Gen Z consumers, particularly in developing countries like Zimbabwe. Thus, this study aimed to establish, through a quantitative approach, to establish the influence of message characteristics on the attitude of Gen Z consumers towards instant message marketing communication messages. Data were collected through a structured questionnaire from a sample of 410 Gen Z consumers. The results revealed that personalisation, credibility, interactivity and media richness had a significant and positive influence on the attitude of Gen Z consumers. It was also established that informativeness and entertainment did not influence consumer attitudes, whereas irritation generated a negative association with Gen Z consumers' attitudes. It is suggested that mobile marketing communication planners and designers should consider the influential role of personalisation, credibility, interactivity, irritation and media richness on the attitude of Gen Z consumers.

The research delves into the intricacies of entrepreneurship in Romania within a socio-environment marked by swift changes and numerous uncertainties. Beginning with an assessment of the present state of Romanian entrepreneurship the primary obstacles confronted by domestic entrepreneurs are underscored, which consist of bureaucratic hurdles, limited availability of financial resources and instability, in the market. The investigation scrutinizes the tactics employed by entrepreneurs to adjust including embracing rapid digitalization, establishment of networks and fostering sustainability principles. In 2025s evolving landscape of opportunities lie chances waiting to be seized. A distinct section is dedicated to female entrepreneurship. Showcasing the rise of women engaging in entrepreneurial endeavors while addressing the unique challenges they face. The paper presents a view of Romanian entrepreneurial ecosystem by spotlighting its weaknesses and development potential in a constantly changing climate.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is changing the marketing landscape. Due to AI, organizations can develop strategies that are focused on individual consumers and dynamically adapt marketing tactics in real-time based on large volumes of consumer data. Considering the challenges associated with consumers' increasing expectations, AI provides a basis for personalization and enhanced consumer engagement. As such, studies are required to address how AI can provide new basis for implementation in digital marketing strategies and tactics. Therefore, this paper aims to provide a structured conceptual framework that categorizes AI-driven customer engagement based on personalization. Future directions for research are also addressed to provide an agenda on AI's influence in marketing strategy.

Customer retention is a challenge for all industries, but churn rates are particularly high in the telecommunications industry, averaging between 10 and 67 percent. For example, it is estimated that 75 percent of the 17 to 20 million subscribers signing up with a new wireless carrier every year are coming from another wireless provider. Loyalty is extremely difficult for telecommunications brands to attain, especially due to the lack of differentiation in the product and service offerings. Customer loyalty has become rapidly appeared as a relatively important area of investigation for both researchers and practitioners. However, there has been little research in the area of customer brand switch and customer loyalty in the Telecommunications industry in Botswana. The purpose of this paper is to measure the influence of promotional pricing on customer brand switch and customer loyalty in the Telecommunications sector in Botswana. The research employed a positivism research philosophy and a quantitative research approach was used. The data was collected using a structured questionnaire from 320 respondents. Central tendency of measures, regression and correctional analysis were used to analyze the data. The study results showed that there is a strong significant relationship between promotional pricing and customer brand switch. However, the results also revealed that there is weak positive relationship between promotional pricing and customer loyalty in the telecoms sector in Botswana. The findings of this study contribute to the development of marketing strategies of how to retain their customers which will result in higher revenues.

The relationship between technology and marketing communications has grown increasingly complex. At the forefront of this evolution stands the rise of Artificial Intelligence (AI), offering transformative potentials and challenges for marketers globally. This study aimed to investigate the transformative influence of AI on marketing communications, focusing not only on the opportunities but also exploring potential challenges. Utilising a qualitative design and a descriptive literature review approach, the study explored three key themes: strategic digital transformation, customer experience enhancement, and ethical and privacy concerns. The manuscript recommends a strategic approach to AI integration for organisations, emphasising digital transformation informed by AI-driven insights. Furthermore, the study advocates for investments in AI technologies to enhance personalisation and automate processes, fostering deeper connections with consumers. Ethical considerations, including transparency and privacy safeguards, are crucial in navigating the evolving landscape of AI in marketing. Overall, the findings underscore the transformative potential of AI while highlighting the imperative for ethical and adaptive strategies in an ever-evolving marketing landscape.

In the midst of increasing competition in the healthcare industry, healthcare facilities must remain connected with customers. The sample in this study consists of customers in occupational health clinics located in Batam City. The study aims to analyze the influence of various dimensions of brand equity (brand awareness, brand association, perceived quality) and brand concept (as independent variables) on customer loyalty (as the dependent variable). Based on a quantitative approach, the data reflects primary data generated from the online distribution of questionnaires, with a total of 232 collected responses. Purposive sampling was employed as the sampling technique. Subsequently, all data was tested using multiple linear regression methods. The results of this study indicate that brand awareness, brand association, perceived quality, and brand concept significantly influence customer loyalty.

Wearable activity tracking (WAT) devices enable consumers to monitor their health and activity levels. Some of these devices can keep track of blood-oxygen levels, temperature, and heart-rate data and became increasingly important during and especially after the Covid-19 pandemic. The increase in popularity of these products led to a surge in competition among WAT brands that needs to find strategic approaches to stand out. Brand equity perceptions add extra value to the brand and is a key differentiating factor in a competitive environment. While the wearables market is expanding rapidly, there is little evidence of consumers' perceived brand equity and its relation to their purchase of WAT device brands. This study aimed to investigate the effect of consumer-based brand equity dimensions on purchase intention of WAT brands, based on Aaker's seminal conceptual framework. Data was collected from 487 South African consumers aged 18-56 using a computer-administered online survey guided by a descriptive research design. The path coefficients of the structural model suggest that quality perception, brand loyalty and brand association are significant drivers of WAT purchase intention, whereas brand awareness was not significant. The findings of this study have several theoretical and managerial implications. This study is among the first to investigate the influence of consumer-based brand equity in the context of wearable technology adoption. These results enable WAT brands to optimise their marketing strategy and identify areas of improvement to boost their sales and market share in South Africa and beyond.

Engagement in online shopping by specific emerging-market consumers in South Africa has been on the rise. Nevertheless, the online usage rate remains low. Online retailers need to understand the perceived risk factors influencing consumers' attitudes and intention in relation to online shopping for clothing products, especially in South Africa, where online risk is an issue that discourages consumers from making purchases and where the practice of online shopping is still in its infancy. To that end, an online survey was conducted among emerging-market consumers in Soweto, with 300 respondents being targeted and reached. Convenience sampling was adopted to collect data from the respondents. An independent research company collected data, and various statistical analyses such as descriptive analyses, exploratory factor analysis, and structural equation modelling were conducted. The findings revealed that perceived financial, convenience and security risks significantly influenced emerging-market consumers' attitudes towards online shopping. None of the perceived risks were found to influence consumers' intention to shop online. The perceived financial, convenience and security risks were found to be mediated by attitude. The study contributes to the body of knowledge about how risk affects consumers' attitudes and intentions to purchase online from a developing nation's viewpoint and for a particular product category. The study also contributes to existing knowledge on the mediation effect attitude has on the relationship between perceived risk and intention to shop online. The findings are also valuable for online retailers seeking to direct their offerings at emerging-market consumers and could potentially be incorporated into their online retail and marketing strategies.

In recent years, and especially after the pandemic, consumers around the world have expressed their intention to prioritize more sustainable choices. To explore the evolution and trend of research oriented in this area of environmentally sustainable or green consumer behavior, a bibliometric analysis was applied. This study presents an examination focusing on the literature related to sustainability or green consumer behavior between 1991 and 2023. By investigating 745 Scopus indexed documents, which includes keyword network analysis, co-author analysis and reference co-citation analysis using VOSviewer, the study highlights which are the known authors concerned with the research field, impactful and highly cited articles, countries contributing significantly to the analysis, the relevant journals in the field of interest. Furthermore, it identifies emerging themes such as green marketing, sustainable consumption, and green product development, while also outlining potential avenues for future research. The article provides perspectives in this field of development and interest, helping to define visions and strategies to attract, promote and develop sustainable or green consumers behavior.

This study aimed to identify the factors that comprise the drivers of, and barriers to, the implementation of fast fashion clothing in the retail industry in South Africa via a case study of one of South Africa's major fast fashion retailers. Using a quantitative, questionnaire-based, e-mailed survey to collect data from a self-selected convenience sample of 78 managers and employees, the study findings confirmed the importance of both information (store feedback and stock planning) and supplier relationships (capability and flexibility) as drivers of fast fashion. Overall, ‘capability' was perceived overall as the most important factor, enabling adjustments to range, order size and market closer to the selling season. Barriers were confirmed as issues related to product (quality, authenticity, perishability) and social responsibility (environmental and exploitation/ethics) in the opinion of this retailer. Although both were perceived as important, environmental issues dominated, with respondents seeing the wastefulness and excessive consumption of fast fashion as the main barrier to its implementation in South Africa. The first research of its type in South Africa, the study contributes to knowledge about fast fashion in South Africa, and possibly in other developing countries, and should assist with the implementation of this strategy by South African retailers. Furthermore, a clear understanding of some of the negative opinions about FF might assist with a more socially responsible implementation.

The motives for buying green products have generated scholarly interest, mainly due to concern for the environment. There is, however, a gap in the literature on understanding consumer green purchase intention and actual purchase behaviour in developing countries such as South Africa. The purpose of this study is to develop and test the applicability of green consumption of FMCG products grounded in the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) and thus address the “attitudes–behaviour” gap documented in the literature from the perspective of South African consumers. The study uses non-probability, convenience sampling and collected data from 381 consumers residing in the greater Durban area of the KwaZulu-Natal province. Structural equation modelling was applied in analysing the data. The findings of the study indicate that pro-environmental attitude, perceived value (quality) of green FMCG products positively influenced green FMCG purchase intention, which in turn, positively influence the actual purchase behaviour for green FMCG products. The findings further show that perceived price may be a barrier to green FMCG purchase intention although the relationship was not significant. This study provides practical implications for FMCG marketers in their bid to shift from conventional products to green products.

Currently, we live in a world that is constantly changing, one in which the digital environment is constantly evolving. In the travel and tourism industry, there is practically no management decision that is not related to digitization. Additionally, this is not only when thinking about the ease of interaction with consumers of tourist services, but also when considering optimizing and reducing costs or when we refer to the management of the business itself. Therefore, this paper aims to analyze the evolution of the online tourism market, the most visited travel and tourism websites, and the use of several digital transformation topics among accommodation businesses, such as: social media marketing, online advertising, customer relationship management, and online distribution channel management.

The Premier Soccer League (PSL) is a prominent league in Africa. The best South African soccer teams that play in the domestic Premier Soccer League are from Soweto, namely Kaizer Chiefs F.C. and Orlando Pirates F.C. Both teams have a rich history in their domestic league and have become the most successful and recognisable brands in South Africa. The purpose of this study is to validate the dimensions of brand personality of South African professional sport teams, by using Kaizer Chiefs F.C and Orlando Pirates F.C. as examples. The study employed a quantitative research method. The results of this study produced four factor structures, which include Trustworthiness, Competitiveness, Friendliness and Trendiness. In addition, convergent and discriminant validities were assessed. The model fit indices SRMR, RMSEA, GFI, CFI, IFI, and TLI of the measurement model showed a good fit. Therefore, this instrument is valid and reliable to measure the dimensions of professional sport teams in South Africa. Managers of professional sport teams in South Africa, including all other managers in the PSL, can use this instrument to assess how their teams are perceived by fans and how it differs from other teams. Furthermore, managers from corporate companies interested in offering sponsorships can use this instrument to assess whether a sport team shares similar personality traits. This is the first study undertaken to validate brand personality instruments in order to measure the dimensions of brand personality of professional sport teams for soccer or football in South Africa.

