Document Type : Case Study
Authors
1 Department of Business Management, University of Mazandaran, Babolsar, Iran
2 Department of Management, Alborz College, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran
Abstract
This study builds upon previous research on the value propositions of electronic commerce for the consumer and proposes a research framework for investigating consumer's perceived value in the B2C model of electronic commerce. The proposed research model encompasses five main dimensions of consumers' value proposition: Economic (3 components), Functional (7 components), Emotional (6 components), Social-Symbolic (5 components), and Technical (11 components). The paper also presents an application of the model to an empirical case study of consumers' perceived value of online shopping in Iran. Required data was collected via a survey from customers of digikala, the biggest e-commerce firm of Iran. Structural equation modeling and path analysis were used to test the proposed research model. Findings show that the five dimensions are positively related to consumers' value proposition and the proposed research model is fitted to explain the research purpose and hypotheses.
Keywords
Main Subjects
©2023 The Author(s). This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, as long as the original authors and source are cited. No permission is required from the authors or the publishers.
Abdelkafi, N., Makhotin, S. (2013). Business Model Innovations for Electronic Mobility: What Can Be Learned from Existing Business Model Patterns?. International Journal of Innovation Management, 17(1), 1-41.
Afuah, A. (2005). Business Models: A Strategic Management Approach. McGraw-Hill, New York.
Afuah, A., & Tucci, C.L. (2001). Internet Business Models and Strategies. Irwin Publications, Boston.
Agarwal. A., Shankar, R., & Tiwari, M.K. (2007). Modeling agility of supply chain. Industrial Marketing Management, 36(4), 443-457.
Alexander, B.; Cano, M.B. (2020). Store of the future: Towards a (re)invention and (re)imagination of physical store space in an omnichannel context. J. Retail. Consum. Serv, 55, 101913.
Alt, R. & Zimmerman, H.D. (2001). Introduction to Special Section on Business Models. Electronic Markets, 11, 3-9.
Amazon. (2022). Amazon third party seller services value growth 2021. Statista. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1242338/amazon-third-party-seller-services-value-growth/.
Anderson, E. & Sullivan, M. (1993). The antecedents and consequences of customer satisfaction for firms. Marketing Science, 12(1), 125-143.
Anderson, J.C., Narus, J.A. & Van Rossum, W. (2006). Customer value propositions in business markets. Harvard Business Review, 84(3), 91-9.
Arnold, M.J. & Reynolds, K.E. (2003). Hedonic shopping motivations. Journal of Retailing, 79(2), 77-95.
Aswani, R.; Kar, A.K.; Ilavarasan, P.V.; Dwivedi, Y.K. (2018). Search engine marketing is not all gold: Insights from Twitter and SEOClerks. Int. J. Inf. Manag, 38, 107–116.
Babin, B.J., Darden, W.R. & Griffin, M. (1994). Work and/or fun: measuring hedonic and utilitarian shopping value. Journal of Consumer Research, 20(4), 644-56.
Bagchi, S. & Tulskie, B. (2000). E-business Models: Integrating Learning from Strategy Development Experiences and Empirical Research. 20th Annual International Conference of the Strategic Management Society, Vancouver.
Bakos, JY. (1991). A strategic analysis of electronic marketplaces. MIS Quarterly, 10(2), 295-310.
Ballantyne, D. & Varey, R.J. (2006). Creating value-in-use through marketing interaction: the exchange logic of relating, communicating and knowing. Marketing Theory, 6(3), 335-48.
Barney, J., & Arikan, A. (2001). The Resource-Based View: Origins and Implications. The Blackwell Handbook of Strategic Management.
Bayer, S., Gimpel, H., & Rau, D. (2021). IoT-commerce-opportunities for customers through an affordance lens. Electronic Markets, 31(1), 27-50.
Belk, R.W. (1988). Possessions and the extended self”, Journal of Consumer Research, 15(2), 139-68.
Berman, B. & Evans, J.R. (2007). Retail Management. A Strategic Approach. Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ.
Bolton, N. & James H. (1991). A Multistage Model of Customers’ Assessments of Service Quality and Value. Journal of Consumer Research, 17(3), 375-384.
Boyle, M. (2005). The king of cheap stuff”, Fortune, 152(10), 220.
Bui, T.X., Le, T., & Wayne, D. (2006). Jones, An exploratory case study of hotel e-marketing in Ho Chi Minh City. Thunderbird International Business Review, 48(3), 369-388.
Byrne, J.A. (2004). Lessons from our customer champions. Fast Company, 87, 16.
