Female Online Shoppers Research Articles

Post-Purchase Trip Heterogeneity: Exploring the Impact of Free and Paid Return Deliveries on Shopping and Transport Mode Choices in the USA

This paper explores aspects of the post-purchase trips generated by the necessity to return purchased clothing to the shops. Particular focus is given to online shopping that has become common for clothing purchases. This study’s novelty lies in delving into the underlying reasons behind post-purchase trips, particularly those initiated when customers seek to return clothing to retailers. It examines the impact of free and paid return delivery options as key factors driving consumers’ decisions in relation to clothing returns. The study consists of two branches and leverages the random utility maximization theory. The first branch focuses on the impact of free and paid return options on the preferred shopping channels by utilizing a stated preference dataset collected from 507 US online shoppers. The second branch of this study employs the revealed preference dataset and aims to explore the return trip behavior. The willingness-to-pay values estimated for the free return delivery option are higher among female online shoppers compared with males—$7.42 and $6.65 per delivery, respectively. It was found that among the identified “returners,” 84.62% of males and 79.91% of females showed a strong reliance on private cars for their return trips. The potential environmental consequences of return trips were evaluated, focusing on the case of the USA. Additionally, the estimated marginal probability effect revealed that factors such as an aging population, car ownership, and number of children in households positively influence car usage for post-purchase trips. The study’s implications for stakeholders are discussed.

Risk Perception of Males and Females Towards Online Buying Behaviour: A Comparative Study

The study examines the differences in risk perception between males and females in relation to their online buying behaviour. Online shopping has become a common practice for many consumers, but it also involves risks such as fraud, privacy invasion, and financial loss. While previous research has investigated the factors affecting online buying behaviour, little is known about gender differences in risk perception in this context. This study analyses data collected from a sample of male and female online shoppers using a questionnaire. The findings suggest that males and females perceive risks differently when it comes to online shopping, and these differences affect their behaviour. Females are found to have a higher level of risk perception compared to males, which leads them to take precautions such as checking product reviews and ratings, reading seller information, and using secure payment methods. On the other hand, males tend to be less cautious in their online buying behaviour and are more likely to take risks. This study has implications for online retailers and marketers who can use the findings to develop strategies that address the gender differences in risk perception and help consumers make informed decisions when shopping online. The sample size of the study was 189 respondents. The data analysis was performed with the help of t-test and mean.

Complaining Strategies Used by Indonesian Online Shoppers: A Pragmatics Study

This study is aimed at describing the complaint strategies used by Indonesian male and female online shoppers towards fashion products found in comment sections in the Shopee shopping application. This study is qualitative research. The data are complaint utterances used by male and female online shoppers found in the comment section of fashion products in the Shopee shopping application. The data sources are the comment from the male and female online shoppers posted from August to September 2021. In collecting the data, the researcher used documentation and observation methods. The technique used by the researcher in analyzing data is the distributional technique. The data are analyzed by using the theory of Trosborg (1995). The result of the research revealed that there are 6 complaint strategies used by male online shoppers and 5 complaint strategies used by female online shoppers.

Examining digital information literacy as a determinant of women's online shopping behavior

PurposeThe present study aims to examine the current digital information literacy (DIL) skills of female online shoppers in Lahore city of Pakistan. Data were gathered from a purposive sampling of women, aged between 20–50 years who were buying products online, not from the traditional retail stores. Out of 309 received questionnaires, 269 responses were useable and were utilized for data analysis. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to deduce inferences.Design/methodology/approachQuantitative research approach was employed for this study, and a survey was conducted to collect the data from the study's respondents. For data analysis, descriptive and inferential statistics were used.FindingsResults revealed that the digital information literacy skills of women were good to a moderate level. However, they were not confident in applying advanced searching options. In accordance with what was hypothesized in a directional hypothesis, DIL was found to be a strong predictor of online shopping behavior of women, consequently highlighting the importance of such competencies in modern life. Other findings illustrate that participating women rarely engaged in online shopping and felt hesitation in using credit/debit card for online transactions.Research limitations/implicationsThese observations highlight the important role of information professionals in creating digital literacy among different population groups, specifically women, by planning digital information instruction through courses, workshops and trainings. This could eventually be possible with the dynamic role of librarians or information professionals in the society.Originality/valueThe present study adopts the unique approach of measuring online shopping behavior of female shoppers in connection with their digital information literacy skills.

