Fengxia Shi, Qiushi Gu and Ting Zhou
Exploring the determinants of a winery brand reputation (BR) and how those determinants interact is vital for the sustainable development of wineries as well as the growth of the…
Abstract
Purpose
Exploring the determinants of a winery brand reputation (BR) and how those determinants interact is vital for the sustainable development of wineries as well as the growth of the wine industry as a whole. This study aims to test an integrated model to better understand the observed measurement constructs of winery brand reputation, including collective reputation (CR), wine label (WL), expert opinion (EO), social media advertising (SMA) and consumer wine knowledge (CWK).
Design/methodology/approach
In-depth interviews, an expert panel review and a pilot study were conducted to examine and improve the observed variables. A questionnaire survey was conducted as the main data source for the study. A total of 616 valid questionnaire responses were collected from 102 cities in mainland China and Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan from December 2021 to April 2022. Structural equation modeling was conducted for the data analysis.
Findings
This study supported 9 of the 18 proposed theoretical hypotheses. WL, EO and SMA had positive effects on BR. CWK was found to have a moderating effect on the relationship between expert opinions/social media advertising and brand reputation.
Research limitations/implications
The results of this study can guide wine practitioners, researchers and administrators in brand development, label regulation and consumer education.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first attempt to examine the determinants of winery brand reputation among Chinese wine consumers. This study explains the mechanism of winery brand reputation, demonstrating the dynamics and effects of the observed measurement constructs on brand reputation.
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Ting Zhou, Yingjie Wei, Jian Niu and Yuxin Jie
Metaheuristic algorithms based on biology, evolutionary theory and physical principles, have been widely developed for complex global optimization. This paper aims to present a…
Abstract
Purpose
Metaheuristic algorithms based on biology, evolutionary theory and physical principles, have been widely developed for complex global optimization. This paper aims to present a new hybrid optimization algorithm that combines the characteristics of biogeography-based optimization (BBO), invasive weed optimization (IWO) and genetic algorithms (GAs).
Design/methodology/approach
The significant difference between the new algorithm and original optimizers is a periodic selection scheme for offspring. The selection criterion is a function of cyclic discharge and the fitness of populations. It differs from traditional optimization methods where the elite always gains advantages. With this method, fitter populations may still be rejected, while poorer ones might be likely retained. The selection scheme is applied to help escape from local optima and maintain solution diversity.
Findings
The efficiency of the proposed method is tested on 13 high-dimensional, nonlinear benchmark functions and a homogenous slope stability problem. The results of the benchmark function show that the new method performs well in terms of accuracy and solution diversity. The algorithm converges with a magnitude of 10-4, compared to 102 in BBO and 10-2 in IWO. In the slope stability problem, the safety factor acquired by the analogy of slope erosion (ASE) is closer to the recommended value.
Originality/value
This paper introduces a periodic selection strategy and constructs a hybrid optimizer, which enhances the global exploration capacity of metaheuristic algorithms.
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Abeyratna Gunasekarage, David M. Power and Ting Ting Zhou
The purpose of this paper is to examine the long‐term relationship between the rate of inflation and the returns of real estate and financial assets traded in New Zealand markets.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the long‐term relationship between the rate of inflation and the returns of real estate and financial assets traded in New Zealand markets.
Design/methodology/approach
The question of whether these assets are good candidates to hedge inflation in the long run is addressed employing cointegration and causality tests on quarterly data for the period from December 1979 to December 2003.
Findings
A strong long‐term relationship was found between the returns offered by all types of real estate assets (i.e. residential, commercial, industrial and farm building) and the rate of inflation. However, such a long run relationship is not detected between the rate of inflation and the returns of financial assets (i.e. stocks, short‐term bills and long‐term bonds).
Research limitations/implications
The empirical findings reveal that the direction of causality is from inflation to real estate assets indicating that changes in property prices do not cause inflation in New Zealand; the cause of inflation is independent of the price movements for real estate assets. The real estate assets are found to offer an effective hedge against inflation in the long run. The same cannot be said for the financial assets, however.
Originality/value
This is the first New Zealand study which investigates the long‐term inflation hedging effectiveness of both real estate and financial assets. The findings should be of interest to most of the investors in New Zealand as the real estate assets play a significant role in their portfolio decisions.
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Zhou Ting, Ling Guijun and Leng Bojun
The purpose of this paper is to build a theoretical framework that identifies the important skills for successful export from different business areas and make an empirical…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to build a theoretical framework that identifies the important skills for successful export from different business areas and make an empirical ranking of their importance.