Carbone, L.P. (2004). Clued In: How to Keep Customers Coming Back Again and Again. Prentice-Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ.
Chen, C., Zhuo, X., & Li, Y. (2022). Online channel introduction under contract negotiation: Reselling versus agency selling. Managerial and Decision Economics, 43(1), 146-158.
Choudhury, V., &. Karahanna, E. (2008). The Relative Advantage of Electronic Channels: A Multidimensional View. Management Information Systems Research, 32(1), 179-200.
Cronin, J., Brady, M.K., & Hult, G.T. (2000). Assessing the effects of quality, value, and customer satisfaction on consumer behavioral intentions in service environments. Journal of Retailing, 76(2), 193-218.
Currie, W.L. (2004). Value Creation from E-Business Models. Butterworth-Heinemann, Oxford.
Cyra, D., Hassanein, K., Head, M., & Ivanov, A. (2007). The role of social presence in establishing loyalty in e-Service environments. Interacting with Computers, 19(1), 43-56.
Davis, L.Y., & Dyer, B. (2012). Consumers’ value perceptions across retail outlets: Shopping at mass merchandisers and department stores. The International Review of Retail, Distribution and Consumer Research, 22 (2), 115-142.
De Luca, L. M., Herhausen, D., Troilo, G., & Rossi, A. (2021). How and when do big data investments pay off? The role of marketing affordances and service innovation. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 49, 790-810.
Deighton, J., & Kornfeld, L. (2009). Interactivity's unanticipated consequences for marketers and marketing. Journal of Interactive Marketing, 23(1), 4-10.
DeLone, W.H. & McLean, E.R. (1992). Information Systems Success: The Quest for the Dependent Variable. Information Systems Research, 23(1), 23-41.
Desai, B., & Currie, W. (2005). Towards the ASP E-Business Model: A Conceptual Framework for Mapping ASP Specific Value Propositions. Journal of Internet Commerce, 4(1), 79-101.
Drucker. P. (1954). The Practice of Management. Harper & Row, New York.
Dubosson, M., Osterwalder, A., & Pigneur, Y. (2002). E-business model design, classification, and measurement. Thunderbird International Business Review, 44(1), 5-23.
Duff, M. (2006). Personal food shopper: Stop & Shop test looks to improve in-store experience. Retailing Today, 45(21), 10.
Edvardsson, B., Tronvoll, B., & Gruber, T. (2011). Expanding understanding of service exchange and value Co-creation: a social construction approach. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 39(2), 327-339.
Flint, D.J. (2006). Innovation, symbolic interaction and customer valuing: thoughts stemming from a service-dominant logic of marketing. Marketing Theory, 6(3), 349-62.
Gabrielsson, M., & Gabrielsson, P. (2011). Internet-based sales channel strategies of born global firms. International Business Review, 20(1), 88-99.
Gale, B.T. (1994). Managing Customer Value: Creating Quality and Service that Customers Can See. The Free Press, New York, NY.
Gordijn, J., & Akkermans, H. (2001). Designing and evaluating e-business models, IEEE Intelligent Systems, 16(4), 11-17.
Hamel, G. (2000). Leading the revolution. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Business School Press.
Harrison, M.D., Choudhury, V., & Kacmar, C. (2002). Developing and Validating Trust Measures for e-Commerce: An Integrative Typology. Information Systems Research, 23(1), 23-41.
Hawkins, R. (2004). Looking beyond the Dot Com bubble: exploring the form and function of business models in the electronic marketplace, in: Bouwman, H. Preissl, B., & Steinfield, C. (Eds.), E-Life After the Dot-com Bust, Physica-Varlag, Heidelberg.
Holbrook, M.B. & Hirschman, E.C. (1982). The experiential aspects of consumption: fantasies, feelings, and fun. Journal of Consumer Research, 9(2), 132-40.
Holbrook, M.B. (1994). The nature of customer value: An axiology of services in the consumption experience (Book Chapter). In Service Quality: New Directions in Theory and Practice. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Holbrook, M.B. (Ed.). (1999). Consumer Value: A Framework For Analysis and Research. Routledge, London.
Hou, C., & Sarigöllü, E. (2021). Waste prevention by consumers’ product redistribution: Perceived value, waste minimization attitude and redistribution behavior. Waste Management, 132, 12-22.
Hsin Chang, H., & Wang, H. W. (2011). The moderating effect of customer perceived value on online shopping behaviour. Online information review, 35(3), 333-359.
Janssens, K.; Lambrechts, W.; Keur, H.; Semeijn, J. (2020). Customer Value Types Predicting Consumer Behavior at Dutch Grocery Retailers. Behav. Sci, 10, 127.
