Group-buying Intention Research Articles

The rise of online group purchases in the age of pandemics

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, a significant shift in consumer behavior has accelerated the transition towards e-commerce, with a notable surge in online group buying. This research pioneers the integration of the Theory of Planned Behavior with neurophysiological measurements to dissect the complex interplay between product price, risk perception, and consumer trust in influencers on online group buying intentions amidst a global health crisis. Unlike previous studies that primarily rely on self-reported data, this investigation employs brainwave analysis to capture the immediate physiological responses of consumers to pandemic-related stimuli, thereby offering a novel perspective on the underlying psychological processes. Our findings reveal that while traditional factors such as price, quantity, and time continue to influence purchasing attitudes, the pandemic has uniquely modulated these effects, with social influence playing a pivotal role in shaping trust towards influencers and, consequently, group buying intentions. Significantly, the study uncovers that COVID-19's impact, though seemingly negligible in survey responses, exerts a profound influence when assessed through experimental measures. By bridging the gap between theoretical models and empirical neurological evidence, this study not only addresses a critical research void but also enhances our understanding of consumer decision-making in times of uncertainty. This advancement in knowledge contributes to the extant literature by providing a more nuanced and comprehensive analysis of the factors affecting online group buying, offering valuable insights for both academics and practitioners navigating the evolving landscape of e-commerce during and beyond the pandemic era.

Antecedents of Expectation and Continuance on Internet Group Buying Intention: An Empirical Study in Taiwan

Group buying websites have emerged as a major channel in e-commerce because they encourage consumers to negotiate deals with product/service providers. They also feature a “deal of the day” for consumers and an anticipated transaction volumes and discounts. Consumers can leverage their collective bargaining power to acquire products or services at discount prices when a minimum number of people are willing to purchase collectively. Considering the characteristics of collective bargaining power in Internet group buying and the continuance behavior of online consumers, this study integrated consumer psychological factors into expectation–confirmation theory to examine consumer cognitive processes. A survey was conducted to collect and analyze empirical data from ihergo—a popular Taiwanese group buying website. The results demonstrate that in the pre-purchase phase, consumer trust in group buying initiators and websites significantly affects their perceived risk and attitude toward Internet group buying deals, generating more positive expectations and group buying intentions. Moreover, in the post-purchase phase, a higher level of confirmation reflects higher trust and lower perceived risk. In addition, trust, perceived risk, and attitude significantly affect consumer satisfaction. This study suggests both practical and theoretical views for elucidating and enhancing the effectiveness of collective power in e-commerce.

A study on information disclosure, trust, reducing search cost, and online group-buying intention

Purpose More and more disputes have quickly emerged and accumulated, hence generating uncertainties and doubts among consumers regarding the online group-buying. In order to decrease such uncertainties, the purpose of this paper is to explore the relationships among information disclosure, trust, reducing search cost, and online group-buying intention, as well as proposing concrete suggestions for enhancing online group-buying intention. Design/methodology/approach In order to explore the relationships among information disclosure, trust, reducing search cost, and online group-buying intention, the questionnaire and statistical analytical techniques were used. Moreover, as this study was an early attempt to develop a model for information disclosure, trust, reducing search cost, and online group-buying intention, partial least square therefore was appropriately to analyze data. Findings The results showed that the level of information disclosure and trust on a group-buying website have positive influence on reducing search costs, while reducing search costs and trust have positive influences on online group-buying intention. Research limitations/implications This research applied a purposive sampling method and obtained a slightly inadequate number of respondents. Therefore, it is suggested that future research should apply a random sampling method to collect more responses and increase the generalizability of the findings. Practical implications By more actively disclosing information it is possible for group-buying websites to increase consumer trust and decrease search costs, thus enhancing their group-buying intentions. Originality/value There are few studies on the relationships among reducing search cost, trust, and group-buying intention from the perspective of information disclosure. This study thus applies a questionnaire survey method to explore the relationships among them. This study also offers concrete suggestions to enhance group-buying intentions, and provides marketing strategies that can be used by online group-buying websites to raise their sales.

When social media met commerce: a model of perceived customer value in group-buying

Purpose Social commerce using social media has been on the rapid increase. Among various social commerce models, group-buying has become the mainstream. There is a paucity of research related to how customers perceive value in group-buying situations. This paper aims to examine and analyze various factors that influence perceived customer value in group-buying. Design/methodology/approach Data were collected using a survey on customers who had purchased a restaurant service deal on a group-buying site. A partial least squares technique was used to estimate the model. Findings Results show that perceived customer value affects customers’ group buying intentions and that all four antecedents of perceived value (low price, valence of experience, trust in social media and reputation of the group-buying site) have a significant influence. Implications and further research directions are discussed at the end of the paper. Originality/value This study provides valuable strategic implications for social commerce firms.