Design/methodology/approach
A survey containing 88 practical export skills, selected from the existing literature, was sent to 800 Chinese exporting companies in major Eastern regions of China. With the factor analysis, eight skill categories were identified and 56 skills were found more important.
Findings
The results of the study show that in the higher export stage, skills in international marketing and international trade logistics were viewed as being more important. However, a firm in an early export stage showed more concerns on international trade policy and regulations, international finance and international trade research. Firms with rich export experience viewed strategic management in international trade as being more important than those with less export experience. International payment terms were considered to be very important by firms across all export stages. However, only these firms which were exploring the availability of export business viewed international trade practice as being somewhat important.
Research limitations/implications
First, the export skills pool should be extended and examined according to the firms' characteristics. Second, the study is cross‐sectional and there should be specific analysis of different exporting firms. Third, supplement of the study with more samples from other regions should provide more generalizable implications. Finally, another future work should be to examine how export skills affect financial performance of those Chinese exporting firms.
Practical implications
This paper can serve as useful information for the exporting firms to improve their existing skill training programs. The skills importance rankings can also be used to guide the resource allocations.
Originality/value
This study builds a theoretical framework that identifies the important skills for successful export from different business areas and makes an empirical ranking of their importance based on the data of Chinese exporting firms.
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Ting Zhou, Gui‐jun Lin and Yang Li
The paper aims to comprehensively study the current learning environment of export skills in China and to identify the needs of Chinese firms for skills training. Thus, it…
Abstract
Purpose
The paper aims to comprehensively study the current learning environment of export skills in China and to identify the needs of Chinese firms for skills training. Thus, it proposes a conceptual framework of skills identification and ranking model. Another main purpose of this paper is to expand the domain of export skills and knowledge management by including a broader range of the determinants of interests in export skills acquisition and identification than is normally found in the related literature.
Design/methodology/approach
A comprehensive and thorough survey on the learning environment of export skills acquisition was conducted in this study targeting 800 exporting firms in China. Ten propositions were proposed and the data were complemented through correspondence analysis to study the determinants of interest in export skills acquisition among these firms.
Findings
The results indicate that the overall level of export skills for Chinese exporters is somewhat low and little training resources are invested in export skills acquisition. Furthermore, interest in export skills learning is broad based and unrelated to ownership structure. It is demonstrated that Chinese exporters of greater export development and management commitment show more interest in export skills learning. Those of lower export development need more support from government trade agencies, yet in general, government assistance in meeting the demand of Chinese exporters is still insufficient.
Research limitations/implications
Because of the chosen research approach, the research results may lack generalisability. Therefore, researchers are encouraged to find the best practice.
Practical implications
The paper includes implications for the intelligence of learning environment, the identification of determinants of the learning interests in export skills and the development of skills training and knowledge management.
Originality/value
This paper can be used by the exporting firms, the universities and government trade agencies to design more effective skill training programs and to guide their resource allocations.
Wenwen Zhou, Ting Sun, Huey Hng, Wenjing Zhang, Yang Zhao, Hua Zhang, Jan Ma and Qingyu Yan
Three types of PbTe samples, e.g. nanoparticles, nanowires and bulk ingots, have been prepared. The investigation of the Seebeck coefficient of PbTe nanoparticles and nanowires…
Abstract
Three types of PbTe samples, e.g. nanoparticles, nanowires and bulk ingots, have been prepared. The investigation of the Seebeck coefficient of PbTe nanoparticles and nanowires clearly shows the sign change in the temperature range of 575~650 K, which is not observed for bulk ingots. Unfortunately, this temperature range is within the proposed operation temperature range for thermoelectric devices using PbTe and hence, such a change will affect their proper performance. The observed sign change of Seebeck coefficient is not simply caused by the composition variation at high temperature. It is mainly attributed to the extrinsic-to-intrinsic-semiconductor transition for PbTe nanocrystals due to the competing factors between quantum size effect increasing band gap and self-purification process decreasing their charge carrier concentration, which shift the transition point of nanocrystals to lower range as compare to that of bulk samples. Thus, such phenomenon should be considered carefully in the design of thermoelectric devices using semiconductor nanocrystals, which have attracted much attention recently.
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Muhammad Najib Razali and Yasmin Mohd Adnan
This purpose of this paper is to investigate the current level of transparency based on the customised transparency matrix (TM) amongst the top listed property companies in…
Abstract
Purpose
This purpose of this paper is to investigate the current level of transparency based on the customised transparency matrix (TM) amongst the top listed property companies in Malaysia, based on capital market value. Furthermore, this paper discusses the concept of transparency from the perspective of Malaysian property markets.
