Obsessed with surprise? The effects of probabilistic selling on online consumers’ repurchase intention

Abstract

ABSTRACT As a fledgling marketing strategy that allows consumers to shop and enjoy a random experience at the same time, probabilistic selling has attracted much attention. It can tap into consumers’ buying potential and swiftly increase product sales, which is favorable for merchants, particularly in e-commerce. However, little empirical research has looked at consumers’ repurchase intentions of probabilistic goods in the context of e-commerce, as well as the underlying mechanism of this marketing strategy. This paper builds on expectation confirmation theory (ECT) to examine the impact of probabilistic goods characteristics (aesthetics and scarcity) and probabilistic selling characteristics (randomness and autonomy) on consumers’ repurchase intention. The model was empirically tested through a survey of 182 online consumers. Interestingly, the results reveal that product characteristics plays a more significant role than selling characteristics, and it can positively enhance consumers’ two types of repurchase intention (old series repurchase intention and new series repurchase intention) through the mediation mechanism of perceived value and confirmation. This paper empirically examined the consumer’s repurchase intention for online probabilistic goods and has practical implications for online retailers.