Universities need to seek alternative ways to differentiate themselves from others. Connecting with their target market, in a personal manner is not always easy but vital for survival. Universities present themselves to the world through their corporate brand personality. The personal traits assigned to the brand are priceless and valuable for both the user and the company. Understanding the importance of brand personality in higher education is vital, and what better way to portray the brand, than through the strategic plan of the university. Using words that a target audience can identify and relate to can assist in creating brand awareness and loyalty. Using content analysis, the strategic plans of seven Universities of Technology in South Africa were analysed. Five broad dimensions of brand personality were used as the units of analysis. The main purpose of the analysis was to determine how brand personality was reflected within the strategic plans of the universities. The findings indicated that the use of brand personality was evenly distributed however, some of the dimensions such as resilience and excitement were not visible enough and the need for improvement was established. Understanding the importance of brand personality and its use can assist the management of universities with the development of accurate strategies, targeted specifically at those that can relate and identify with the brand.

Financial technology advancements have made personal banking simpler, allowing a range of services to be accessed anytime and anywhere via various digital methods However, the extent of digital financial technology's impact on consumer perception and adoption of digital personal banking in developing economies remains unclear. The purpose of this study therefore is to review literature on the issues that could influence the perception and use of digital personal banking by consumers. Data was drawn from 116 documents of academic and ‘grey' literature according to the PRISMA protocol, and analysed by detailed reading, narrative summarising and then deconstructing and reconstructing the contents into the key issues influencing the adoption and use of digital personal banking. First an overview of digital banking in general, and then in South Africa, is provided. Then the different issues, or constructs, that could be drivers of preference for digital personal banking by South African consumers, as identified from the literature, are presented, namely Convenience, Practical quality, Branch service quality, Online service quality, Usability, Safety and Risk. These findings can form the basis of further in-depth research into the adoption and use of digital personal banking and can also assist banking executives to adapt their operational and marketing activities to influence consumers to further adopt digital banking.

The main objective of this study was to conduct an in-depth analysis of Botswana's tourism, with the hopes to identify factors and challenges affecting the tourism sector in Botswana. This study utilised the interpretivism research philosophy. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews from 10 participants drawn from different segments of the tourism industry for a cross-section of perspectives. A thematic content analysis was employed to analyse the data. Results of the study revealed several factors and challenges with an impact on the tourism industry of Botswana. Chief among them includes Covid-19 (and pandemics); government policies (and regulations); economic climate and climate change. The study also revealed a number of challenges affecting the tourism sector of Botswana which includes lack of engagement within the tourism sector; limited participation of Batswana in the tourism sector; lack of skilled staff; overreliance on international tourists; lack of requisite infrastructure; limited tourism marketing; limited and inconsistent local supply of quality goods; government policies, restrictions and levies; and staff retention. The study recommended that the need for aggressive marketing and promotion, reskilling, enhancement of ICT infrastructure, improving stakeholder consultation and engagement within the sector and tourism product diversification as key enablers to enhance the tourism sector in Botswana.

The field of sonic branding has grown rapidly in recent years. While the majority of the developments in this area have thus far been led by practitioners, it is important to understand the cognitive principles underlying the appropriateness and efficacy of sonic branding in order to help develop design principles and practical guidelines that will help to move the field forward, particularly where a brand's distinctive sonic assets are concerned. This narrative historical review focuses on design considerations for one of the most common sonic assets, namely the sonic logo. Crucially, the question of how these sonic logos come to be associated with brands, and the extent to which their perceptual and affective qualities ought to match the attributes and personality of the brand, are experimentally tractable research questions. Principles drawn from the cognitive (neuro-)sciences, including the emerging field of research on crossmodal correspondences, are explored, providing actionable insights for those wanting to design successful sonic brands. The use of the semantic differential technique is also discussed as a means of systematically assessing the connotative alignment between a product, company, or brand and the distinctive sonic assets which together comprise the brand's sonic identity as a whole.

The goal of this paper was to investigate the effectiveness of e-marketplaces for Cape Town's Small and Medium Retailers (SMRs). With the rise of e-commerce, small and medium retailers (SMRs) must find ways to stay connected to customers; geographical barriers should not be an impediment to their relationship with customers. The problem is that many South African small and medium enterprises (SMRs) have a difficult time adopting effective e-commerce trading platforms. Within a South African context, literature does not distinguish between e-commerce and e-marketplaces for SMRs. SMRs have been slow to adopt e-commerce, and an alternative to help SMRs take advantage of e-marketplaces has not been fully explored. The use of electronic marketplaces (EMs) is regarded as an easy and viable way for small and medium retailers to connect with customers and suppliers. The innovation diffusion theory (IDT) or diffusion of innovation (DOI) was used for this study. The effectiveness of electronic marketplaces as a trading platform is discussed and analysed in the literature review. In this study, a qualitative research approach was used. Based on the study's findings, analysis, and review of the literature, a framework for SMRs to evaluate the effectiveness of EMs as trading platforms was proposed. Furthermore, implementing the proposed framework necessitates a customized approach because no two SMRs are exactly alike and have different expectations from EM platforms. The study reached the conclusion that EMs are effective as trading platforms for SMRs in Cape Town.

In today's modern society, the multitude of technological advancements are encouraging an increasing number of people to utilize online shopping platforms. However, from the literature it has been noted that a large portion of consumers who add items to their virtual cart eventually abandon their shopping carts, and this behavior is related to several factors. The study aims to investigate the factors that influence online shopping cart abandonment, namely hedonic purposes, perceived transaction convenience, and organization and research within the South African context. A total of 247 responses were gathered by means of self-administered online questionnaires from South Africans over the age of 18 who had shopped online in the past. The results indicate that for both hedonic purposes and organisation and research, there is a positive statistically significant relationship with online shopping cart abandonment, yet no positive statistically significant relationship with online shopping cart abandonment, yet no positive relationship for perceived transaction inconvenience exists. For an online business to be successful, the above factors need to be taken into consideration when taking managerial decisions, which can lead to business implementing the necessary changes to maximise their online sales.

This study determines the attributes that are important in shopping centre selection in South Africa. In it, the researcher determined if shopping centre attributes are influenced by demographic factors. South Africa has witnessed an explosion of shopping centre development, including in rural areas. A survey was conducted in a shopping centre in Venda, South Africa, targeting shoppers who visited the mall at the time of data collection. Regression analysis was used to test the relationships between the constructs and to test the hypotheses. The results of this study showed that price, merchandise and social influence are the most important attributes for shopping centre patronage. The shopping centre attributes was found to be influenced by gender, age and frequency of shopping. The results of this study are important for managers to sustain their shopping centres in a highly competitive environment.

Through information technology, the world is moving towards the digital economy, giving rise to social commerce. This type of marketing be considered a new form of e-commerce that incorporates a holistic approach to social media with the aim of helping users buy and sell products and services online. This empirical research aims to estimate the effects of the cognitive and emotional mechanisms of consumer trust and intimacy on repurchase in social commerce platforms. Thus, it aims to analyze in detail the behavior of consumers based on satisfaction and user-generated content, focusing on the moderating role of the buying habit between trust and repurchase, intimacy and repurchase. In this research, a quantitative study was conducted, targeting Morocco in order to analyze the effects of cognitive and emotional mechanisms on consumers' repurchase intention regarding social commerce platforms. Based on this, we studied the behavior of 3,854 social media users, 2,251 of whom have already made purchase on social commerce platforms. We employed econometric modeling using partial least squares-based structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). The results of the structural equation estimation on all individuals who have already purchased on online sales platforms (2,251), showed firstly that there is a significant and positive relationship between the cognitive factors (Satisfaction and Confidence) on the intention and the repurchase behavior. As for the emotional factors (UGC and Intimacy), the relationship between these two constructs was found to be non-significant. However, intimacy was found to positively impact repurchase intention and behavior under moderation of buying habits.

During the pandemic, smartphone sales in Indonesia increased, especially for companies that continued to innovate, emphasize product quality, and develop creative products. This research aims to examine whether brand image, product quality, and lifestyle affect iPhone purchasing decisions. The method used in this study is a quantitative research method using primary data, conducted through surveys by distributing questionnaires in Yogyakarta Special Region Province, Indonesia. Respondents in this research are iPhone users in Indonesia, and the sampling method in this research involved purposive sampling. After passing the test phase, and through validity and reliability tests, 200 responses were collected. Data analysis tool uses multiple linear regression analysis. The results showed that product quality and lifestyle had positive and significant effect on purchase decision, but brand image does not influence purchase decision. In this case, brand image does not have an influence on consumers from Indonesia when buying a smartphone.

This study describes motorists' expectations and perceived performance regarding Traffic Police Departments' service quality in South Africa and Thailand. It tests correlational and predictive relationships between SERVQUAL dimensions, biographical characteristics, and motorists' reported level of satisfaction with service quality of traffic police departments adopting an expectancy-disconfirmation model approach. Survey data of respondents from South Africa and Thailand were analysed as overall dataset as well as separately from one another to get insights. Results is intended for re-strategizing the way traffic related services are rendered to overturn motorists' expressed lack of trust in Traffic Police Departments. The tetrachoric and Pearson correlations and ordinary least square tests performed indicated that age correlated positively and significantly with empathy, while level of education showed a negatively significant correlation with reliability, promptitude and empathy. All six SERVQUAL dimensions and level of satisfaction correlated positively and significantly with each other. Furthermore, only two factors significantly predicted motorists' level of satisfaction with traffic police departments: tangibility and responsiveness. Although results of analyses performed at country level followed mostly that of the overall dataset, some differences observed are pointed out like no predictive variable of level of satisfaction was found from Thailand sample while only responsiveness significantly explained it. Recommendations are made to empower traffic police officers to deliver an “ideal” service for motorists and to investigate the aforementioned relationships using three other alternative models that are performance, rational, and expectations-artefact models. Lastly, consideration to expanding the model to more behavioural and situational factors is recommended.

The South African retail apparel industry has and continues to undergo major digitisation. This movement better known as e-tailing has pioneered over the years and proven to be a lucrative way of trading. As a developing market, e-tailing has seen increased growth with great potential for new entrants to thrive. Only a small number of e-tailers were dominating the South African online apparel industry. In order to understand and further promote success in e-tailing, the researchers identified the need to determine the critical success factors of leading apparel e-tailers in South Africa. Identifying the CSFs proved to be an integral part of successful e-tailer survival. The objective of this study was, therefore, to establish and delve into the CSFs of both leading pure-play online apparel e-tailers and omnichannel or hybrid retailers based in Cape Town, South Africa. The study adopted a multiple case study approach and a qualitative methodology was used by employing an interpretive philosophical perspective. An exploratory design was appropriate for the study and an Inductive reasoning is a theory-building method which best explained the phenomena that are the subject of this study. The research paper further incorporated an empirical approach and the data comprised of four organisations primarily collected through semi-structured interviews from individuals that were connected to the organisations. The findings of the study revealed the most fundamental CSFs which consisted of five CSF groups, namely, 1) Business Intelligence, 2) Operations, 3) Organisational culture, 4) Business model and 5) Strategic modelling. Ultimately, the study recommended an effective growth and development framework for apparel e-tailers in Cape Town.

To perform under the conditions of digitalization, marketers need understandable, accurate, complete, trustworthy, secure, and discoverable data. In this respect, data governance is a solution approach to greater data literacy, data intelligence and data management. This research aims to explore the current academic state-of-art of data governance in the marketing field. Selected items were evaluated using a descriptive statistical approach to identify investigation trends on this topic. The research found that Marketing can benefit from Data Governance focusing data standard settings, data sources coordination and data management, data quality and data security. This requires a strategy, coordinated processes and their meaningful support by people and information technology. The originality of this research is that the approach is unique at this point, and the assimilation of data governance is a clear sign of manifestation for marketing under conditions of increasing digitalization.

Globally, the Covid-19 pandemic has influenced traditional Open Distance electronic Learning (ODeL) institutions and residential universities. It has prompted them to consider distance learning using technological advancement. However, student loyalty is a challenge to achieve and sustain in distance learning. Thus, this study seeks to determine the mediating effect of student satisfaction on student loyalty. The study also sought to examine the mediating effect of satisfaction on the impact of commitment, institutional reputation, service quality, trust, and perceived value on loyalty. The study used a quantitative approach and online survey to collect data. The study used the partial least squares structural equation modeling technique to test the proposed model. The results showed a positive and significant relationship between the constructs. However, commitment showed a partial influence on student satisfaction. Furthermore, satisfaction partially mediates the impact of commitment, institutional reputation, and perceived value on loyalty and fully mediates the impact of service quality and trust on loyalty. In conclusion, service quality and trust cannot influence students' loyalty to the institution without satisfaction. This study helps ODeL institutions to design marketing strategies centered on service quality and trust.