Design/methodology/approach
Data for this research were collected from the top 30 property companies in Malaysia through their annual reports and corporate websites. The indicator of transparency was developed based on various literature surveys and other research findings. Using the developed indicators, the study analysed the transparency attributes from TM of the top 30 listed property companies in Malaysia.
Findings
In terms of transparency levels and widely implemented transparency elements, the findings revealed that Malaysian property companies were within a “good level” range.
Research limitations
The research is based on a study of the top 30 listed property companies in Malaysia based on market capital values as at 30th June 2010.
Originality/value
This paper examines the transparency level of property companies in Malaysia based on each company's current annual report. The findings provide some insights and guidelines for the industry as well as academics on the transparency level particularly in Malaysian property business.
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Zhongyuan Zhou, Ting (Tina) Li, Chang Liu, Yang Zhou, Ping Li and Si Wen
More people share their tourism experiences on social media today than in the past, and as a result, more people follow these posts in their trip planning. However, studies into…
Abstract
Purpose
More people share their tourism experiences on social media today than in the past, and as a result, more people follow these posts in their trip planning. However, studies into tourists' intention to follow such posts are scarce. Therefore, this study investigates the antecedents influencing social media users' intentions to follow tourism-related posts (TRPs) when planning their trips.
Design/methodology/approach
Questionnaires were collected from 402 social media users who had followed TRPs for their trip planning. Data were then analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) and artificial neural networks.
Findings
The authors found that blogger–user fit and users' involvement with TRPs influenced behavior components (attitudes toward TRPs and intention to follow TRPs) via assessment components (bloggers' credibility and content quality), and the authors developed a framework to explain this relationship.
Originality/value
The findings advance prior studies by investigating (1) the antecedents of intention to follow TRPs when trip planning, (2) the two main social media elements – bloggers and posts – to understanding the role of social media on travel behavior and (3) involvement with TRPs and their impacts on travel behavior. This study contributes to the research on social media and tourism marketing and proposes practical indications for bloggers, social media platforms and destination marketing organizations.
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Yang Zhao, Shengli Deng, Ting Gao and Ruoxin Zhou
This paper aims to investigate the service demand of existing users and potential users for mobile information services provided by university libraries in China. The primary…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to investigate the service demand of existing users and potential users for mobile information services provided by university libraries in China. The primary objective is to explore the impact of user experience on user needs, which is conducted by a comparison between two user groups over their needs from three aspects – service function, service mode and information content.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected from 353 library users from ten Chinese universities via questionnaires. Based on the user needs model, three dimensions of user needs were established for mobile information services and 26 measurement items were generated through a review of the literature. Furthermore, based on frequency analysis, independent samples t-test and the calculation of need rate, the demand differences in mobile information services between existing and potential users were explored.
Findings
Significant differences existed in the needs for service functions and service modes of mobile information services between existing users and potential users. Existing users cared more about such characteristics as intelligence, personalization and the variety of mobile services. Potential users, in contrast, concerned themselves more with the usability of mobile services and similarity to traditional information services. These two user groups showed little difference in the needs for information content, as they both have strict requirements for specialty, richness in and quality of information resources in mobile network environments.
Originality/value
Previous research on user needs for mobile libraries services has been primarily conducted from the perspectives of existing users. This study, however, compared the needs of existing and potential users based on their previous experiences, which can help libraries to know better what their users need and improve the quality of mobile information services to meet those needs. This can also make existing users more willing to use the services and cultivate the usage habits of potential users at the same time.
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Asha Jaisy Sam, Benny Godwin J. Davidson, Jossy P. George and Peter Varghese Muttungal
The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between social trends, peer influence, personal attitudes regarding real estate purchase decisions, perception of…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between social trends, peer influence, personal attitudes regarding real estate purchase decisions, perception of long-term property value and the mediating effect of hedging in influencing property and real estate purchases.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a combination of quantitative surveys, this study aims to provide a comprehensive knowledge of the factors influencing real estate buying decisions. Data were obtained from 399 young consumers in four Indian cities. Using structural equation modeling, the suggested conceptual framework is examined.
Findings
The study’s findings suggest that attitude plays an important role in influencing real estate purchase decisions. Young adults also tend to look for long-term gains or value when purchasing a home. Developing durable products for the customers is the best way to grow business, according to the results.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first paper that examines the role of sentimental, personal and financial factors in real estate purchase decisions. The study provides insights into how these factors interact and affect the decisions of consumers in real estate. The authors hope that the findings will be useful for real estate professionals to better tailor their services to meet the needs of their customers.