Kim, Y.K. (2002). Consumer value: an application to mall and Internet shopping. International Journal of Retail Distribution Management, 30(12), 595-602.
Kimery, K.M. & McCard, M. (2003). Identifying key factors affecting consumer purchase behavior in an online shopping context. International Journal of a Retail and Distribution Management, 31, 16-29.
Kozinets, R.V. (1999). E-tribalized marketing? the strategic implications of virtual communities of consumption. European Management Journal, 17(3), 252-264.
Kucuk, S.U., & Krishnamurthy, S. (2007). An analysis of consumer power on the Internet. Technovation, 27(1), 47-56.
Lee, G. & Lin, H. (2005). Customer perception of e-service quality in online Shopping. International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management, 33(2),161-176.
Lee, S., & Cude, B.J. (2012). Consumer complaint channel choice in online and offline purchases. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 36(1), 90-6.
Lehrer, C., Wieneke, A., Vom Brocke, J. A. N., Jung, R., & Seidel, S. (2018). How big data analytics enables service innovation: materiality, affordance, and the individualization of service. Journal of Management Information Systems, 35(2), 424-460.
Li, F. (2007). What Is E-Business? How the Internet Transforms Organizations. Blackwell Publishing, Oxford.
Lin, C. H., Sher, P. J., & Shih, H. Y. (2005). Past progress and future directions in conceptualizing customer perceived value. International Journal of Service Industry Management, 16(4), 318-336.
Linder, J., & Cantrell, S. (2001). Changing Business Models: Surveying the Landscape. A PhD Thesis, Accenture Institute for Strategic Change, Cambridge.
Lohse, G.L. &Spiller, P. (1998). Electronic Shopping. Communications of the ACM, 41(7), 81-88.
Lombardi, S., Gorgoglione, M., & Panniello, U. (2013). The effect of context on misclassification costs in e-commerce applications. Expert Systems with Applications, 40(13), 5219-5227.
Long, W., Lam, L., & Harrison, J.W. (2003). Toward an objective-based typology of e-business models. Business Horizons, 46(6), 17-26.
Lynda, M. (2001). Applegate, emerging e-business models: lessons from the field. Harvard Business School, Case No. 9-801-172.
Ma, B., & Wei, Q. (2012). Measuring the coverage and redundancy of information search services on e-commerce platforms. Electronic Commerce Research and Applications, 11(6), 560-269.
Mahadevan, B. (2000). Business Models for Internet-Based E-Commerce: An Anatomy. California Management Review, 42, 55-69.
Mohanna, S., Yaghoubi, N., & Vahidi, S. (2011). Limitations of E-commerce implementation in developing countries: case study of Iran. American Journal of Scientific and Industrial Research, 2(2), 224-228.
Molinillo, S.; Aguilar-Illescas, R.; Anaya-Sánchez, R.; Liébana-Cabanillas, F. (2021). Social commerce website design, perceived value and loyalty behavior intentions: The moderating roles of gender, age and frequency of use. J. Retail. Consum. Serv, 63, 102404.
Namchul S. (2001). Strategies for competitive advantage in electronic commerce. Journal of Electronic Commerce Research, 2(4), 34-41.
Noble, S.M.; Griffith, D.A.; Weinberger, M.G. (2005). Consumer derived utilitarian value and channel utilization in a multi-channel retail context. J. Bus. Res, 58, 1643–1651.
Nunnally, J. C. (1978). Psychometric theory. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.
Ohmae, K. (1989). Planting for a global harvest. Harvard Business Review, 67(4), 136-145.
Okoli, C., & Schabram, K. (2015). A guide to conducting a systematic literature review of information systems research. Communications of the Association for Information Systems, 7(43), 879-910
Osterwalder, A., Pigneur, Y., & Tucci, C.L. (2005). Clarifying Business Model: Origins Present and Future of the Concept. Communications of the Association for Information Systems, 16(15), 1-25.
Osterwalder, A., Pigneur, Y., Bernarda, G., Smith, A., & Papadakos, T. (2014). Value Proposition Design: How to Create Products and Services Customers Want. Wiley Publications.
Parasuraman, A. (1997). Reflections on gaining competitive advantage through customer value. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 25, 154-161.
Parasuraman, A., Zeithaml, V.A., & Berry, L.L. (1985). A conceptual model of service quality and its implications for future research. Journal of Marketing, 49, 41-50.
Pardo, P.D., & Martínez, C. (2003). Resistance to change: a literature review and empirical study. Management Decision, 41(2), 148-155.
