Ingrid M. O'Brien, Robyn Ouschan, Wade Jarvis and Geoffrey Norman Soutar
The purpose of this paper is to assess the impact of CSR initiative preference, customer helping orientation and customer participation on willingness to engage in CSR and to…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to assess the impact of CSR initiative preference, customer helping orientation and customer participation on willingness to engage in CSR and to demonstrate the influence this engagement has on their commitment and loyalty to the organisation.
Design/methodology/approach
This study entailed an online survey of customers from a large not-for-profit organisation (n = 210). Choice modelling is used to test a structural equation model of drivers and outcomes of willingness to engage in CSR.
Findings
Results demonstrate the CSR initiative preferred by customers has a stronger impact on their willingness to engage with the CSR initiative (volunteering their time, effort, money) than either customers' helping orientation or customer participation. Furthermore, willingness to engage in CSR influences customer commitment and loyalty to support and recommend the organisation.
Research limitations/implications
The results clearly demonstrate the significant impact that customers' preferences for and willingness to engage in CSR initiatives have on customers' relationship with not-for-profit organisations.
Social implications
The results highlight the importance of taking into account customer preferences for CSR issues to encourage customers to engage in CSR initiatives designed to benefit society.
Originality/value
Traditionally CSR literature has focused on how commercial firms' engagement in CSR creates value for the firm and society. The marketing literature has focused on how customer engagement in brand communities benefits the firm. This study extends the research by exploring customers’ willingness to engage in CSR with not-for-profit organisations. It uses Choice modelling to demonstrate the impact of customer preferences for local and aligned CSR initiatives on customer willingness to engage.
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Wade Jarvis, Robyn Ouschan, Henry J. Burton, Geoffrey Soutar and Ingrid M. O’Brien
Both customer engagement (CE) and corporate social responsibility (CSR) have been linked to customer loyalty. Past studies use service dominant logic and customer value…
Abstract
Purpose
Both customer engagement (CE) and corporate social responsibility (CSR) have been linked to customer loyalty. Past studies use service dominant logic and customer value co-creation to explain this relationship. The purpose of this paper is to apply utility theory to develop and test a new theoretical model based on CSR initiative preference to understand the relationship between CE and customer loyalty to the organisation in a CSR platform.
Design/methodology/approach
This empirical study uses choice theory in the form of best-worst scaling, and structural equation modelling, to measure the impact of sports club members’ choice preferences for a range of CSR initiatives on their intention to engage with the initiative and subsequent loyalty to the club.
Findings
This study highlights the importance of engaging members in the CSR strategy they prefer as it enhances not only the extra value to the organisation via customer loyalty to the organisation, but also CE with the organisation. Furthermore, the study reveals age and gender impact on the relationship between CE in CSR initiatives and customer loyalty.
Originality/value
This study extends CE to CSR behaviours and provides empirical evidence for a unique theoretical framework of CE based on utility theory. It also highlights the need to take into account moderating variables such as customer demographics.
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Wade Jarvis and Steven Goodman
This paper aims to explain the structure of the market from the perspective of small brands and to discuss marketing strategy implications.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to explain the structure of the market from the perspective of small brands and to discuss marketing strategy implications.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper uses revealed preference data of the Australian wine market, comprising 4,000 wine shoppers' purchases over a 12‐month period. Standard brand performance measures such as penetration and purchase frequency are applied to the data to define niche and change‐of‐pace brands. Using the same data, price tier loyalty is measured using polarisation, and discussed in relation to the attribute offering required and the direct marketing approach required for true niche positions.
Findings
The empirical results show that both niche and change‐of‐pace positions are prevalent in the wine market and small wineries, within a direct marketing channel approach, should target higher price points with branded wines but also lower price point products as well. The results suggest that attribute levels that are change‐of‐pace are unsustainable for small brands and can only be undertaken by large brands with the appropriate marketing resources.
Research limitations/implications
The authors conceptualise that small brands should focus on attribute levels that have excess loyalty. Large brands can absorb attribute levels that are change‐of‐pace. This conceptualisation requires further discussion, particularly from the strategy literature, as well as further empirical testing.
Practical implications
Whilst “niche” positions are the holy grail of some teaching and much practitioner endeavour, this paper has presented data that demonstrate the need for managers to ascertain if the position they occupy is in fact a niche or a change‐of‐pace position.
Originality/value
This paper fulfils a need by using revealed preference behavioural data to highlight different strategies for small and large brands. Behavioural analysis and papers in the past have emphasised the strength and tendency towards large brands without offering insight into small brand strategies.