The sports footwear industry is an attractive market, especially with the Generation Y market segment. The purpose of this study is to establish the determinants of brand loyalty of sports footwear brands in South Africa. The study followed a descriptive research design and implemented a quantitative research method. Of the nine independent variables, six variables namely brand image, brand association, style, brand name, price and endorsement were found to have a statistically significant influence on Generation Y consumers' brand loyalty toward sports footwear, while three of the nine variables namely perceived quality, comfort and style, were not found to be statistically significant predictors of brand loyalty. It is important for manufacturers and marketers of sports footwear brands to understand which factors contribute to brand loyalty to their sports footwear brands as this will provide them with the insight to know what to feature in their product during the production stages and when they devise marketing strategies to the Generation Y cohort.

The aim of the study was to evaluate supply chain performance of the six major clothing retail companies listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) using the supply chain index. The study adopted a quantitative study and used secondary data from the companies' publicly shared financial statements. Panel data analysis was employed in the study with a fixed-effects regression model used to analyse the the relationship between the dependent and independent dependent variables. The study found that WHL has the highest supply chain index ranking based on an overall ranking of the firms based on a combination of the strength, balance, and resiliency metrics. This was followed by MRP, which consistently maintained second place. TFG was at the bottom. This framework for the measurement of supply chain performance provides a valuable guide useful in the clothing retail industry and across other industries. Overall, the results encourage organisations to measure supply chain performance and share performance information with their network partners.

This research aims to review existing literature on effective marketing strategies for marketers in today's healthcare institutions. This paper reflects a systematic literature review. Selected articles were analyzed using a descriptive statistical approach to see research trends in this topic. Following that, a meta-synthetic approach was performed to map the study results. The research found four marketing programs and one supporting data assessment of potential market conditions. These findings can better understand effective marketing strategies to increase health service demands. The current research provides novel ideas for people involved in marketing management and future researchers on effective marketing strategies. It identifies up-to-date marketing strategies that healthcare institutions can implement to increase demand for health services.

The recent environmental issues the world has been experiencing recently have increased the awareness of consumers of the necessity of a sustainable consumption pattern to preserve the natural environment. Therefore, green consumption has increased, and companies needed to respond to the rising demand for green products by offering a wider selection of environment-friendly products for green consumers. This article aims to study the purchasing intention of green cosmetics in the case of female student consumers in Hungary. The paper extended the theory of planned behavior by including perceived quality and environmental concern as factors that influence the attitude of consumers towards green cosmetics. This research also takes into consideration the effect of subjective norms on the purchasing intention of green cosmetics. The study employs a quantitative study conducted in Hungary in December 2021 (n = 200). The data was analyzed using PLS-SEM to assess the proposed hypotheses. The results of the study were in line with the literature, with perceived quality and environmental concern having a positive influence over the attitude towards green cosmetics. Attitude and subjective norm also had a significant influence on the purchasing intention of green cosmetics. This research provides new insights into how managers can advance the consumption of green cosmetics, by enhancing the quality of their products and focusing their strategies on answering the concerns of consumers towards the environment.

This study aimed to investigate whether consumers' personal involvement with the COVID-19 pandemic led to hedonic or utilitarian buying motives, and how these buying motives might encourage impulse or planned buying behaviour. Furthermore, it examined whether these influences differed between a developed country (Germany) and a developing country (South Africa). The methodology involved a quantitative, descriptive, cross sectional survey, using a questionnaire based on the literature and sent by e-mail to a quota sample from an online-accessed consumer panel. Useable responses of 548 each from the two countries were analysed, showing that respondents with high levels of involvement with COVID-19 also show high levels of hedonic motivation, whereas utilitarian motivation appeared less important and not linked to a greater involvement with COVID-19. The study also found that a high hedonic motivation is associated with more impulsive shopping, whereas utilitarian motivation is not. The implication is that those with a utilitarian motivation tend towards planned shopping. Finally, the findings show that there appear to be no significant differences between the buying behaviour of consumers in a developing country and a developed country. This study contributed new knowledge about consumer shopping behaviour by examining the interaction of the hedonic/utilitarian construct and the impulsive shopping construct as components of consumer behaviour, research that has not been done before, and especially not in a developing country nor relative to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In Bangladesh, online shopping is gaining in motion. Various drivers are there for online shopping and the goal of this study has been set to explore drivers of online shopping according to their dominance among the young in the city of Dhaka. Adhering to a set of objectives; this study first identified a set of six motivational factors from among 21 variables (key factors for online shopping) with the help of an exploratory factor analysis. Then, a binary logistic regression was performed to find significant drivers for online shopping decision and the dominance of those drivers has been explored thereafter using marginal effect. In the aftermath, educational attainment as a socio-economic factor, and perceived risk (security), website factors, and product varieties as motivational factors have been found to be statistically significant drivers for online shopping. Considering the marginal effects, website factors, perceived risk, product varieties, and educational attainment have been found to have relevant effects. In this case, a Receiver Operating Characteristic curve (ROC) suggests that the fitted model has excellent discriminant power.

Determining the return on investment of international education has always been complicated and the COVID-19 pandemic makes it even more so, justifying the need for prospective international students to reach out to their social environs. This study sought to identify the word-of-mouth communications (WOMC) that international students receive when they are forming their intention to enroll abroad, or lack thereof. Employing qualitative approach, this study involved interviewing ten international students studying in a mid-size university in the USA. A key study finding is that, during the intention forming stage, not all of the international students involved in this study actively sought WOMC inputs as some already possess past study abroad experiences that they turned to. For those who did reach out for external input, they were particularly susceptible to WOMC that they received from friends or relatives who have studied abroad. Therefore, it implies that tie strength with the WOM givers and their expertise power are the determining factors in explaining prospective international students' WOM seeking behaviors. Pertaining to that, this study also concluded that online reviews were not among WOMC inputs typically sought after by the students in this stage.

This research focusses on the Japanese gay TV drama series Ossan's Love (2018) to investigate why the show attracted not only queer audiences, but also heterosexual audiences by analysing its textual periphery through paratexts such as promotional posters, articles and audience reviews. Normally, publicists tend to avoid emphasising a show's sexual minority themes in the story, considering that such a polemical theme would narrow the target audience. However, publicity for this show clearly indicated a gay theme in its promotional materials, and the show became popular nationwide. From the perspective of social identity theory, it is difficult to explain how such promotional strategies effectively attracted a heterosexual audience. Through paratextual analysis, this research identified the concept of an ‘ideal society'. At first, some people may think the show is a stereotypical comedy that makes fun of gay people, but they eventually recognise that none of the characters laughs at romance between men. It is likely that the show's such unbiased setting makes both heterosexual and homosexual audiences comfortable, diminishing the line between different sexual orientations.

In both traditional and digital channels, the marketing function aims at devising and implementing appropriate strategies and tactics for each stage consumers go through when they are considering a purchase. In the digital environment, brands interact with consumers with use of digital touchpoints, the growing number of which hinders effective and efficient coordination of marketing activities. The present research aims at investigating consumers' perceived reliance on alternative digital touchpoints throughout the consumer buying process, and examining the impact of personal characteristics and type of digital device used on consumer perceptions. Results from a non-probability sample of 92 consumers showed that participants exhibit increased reliance on corporate websites, online stores, Instagram, web enquiries and YouTube during their buying journey. However, it appears that consumer reliance on digital touchpoints is affected by personal characteristics, such as biological sex and generation. Female consumers report increased reliance on Instagram to identify potential needs whereas males depend on YouTube during most stages of decision making. Lastly, consumers who belong in younger generations report greater reliance on digital touchpoints than older consumers. Overall, identification of differences in user preferences of digital touchpoints facilitates digital marketing planning and targeting of distinct segments with appropriate tactics.

Modern democratic governance dictates transparency and accountability by public entities in order to ensure good governance. Despite this fact, the City of Cape Town, motivated by a need to reorient its logo and pay-off line to its strategic intent, unilaterally appointed a contractor to design a new logo and pay –off line for the City. This paper interrogates this phenomenon using two theoretical lenses namely the agency theory and marketing communication theory. Using a qualitative methodology, the study sought to ascertain the local stakeholders' perception of the City brand after the introduction of the new logo and pay – off line. Some purposively sampled residents were interviewed using a semi-structured interview schedule. Some open- ended interviews were also held with experts in marketing and communication. Primary data from research was infused with secondary data. The study found out that the City authorities did not quite live up to the dictates of transparency by acting unilaterally with respect to the designing of the new logo and pay-off line. There is strong possibility that the omission of stakeholders in the consultative processes fortified their disdain for the City brand. Agency problems were created by sidelining one of the City's critical stakeholders – the residents. The City authorities hid behind a legalistic smokescreen to overlook the participation of the residents in the rebranding exercise.

Approximately 90% of students enrolled in public universities participated in online learning programs in 2020 in South Africa, yet these institutions are found to be lacking in adapting and serving the new demand for distance learning effectively. This has highlighted the need to undertake the current study to develop a framework for attaining student loyalty in an ODeL institution in the higher education sector in South Africa. A quantitative approach using the survey method was used to collect data. A total of 1430 responses were received from students who were purposely sampled using online questionnaires. A partial least square structural equation (PLS) technique was used to analyze data and to test the research model proposed for the study. This study has innovated a comprehensive framework of student loyalty that can be implemented in ODeL institutions. Although the results reveal a positive relationship between all the constructs studied, of significant outcome is the higher impact student satisfaction and commitment have on student loyalty. Decision-makers of ODeL institutions need to pay attention to formulating and implementing strategies dealing with improving service quality, investments in technological advancement, improving institutional reputation, providing value for money as these factors significantly influence student satisfaction. In turn, student satisfaction influences commitment and trust, with student loyalty as the main outcome.

The purpose of this study was to identify the factors that comprise the quick response and supply chain activities in the fast fashion clothing industry in a developing country, namely South Africa, and then to investigate the relative importance of these factors via a case study of one of the main fast fashion retailers in South Africa. The research used a case study method with a quantitative, questionnaire-based survey to collect data from a sample of 100 employees, self-selected via a convenience sample, from departments that were purposively selected. Data was collected via an e-mailed survey, resulting in a 45% response rate. The study findings confirmed the importance of both quick response and supply chain efficiency to a successful fast fashion implementation in a developing country like South Africa, in terms of picking up trends quicker, faster lead times and less mistakes, all leading to greater competitiveness. An additional benefit identified was the revival of local production. Since this was the first research of its type in South Africa, it will contribute to knowledge about fast fashion in South Africa, and possibly in other developing countries, and hopefully will initiate a continuing stream of research into fast fashion, especially with other retailers and provide more detail on the key drivers of drivers and barriers of fast fashion implementation.

South Africa faces economic growth challenges that a strong export sector could help address. The country needs to grow its export sector to help bolster a poorly performing economy. The need for a national information system has been identified and this study aimed to address this need by developing a framework based on sound research. This framework outlines the specific information, as well as the organisational structure, that could be used to ultimately develop and implement a national export portal in South Africa. Adopting a pragmatic multi- and mixed-method approach which incorporated in-depth interviews with the exporter and export support communities in the country, the study strived to identify the information items and information topics that could anchor a framework for the proposed national export portal. The outcome of this study was a suggested framework that could be adopted by Government to build the proposed national export portal.

The main focus of our article is initial trust. Our aim is to highlight the importance of initial trust in international online transactions and to explore its explanatory factors and consequences in the context of cross-border e-commerce. Our article begins with a literature review defining the study variables and the links between them, which leads to the presentation of our conceptual model. After developing our model, we completed an exploratory qualitative research study to examine the identified variables and determine their significance within the context of cross-border e-commerce. Our study reveals the centrality of the constructs of feedback and third parties to initial trust. Other concepts also emerged, including perceived seller responsiveness, international delivery, and price. The factor of national integrity was eliminated. At the theoretical level, our study underlines the importance of certain factors in the formation of initial trust as well as the impact of initial trust on consumer behavior intentions within the context of cross-border e-commerce. At the managerial level, our study can help managers to manipulate relevant elements that inspire trust in foreign consumers, thereby significantly increasing sales. Given that few studies have investigated the concept of initial trust in cross-border e-commerce, our study fills a research gap. In addition, our study was conducted in the particular context of the rapid spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. As a next step, a confirmatory quantitative study should be carried out to statistically test the model.