Petersen, B., Welch, L.S., & Liesch, P.W. (2002). The Internet and foreign market expansion by firms. Management International Review, 42(2), 207–221.
Petrick, J. F. (2002). Development of a multi-dimensional scale for measuring the perceived value of a service. Journal of leisure research, 34(2), 119-134.
Porter, M.E. (1985). Competitive advantage: Creating and sustaining superior performance. New York: Free Press.
Prahalad, C. & Ramaswamy, V. (2004). Co-creation experiences: the next practice in value creation. Journal of Interactive Marketing, 18(3), 5-14.
Pu, X., Sun, S., & Shao, J. (2020). Direct selling, reselling, or agency selling? Manufacturer’s online distribution strategies and their impact. International Journal of Electronic Commerce, 24(2), 232-254.
Seiders, K., Berry, L.L. & Gresham, L.G. (2000). Attention, retailers! How convenient is your convenience strategy?. Sloan Management Review, 41(3), 79-90.
Seth, A. & Randall, G. (2005). Supermarket Wars: Global Strategies for Food Retailers. Palgrave MacMillan, New York, NY.
Shakir Goraya, M.A.; Zhu, J.; Akram, M.S.; Shareef, M.A.; Malik, A.; Bhatti, Z.A. (2020). The impact of channel integration on consumers’ channel preferences: Do showrooming and webrooming behaviors matter? J. Retail. Consum. Serv, 65, 102130.
Shamsafar, A., & Sharbafazari, F. (2008). E-commerce is only solutions to implement Iran’s progress. Fourth Conference on Electronic Commerce, Tehran, Iran.
Shankar, A.; Jain, S. (2021). Factors affecting luxury consumers’ webrooming intention: A moderated-mediation approach. J. Retail. Consum. Serv, 58, 102306.
Shao, Z., & Pan, Z. (2019). Building Guanxi network in the mobile social platform: A social capital perspective. International Journal of Information Management, 44, 109-120.
Sheth, J. N., Newman, B. I., & Gross, B. L. (1991). Why we buy what we buy: A theory of consumption values. Journal of business research, 22(2), 159-170.
Sheth, J.N., & Sharma, A. (2005). International e-marketing: opportunities and issues. International Marketing Review, 22(6), 611-622.
Sheth, J.N., Newman, B.I. & Gross, B.L. (1991). Why we buy what we buy: a theory of consumption values. Journal of Business Research, 22(2), 159-170.
Shipman, A. (2001). Privatized production, socialized consumption? old producer power behind the new consumer sovereignty. Review of Social Economy, 59(3), 331-52.
Shopify. (2021). Shopify: Global total revenues 2015–2020. Statista. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1075158/total-revenue-shopify-worldwide/.
Sinha, I. & DeSarbo, W.S. (1998). An integrated approach toward the spatial modeling of perceived customer value. Journal of Marketing Research, 35, 236-249.
Sirgy, M.J., Grewal, D. & Mangleburg, T. (2000). Retail environment, self-congruity, and retail patronage: an integrative model and a research agenda. Journal of Business Research, 49(2), 127-38.
Slater, S.F. & Narver, J.C. (1994). Market orientation, customer value, and superior performance. Business Horizons, 37(2), 22-8.
Smith, G.E. & Nagle, T.T. (2005). A question of value. Marketing Management, 14(4), 38-43.
Smith, J.B. and Colgate, M. (2007). Customer value creation: a practical framework. Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice, 15(1), 7-23.
Solomon, M.R. (1983). The role of products as social stimuli: a symbolic interactionism perspective. Journal of Consumer Research, 10(3), 319-29.
Strauss, J., & Frost, R. (2001). E-marketing. Prentice-Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ.
Sun, Y., Shao, X., Li, X., Guo, Y., & Nie, K. (2019). How live streaming influences purchase intentions in social commerce: An IT affordance perspective. Electronic commerce research and applications, 37, 100886.
Sun, Y.; Yang, C.; Shen, X.-L.; Wang, N. (2020). When digitalized customers meet digitalized services: A digitalized social cognitive perspective of omnichannel service usage. Int. J. Inf. Manag, 54, 102200.
Sweeney, J. C., & Soutar, G. N. (2001). Consumer perceived value: The development of a multiple item scale. Journal of retailing, 77(2), 203-220.
Tawira, L., & Ivanov, A. (2023). Leveraging personalization and customization affordances of virtual try-on apps for a new model in apparel m-shopping. Asia Pacific Journal of Marketing and Logistics, 35(2), 451-471.