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Wade Jarvis, Cam Rungie, Steven Goodman and Larry Lockshin
This paper has two purposes: to use polarisation to identify variations in loyalty and to apply polarisation to an important non‐brand attribute, price.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper has two purposes: to use polarisation to identify variations in loyalty and to apply polarisation to an important non‐brand attribute, price.
Design/methodology/approach
A comprehensive revealed preference data set of wine purchases is used to apply polarisation. Polarisation was defined in two ways: as a function of the beta binomial distribution (BBD) to give a measure of loyalty for an alternative; and as a function of the Dirichlet multinomial distribution (DMD) to give a baseline level of loyalty. Variations were identified by analysing the differences between the BBD and DMD.
Findings
Polarisation was shown to be one way of identifying variation across price tiers. In the empirical example used, the DMD model is violated with the price tiers not being directly substitutable with one another. Buyers show excess loyalty towards the lowest and highest price tier levels. One tier shows “change‐of‐pace” loyalty. Small brands do better when they focus on high loyalty tiers, middle brands compete in the change‐of‐pace tier and large brands do well across all tiers.
Originality/value
Very little work has been undertaken into price tier loyalty and no known empirical research has been undertaken into behavioural loyalty to price tiers in wine. Very little empirical research has considered the association between excess loyalty for attribute levels (such as price tiers) and the existence of niche, change‐of‐pace and reinforcing brands.
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Wade Jarvis, Cam Rungie and Larry Lockshin
The usual method of analysis of product attributes in marketing is to fit a multinomial logit model within a stated choice experiment, to determine the impact of attributes on the…
Abstract
Purpose
The usual method of analysis of product attributes in marketing is to fit a multinomial logit model within a stated choice experiment, to determine the impact of attributes on the choice probability, which is equivalent to market share. The market share is intuitive and is based on each single choice in the study. However, revealed preference allows for a study into repeat purchase and loyalty, which can also be rich constructs for determining consumer preference.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors introduce a loyalty measure, polarisation, and show results based on a wine data set of revealed preference. Polarisation is a function of the beta binomial distribution (BBD) and can also be a function of the Dirichlet multinomial distribution (DMD). The DMD provides a standardised or average loyalty effect for each attribute (such as wine variety), and the BBD an individual effect for each attribute level (such as cabernet) within the attribute. While the DMD results provide a rich “first‐pass” of the data, it is the individual results which can classify levels as reinforcing, niche, or change‐of‐pace in nature, with subsequent different marketing implications. These implications are drawn out in this study.
Findings
Specifically, the DMD results show higher loyalty towards price and variety rather than to region and brand. The BBD results show that segmented preferences in the wine market are influenced more by the price attribute levels and that the two key single varietals in the red wine category tend to behave as reinforcing attribute levels with important marketing implications for small and large wine brands.
Originality/value
The authors extend the work of stated choice experiments into the realm of actual consumer purchase behaviour for wine. They also find that consumers’ repeat purchasing is based on attributes other than brand. This provides a useful platform for both researchers to further investigate loyalty/repurchasing using attributes as well as for marketing practitioners to better position their products to consumers.
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Steffen Zorn, Wade Jarvis and Steve Bellman
As acquiring new customers is costly, putting effort into satisfying and keeping customers over the long term can improve profitability. Firms usually do not know how each…
Abstract
Purpose
As acquiring new customers is costly, putting effort into satisfying and keeping customers over the long term can improve profitability. Firms usually do not know how each individual customer is feeling at any time (their attitude to the firm), so typically a customer's likelihood of leaving (“churning”) is predicted from behavioural data. The purpose of this paper is to investigate how a firm can add attitudinal variables to these churning models by deriving proxy indicators of satisfaction and commitment from behavioural data. The paper tests whether adding these proxies improved predictions of churning compared to a typical model based on purchasing behaviour (PB).
Design/methodology/approach
Analysing data from 6,000 regular customers from an Australian digital versatile disc rental company, logistic regression predicted membership termination (i.e. churning=1) versus continuation (=0). A baseline model used three traditional behavioural variables directly linked to members' PB. A second model including proxies for satisfaction and commitment from the customer database was compared against the baseline model to investigate improvement in churn prediction.
Findings
The most significant predictor of churn is an indicator of commitment: the uncertainty of a customer's commitment, indicated by number of times they changed their subscription plan.