Digital transformation of marketing in the public institutions of higher education in Greece, has a key role in the context of the digital revolution. The study aimed at investigating the perceptions and views explicitly or implicitly, of the representatives of the administration of Greek public universities about the relationship between the application of digital marketing and the attraction of students. The study adopted a qualitative research method conducting in-depth interviews with rectors and vice-rectors of 10 representative Greek Universities. Results indicated that administrators believe that digital marketing has a great impact in attracting students, especially young people preparing to graduate from high school. The adoption of digital marketing by the Greek public university is of high priority due to the fact that it influences prospective students in terms of their university choice.

This study aims to clarify how personal characteristics influence the intention to visit Expo 2025 in Osaka, Japan. Specifically, this study focuses on the concepts of consumer innovativeness and market mavenism, which are related to cutting-edge consumers, as the world Expo is an event where people can expect to experience new technologies, products, and services. Multiple regression analysis using data from a web-based questionnaire survey of consumers in urban areas around Tokyo and Osaka confirms that consumer innovativeness and market mavenism had a positive effect on the intention to visit Expo 2025. This study also analyzes the daily information search behavior of consumers with high consumer innovativeness and market mavenism. They were tended to use television and portal sites the most. These results can provide useful insights for marketers worldwide involved in Expo events.

Trading in the informal sector has seen a rapid growth in the developing as well as the developed economies in the last few decades. Consequently, the concept ‘flea market' has gained renewed attention. The study aimed at identifying the preferred advertising and promotional strategies used by traders and how these strategies influence buying decisions in a flea market context. The study adopted a quantitative method using a non-probability convenience sample of 105 consumers attending the Car Boot Flea Market in the City of Durban, South Africa. Results indicated that as there is a need to save money, pricing of items was found to have a strong influence on the buying decision but consumers also look for a good offer, a clean attractive display of the products, an opportunity to test the product before buying and finding a product that the consumer has been seeking for a long time. Traditional marketing activities like calling out prices, issuing pamphlets and using other tactics to attract consumers have little effect on the consumers' decision to buy at the market. Traders must develop a good reputation and the skills to demonstrate to consumers that an attractive offer is being made while still making a profit and be prepared to tailor their promotional messages to specific segments and thus make it easy for consumers to find goods of interest.

The rapid changes seen in retailing practices and consumer behavior models could be attributed to the extensive number of new technology applications. Therefore, these interesting change mechanisms should be explored from different viewpoints using various methods. This study synthesizes the findings of earlier studies in a literature review and provides some implications for future research and practice regarding retailing evolution, especially focusing on the shift from multichannel to omnichannel retailing. It is found that interdisciplinary research methods have been employed in marketing and electronic/mobile commerce to explore current business and consumer practices. This literature review reveals a time-series consistency between multichannel and omnichannel concepts to offer an integrated viewpoint of the available research insights. More specifically, this study attempts to explore and highlight relevant terminology definitions and concepts to underline the crucial issues in this topic derived from different disciplines and to discuss practical implications for future research.

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted our daily behavior, from interactions with friends, colleagues, and family, to safety measures and working. Additionally, this pandemic has dramatically changed consumers' shopping behavior. The purpose of this research paper is to examine the impact of Covid 19 pandemic on consumer behavior. Thus, this paper proposes a new model that incorporates three variables: attitude for online shopping during the COVID-19 pandemic, budget considerations during the COVID-19 pandemic, and future behavioral intention after the COVID-19 pandemic. This study's main research approach is a quantitative survey and examination using a sample of Romanian consumers. Additionally, the proposed hypotheses were examined in a SEM model and all the hypotheses were supported based on the empirical analysis. This study adds theoretical contributions by assessing the changes of consumers' online shopping behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic. Managerial implications, study limitations and future avenues for research are also discussed.

As a marketing tool, color attracts consumers, consequently, shaping their perception. This study seeks to examine how mere colors featured in brand logos evoke consumer perception about a retailer's eco-friendliness. Data from two experiments show that exposure to a logo featuring a high eco-friendly color (green) makes a retailer's practice more environmentally friendly, while exposure to a logo featuring a low-eco-friendly color (red) makes the retailer practice seem less environmentally friendly. The paper also demonstrates the moderating role of gender, such that females tend to show more positive responses to a logo featuring an eco-friendly color than male. Further, we show how processing fluency mediates the interactive effect of logo color and consumers' perception about a retailer's eco-friendliness. This current research makes some important theoretical contributions to the evolving field of design issues in marketing. Further, this research contributes to practice in several ways. We suggest marketing managers use green color in their logo designs to promote their environmentally friendly practices. Limitations and future research directions are discussed.

A new wave of studies supports the importance of examining the efficiency of experiential marketing on consumers satisfaction. In this respect, this paper investigates the relationships between experiential marketing, emotional value and customer satisfaction among Winter Wonderland visitors in Saudi Arabia. Quantitative research was conducted through an online survey. Structural equation modeling analysis was used through the Amos software. Results emphasize the role of sense experience in emotional value creation as well as confirmed the significant positive relationship between emotional value and customer satisfaction. Overall, outcomes offer a better understanding of the experiential marketing use in the context of an amusement park and mark out new avenues for future research.

The aim of this article is to become an overview of how users can be inspired to search around in online webshops. For this it is necessary to have an insight into the inspiration research. This provides a number of factors that could have an impact. It seems sensible to trigger motivation, transcendence and evocation in the website. You should avoid inappropriate web design and usability errors, because it can cause negative emotions. The user is probably more inspired by positive activated affects. This applies to online, as well as the offline situation.

Nowadays, online user reviews are becoming increasingly important to moviegoers, especially in choosing specific movies they want to see. However, not every user review is considered influential by consumers. To describe the characteristics of useful reviews, this study focuses on online movie reviews posted on Yahoo! Japan Movies—a site that features a usefulness counter with each review. Three principal characteristics of useful reviews are demonstrated: a) a longer text, b) a high level of verbal expressiveness, and c) references to other reviews. From the perspective of the cultural dimensions theory, it is reasonable that longer, informative texts with rich expressions are preferred by consumers from cultures with high uncertainty-avoidance scores, such as Japan. However, Japan's potential moviegoers are motivated by reviews reviewing other reviews, even if some comments about the movie are very negative. This study suggests that people have different tendencies on the Internet and that Japanese consumers would rather take risks to have their own opinion regarding the reviews they read.

This study aimed at determining and evaluating customer service at independently owned retail food chains within the province of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. Furthermore, it included assessing the level of retail service quality, current customer service tools employed by independent food chains in KwaZulu-Natal, and the extent to which customer service tools are being used. The study was also about establishing whether there was a significant relationship between retail service quality and customer satisfaction. The study targeted both customers and managers of independent food chains in KwaZulu-Natal from whom a sample of four mangers was interviewed and 444 customers were conveniently selected to participate in the study. Both qualitative and quantitative methods were employed in the collection of data.

For social media, the current problem is not the lack of knowledge or skills to create personalized campaigns, but the lack of time. With so many different ways to collect as much data from customers, it's impossible for one person to capture this data, discover information, and then set up automated marketing campaigns for each person. Artificial intelligence is the solution to this problem, which focuses on the exploitation of customer data and machine learning in marketing strategies to anticipate the next move of customers and improve its experience through customize content and automation. This article aims to understand in an explicit way how artificial intelligence works on social media to ensure the maximum automation of marketing.

This work examined carbonated beverage consumption among 303 UK university students (132 males, 171 females) and assessed their current beliefs concerning the personal carbonated beverage consumption and preferences. Participants completed a questionnaire that was constructed using an online survey service tool (Bristol Online Surveys). Two products from the Coca-Cola® Company and one product from the A.G. Barr Company were foremost, as the most preferred drinks among respondents. One tenth of the respondents are consuming a carbonated beverage at least once a day, among which one third consume at least two cans per drinking episode. The majority (53%) and (30%) consumed respectively a carbonated beverage once and twice a week. The responses demonstrated a higher tendency for females to use a straw to consume a carbonated beverage in comparison to males. The way drinks are presented seems to be of great significance to females. This study highlighted the current beliefs and preferences concerning the personal carbonated beverage consumption which can collectively help explain current consumption trends among UK university students. Carbonated beverage manufacturers can incorporate the findings of this work into future broader studies in order to better understand the market and the customer.

The study's objective was to understand the motivation and loyalty of online shoppers in South Africa, and to understand the process undertaken by online shoppers in procuring products and services online. The literature review covered benefits and factors that influence online shopping, online shopping behaviour and patterns, and products offering suitability for online sales. But, did not cover the consumers' view and approach to online shopping, and the deeper decisions engaged during the process of shopping online. The study utilised the qualitative approach and semi-structured interviews were used to extract data from online shoppers. The study found that online shoppers viewed shopping as utilitarian activity for acquiring products. The activity did not provide any enjoyment or opportunity for human interaction. Online shopping value proposition anchored on efficiency in getting best product information, offering variety and purchasing the products. The study identified gaps in the online shopping process that inhibits rate of adoption. Online stores should attend to end-to-end shopping experience to mitigate impact of the weak links in the process. The product fulfilment (delivery) and product returns policy provides an opportunity to improve the adoption of online shopping. The study identified key questions to be excavated further; a key recommendation would be to study how subsidising cost of data would impact online visits.

Despite the undeniable importance of color in advertising and marketing communication in general, the number of color impact studies in these areas is very scarce. Colors are one of the most important nonverbal signs for products. Therefore, the main purpose of this paper is to provide some basic guidance and knowledge on the use of color in communication in business culture. The importance of colors takes a significant value when it comes to product promotion and packaging. The function of colors to draw attention is to the fact that colors are the first important thing that attracts the attention of the consumer. The colors accepted by consumers are limited, however they play an important role in brand choice. The colors also draw the consumer's attention to packaging. The paper explores color perception in more detail, defines the emotional associations that particular colors evoke, and measures the perceived impact of color in marketing use. This study involved a primary research that was conducted in the form of a survey. The purpose of the research was to determine consumer awareness of the role and importance of color as a marketing tool in their decision-making process. The research examined the observation of certain colors and their impact on the recipient's thoughts and emotions. The marketing literature emphasizes the fact that colors attract the attention of customers, who seek to make a choice between several different brands. It has been proven that colors also serve as a communication tool with consumers. Therefore, colors have a profound impact on brand development.

The study investigates how sophisticated and advanced entrepreneurs are in terms of customer benefits (CB), and examines how entrepreneurs incorporate CB in products and unique value propositions. The basic CB set: functional, symbolic, experiential and cost, is expanded to an extensive array of 16 CB. It is found that all CB are generally already established or implemented. Some CB are well-known, common, well-implemented, and elementary to implement, while others are not. The implementation of certain CB may require original and innovative thought. Not all CB are well understood or grasped. A number of CB can still be exploited and developed further. It commonly occurred that one customer benefit was (mis)taken for another. Entrepreneurs are not necessarily well-trained and well-informed about CB, and generally have need of learning and developing further in terms of CB, and their application. CB are not that application-specific or -dependent. Many of the CB are possible for many of the entrepreneurs and their businesses. In many instances, the CB may imply further product extensions. Benefit composites are typical. Additional benefit intricacies include how quickly CB realize, co-existence and co-occurrence of CB, complications related to application of CB, and ethical and moral issues related to CB. Overall, a customer focus may imply a benefit focus.

Indonesia's tourism ministry is currently intensively using the online environment to promote many of Indonesia's favorite tourism destinations. Social media tools (Facebook, Instagram etc.) are very popular in today's Indonesia promotion tools. This research wants to test the relationship between social media promotion, attention, interest, searching, action to destination, and tourists' intention to share their experiences. With a survey research design applied to 200 tourists of Kei Island, East Indonesia, in the general model, the results found that social media destination promotion influences tourists' attention, and searching in a positive and significant manner; further, tourists' searching activity can influence their actions. The study also implied testing the gender as a control variable in a structural equation model and found that for female respondents, social media promotion has a positive and direct influence on the attention of these respondents.