Act locally? Are female online shoppers willing to pay to reduce the carbon footprint of last mile deliveries?

E-commerce results in more last mile deliveries, increased freight traffic and potentially also higher CO2- emissions. This paper is a novel contribution to the literature in terms of investigating consumers’ willingness to pay (WTP) for climate-friendly last mile deliveries through reduced or no CO2-emissions from the delivery. 460 females between 18 and 70 years of age responded to an internet panel survey about their stated preferences for last mile delivery options for online clothing rentals. A discrete choice experiment (DCE) was performed and the data analyzed using both multinomial logit (MNL) and mixed multinomial logit (MMNL) models. The results show that females are willing to pay for CO2-mitigation, and that their WTP increases with consumer income, employment, willingness to change habits to solve the environmental challenges of today, and preferences for sustainable online shopping and delivery alternatives, but decreases with the frequency of online shopping. The WTP for 1 kg CO2 exceeds the WTP for any other aspects of the last mile delivery; i.e. delivery time, delays and information services (notification of departure and arrival). The results indicate that freight operators (carriers) and online retailers can transfer (some of) the costs of climate-friendly last mile delivery to their customers. This is important knowledge for urban planners as it provides support for CO2-mitigating measures aimed at last mile delivery services in order to achieve more environmentally sustainable urban freight transport.

Compulsive and compensative buying among online shoppers: An empirical study.

The present study examines the phenomenon of compensative and compulsive buying among online shoppers. Firstly, the obtained empirical data make it possible to estimate the prevalence of compensative and compulsive buying among the general population of Poles aged 15 years old and over, with the sample split into users and non-users of the e-commerce market offer. Secondly, the conducted analysis shows to what extent the prevalence of compulsive and compensative buying is differentiated by the frequency of online shopping, by the extent of the expenditures on online shopping compared with offline shopping, by attitudes towards online shopping, and by sociodemographic conditions (gender, age, monthly net income of household). The findings come from a survey conducted in 2019 based on a nationwide statistically representative sample of 1,000 Poles aged 15 years old and over. Drawing on this survey based on the German Compulsive Buying Indicator (GCBI), the prevalence of compulsive buying is observed at about 3% and compensative buying at about 12%. Dividing the general population into online and offline shoppers, one can see serious differences between both target groups; the share of compulsive and compensative buyers in the segment of online shoppers amounts to 3.6% and 16.9%, while among non-online shoppers- 3.3% and 10.1%. The strongest susceptibility to compulsive buying is characteristic of female online shoppers having very positive attitudes towards online shopping and doing online shopping very frequently.

Online Shopping Characteristics and Their Influence on Female Buying Behavior

Female online shoppers in the Indian e-commerce industry are growing day by day and the online vendors need to understand their shopping habits to approach them in a better way. A conceptual model is proposed that extends the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) model with three additional constructs namely, trust, convenience, and customer service. The proposed model is examined by means of questionnaire responses collected from around 529 online shoppers. The study reveals that customer service has the major influence on the female's attitude to shop online and perceived behavioural control acts as the most influencing factor in female shoppers' willingness to buy online. The overall descriptive power of the proposed model has an R2 of 52% for female's willingness to use online shopping and an R2 of 46% for attitude towards online shopping. Since it is difficult to attract new shoppers and retain existing customers, excellent customer service can be the answer to the problems related to customer retention and customer loyalty in the online context.