Thulani, D., Tofara, C., & Langton, R. (2010). Electronic commerce benefits and adoption barriers in small and medium enterprises in Gweru Zimbabwe. Journal of Internet Banking and Commerce, 15(1), 1-17.
Timmers, P. (2006). Business Models for Electronic Markets. Journal of Electronic Markets, 8, 3-8.
Tong, C.H. & Tong, L.I. (2006). Exploring the cornerstones of Wal-Mart’s success and competitiveness. Competitiveness Review, 16(2), 143-9.
Turley, L.W. & Milliman, R.E. (2000). Atmospheric effects on shopping behavior: a review of the experimental evidence. Journal of Business Research, 49(2), 193-211.
Valarie A. (2002). Measuring and Improving Service Quality: A Literature Review and Research Agenda. In Handbook of Marketing, Bart Weitz, ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Van Der Vorst, J.G.A.J., Van Dongen, S., Nouguier, S. and Hilhorst, R. (2002). E-Business Initiatives in Food Supply Chains: Definition and Typology of Electronic Business Models. International Journal of Logistics: Research and Applications, 5, 119-138.
Vargo, S.L. & Lusch, R.F. (2004). Evolving to a new dominant logic for marketing. Journal of Marketing, 68(1), 1-17.
Verhoef, P.C.; Kannan, P.K.; Inman, J.J. (2015). From Multi-Channel Retailing to Omni-Channel Retailing: Introduction to the Special Issue on Multi-Channel Retailing. J. Retail, 91, 174–181.
Wallace, D.W., Giese, J.L. & Johnson, J.L. (2004). Customer Retailer Loyalty in the Context of Multiple Channel Strategies. Journal of Retailing, 80(4) 249-263.
Wan, X., Wang, T., Zhang, W., & Cao, J. (2017). Perceived value of online customization experience in China: Concept, measurement, and consequences. The Journal of High Technology Management Research, 28(1), 17-28.
Wang, L., Sun, Y., & Luo, X. (2022). Game affordance, gamer orientation, and in‐game purchases: A hedonic–instrumental framework. Information Systems Journal, 32(6), 1097-1125.
Wang, Y., Lo, H.P., Chi, R. & Yang, Y. (2004). An integrated framework for customer value and customer-relationship-management performance: a customer-based perspective from China. Managing Service Quality, 14(2/3), 169-82.
Ward, J.C., Ostrom, A.L. (2006). Complaining to the masses: the role of protest framing in customer-created complaint web sites. Journal of Consumer Research, 33(2), 220-230.
Webster, F.E. (1994). Defining the new marketing concept. Marketing Management, 2(4), 22-31.
Wernerfelt, B. (1984). A Resource-based View of the Firm. Sloan Management Review, 5(2), 171-180.
WiBaar, A. (2000). Fallon helps reinvent Nordstrom’s ad strategy. Adweek Midwest Edition.
Winter, S. (2003). Understanding Dynamic Capabilities. Strategic Management Journal, 24, 991-995.
Woodruff, R.B. (1997). Customer value: the next source for competitive advantage. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 25(2), 139-53.
Yang, F.; Tang, J.; Men, J.; Zheng, X. (2021). Consumer perceived value and impulse buying behavior on mobile commerce: The moderating effect of social influence. J. Retail. Consum. Serv, 63, 102683.
Yang, S.M., Yang, M.H., & Wu, J.B. (2005). The impacts of establishing enterprise information portals on e-business performance. Industrial Management and Data Systems, 105(3), 349-368.
Yang, Z. (2001). Consumer perceptions of service quality in Internet-based electronic commerce. Proceedings of the 30th EMAC Conference, Bergen.
Zeithaml, V.A. (1988). Consumer perceptions of price, quality, and value: a means-end model and synthesis of evidence. Journal of Marketing, 52(3), 2-22.
Zhao, Y., Zhao, X., & Liu, Y. (2022). Exploring the Impact of Online and Offline Channel Advantages on Brand Relationship Performance: The Mediating Role of Consumer Perceived Value. Behavioral Sciences, 13(1), 16 ; https://doi.org/10.3390/bs13010016
Zhu, K., & Kraemer, K.L. (2002). E-Commerce Metrics for Net-Enhanced Organizations: Assessing the Value of e-Commerce to Firm Performance in the Manufacturing Sector. Information Systems Research, 23(1), 23-41.
Zott, C., & Amit. R. (2009). The business model as the engine of network-based strategies. In: The network challenge, ed. P.R. Kleindorfer and Y.J. Wind. Upper Saddle River: Wharton School Publishing.
)