Social media offers marketers a broad set of instruments to connect to targeted customers in a personalized and interactive manner. Different social media platforms enable different innovative strategies for an organization's social media presence. In this framework, Instagram has become a popular social media platform for luxury fashion brands. This paper explores the area of luxury fashion brands on Instagram by focusing on key practices that should be implemented in a social media marketing strategy. The main objectives of this study are: (1) the present the concept of luxury brands, (2) to examine the social media marketing of luxury brands aimed at driving consumer engagement, (3) to assess the marketing practices of luxury fashion brands on Instagram, especially as they relate to influencers and celebrity endorsements.

As the airline industry reaches its maturity, so do the passengers who are looking for more sophistication in terms of the products and services they buy or expect. Offering a large array of services to customers with different expectations who await customization along their journey has become more challenging for airlines all over the world. Coping with changes in a volatile environment means that airlines need to redefine their customer segmentation, evolving from a social-demographic to a more complicated behavioral approach which encompasses the whole traveling experience and the way airlines deliver at every touching point.

Microgreens are considered a new specialty product in the culinary arts. This horticultural product is composed by the stem and fully developed cotyledons, and sometimes, with the first two true leaves in their first stage of development. Microgreens can be grown with seeds of different species and varieties of vegetables, aromatic herbs and wild herbs, giving to the gastronomic industry new ingredients with flavor, color and texture. The objectives developed in this investigation were divided in two sections. First, the objective focused on determining the productive viability of four different species of microgreens under controlled environment, namely mustard (Brassica juncea var. Red Giant), amaranth (Aaranthus tricolor var. Garnet Red), radish (Raphanus sativus var. Hong Vit) and arugula (Eruca sativa var. Rocket)]. Second, the paper aimed at assessing the current, potential demand and market segments of microgreens in the restaurant industry of the capital of Sonora, Mexico.

Like private organizations, territories have become concerned about their image and their competitiveness. Thus, to improve their attractiveness, cities have invested to enhance their image and create brands to differentiate them from other cities. A territory cannot have a good image if the residents are not satisfied. They constitute the first target to be satisfied and integrated into the development project of the territory. The purpose of this research is to study the determinants of the residents' adoption of the city branding. What will make residents adopt or not the brand of their city? This research will be carried out as part of a study on the case of Casablanca, which has had a city branding since September 2016 to promote the city.

This study aims to explore the role of mobile marketing communication on social media networks and how it contributes to customers' experience. For analyzing the gathered information, both qualitative and quantitative techniques have been used. Analysis has been performed with the use of thematic perception for exploring the role of mobile marketing communication on social media networks and how it contributes to customers' experience. Empirical evidences claim that companies which are using social networking sites can easily attract many customers in order to increase the sales and profit. People are more aware of products and they like online purchasing because of various reasons, such as lack of time and the ability of comparing different products. In modern era, people are focused on the mobile phone as they spend most of time on it, and this especially applies to young people. Therefore, companies should take advantage this known fact and increase the visibility of their brands. Moreover, most of the customers who state that the availability of social media on their mobile phone has made customers more informed about brands when they make purchasing decisions. It shows that social media on mobile phones makes the purchasing process easier than ever before for the customers in helping them to make a purchasing decision of products and services.

The purpose of this study was to examine and analyze the quality of information, quality of the SIPMB website, trust, and behavioral intention to use of SIPMB information on the Government of Banda Aceh. More specifically, the research focused on the impact of information quality, website quality, and user trust on the behavioral intention of using SIPBM and the impact of information and website quality on behavioral intention through a mediating variable, namely trust The subjects of this study were employees of government agencies SKPK in Banda Aceh and the study gathered 140 responses. The results showed that all five hypotheses were accepted, as the study examined direct and indirect relationships. In terms of the direct hypothesis testing, the results showed a significant influence of the independent variables to the dependent variable. The results of indirect hypothesis testing, that examined the quality of information and the quality of the website on behavioral intention through trust, were significant in the context of the model. For these results, trust has a partial mediating role. From the findings of this study, it is evident that the quality of information acts as the biggest trigger on promoting greater user interest in the use of data or information contained in this SIPBM website than any other examined variable.

The study has mainly focused on exploring the characteristics of mobile phone applications that correspond to the need of customers at various phases of Buying Decision Process (BDP). This was mediated with reference to the biggest e-supermarkets in Saudi Arabia. Methods: A two-phase methodology was implemented by combining qualitative and quantitative methods and evaluated 647 responses. E-supermarkets attempted to influence customers' behavior in all 5 stages of the BDP, as reflected in their mobile applications. However, some mismatches were found with customer expectations. The research increases understanding of the relationship between marketing activities on the e-supermarkets application and consumers' needs during the purchasing stages offering a new context.

In the context of digital marketing mode, the traditional retail industry encounters unprecedented impact and competitive edges of traditional marketing are disappearing. This paper comprehensively explores and analyzes retail precision marketing strategies based on the digital marketing model. Firstly, the predicament faced by the traditional retail industry from the aspects of commodity and consumer, sales technology and sales thinking is analyzed. Secondly, the strategic implementation of precision marketing in retail industry is presented. Finally, cases of precision marketing applications in reality are studied to analyze the digital marketing mode in three aspects: customer segmentation in marketing market, positioning of shopping basket and targeted customer marketing. It is demonstrated that using big data, changing the traditional marketing mode, implementing precise marketing strategy, accurately gathering limited marketing resources to valuable customers, and establishing a new marketing mode are of great significance for long-term sustainable development in the era of new retail.

The study examines the perceptions of entrepreneurs and innovators regarding radical innovation (RI). Emphasis was squarely on the perceptions innovators hold of RI, to lay bare psyche and mindset in this regard. Given this specific focus, experience of RI was not deemed necessary, only general entrepreneurship and innovation experience. It is believed that any sufficiently experienced innovator would have constructed some perception of RI, and that this greatly impacts attitude towards RI. The study considers comprehension regarding general RI principles, perceived requirements for RI, and general knowledge of RI method. Overall, incremental innovation (II) dominates, and RI enjoys little regard and preference. This is due to the perceived risk, lack of support, and consequently, the cost to the entrepreneur. It may also be impacted by innovation style, and broader factors, like innovation culture and environment. Understanding of RI is simultaneously promising and lacking. There are evident gaps, yet signs of potential. In general, RI is seen as very risky, perceived requirements for RI are conventionally appraised, and understanding of RI method is not comprehensive. It is believed that RI thinking and method itself can form the middle ground and bridge between II and RI. The entrepreneur versed in RI thinking and method, may more willingly consider RI, once he is able to apply RI thinking and method to II, and benefit from it. Also, sustained and sustainable RI requires proper innovation culture and environment.

This study aims to reduce the number of Tuna processing in Aceh products that will be exported to Japan. The decline in the defect level of this product is a critical point to reduce the number of customer complaints so that business continuity with trading partners abroad is maintained. The main fish products export from Aceh are fresh tuna loin fish. There are often complaints from customers in export destination countries because the fresh Tuna Loin products received by them are not up to standard. The color of the tuna is less red and tends to be pale, the fish looks less fresh, and the texture of the fish is broken and mushy. To solve this problem, the PDCA method is used, which consists of Planning by doing observation in the fish processing unit starting from the reception of the fish until the final product processing. It does by improving the weakness of the process such as tightening the time of purchasing fish, adding fish containers, improve cooling room temperature, standardization of production process providing dry ice inside the packaging to maintain the quality of loin. Control by evaluating the number of complaints and compare it to the previous one. Action by doing standardization of the process and publish Standard Operation Procedures booklet as a guide to be followed during the production stage. This effort was supported by the use of 7 quality control tools, namely check sheet, histogram, Pareto chart, control chart, cause and effect diagram, and FMEA. There was also one expert Tuna from Japan is staying in Aceh to ensure the quality of Tuna delivered in accordance with Japanese market expectations. Improvements have been made to reduce the number of defects and complaints from customers. The number of defects items, both the color and texture of Tuna meat as of July to August 2018 felt by 45% and 42% respectively compare to the period of March-May 2018. Consequently the number of fresh tuna loin complaints has also decreased because all of the loin shipped to them were already in good quality. This research only takes samples on the processing of Tuna fishermen product in in Banda Aceh, and only for Japanese market. Further research suggested to cover area beyond Aceh and also for other countries apart from Japan, for export destination. Research on improving the quality of Tuna with PDCA method as long as the author's knowledge has never been done in Aceh because the export of Loin Tuna Aceh to Japan has only recently developed.

Purchase decision is a decision to choose one from two or more alternative options. It can be assumed that all behaviors are deliberately based on the desire that are produced when consumers consciously and rationally choose one of the alternative actions. This study was conducted in Hardy's Retailindo, Sanur Branch. The sample included 100 respondents. The techniques of data collection were through observation, interviews, and questionnaire. The techniques of data analysis were through a validity test, reliability test, path analysis, and Sobel test. The results of this study showed that service quality has a significant effect on the purchase decision in Hardy's Retailindo, Sanur Branch. The level of significance for service quality on the purchase decision is 0.000 is lower than 0.05. Moreover, the service quality also had a significant impact on the corporate image for the retail outlet that was examined in this paper. Another significant effect was established between service quality and purchase decision. All hypotheses displayed levels of significance lower than 0.05. This paper also aimed to explore the mediation role of corporate image in the ‘services quality' – ‘purchase decision' relationship.

The objective of this paper is to identify the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT) of Sailing Yacht tourism based on empirical evidence, mainly on demand aspects. The results will be very useful for decision-makers to design, launch and control marketing strategies and policies including promotional aspects to increase the awareness of the yacht sailors from various parts of the world, arouse their intention to come, increase spending and length of stay in Sabang as a free trade zone in west part of Indonesia. Data collection was conducted qualitatively by using the Focus Group Discussion (FGD) technique conducted in four sessions. Each session involves ten sailors who serve as respondents. The data were then analyzed using both score and weight associated with IFAS and EFAS aspects. The output is mapped in Cartesian graphs. The main finding of this study is that the strategy that must be implemented by Sabang is an Aggressive strategy, which uses the Strength to seize the profitable Opportunities. This is in line with the combined strategy that recommends Strength Opportunity (SO) as a priority strategy because it has the highest value of 16.92. In sequence, the next strategy is Weakness Opportunities (WO) that is meant to fix the Weakness in other to be able to grab the profitable Opportunities so that untapped opportunities can be utilized for the benefit of the sailors and tour operators. Then, ST and WT strategies will be implemented to complete all 4 strategies recommended. With the implementation of these four strategies based on the priority scale, it is expected to maximize the utilization of limited resources, but also at the same time maximize the efforts made to achieve the goal of increasing the number of sailor visits to Sabang, Indonesia and increasing their length of stay.

This article aims to identify and develop policies and proposals of primary importance for a sustainable tourism development and a competitive Greek tourist product. As the tourist product is an amalgam of services and resources that are offered and controlled by various businesses, organizations and agencies, the implementation of proposals is the collective responsibility of all, as it involves the cultivation and development of synergies and a climate of cooperation among all the tourist partners. These proposals also refer to the necessary actions both at the macroeconomic level of destination and at the microeconomic level of tourism enterprises. To locate these proposals, the article begins by exploring the tourism development and policy pursued in Greece over the last decades. On the basis of this analysis, the analyzed proposals focus on the following (Mihalic, 2016): (1) organizational, management and institutional reforms required by emphasizing the establishment and operation of a National Agency for Destination Management with clear roles, objectives and functions (Dodds and Joppe, 2017); (2) exploiting new technologies to increase competitiveness, innovation and sustainability of tourist destinations and businesses. Gravity is given to the development of Electronic Management Systems and Destination Marketing with specific services, purposes and functions (Budeanu et al., 2016); (3) the continuous development of key factors in tourism, such as human resources, tourist facilities, infrastructure and businesses (Song, 2016); (4) the development and continuous modernization of tourist attractions and products, with emphasis on the creation of inter-company networks aiming at the development of integrated thematic tourist packages that can enrich and diversify the tourist product as well as support a more sustainable tourism development.