Loyalty of young female Arabic customers towards recommendation agents: A new model for B2C E-commerce

E-commerce is becoming a major contributor to the worldwide economic system, owing to its adaptability and ease of use for both customers and service providers. Recommender systems are embedded in most modern e-commerce websites, as efficient tools for guiding users to view additional items provided by e-commerce portals. These items are matched with customers' interests depending on their current activities, or on preferences stated in their profiles. As service providers are more concerned with the long-term behavior of customers, and specifically customer loyalty (which bears directly on the long-term success of e-commerce websites), most recommender systems have been developed to consider that aspect. This study investigates the major factors in the loyalty formation of female online shoppers through an e-commerce recommender agent. A new model is introduced, developed, and analyzed for helping to improve e-commerce customer loyalty via the recommender systems. Based on the implications of the results, we can understand research constructs and highlight research outcomes to help in managing recommender systems more effectively.

Mobile customers' experience and loyalty: a study of tablet gender divergence in Finland

Customer loyalty consists of many variables that make it work, especially in a retailing context. This study presents the differences between the ways male and female online shoppers use tablets for online shopping. This divergence provides an insight into the customer online shopping experience and their loyalty through the aid of a tablet device. A quantitative methodological approach was employed in the study with a structural equation modelling technique to ascertain the relationships that exist between the constructs. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences software was employed to conduct a reliability and multicollinearity test. The study reveals tablet commerce gender divergence and the importance of cultural, technological and psychological factors in building a smart customer experience that can ramp up positive attitudes amongst tablet users and build loyalty in online shopping. The study discusses the implications and highlights the limitations of the study.

Customer engagement with websites: a transactional retail perspective

PurposeThis paper aims to focus on customer engagement (CE) in the underexplored context of transactional retailing websites, providing insight into the drivers, manifestations and dimensionality of the construct. The website is viewed as a collection of environmental stimuli, and focus is placed on identifying the website environmental cues that promote CE.Design/methodology/approachThis focussed study follows an exploratory research design. A total of 22 semi-structured interviews were conducted with one segment group: over-55-year-old female online shoppers in the most commonly purchased product category online, clothing. The stimulus–organism–response model forms the theoretical framework.FindingsThe unique findings identify that product-related environmental cues drive CE on a website, suggesting that CE occurs at the level of the product, as opposed to the website.Research limitations/implicationsCE with websites exists beyond the customer–brand dyad, with the website forming the third node in a triadic relationship between customer, brand (at level of the product) and website (at level of the product-related cues).Practical implicationsThis study reveals the relationship between website environmental cues and the manifestation of CE, providing managers with insight on how best to drive CE. Confirmation is provided that the website represents a vital touchpoint in the engagement journey of a retail customer.Originality/valueWebsites as a focal object for CE are markedly under-researched. This study empirically supports the relevance of considering CE in this context and reveals the influence online environments have on CE.

Understanding female consumers’ intention to shop online

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to develop a model to examine the female consumer’s intention to shop online. The rising number of female online shoppers has compelled the analysts and online vendors to believe that understanding the attitude and behaviour of the female consumers is very crucial for their growth. Design/methodology/approach A conceptual model is proposed that expands the theory of reasoned action (TRA) with three additional constructs, namely, trust, convenience and customer service. The proposed model is examined with the help of questionnaire responses collected from 909 online shoppers from India. Findings The paper empirically shows that there is a significant influence of attitude, convenience, customer service and subjective norm on the female consumer’s intention to buy online. Customer service acts as the most crucial factor in influencing the attitude of female consumers towards online shopping. The paper also points out that trust does not directly affect the female’s intention to shop online but indirectly influences it through attitude. Practical implications The paper has significant implications for practitioners. First, the results advocate that convenience and customer service are the vital antecedents to both behavioural intention and behavioural attitude. Second, the paper also showcases that trust influences behavioural intention indirectly through attitude, stressing the need for the online retailers to develop consumers’ trust in online shopping. Originality/value The paper examines TRA framework in the context of female online shopping, while earlier studies have concentrated completely on efficiency-based software tools like word processing, spreadsheets, etc. The integration of the three constructs – trust, convenience and customer service – in the TRA framework has not been studied in the past. The interaction effect of the different elements of customer services on the female consumer behaviour has never been examined in the previous research works.

