Abstract
The in-store use of smartphones is revolutionizing the customer journey and has the potential to become an important driver in the omnichannel context. This paper aims at identifying the key factors that influence customers’ intentions to use smartphones in-store and their actual behavior and to test the moderating effect of age, differentiating between millennials and nonmillennials, as millennials are considered digital natives and early adopters of new technologies. We applied the UTAUT2 model to a sample of 1043 Spanish customers, tested it using structural equations, and performed a multigroup analysis to compare the results between the two groups. The results show that the model explains both the behavioral intention to use a smartphone in a brick-and-mortar store and use behavior. The UTAUT2 predictors found to be most important were habit, performance expectancy, and hedonic motivation. However, the study shows that the only difference between millennials and nonmillennials with regard to the use of smartphones in-store is the effects of behavioral intention and habit on use behavior. The study adds to the existing knowledge by providing evidence in support of the validity of UTAUT2 as an appropriate theoretical basis to explain effectively behavioral intention, specifically the in-store use of smartphones.
Highlights
Omnichannel retailing has dramatically changed the way customers shop
To determine the impact of the different constructs on the behavioral intention to use a smartphone and use behavior, we developed a model with nine hypotheses related to the effect of age on customers’ in-store use of their smartphones in an omnichannel context (Figure 1)
For the millennials, the variables performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, facilitating conditions, hedonic motivation, habit, and price value explain 71.8% of the variation in behavioral intention (R2 = 0.718)
Summary
Omnichannel retailing has dramatically changed the way customers shop. Nowadays, consumers increasingly simultaneously use multiple channels and touchpoints during their customer journey and demand that they should be connected and integrated to enjoy a holistic and seamless shopping experience [1]. Customers are mobile dependent and prefer to consult their phones rather than salespersons to carry out different tasks in-store, such as searching for product information and prices, checking product ratings, comparing products, and paying; they use them to consult family and friends for advice [2,3,4]. They have the potential to become important drivers in the omnichannel context due to their importance as initiators for conversion to other touchpoints or channels. This study’s aim is twofold: first, to identify the key factors influencing customers’ intentions to use smartphones instore to gain an accurate understanding of customer mshopping acceptance behavior and their actual behavior in an omnichannel context, and, second, to test the moderating effect of age, differentiating between millennials and nonmillennials
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