This article tends to explain the differences between the Outbound Marketing strategy and the Inbound Marketing strategy, by offering a comparison of these techniques used by these two approaches. This paper aims to determine the impact of the “new marketing strategies” on the existent ones, and clarifies if these two strategies are complementary or independent for a company operating in a highly competitive environment.

In recent years, consumers' loyalty has become an important issue in health-case in general and in dentistry in particular. Following the increasing activity in dental services, consumer loyalty. This study investigates the factors that influence consumers' loyalty to their dentist. Data was collected through a self-administered survey to consumers; 489 responses were received and 108 surveys were completed and analyzed. The proposed relationships were tested by using regression analysis in Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). Results indicate that consumers' trust toward their dentist has an effect on consumer loyalty. Further, consumers' perceived value tends to influence consumer loyalty. However, e-WOM and service's price do not have an impact on consumer loyalty. These findings have important implications for a manager in dentistry. Managers should increase consumers' trust and perceived value to keep the consumers coming back to the dental office.

This study aims to develop student loyalty models as well as implement and refine student loyalty models in Private Islamic Religion Universities in Medan City. This study included an associative study. The questionnaires were distributed to 300 students and the survey implied multiple Likert scales. To process the data, we used Lisrel 8.80. The results of the study showed that the marketing mix, service quality, Islamic values, and institutional image had a positive and significant effect on student satisfaction and on student loyalty for the students of the Private Islamic Religion College in Medan.

Grounded theory is used to examine the relationship between benefit and innovation. The benefits of a broad array of products were considered, and a list of benefit and functionality categories was devised. 84 products were considered, with little (no) restriction on brand, industry, or time frame. From this 16 benefit categories and 17 functionality categories were listed. These benefit and functionality categories are seen as universal, and not product or industry or time specific. Benefit was equally examined and categorized from the vantage point of market entry and the replacement of existing or incumbent products. The notions of core benefit/ functionality, as well as necessary and redundant benefit/ functionality, were also used. Universal benefit and functionality categories should aid innovators and entrepreneurs, and bring greater coherency to their efforts. Also, benefit and functionality may equally reflect on customer satisfaction.

The tourism sector is one of the most important business sectors in Greece. The term “online travel agency” refers to the transfer to the Internet of all or part of the tourism services offered by a real travel agency. The purpose of this study was to discuss the role of the Internet as an important tool in the tourism industry by presenting the ways it is used in customer service. The study focuses on an online travel agency. The methodology of the study was based on the collection of secondary data, which was collected through articles in journals as well as through official web sites. Specifically, the study discussed the use of the Internet and its importance in the field of tourism, and presented and analyzed the features and functions of an online travel agency, focusing on the basic services of an online travel agency, the subsystem of the customers, the provider's subsystem and the subsystem of the intermediaries. In addition, a standardized online travel agency system was presented and finally an online travel guide was analyzed. The study concluded that tourism marketing is a necessary tool to be used in the management of all tourism businesses in order to achieve the planned marketing goals.

The aim of this article is to study the role of environmental management in the development of tourism marketing as a means of promotion and development of tourist destinations. Initially, there is an attempt to theoretically approach the concept of tourism marketing and then the risks are presented and the problems involved in the implementation of tourism marketing and tourism marketing organization. The article continues with the study of the behavior of the environment in tourism marketing focusing on tourist attraction incentives, the concept of tourism, the concept of the destination image and the expectations of tourists. The article concludes that the various marketing stimuli and not only affect the above-mentioned purchasing process of the individual while they are introduced into the consumer's black box where they are processed. The result of this process is the choices the buyer will make about the good (product or service), the brand, the supplier, the time and the amount of the purchase.

The aims of this research were (1) to analyze the advantages and disadvantages of sharia unit Nagari Bank rahn products. (2) to analyze the transaction process of the Bank Nagari sharia rahn's transaction process, and (3) to understand and analyze barriers and constraints in slowing Bank Nagari's rahn transactions. To determine the right strategy in order to increase sharia rahn sales at the Padang Branch of Bank Nagari Sharia, descriptive analysis was used, namely through SWOT analysis. The results of this study obtained the main constraints faced by Bank Nagari Sharia Unit in marketing rahn products related to weak socialization, lack of promotional activities, appropriate facilities and infrastructure. The strategies that must be developed include aggressive and diversified strategies.

The objective of this study is to test and analyze the influence of trust on a technology used for internet banking and its impact on customers' interest to use internet banking. The fieldwork chosen for this research is the internet banking industry in Indonesia. However, the research focused on Aceh and North Sumatra's big cities that are Banda Aceh and Medan because both cities have the largest number of internet banking customers. The variables that have been selected for analysis and review to uncover the phenomena that have been developed in this study are: ‘Customer beliefs on technology reliability', ‘Customer acceptance of IT Value' and ‘Converting intention on Internet Banking (IB)'. The population is the main subject on which the researchers focus their study to examine specific parameters, and then be able to draw conclusions (Hair et al., 2010). In this paper, the study group is represented by internet banking customers from Aceh and North Sumatra regions, totaling 531.000 individuals, with 216.000 internet banking users in Aceh province and 315.000 in Nord Sumatra. Regarding the respondents' sample, the researchers used a purposive sampling design using specific criteria, such as geographical location and length of internet banking utilization in this probability sampling technique. The results showed that the influence of IT Trust on converting IB is not significant. In other words, there is no influence between the IT Trust variable and converting IB. IT Acceptance functions as a full mediating variable that connects IT Trust variable to converting IB. In moderation multi-group analysis, gender is not seen as a control group and in this study, there is no significant difference in behavior between female and male customers.

The use of third-party seals within marketing and advertising materials is a long-standing industry practice used by marketers worldwide. And while the effectiveness of seals as a marketing and advertising tactic has been widely studied, to date, no single model has been developed to predict the impact of seals on consumer purchase intent. To uncover what impact seals really have, two online surveys were conducted to understand how aware of seals consumers are, how credible they perceive them to be, and what impact they have on purchase intent. The results of these surveys reveal that the success of a seal is dependent of the consumers knowledge of the brand being marketed, their awareness of the third-party seal being applied in marketing material, and the seals ability to convey information important to the consumer in differentiating offerings. These results have also been applied to the Third-Party Seal Model, a three-step process which allows marketers to select third-party seals to use in brand communications.

This study investigates the association of both health hazards awareness and price sensitivity of soft drinks with consumer's purchase attitude in Saudi Arabian market. The study also investigates whether there is a moderating role for each of consumer's gender, age, education, and monthly income on the two studied relationships. The study has been conducted on 865 respondents of soft drinks consumers in Saudi Arabia and an online self-administered survey has been used to collect primary data from the participants. The study findings revealed a statistically significant negative associations of both soft drinks' health hazards awareness and price sensitivity with consumer's purchase attitude. Heath hazards awareness is higher than the price sensitivity in predicting the consumer's purchase attitude. Hence, the consumer's attitude is more responsive to health hazards awareness than the price sensitivity. The study also found that consumer's gender, age, education, and income do not significantly moderate the relationships between either of health hazards awareness or price sensitivity and the purchase attitude of soft drinks. Thus, the study recommends marketers to adopt social orientation in doing marketing activities and do best to develop healthier soft drinks. Furthermore, marketers should be careful when setting soft drinks' prices because of consumer sensitivity. Optimization of soft drinks' cost structure can help in respect to price sensitivity. Finally, the undifferentiated marketing strategy is suitable for targeting in the Saudi market concerning gender, age, education, and income.

Nowadays, amid increasingly tight competition in the business environment and the difficulties students are experiencing in getting new jobs, being an entrepreneur is increasingly in high demand among college graduates. The advancement of information technology has enabled many jobs to be carried out efficiently. Moreover, the dissemination of knowledge takes place quickly and widely, so that one's interest to start up a business by utilizing information technology is also increasing. The purpose of this research is to a test research model that proposes that self-efficacy and motivation will affect students' intentions to become entrepreneurs. In general, self-efficacy is a condition in which individuals believe that a behavior is easy or difficult to achieve, including experiences and obstacles that individuals consider; while motivation leads to entrepreneurial activities that can be interpreted as a stimulus that can encourage someone to run a business. The research design is represented by the survey technique, which implied using a questionnaire provided to a number of students, selected with purposive sampling technique. By using a multiple regression analysis, the results showed that self-efficacy and motivation variables proved to be positively significant to entrepreneurial intention. However, parents' profession did not moderate the relationship between self-efficacy and motivation to entrepreneurial intention.

In Romania, the value of online shopping reached 2.8 billion in 2017, 40% more than in 2016, being one of the highest increases in the European Union. However, the e-commerce market value is still small compared to other European countries, one of the main reasons that people prefer not to buy online is mistrust in the quality of the products offered. In order to gain insights into the criteria used by Romanian consumers to evaluate product quality, we conducted eight in depth interviews. The results show that there are a lot of similarities between attributes used to evaluate product quality in a physical store and attributes used to evaluate product quality in an online store. Meanwhile, the differences consists in the presence of customer reviews as the most relevant attribute for the online stores and price as the most relevant attribute for physical stores.

The purpose of this research is to understand the extent of the business of Minahasa Cultural House and how it can compete in international market, particularly in facing other competitors while maintaining its uniqueness and cultural value. The researchers used a qualitative approach, in addition to the case-study method. The data used in this research were both primary and secondary data. The data collection was achieved through observation technique, interview, and documentation. The data analysis implied three steps, namely (1) data reduction, (2) data display, (3) conclusions. The results of this research show the main factors that will help achieve the competitiveness of Minahasa Cultural House to other business competitors are: condition factor, demand factor, industrial-related factor, and the government's role. The key factor highlighted in this research that influences the competitiveness is the condition factor, such as the quality of the product, price of the product, human resources, uniqueness, innovation, and the demand of the product itself.

The interactivity dimension of the internet has allowed the customer to be a part of the marketing of any brand, product, services, or other entity. To this extent, digital inbound marketing encourages a customer-centric perspective in which organizations have to focus on helping consumers and involving them in the value-delivering process. An important component of digital inbound marketing that creates value and engagement for consumers is content marketing. The aim of this paper was to provide an examination of ‘content marketing' and to gain understanding of the key dimensions of this digital marketing strategy, with its underlying tactics that can be implemented by companies in online environments. The insights presented in this study contribute to the content marketing strategy, as a viable strategy to other interruptive marketing techniques.

Distracted driving, specifically texting and driving, has become a nationwide public health problem in the U.S. with negative, and potentially fatal consequences. In an effort to combat the growing problem, non-profit organizations, corporations, and the federal government have all stepped in to try to increase public awareness and persuade drivers to cease texting while driving. These efforts have not had the desired impact as texting and driving has continued to increase in recent years. This research investigates the potential that the messages used to curb texting and driving behavior might not be properly constructed. Specifically, we test the potential for message sponsor and self-relevance of the message to influence message outcomes. Our results suggest that messages sponsored by a combination of company and government that are self-relevant to viewers will have different outcomes than other messages. We identify practical and theoretical implications as well as future research directions.

The concept of loyalty has evolved as an important issue in the world of marketing as companies are focusing their strategy in retaining customers and increasing their sales. The purpose of this study is to re-evaluate the involvement of various factors related to the perception of value, service quality, brand trust and brand loyalty in the industry of mobile phones through literature review and examination of previous research. Some studies have found that the observed variables are the key drivers of brand loyalty. However, other opinions are also presented for their different perspectives and a broader view of the research topic.

Seen as a new form of manifestation of the behavior of the consumer of tourism products and services, culinary tourism has recorded an ascending trending the last years, with a positive forecast for the following years. A possible explanation for this phenomenon is the orientation and encouragement of the tourist services providers to adopt regional development strategies that harness traditional local resources and products in a context where the contemporary consumer no longer only pursues the acquisition of products and services to meet their needs, but also looks forward to new experiences that are a delight for the senses. Against this background, the present paper aims to highlight some of the characteristics of culinary tourism and to customize some of the dimensions of consumer behavior oriented towards this form of tourism, in an economy where the tertiary sector, and specifically the tourism sector, play a leading role both in Europe and worldwide.