Generation Y and online fashion shopping: Orientations and profiles

The goal of this research is to segment Generation Y female online shoppers according to their psychographic, demographic, and behavioral characteristics. Data were collected from members of two consumer panels of a women's fashion retailer. In total, 538 women who made purchases on the fashion retailer's website completed the survey. The results reveal four approaches to online shopping: trend shopping, pleasure shopping, price shopping, and brand shopping. Six shopping profiles have also been identified, each with different objectives: price shoppers, discovery shoppers, emotional shoppers, strategic shoppers, fashionistas, and shopping fans.

Benefits of mass customized products: moderating role of product involvement and fashion innovativeness

The objective of this study was to explore impacts and benefits of mass customized products on emotional product attachment, favorable attitudes toward a mass customization program, and the ongoing effect on loyalty intentions. This study further investigated how benefits, attachment, attitudes, and loyalty intentions differed as a function of involvement and fashion innovativeness. 290 female online shoppers in South Korea participated in an online survey. Results of this study revealed that perceived benefits positively influenced emotional product attachment and attitudes toward a mass customization program. In addition, attachment positively influenced attitudes, which in turn affected loyalty intentions. This study also found that benefits, attachment, attitudes, and loyalty intentions were all higher in highly involved consumers (high fashion innovators) than those in less involved consumers (low fashion innovators). This study concludes with theoretical and practical implications for mass customization programs.

The role of perceived benefits in formation of online shopping attitude among women shoppers in India

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of perceived benefits, namely, price, convenience and product variety in formation of online shopping attitude. The paper also studies the impact of online shopping attitude on online shopping intentions by the application of the theory of reasoned action.Design/methodology/approachA self-administered and structured online survey was conducted targeting female online shoppers of four metropolitan cities of India. A sample of 508 online shoppers was considered in the online survey. Confirmatory factor analysis was used to evaluate the research constructs, validity and composite reliability. Structural equation modeling and path analysis was also used to examine the hypothesized relationships of the research model.FindingsThe authors of the paper reveals that price benefit, convenience benefit and product variety benefit has a significant positive impact on online shopping attitude and there is a considerable positive relationship between online shopping attitude and online shopping intention among women in India. Product variety was found to be the most important perceived benefit for Indian women.Research limitations/implicationsThe research sample included only women shoppers who indulge in online shopping. Future research is encouraged to emphasize on other groups and gender to identify with their online shopping attitudes. Another important limitation of the study is consequent from the geographical perspective of the present study; that is India. The findings are not necessarily applicable to the rest of the world. Therefore, reproduction of the current study in diverse countries would probably support and confirm its findings. Also, the present study is cross-sectional which does not demonstrate how attitudes of online shoppers may alter over time. The authors of the current study encourage future research to apply a longitudinal design to the study to understand the transforms in consumers’ attitudes toward online shopping over time. Finally, this study explained a general phenomenon, thus future research can be directed toward particular websites which may present different results.Practical implicationsThe study supports the significance of perceived benefits (price, convenience and variety) as key drivers of attitudes toward online shopping among women in India. Marketers should distinguish the way they indulge their customers based on their perceived benefits of online shopping. In developing countries like India, where consumers, especially women, are generally depicted as risk averse, online shopping attitude plays an important role in the success of e-tailers. Certainly, if online shopping would not attach meaningful value and benefits to consumers, they would have negative attitude toward the same. Additionally, the empirical research study demonstrates variety to be the most important benefit for Indian women; ecommerce retailers should focus on maximizing the same to enhance online purchase intention among women customers. Women empowerment being the agenda in India currently, online retailers’ managers can benefit from such conclusions for targeting this huge untapped market and for future e-marketing policies.Originality/valueThis research paper is one of the very few endeavors that investigated online shopping attitudes in India. Prominently, it exposed the role of perceived benefits in online shopping attitude in India. Price is one of the most critical factor concerning Indian shoppers which is a part of the present study. National and international e-tailers preparing to develop and expand their operations to India have now important empirical verification concerned with the determinants of online shopping attitudes and behavior in India which shall aid in marketing strategy development and implementation.