Practical implications
The more customers change their plan, the more likely they are to quit the relationship with the firm, most likely because they are uncertain about how they can benefit from a long‐term commitment to the firm. Monitoring uncertainty indicators, such as plan changing, allows firms to intervene with special offers for uncertain customers, and, therefore, increase the likelihood of them staying with the firm.
Originality/value
The paper discusses the use of customer behaviour recorded in databases to identify proxy indicators of attitude before this attitude translates into churning behaviour.
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Simone Pettigrew, Melanie Pescud, Wade Jarvis and Dave Webb
The purpose of this paper is to discuss the role of parents and other adults in preventing and facilitating teen binge drinking.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to discuss the role of parents and other adults in preventing and facilitating teen binge drinking.
Design/methodology/approach
Teens' discussions on internet websites were accessed to examine their opinions of their alcohol‐related interactions with adults.
Findings
The results show that in the context of a western society such as Australia, the role of adults in endorsing a culture of excessive alcohol consumption may be considerable.
Practical implications
Social marketing campaigns are needed to sensitise adults to this situation and outline strategies that can be used by adults to reduce negative impacts and enhance their potential to reduce alcohol consumption among young people.
Originality/value
Previous research into teenagers' alcohol consumption behaviours has focused on self‐reports obtained via surveys or focus groups. Such data collection processes are likely to be subject to considerable social desirability bias. The present study demonstrates that the internet can constitute a valuable alternative source of data relating to young people's engagement in unhealthy behaviours and the factors impacting their decisions to enact these behaviours.
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Ingrid M. O'Brien, Wade Jarvis and Geoffrey N. Soutar
The paper aims to measure and identify customer preference for social issues and understand the importance of customer engagement when service organisations implement corporate…
Abstract
Purpose
The paper aims to measure and identify customer preference for social issues and understand the importance of customer engagement when service organisations implement corporate social responsibility (CSR) programmes.
Design/methodology/approach
Developing a relevancy/scope typology framework, this paper then examines the relationships between social issues preference, engagement and loyalty. The models were estimated to assess the role engagement played in the relationship between CSR issue preference and loyalty. The sample was obtained from customers who used a large national Australian Internet service provider.
Findings
Local and global CSR issues relevant to the organisation were most preferred, while engagement had the strongest, positive effect on loyalty and was a full mediator of the relationship between CSR issue preference and loyalty.
Practical implications
Service organisations should direct their CSR efforts towards addressing social issues that are relevant to their business, and obtaining customer engagement is imperative if they wish to improve loyalty.
Social implications
Providing greater clarity on how organisations can improve loyalty from CSR programmes will increase the likelihood of organisations investing their resources towards addressing social issues.
Originality/value
Few empirical studies have identified which social issues are the most preferred by customers. The development of a social issue typology and the testing of the relationships between social issue preference, engagement and loyalty provides empirical evidence of how a CSR strategy can improve loyalty.
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Rosalba Manna, Maria Vincenza Ciasullo, Silvia Cosimato and Rocco Palumbo
The ecosystem view is a fascinating perspective which provides management scholars with innovative conceptual tools to investigate the functioning of complex service systems. The…
Abstract
Purpose
The ecosystem view is a fascinating perspective which provides management scholars with innovative conceptual tools to investigate the functioning of complex service systems. The purpose of this paper is to focus on the “mega” level of the education service ecosystem in an attempt to explain the relationships between education attainments and income disparities across Europe.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected from the European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions. Data trends over the time period (2007-2010) were investigated, involving 27 European countries. Unobserved time-invariant heterogeneity was controlled and dynamics over time were investigated. A random effects model was estimated for each country. The semi-log functional form is informed by Mincer’s (1974) human capital models.
Findings
Education levels were found to be a predictor of income inequality in all the countries included in this research, i.e. higher education level leads to higher income and vice versa. However, the effect of education attainments on individual earnings was irregular. Eastern European countries, inter alia, revealed a strong relationship between education attainments and individual earnings, whereas Scandinavian countries showed a weak link between education levels and income.
Practical implications
Education has the potential to affect income inequalities in Europe. Policy makers should develop tailored strategies to deal with the consequences of education levels on individual earnings. Both education services’ quality and the interaction between education and moderating socio-demographic variables may influence income inequality in European countries.
Originality/value
This is one of the first attempts to investigate the relationship between education and income inequalities drawing on the service ecosystem perspective. Further conceptual and practical developments are needed to better explain the effects of education attainments on income inequality.