In 2016, the global airline industry reached almost 70 billion dollars in ancillaries (up from 60 billion dollars in 2015), while the ancillary revenues on a global scale reached a 10% share of overall airline revenue, according to Ideaworks, a consulting firm that measures airline ancillary revenues. This research aims to investigate how airline companies use ancillaries in their favour to add value and revenue sources to the booking engine, offer flexibility to their passengers, increase revenues and customer satisfaction, interact with passengers at all touch points to create commercial opportunities and differentiate their brand.

This study aims to analyze the effect of service quality toward satisfaction and customer loyalty for PT. BNI (Persero) Tbk, Aceh Province. The article also analyses customer satisfaction as a mediator variable between service quality and customer loyalty. The sampling technique in the study was based on cluster and convenience sampling with corresponding criteria; each respondent has a bank account and saving for at least one year. The primary data were collected from respondents using the structured questionnaires. A total of 220 questionnaires were distributed in five branch offices of PT. BNI (Persero) Tbk operating in Aceh Province, namely the branchs of Lhokseumawe, Bireuen, Langsa, Sigli and Meulaboh. The results showed that service quality has a significant and positive effect toward satisfaction and customer loyalty for PT. BNI (Persero) Tbk Aceh Province. Meanwhile, the variable of customer satisfaction can mediate the effect of service quality toward customer loyalty. However, the study found that service quality is the important element in increasing satisfaction and customer loyalty in national banking.

In order to assess consumer preferences for milk and meat quality attributes, a study was carried out in two Second-Tier cities of Tamil Nadu. Personal interviews were done to collect the data from 160 respondents chosen through a multistage sampling procedure in each of the two cities selected for this study. Ordered Probit model fitted for the attributes of milk showed that: family size had a significant positive preference towards texture, low fat and low price of milk, educated consumers paid greater attention to taste, safety, flavour, packaging and low fat attributes of milk and low income consumers paid less importance on most of the attributes of milk. Ordered Probit model for meat revealed that as the family size increased, the consumers were likely to give more importance to ageing and tenderness and less importance to leanness of meat. Male consumers paid greater attention to colour and females were none concerned with tenderness, cooking quality and price. As the education level increased, the consumers became more and more quality and price conscious. Households having children paid more importance to tenderness and taste attributes of meat, whereas the household having aged people opted for colour, taste, tenderness, cooking quality, leanness and price attributes. Low income consumers paid less importance to quality attributes and the respondents performing more physical activity paid lesser attention towards leanness and more importance to price of the meat. This suggests the need for enhancing the production of quality livestock products, together by developing a well-organized distribution system.

Technological innovation has grown at an unprecedented rate over the past couple of decades, creating multiple opportunities for marketing in online settings. The proliferation of social media helps customers become more empowered and engaged in their brand interactions, while also providing them with new tools in their search, evaluation, choice and purchases of marketing offerings. Consequently, these developments are influencing marketing practices, both strategically, and tactically. Nowadays, social media has developed in an essential part of marketing strategy for its ability to generate co-created value, to interactively connect brands to consumers, to monitor brand-related discussions and sentiments, to guide consumers in the decision-making process, to instigate customer-to-customer interactions, and transform consumers into brand advocates. The purpose of this paper is to examine the strategic opportunities of social media marketing for organizations. By providing a comprehensive conceptualization and definition of social media marketing, this research outlines its role in advertising, Customer Relationship Management, and e-Word-of-Mouth.

The purpose of this conducted study was to test the direct and indirect effects of internet banking quality and customer value to customer satisfaction. This study uses descriptive analysis and multiple regression analysis to examine these relationships. The study is based on a survey conducted with respondents who use internet banking in their day-to-day activities, and all questionnaire items are deemed valid and reliable. For data analysis, the descriptive analysis for the indicators, dimensions, and variables proved to be in a good category. Research findings and implications of the regression analysis show that internet banking quality and customer value had a greater direct impact on customer satisfaction, rather the partial relationships of these variables to satisfaction. In the partial relationships, customer value has a higher influence on customer satisfaction, than internet banking quality. As a research recommendation, banks should provide a more humanistic internet banking service for better consumer satisfaction. A major research limitation of the study is that it does not measure service quality of internet banking, and only focuses on customers of internet banking use of one single bank. The originality of this research relies on the insights of internet banking quality leading to customer satisfaction and increasing the value of a bank to its main target markets.

Due to the rapid technological development and a globally competitive business environment, creative marketing methods become increasingly important for a unique value proposition. As a result, the aim of this research paper is to critically evaluate the influence of creative thinking on marketing creativity. In order to evaluate this correlation, examples of creative marketing concepts in traditional marketing and online marketing campaigns are examined and analysed in regards to potentially required creative thinking processes. This evaluation led to the conclusion that creative thinking influences marketing creativity in a holistic way by creating experiences, forming relationships, and addressing large audiences in a cost-efficient way.

Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) have their own superiority in which they pervade not only in terms of human resources, but also in their role in national economic development. The aim of this study is to develop acculturation innovation and competing superiority for increasing the marketing development of the bakery business actors in Central Java. This study's sample consists of 161 respondents who are bakery business owners from Central Java. By using the purposive sampling technique, several criteria were considered for the SMEs representatives from the bakery industry sample, such as the SMEs must be certified at Disperindag, have at least one employee, and invest at least IDR 1.000.000,- . The analyzing method that is used in this study is SEM. The result of the study shows the market orientation with specific dimensions, such as gaining information about the customers' needs, competitors' powers, and functions' coordination affected competitors' superiority, and acculturation innovation. While it comes to some dimensions such as changes in culture-based products, culture-based price' changing, culture-based packaging, and production processes, competing superiority is affected.

Companies are increasingly recognizing the value of social media marketing for their implication in developing and increasing the value of a brand in online environments. As a result, companies devote time and effort to engage with current and potential consumers on social media platforms and co-create of value with brand advocates. This study focuses on social media marketing as part of digital inbound marketing, its uses for organizations and its potential for branding in online settings. These brand-related social media tactics and strategies involve initiatives such as ongoing business-to-consumer conversations, content that is created and shared on social media, consumer engagement experiences, and a brand persona that invites consumers to co-create the brand in online settings, it promotes interaction, participation, and collaboration with consumers. This study concludes with some recommendations on future research.

The web channel is increasingly a central aspect of the second-hand economy and, as such, favours also more sustainable post-consumption processes. This is why the field of online reselling appears increasingly important. Besides, the ever broadening scope of online reselling is key to the success of new online intermediaries that position themselves in the broader movement of collaborative consumption. While, consumers' attachment for secondhand exchanges is not new, they have largely embraced its online declination. In response to these evolutions in the online retail environment, traditional retail companies have therefore started to create online consumer marketplaces in which consumers exchange goods by themselves. In order to best adapt such online marketplaces to consumers, it is therefore critically important to gain a better understanding of the driving forces behind online reselling. At present, knowledge about what motivates consumers to resell products online is limited. This article outlines the development and validation process of an online resale motivation (ORM) scale via three studies involving 1,119 respondents. Study 1 presents the ORM scale development process and resulting multi-dimensional construct, including protester, economic, generative, recreational, practical and social facets. Study 2 replicates the scale and investigates its predictive capabilities. More specifically, the ORM scale predicts successfully online resale frequency. Consumers who are more highly motivated to resell online, will indeed resell more often online. Study 3 examines the mediating role of ORM on the relationship between planned resale intentions (PRI) and online resale behaviour. The fact that consumers plan to resell a product prior to its purchase, will not directly lead them to increase the frequency at which they resell online. Rather, it is because they perceive positive economic, practical and recreational outcomes associated with online reselling that they resell more frequently online the goods which they intended to resell prior to their purchase.

The mobile telecommunications in Ghana is a highly competitive market which faces a problem of retaining their customers due to low switching cost. The purpose of this study was to investigate sales territory management and distributor performance of Vodafone in Sunyani. The population for the study was staff and retailers of Vodafone product and services. Multi-Stage sampling approach was employed for the study. A well-structured questionnaire and interview guide were used in collecting data from the respondents. Descriptive statistics, One Sample t-test, Kendall's Coefficient of Concordance and Pearson Correlation Matrix were used to analyse the data. Results revealed that there was effective supervision of the sales territory representatives by the sales managers. The retailer's confirmed the receipt of their requested orders from the distributor when the need arose. The sales territory representatives confirmed that sales managers involved them in developing new or adjusted territory plans for effective distribution. This study suggests that the key distributor should restructure their distribution strategy for better market penetration. Vodafone should do more to support the distributor in terms of logistics and intensify sales training for the sales territory representatives. Furthermore, the study prescribed five generic factors to serve as best practices for distributor management of any organisation.

The marketing of the financial services by financial institution is regarded as an easier job. This is due to the fact that, in most cases, when a client is gained, he/she remains loyal to the institution on a long term. Nowadays, taking into consideration the needs of the consumers – clients who are undergoing a constant change – financial institutions are faced with a necessity to have the required knowledge and information regarding what and how to meet the needs of their clients. Financial institutions have reached a stage of adapting their daily activities with the demands of their clients. Thus, this is due to the available information which deals with the needs of the clients, opportunities of financial institution themselves, structural changes in the services provided, and the changes in the market which includes competition. This paper will strive to present the stages of the marketing development in financial institutions through the acquisition of knowledge regarding the finances and marketing of these services. It also involves the current concept and approach towards marketing by financial institutions in Kosovo. Adopting new approaches would satisfy the client and would strengthen the position of financial institution. In addition, through this analysis, we will try to show the importance of including the concept of marketing in the operations and strategies of financial institutions for a successful business.

The purpose of this study is to investigate a model of brand personality and the effect of a halal brand on purchase intentions, particularly, by highlighting of religious commitment mediated between brand personality, and purchase intentions on a Halal brand. This study uses a path analysis with the main concepts of brand personality, religious commitment, and purchase intentions. The sampling method used non-probability sampling. Data were collected from 120 respondents at several supermarkets in North Sumatera, Indonesia. Findings of the study indicated that brand personality does not have a significant and positive effect on the purchase intention of a Halal brand. However, the role of religious commitment is significant in mediating the relationship between brand personality and purchase intentions of a Halal brand. Finally, the results of this study also showed the total effects between brand personality, purchase intentions, and religious commitment. Dimensions of brand personality were not always relevant on the dimensions of a Halal brand.

Discovering needs, habits and consumer behavior is the primary task of marketing analytics. It is necessary to integrate marketing and analytical skills with IT skills. Such knowledge integration allows access to data (structured and unstructured), their analysis and finding out information about the opinions, attitudes, needs and behavior of customers. In the paper is set the hyphotesis that software tools can collect data (messages) from social networks, analyze the content of messages and get to know the attitudes of customers about a product, service, tourist destination with the ultimate goal of improving customer relations. Experimental results are based on the analysis of the content of social network Facebook by using the package and function R language. This language showed a satisfactory application and development power in analysis of textual data on social networks for marketing analytics.

The concept “credibility” has become significant attention from academics and practitioners because it played an important role in creating and maintaining consumer behavior. This study uses twenty- seven references relates to credibility, customer value, satisfaction, and loyalty. Several studies have discussed the relationship between credibility and consumer behavior and also elaborated dimensions of credibility. It also presented the shortcomings of current research and the trends for future study in Islamic banking.

The purpose of this paper is the proposal of a scale for measuring emotional states experienced within a point of sale, for non-English speaking consumers. Since the validity of the measuring instruments may affect the relevance and quality of managerial decisions, the development of a sufficiently reliable measurement that take into account the specificity of a country becomes necessary. Following a literature review that allowed us to highlight existing measuring instruments of emotional states and their disadvantages, we have developed a measurement scale based on two emotional dimensions: pleasure and arousal (stimulation). Following the Churchill Paradigm, the results of our analysis show that the reliability and construct validity of our scale were improved.