Demographics Variables and Its Impact on the Factors Affecting the Women Consumers’ Online Repeat Purchase Intention in India: An Empirical Study

With the growing importance of the e-commerce industry in India, it is critical for the online vendors and marketers to recognise the factors affecting the online female consumers’ repeat purchase intention and identify the effects of female demographic characteristics on online shopping. This paper is an attempt to determine the determinants of online repeat purchase intention in the Indian situation. The study has identified factors like product, risk, convenience, trust, social influence, satisfaction, price, customer services, promotions and enjoyment that affect the online female consumers’ repeat purchase intention. It has also identified the demographic factors like age, education and income; they are equally affected. Campaigns or strategies related to retaining customers and enticing repurchase behaviour should be aimed at a very micro level rather than only on the factors affecting online shopping. The study has amalgamated the factors affecting female online shoppers and the female demographics to evaluate the repurchase intention. A total of 10 factors affecting the online shopping have been considered along with the three demographic variables.

CUSTOMER RETENTION IN FASHION E-TAILING: FACILITATORS AND BARRIERS

The Internet has changed the way consumers gather information and shop. An increasingly competitive market calls for new marketing approaches to attract customers to the companies’ online stores. The aim of the present article is to understand what facilitates and what creates barriers to prioritizing repeat customers. Further, the article discusses repurchasing among young female online fashion shoppers and how these consumers can be retained. Two research questions are addressed: 1. What facilitates repurchasing among online fashion consumers, and why? 2. What creates barriers to re-purchasing among online fashion consumers, and why? In order to gain deeper knowledge of how e-tailers work with customer retention, we conducted a pilot study that included representatives from two clothing companies, as well as an expert interview with an analyst at the company Stroede Ralto. Then two focus groups consisting of young female online shoppers were formed. Results from the focus groups show that several companies use frequent e-mail advertising and targeted advertising on other websites to retain customers and facilitate re-purchasing. All participants found these features annoying rather than helpful. Moreover, the help functions provided in an online store played a major role in facilitating the purchasing, and shopping carts were appreciated as they enable customers to easily view and add items and obtain price information. We discovered that the consumers did most of their shopping on websites they found esthetically appealing and inspiring and that they would often return to these websites for inspiration or to browse. The article further provides advice to managers regarding how to retain customers.

E-mass customization: Effects of self-congruity and functional congruity on consumer responses

Following the increasing popularity of mass customization in the online retailing environment, we investigated the effects of self-congruity and functional congruity on consumer responses. Female online shoppers (N = 303) in South Korea participated in an online survey. The results showed that the match between ideal self-concept and the customized product was a strong determinant of emotional product attachment. Functional congruity influenced emotional product attachment and perceived quality, which, in turn, influenced behavioral intentions. We also observed a moderating role of self-monitoring, such that, for high self-monitors ideal congruity influenced emotional product attachment, whereas for low self-monitors functional congruity influenced emotional product attachment and perceived quality. Thus, we provided both empirical support for the effects of ideal congruity and functional congruity on consumer responses in an online mass customization context, and a new perspective for those seeking to enhance the effectiveness of mass customization.

The effects of e-mass customization on consumer perceived value, satisfaction, and loyalty toward luxury brands

As mass customization programs are becoming ever more common among luxury brands, this study seeks to identify the dimensions of consumers' perceived value gained and to examine the relationships between consumer value and satisfaction and between satisfaction and loyalty in an online context. Three hundred and three female online shoppers in South Korea participated in a web-based survey. The findings revealed that hedonic, utilitarian, creative achievement, and social value influenced satisfaction with the customization, which in turn influenced brand loyalty. The relationships between consumer value and satisfaction differed depending on the consumer's past loyalty and need for uniqueness. These results have practical implications for developing effective customization programs for luxury brands in the online retail industry.