Understanding the Global Phenomenon of Online Group Buying: Perspective from China and the United States

ABSTRACTThis cross-cultural comparison examined the mechanisms driving consumers' online group-buying (OGB) intention in China and United States. Chinese consumers expressed stronger inclination to participate in OGB than their U.S. counterparts. Opinion leadership emerged as a significant antecedent in both countries. However, perceived trust toward group-buying websites contributed to U.S. participants' OGB intentions but not for Chinese consumers. By contrast, perceived popularity significantly influenced Chinese consumers' OGB intention only. Consumer need for uniqueness did not significantly predict OGB intention in the United States, while Chinese male consumers with a greater level of CNFU were more likely to participate in OGB.

Exploring antecedents of online group-buying: Social commerce perspective

Abstract Online group-buying has become a widespread shopping way in recent years. To complete online group-buying, certain factors influence the activity of group-buying for the initiator and the group buyer. This paper examines three exogenous factors of trust in the initiator, perceived benefits, and social interaction from social commerce perspective for understanding their influence on the behavior of online group-buying. Based on 202 valid responses collected from an online survey questionnaire, partial least squares technology was employed to examine the research model. While online group-buying has been recognized as a kind of social commerce integration, the three antecedents are considered from this kind perspective. The results also demonstrate that the three antecedents play important role in influencing group buyers’ decision making. Online group-buying intention is influenced mostly by attitude, perceived behavioral control, and peer norm, whereas online group-buying behavior is impacted by perceived behavior control and online group-buying intention.

We-commerce: Exploring factors influencing online group-buying intention in Taiwan from a conformity perspective

Group buying is a relatively new online consumption practice. Consumers negotiate product or service prices with businesses to obtain low prices or an increased number of products. This study investigates factors influencing online group-buying intention from a conformity perspective. An online survey is used to sample 650 online group buyers in Taiwan. Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) is applied to examine the hypotheses within the theoretical framework. Analytical results indicate that social factors (online recommendations, media recommendations, and personal recommendations) positively affect social influence and online group-buying intention. Individual factors (compliance and attention-to-social-comparison-information) positively affect social influence and conformity. Psychological factors (financial risk, performance risk, and social risk) negatively affect online group-buying intention, and are positively correlated with social influence and conformity. Furthermore, social influence (informational influence and normative influence) are positively correlated with conformity and online group-buying intention. Social influence and conformity are positively correlated with online group-buying intention. Finally, implications of analytical findings are discussed.

Understanding the Influence of Online Flow Elements on Hedonic and Utilitarian Online Shopping Experiences: A Case of Online Group Buying

ABSTRACT This study aims to understand the relationship between online flow elements and hedonic and utilitarian online shopping experiences and the influence of these experiences on consumer behavioral intentions. The study, which uses online group buying as a research context, is premised on the marketing perspective of online consumer behavior and the information systems perspective of human-computer interactions with online interfaces. Data were obtained through a mall-intercept systematic sampling distribution of questionnaires, and analyzed using structural equation modeling. The results indicate that online flow elements (arousal, challenge, time distortion, control, interactivity, and skill) are positively related to online shopping experiences (hedonic and utilitarian), which in turn are positively related to online group buying (or purchase) intention. All relationships were significant except that between telepresence and hedonic online shopping experience and that between importance and utilitarian online shopping experience. The implications of the findings and future research directions are discussed.

Fairness and Social Words on Online Group-Buying Intentions: A Two-Level Hierarchical Linear Model

Online group buying, which is a system that provides daily discounts for various services and products, is a new form of marketing at the junction of promotion and pricing that has attracted the attention of both practitioners and academia. It allows strangers to unite in order to buy products at cheaper prices and has gained exponential growth in online sales worldwide. Consumers are more likely to trust group-buying if they perceive fairness. The words of others may influence members' decisions of group-buying; this study investigates the two-level hierarchical relations between the individual perception and group climate, utilizing hierarchical regression analysis of the data from 221 respondents. The results indicate that at the individual level, buyers' perceptions of fairness positively influenced trust; their perceptions of the usefulness and ease of use also had positive effects on their attitudes. At the group level, it was shown that a critical mass could influence attitudes and intentions.

Using Curiosity and Group-buying Navigation to Explore the Influence of Perceived hedonic Value, Attitude, and Group-buying Behavioral Intention

This study investigates through perceived hedonic values the influence of two features of group-buying websites, novel curiosity and site navigation, on online consumer purchase intentions and behavior. Using GROUPON Taiwan as a case study, a web-based online questionnaire is used to collect survey data from 290 valid participants. By analyzing this information through the Partial Least Squares program, the results support the hypothesis that curiosity and navigation have significantly positive effects on perceived hedonic values and attitudes. Furthermore, these values likewise have a significant positive effect on online group-buying intentions.