In marketing, the meaning of value is rapidly shifting from service and relationships to experiences. It is believed that the traditional value proposition is no longer effective to compete in the market and to gain customer loyalty. By adapting the brand experience model, this study tries to validate the model in the banking industry, which is currently facing intense competition to retain customers. The brand experience construct is tested for its direct and indirect relationship toward loyalty. It is postulated that satisfaction and brand authenticity might be instrumental in mediating brand experience to loyalty. Research was conducted via in-depth interview and quantitative survey, targeting bank customers in Jakarta. The result confirmed that brand experience has direct and indirect contribution to loyalty in significant and positive manner. The research contributes in validating previous studies with a rare emphasis in banking sector. The result implies that brand experience is an important value to lead to customer loyalty in this area and subject to growing research on experience marketing.

The purpose of the study is to investigate first, the relationship between the customer satisfaction and brand switching intention into the Saudi Arabian mobile-service market, and second, the association of service quality, customer service, service pricing, and value-added services with the customer satisfaction. Because of the difficulty of having a frame for the mobile-service customers from their providers, a convenience sample of 350 online respondents with the proper surveying techniques was used in data analysis and testing of the research hypotheses. The findings of the study confirm a significant negative relationship between customer satisfaction and brand switching intention. A 4% percent of the change in brand switching intention could be explained by the change in the customer satisfaction. Only three variables; customer service, service pricing, and service quality are critical determinants for mobile-service customer satisfaction. Customer service explained about 22%, whereas service pricing and service quality explained about 5% and 1% of the change in customer satisfaction respectively. The practical value of this study could be enabling the mobile-service providers in Saudi Arabia to well understand the determinants of the customer satisfaction and its negative relationship with brand switching intention. They may take these findings into account when setting marketing strategies to differentiate their brands to satisfy the customer needs and wants, to retain the existing customers and to attract new customers. These strategies have a positive effect on the company's customer satisfaction that deter brand switching intention, hence increase the company's competitiveness, market share and profitability.

This paper explores consumer reactions to a brand alliance, with perceptions of the parent brands, perceived fit between the brands and fit between product categories as the drivers. Drawing on previous work on co-brands (Simonin and Ruth, 1998; Baumgarth, 2000), two simultaneous studies of four consumer brand pairings were conducted in the UK (n=122) and Italy (n=125) using respondents from an online panel. Important differences between the studies are identified and possible cultural explanations for deviant outcomes are discussed.

The most important asset of any business is its employees. Given this fact, normally, every business should have a solid plan to make sure that its employees are satisfied professionally and are loyal to the company. Unfortunately, this is usually not the case. Many companies believe that if they have an excellent product or service that generates high incomes and employees should be content. Generally, employers try to guarantee that its employees will not leave by offering them different benefits, trainings and great compensation. But is that enough to ensure loyalty among staff members? According to different statistics: each year the average company loses 20-50% of its employee base, replacing a lost employee costs 150% of that person's annual salary. These numbers highlight how important the retention and engagement of the employees are for the profitability of a company.

This paper addresses the conceptualization, scale development and scale validation related to the study of consumer engagement in online settings. It first reviews this concept and draws attention to the multidimensionality of the construct, considering the underlying cognitive, emotional, and behavioral dimensions of consumer engagement. Then, it presents the foundation of this concept in relationship marketing and adds support to this proposition. Further, it proposes the construction and psychometric assessment of a 37 scales that examine all three dimensions, based on an international sample of 110 respondents who engage with a brand on a social media network. Based on multiple and successive applications of exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses, 11 scales are developed showing strong evidence of reliability and validity measurement of consumer engagement in online settings. The final section includes a discussion of the academic contributions, managerial, implications of the findings and directions for future research.

Particularly in online settings, marketing is undergoing a transformation. Online business can no longer rely on traditional marketing tactics and campaigns to attract, retain and expand consumers because there is a transformation in how people interact with brands and companies, how they shop and buy in online and offline settings. Traditional marketing is no longer a viable option because it focuses on pushing a message out. In online business framework, a new marketing development has arisen, namely digital inbound marketing. This new marketing type is focused on attracting valuable consumers (potential, existing, or aspirational) that choose to interact with a particular company that provides them with something useful. In this paper, we propose a definition for digital inbound marketing and examine the online strategies associated with this concept: brand-focused marketing communications, content marketing, social media marketing, and search engine optimization.

Customer experience is gaining more and more attention from researchers. Particularly in tourism, this experiences may be determined by hedonic or utilitarian factors. However, there are other influences, both exogenous and endogenous, that may impact consumer behaviors in tourism. Thus, in this article, we explore the receptivity of consumers in terms of certain types of influences, exogenous and endogenous, to hedonic and utilitarian factors related to a tourism package. To examine these research questions, we employ exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, and structural equation modelling on a sample of 150 tourists from Europe and North America.

This paper proposes a probability model to explore the dynamic process of customer's satisfaction. Bases on expectation disconfirmation theory, the satisfaction is constructed with customer's expectation before buying behavior and the perceived performance after purchase. The experiment method is designed to measure expectation disconfirmation effects and we also use the collection data to estimate the overall satisfaction and model calibration. The results show good fitness between the model and the real data. This model has application for business marketing areas in order to manage relationship satisfaction.

The main aim of this study is to examine the relationship between the marketing mix elements and customer loyalty in Algeria Telecom company and to achieve these aspects we distributed a questionnaire to a random sample of the company's customers so that we use structural equations modeling depending on the partial least squares approach “PLS” to analyze and test the search model. The study finds that product, process, and promotion have a positive and significant effect on customer loyalty.

This research uses the methodology Servqual in order to measure the quality of service given by a public university in Barcelona (Spain) to its study abroad students. The analysis explores the results not only from traditional approach based in a expectations versus perceptions point of view but from a more specific approach offering profiles of study abroad students from 5 different nationalities. The research collects information from 622 questionnaires and it provides useful insights related to future strategies for improving satisfaction and service at the host institution.

This article analyzes the concept of value co-creation, which has arisen due to the combination of various modern influences – including economic globalization, changes in consumers' buying habits, and the emergence of the Internet and social media – that have changed the way companies innovate. These factors also have transformed the traditional marketing paradigm, such that companies must continually innovate to create and maintain long-term relationships with their consumers and thus competitive advantages. This study analyzes practices of co-creation and seeks to establish a theoretical research framework; the authors also identify the key effects and results of co-creation activities for both companies and consumers. By integrating situational and moderating variables, the proposed theoretical model covers multiple dimensions and offers a comprehensive approach to the topic.

Being part of the tourism industries involves many researches and analyses in different periods of time, regarding different segments of consumers. Therefore, it is important to be aware of all the factors and motivators that influence a tourist to purchase a particular tourism services. These complex variables are crucial for the final purchase decision of an offer with emotional value for customers. This paper presents the principals motivators which intervene in the decision making process that should be acknowledged by marketers in order to provide the ideal tourism package.

Marketing has acquired a central role in tourism because it helps organizations to create value in transactions with buyers. Thus, this important area of any business process is used to educate consumers, to add value to their experience in tourism, and to seek new ways to reward loyalty through innovative schemes (e.g., programs for frequent travelers). This paper presents the examination of the responses of 154 tourists in relation to their intention to purchase a travel package and the factors that are usually decisive in the decision making process regarding tourism services, factors that could also create the loyalty that any tourism enterprise can create through marketing.

The adoption of sales promotion in the marketing of telecommunication services in Nigeria is common among the front line GSM service providers. This however does not yield the much assured increasing return on investment, hence is unprofitable and the required fund for the expansion of infrastructure base of operation is not earned, and serve rendition is as a result poor. Studying the impact of sales promotion on patronage based on the data sourced and analyzed using Likert's ranking scale, questionnaire and analysis of variance (ANOVA), the work discerns and concludes that the high level of illiteracy based on quantitative rather than qualitative education high level of poverty as well as high rate of rural dwelling are challenges to the expansion of the level of consumption of telecommunication services even at the offer of sales promotion incentives. Recommended is a good quality marketing research with consumers as a trust point for efficiency in market segmentation as basic in the adoption of sales promotion strategy.

This research aims to investigate the different social media strategies adopted by the airline companies from two European regions. In the attempt to land more customers on their social media runway, drive more sales from social media content, increase customer satisfaction through a high response rate or increase their brand awareness, the airlines combine creativity and high-quality ideas to better promote their products and services to customers all around the globe. The paper analyses the content (number of fans, posts, number of likes, the dynamics of comments, response rate) on the Facebook pages of Tarom, Blue Air, Wizz Air, Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines, KLM International and Air Europa on a one week period (10th February – 18th February 2014) and successful practices on social media. The paper also aims to provide solutions for airlines to better connect with their passengers and effectively use the social media environment to increase sales and customer satisfaction.

In practices and academics, the growth/decline of a brand or product sales is often measured with market shares. However, this method does not really gain insight into loyalty and perception of consumers toward brands and products. This paper proposes a concept of Mind Shares which combines confidence and resistance as the main contents of loyalty to establish a new theoretic foundation and develop the calculation method for the quantification of this model. The data from questionnaire survey showed that confidence and resistance are both positively correlated with loyalty, and these two variables are capable of predictability on loyalty. It is considered that this paper lays down the theoretic foundation of Mind Shares and contributes applications.

This study explores the customer satisfaction – loyalty relation in the context of online shopping by introducing various mediators, such as trust, attitude, hedonic value, and utilitarian value. For data collection, we used an online consumer survey in relation to Internet retailing. In this paper we found empirical evidence that loyalty and satisfaction have a reciprocal relationship, but that mediators exist between satisfaction and loyalty. The findings of this study have consequences for customer relationship management, particularly in terms of retention, of the satisfied consumers in an e-shopping environment.

More and more airlines are trying to show their customers their ability to understand their needs, the market trends and the importance of technology in their lives. In response to the rapid development of the consumer electronics, the airline companies focus their attention on offering their customers the possibility to book a flight or check-in using a smartphone, spend time watching movies or be connected to the internet during the flight. Customers search for airlines who are more ”tech-geek” and opened to new technologies, which allows them to rate the airline companies through apps or connect more often with the airline through social-media. Technology has become an important part in developing and marketing the airline services for a better quality, more customer-focused and for better flight experience which ultimately makes the difference when choosing to fly an airline company.

The purpose of the paper is to define and measure the customer engagement as a forming element of the relationship marketing theory. In the first part of the paper, the authors review the marketing literature regarding the concept of customer engagement and summarize the main models for measuring it. One probability model (Pareto/NBD model) and one parametric model (RFM model) specific for the customer acquisition phase are theoretically detailed. The second part of the paper is an application of the RFM model; the authors demonstrate that there is no statistical significant variation within the clusters formed on two different data sets (training and test set) if the cluster centroids of the training set are used as initial cluster centroids for the second test set.

To fully understand the pattern of choice, it is important that any explanation of consumer behavior to be accompanied by a complete understanding of the interplay between a consumer's functional goals and experiential preferences within the decision context. Consumer researchers have increasingly begun to investigate consumer choice based on distinctions that involve the purchase and consumption of goods for pleasure versus for more utilitarian and instrumental purposes. Consumers are often faced with these types of choices between hedonic and utilitarian alternatives that are at least partly driven by emotional desires rather than cold cognitive deliberations. This research approaches factor analysis and multiple linear regression in the context of 150 international respondents and their perception of hedonic and utilitarian motivators on likelihood to buy a tourism package.

E-shopping has the potential to replace traditional in-store shopping. It is well perceived that information and communication technologies have great impacts on modern society – they are changing how and where we work, shop, and in general terms how we live our lives. In this study, we use a survey instrument to examine the association between experience level with Internet and e-shopping and consumers' frequency of online purchasing, while considering sex as a passive influencer. We study these relationships in a multinomial logistic regression model that is aimed at online retailers to help them improve their understanding of their consumers' characteristics and propensity to buy through Internet retailing. Tracking the online journey of consumers will help enhance the attractiveness of this new retailing medium to current and potential customers.

As Internet use continues to increase, companies have to emphasize the understanding of the implications of its use on long term purchase behavior, in terms of satisfaction and loyalty. Ultimately, companies should be interested in consumer perceptions and the factors that play a role in following a certain behavior over an extended period of time. Attaining a successful marketing program compels companies to fully connect with their targeted customers. Therefore, this paper aims to propose a new model that examines relationships between cognitive – affective – conative constructs in an e-shopping environment.