Female online shoppers

Purpose– As the number of female customers shopping in online clothing stores increases, understanding how female customers’ e-loyalty is formed and fostered in this type of online store becomes very pivotal. Yet, despite its importance, little research has been done on this issue. The purpose of this paper is to focus on female online clothing shoppers and aim to examine the mediators of e-loyalty in the context of online clothing stores: e-satisfaction and e-trust.Design/methodology/approach– A total of 482 subjects who are female and have online clothing store shopping experience in Taiwan were obtained and structural equation modeling was performed to analyze the measurement and structural models.Findings– The results show that both perceived online privacy and security are positively associated with e-trust, whereas web design is not. Furthermore, perceived delivery time and web site design are positively associated with e-satisfaction. Both e-trust and e-satisfaction in turn positively influence e-loyalty for female online clothing shoppers.Research limitations/implications– On the basis of the literature review, there is a lack of theoretical knowledge of the relationships between e-loyalty, e-satisfaction, and e-trust among female online clothing shoppers. The research fulfills this important theoretical gap by extending prior studies on e-loyalty to further examine the factors that form e-satisfaction and e-trust, and how they, as mediators, influence the development of female customers’ e-loyalty in the context of online clothing stores. The result provides a model that contributes to understanding the formation of female customers’ e-loyalty.Practical implications– The results of this study are helpful to online store managers in increasing their customers’ loyalty. Specifically, online clothing store managers have to create quick item delivery methods and friendly online shopping web sites that provide all necessary information and are easy to navigate and use so as to increase customers’ e-satisfaction. They also need to establish reliable and trustworthy web sites by letting their customers easily perceive the web sites’ privacy and security features to enhance customers’ e-trust. As e-satisfaction and e-trust increase, e-loyalty is fostered.Originality/value– The contributions of this study are threefold. First, this study focusses on an important but previously neglected group in the context of online clothing stores: female online clothing shoppers. Second, the authors’ investigation extends the literature on e-loyalty by identifying important mediators (e-satisfaction and e-trust) and probing into their relationships to e-loyalty in the context of online clothing stores. Third, the findings contribute to academia and to future research by increasing understandings of the importance of the concerns and experiences of female online clothing shoppers and by suggesting that future research pay more attention to female online shoppers.

THE EFFECTS OF E-MASS CUSTOMIZATION OF LUXURY BRAND: PERCEIVED VALUE, SATISFACTION, AND LOYALTY

Mass customization refers to a strategy whereby online retailers provide individually tailored products and services to their customers and has been implemented by many retailers with the Internet technology. Many luxury brands such as Bottega Venetta, Louis Vuitton, and Salvatore Ferragamo, provide customization programs to better serve their customers, from engraving their initials on a product to creating a new design of a product. However, the expansion of the customization program to the luxury brands raises potential risk, such as loosening the brand identity and inability to satisfy customers. Despite high interests in mass customization programs and popularity of luxury brands, the effect of mass customization in luxury brands has not been explored. Addressing this gap in the literature, this study attempts to investigate how customized products of luxury brands influence perceived value, satisfaction, and loyalty. In addition, this study explores how consumers’ past loyalty toward a luxury brand influences perceived value of the customization.Hypotheses of the study were (1) Perceived value of a mass-customized product has a positive influence on satisfaction with product customization; (2) Satisfaction with product customization has a positive influence on brand loyalty; (3) The influences of perceived value of a mass-customized product on satisfaction and brand loyalty are different as a function of a customer’s past loyalty; (4) The influences of perceived value of a mass-customized product on satisfaction and brand loyalty are different as a function of a customer’s need for uniqueness.The research strategy of this study was survey methodology and the sample of the study was online shopping consumers. Online questionnaires were collected by an online survey firm. After visiting ‘BURBERRY BESPOKE’, a mass-customization program of a luxury brand, survey participants were asked to answer the questionnaire. The instrument tapped perceived value of a mass-customized product, satisfaction with product customization, past/future brand loyalty, and need for uniqueness.A total of 304 female online shoppers participated in the survey. The result of structural equation modeling found the positive effects of hedonic value and utilitarian value on satisfaction with product customization and the positive effect of the satisfaction on brand loyalty. The result of multiple group comparison analyses revealed the moderating roles of past loyalty and need for uniqueness in influencing the effects of perceived value of a mass-customized product on satisfaction. These findings of the study contribute to the literature in luxury brand retailing fields and suggested managerial implications to luxury brand retailers.