Exploring antecedents and consequence of online group-buying intention: An extended perspective on theory of planned behavior

With the development of electronic commerce, many dotcom firms are selling products to consumers across different countries and regions. The managers of online group-buying firms seek to increase customer purchasing intentions in the face of competition. Online group-buying refers to a certain number of consumers who join together as a group via Internet, for the purpose of buying a certain product with a discount. This study explores antecedents of intention to participate in online group-buying and the relationship between intention and behavior. The research model is basaed on planned behavior theory, electronic word-of-mouth, network embeddedness, and website quality attitude. An online survey is administered to 373 registered members of the ihergo website. Data is analyzed using the partial least squares method, and analytical results demonstrate that for potential consumers, experiential electronic word-of-mouth, relational embeddedness of the initiator, and service quality attitude influence intention to engage in online group-buying; for current consumers, intention to attend online group-buying is determined by the structural and relational embeddedness of the initiator, system quality attitude positively affects intention, and intention positively affects online group-buying behavior. This study proposes a new classification of electronic word-of-mouth and applies the perspective of network embeddedness to explore antecedents of intention in online group-buying, broadening the applicability of electronic word-of-mouth and embeddedness theory. Finally, this study presents practical suggestions for managers of online group-buying firms in improving marketing efficiency.

Beyond price: how does trust encourage online group's buying intention?

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate how online trust affects group shopping intention in the Ihergo web site.Design/methodology/approachSamples from the Ihergo web site were collected by mailing a questionnaire survey to those who agreed to participate.FindingsGroup‐buying operators need to understand their consumers and the scheduling shopping rules between internet shoppers and firms. Moreover, word‐of‐mouth (WOM) can be created online by offering web visitors the ability to access the opinions of satisfied customers.Practical implicationsAn online business may adopt different methods to enhance its customer satisfaction level. When people enter a significant amount of personal data at a web site, they are typically reluctant to change vendors and enter the data again.Social implicationsCustomers view a group‐buying operator as a shopping expert, and expect that the group‐buying operator can handle shopping problems before a dispute occurs.Originality/valueThe findings of this study provide interesting insights for group‐buying operators interested in group‐buying commerce; consumers having a high level of interest in shopping possess a strong motivation and desire to interact with the group‐buying operator.

Predicting intention to purchase on group buying website in Taiwan

PurposeThis study proposes integrating the perceived risk and social influence literatures on online group buying (OGB) intentions with the basic TAM variables (perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use).Design/methodology/approachBased on an empirical survey of 304 online adopters of OGB in Taiwan, the paper uses structural equation modeling to confirm the research model.FindingsThe results reveal that perceived critical mass had the largest total effect on intention to use group buying websites. The findings also indicate that perceived usefulness and a sense of virtual community (SOVC) have significant effect on OGB intention. In addition, both perceived ease of use and website quality influence perceived usefulness. As expected, perceived risk has negative effect on OGB intention.Research limitations/implicationsThis study only considered buying intention with regard to foodstuffs, and it is unclear whether these analytical results can be generalized to other items. Further research could apply this model to examine group coupons (such as discount vouchers for restaurants).Practical implicationsTo sustain a successful group buying website, attention must be paid to enhancing user's SOVC, enlarging the critical mass, and lowering the perceived risk. Practitioners can apply the findings of this study to focus on the determinants of success for their online shopping websites.Originality/valueTheoretically, while drawing upon TRA studies, this paper provides a model that is capable of lending an understanding of the determinants of OGB intention. From a managerial perspective, the findings indicate that webmasters can improve or manage website members' buying intentions by increasing the sense of virtual community and critical mass.

Understanding Online Group-Buying Intention: the Role of Trust, Trust Transference and Conformity

As the widespread use of group-buying web sites increases, so does the need to assess factors affecting group-buying intention. This study aims to provide a picture of factors influencing behavioral intention in online group-buying auctions, and directs the efforts to investigate how trust, trust transference and conformity affect buyers’ decision-making processes. Specifically, we proposed four dimensions of trust (trust in web sites, trust in e-vendors, trust in organizers and trust in buyers) in our model and used data from a survey of 239 members of an online group-buying site to test the model. The four dimensions of trust and conformity are found to directly affect attitude, which in turn is positively associated with intention. However, conformity does not exert a positive effect on intention. Giving support to the linkages between the four dimensions of trust and attitude, the present study is possibly the first to employ the multidimensional concept of trust in the group-buying auction and further broadens the application of the trust-transfer principle in this context. Finally, this study discusses the implications of these findings and offers direction for future research.

Factors influencing the behavior of online group-buying in Taiwan

This study presents three perspectives of sociology, economics, and psychology to investigate factors influencing the behavior of online group-buying. In Taiwan, group-buying is a unique online business model with great potential for influencing e-business. The study collects information on the demands of consumers to increase bargaining power and get volume discounts or better purchase conditions. In the past, most research focused on the viewpoint of pricing, however, this paper proposes an empirically validated comprehensive model. Data was collected from 327 buyers in an online group-buying marketplace in Taiwan. The results indicate that reciprocal and conformism of social perspective have the most significant impact on group-buying intentions, followed by the factor of trust from the psychological perspective, and finally the factor of price consciousness and demand externalities from the economic perspective. However, the consumers’ actual behavior is not affected by their intentions. Key words: Group-buying, virtual community, trust, reciprocity, conformity.