Transfer Of Loyalty Research Articles

Mobile payment in omnichannel retailing: dynamics between trust and loyalty transfer processes

PurposeThis study presents an integrated research model to test the relationships between trust in retailers, trust in mobile payment, loyalty to retailers and loyalty to mobile payment as well as the antecedents of trust in retailers and trust in mobile payment. Thus, this study investigates how customer journey design, relationship investment, structure assurance and perceived ubiquity build trust in retailers and trust in mobile payment and how trust affects loyalty to each aspect. At the same time, this study analyzes the reinforcement of trust and loyalty transfer between a retailer and its mobile payment system.Design/methodology/approachFrom the perspective of mobile payment in omnichannel retailing, the authors proposed a framework with several hypotheses and verified the model with structural equation modeling that involves LISREL and SPSS process and based on questionnaire data collected from mobile payment users.FindingsThis study confirms the positive influences of customer journey design and relationship investment on trust in retailers and the positive impacts of structure assurance and perceived ubiquity on trust in mobile payment. Meanwhile, the findings validate the effects of trust in retailers and mobile payment on loyalty to both retailers and mobile payment and how trust in retailers transfers to trust in mobile payment and loyalty to retailers transfers to loyalty to mobile payment.Originality/valueThis study contributes to the marketing literature by filling the research gap and offering a complete model that explicates customers' trust and loyalty in omnichannel context. The findings help businesses better understand the omnichannel retailing landscape and thereby develop effective marketing strategies in order to gain customers' trust in both retailer and mobile payment and retain more loyal customers.

Antecedents and Consequences of Trust and Loyalty in Physical Banks Affecting Mobile Payments

The way of payment has changed in recent years: people have turned away from physical payment methods to virtual payment methods. The traditional banking industry is facing challenges brought by new technologies. The main purpose of this study is to investigate customer trust and loyalty transferring from physical banks to mobile payments because mobile payment platforms are a self-service technology. The goal is to create an eco-platform to facilitate transition from a cash-based economy to a cashless economy. This study is the first attempt to integrate platform management, electronic marketing (online trust and online loyalty), and relationship marketing (offline trust and offline loyalty) into one model. We theoretically and empirically take certain factors into consideration to further explore the transfer impact of physical to mobile payments, which is not discussed in literature. The SEM (structural equation modelling) analysis from the 353 respondents in this study found that trust from both the physical and mobile contexts has positively influenced loyalty. Additionally, customers’ trust and loyalty transfer from the physical to the mobile environment has had a significantly positive effect between the physical and mobile environment. Corporate reputation and structure assurance have also significantly positively affected physical trust and mobile trust, respectively. The findings also reveal that the structure assurance plays an essential role in mobile payment. Users may have certain concerns about the procedure of transactions and their personal information. Theoretical and practical implications are provided.

IL RILANCIO DEL PROGETTO EUROPEO A 60 ANNI DAI TRATTATI DI ROMA

Written on the occasion of the sixtieth anniversary of 1957 Treaties of Rome, the essay reviews the main stages of Europe’s integration process, its achievements and failures, its crises and strategies for a necessary revival. The essay argues that the evolution toward an ever greater and diversified union was made possible by a compromise between the supranational-communitarian and the intergovernmental method of governance. The essay criticizes the fact that the transfer of quotas of national sovereignty to the supranational level has not be accompanied by an equivalent transfer of loyalty and commitment by member states’ citizens, who are at the same time EU citizens. The main cleavages within the EU are then analysed, which can be traced to different goals, interest and expectations of member states: the cleavage between those who view the union just as a single market and those who conceive it also as a supranational politiical project; and the cleavage between Northern creditor countries who hold fiscal austerity as a policy priority and Southern indebted countries who are mostly concerned with economic stagnation and unemployment. And it is argued that these cleavages have deepened because of three interconnected challenges: the economicfinancial crisis and its social implications (growth of inequalities, unemployment and underemployment), the migration pressure, and the threat of fundamentalist terrorism. The essay then analyses the upsurge of national-populism and euroscepticism and traces these phenomena to the democratic deficit of EU institutions and the inadequate development of a common European identity. Finally, the alternative strategies for the EU renewal, ougtlined in the Commission’ s White Paper are discussed, arguing that the one oriented toward a federal union to be achieved through the method of reinforced cooperation is to be preferred.

IL RILANCIO DEL PROGETTO EUROPEO A 60 ANNI DAI TRATTATI DI ROMA

Written on the occasion of the sixtieth anniversary of 1957 Treaties of Rome, the essay reviews the main stages of Europe’s integration process, its achievements and failures, its crises and strategies for a necessary revival. The essay argues that the evolution toward an ever greater and diversified union was made possible by a compromise between the supranational-communitarian and the intergovernmental method of governance. The essay criticizes the fact that the transfer of quotas of national sovereignty to the supranational level has not be accompanied by an equivalent transfer of loyalty and commitment by member states’ citizens, who are at the same time EU citizens. The main cleavages within the EU are then analysed, which can be traced to different goals, interest and expectations of member states: the cleavage between those who view the union just as a single market and those who conceive it also as a supranational politiical project; and the cleavage between Northern creditor countries who hold fiscal austerity as a policy priority and Southern indebted countries who are mostly concerned with economic stagnation and unemployment. And it is argued that these cleavages have deepened because of three interconnected challenges: the economicfinancial crisis and its social implications (growth of inequalities, unemployment and underemployment), the migration pressure, and the threat of fundamentalist terrorism. The essay then analyses the upsurge of national-populism and euroskepticism and traces these phenomena to the democratic deficit of EU institutions and the inadequate development of a common European identity. Finally, the alternative strategies for the EU renewal, ougtlined in the Commission’ s White Paper are discussed, arguing that the one oriented toward a federal union to be achieved through the method of reinforced cooperation is to be preferred.

Do Salespeople's In-Role and Extrarole Brand-building Behaviors Contribute to Customer Loyalty Transfer?

We examined how, and under what conditions, a customer's loyalty to a specific salesperson (personal loyalty) can transfer over to loyalty to the firm. Participants were 900 salesperson–customer dyads who completed a paired questionnaire. We hypothesized that customer loyalty toward individuals would have a positive influence on firm loyalty. Specifically, we reasoned that the loyalty transfer process would be strengthened by salespeople's in-role and extrarole brand-building behavior (IRBBB and ERBBB). We tested our theoretical model in the context of the Chinese direct-selling industry, using the Amway organization as our research case. Our findings suggest that both IRBBB and ERBBB have a general moderating effect on the relationship between personal loyalty and firm loyalty. Compared with ERBBB, IRBBB had a stronger moderating role in the relationship between customer loyalty to the salesperson and loyalty to the firm. Our findings advance the extant marketing literature on customer loyalty and we offer suggestions for ways to incorporate this knowledge into managerial strategies and practice.

The impact of consumer resistance to brand substitution on brand relationship

Purpose– The purpose of this research is to propose and test a model that aims to identify key determinants which could alleviate the loss of brand trust and loyalty caused by brand name change using the resistance to change theory (RCT).Design/methodology/approach– Because of the causal nature of the research, the quantitative research methodology was considered as best suitable. An online questionnaire was administered on a sample composed of 313 consumers.Findings– The paper provides empirical insights regarding the fact that consumers’ resistance to the brand name substitution is the main determinant of the transfer of consumers’ trust from the old to the new brand. Finally, loyalty transfer heavily relies on trust transfer.Research limitations/implications– Because of the convenience sample used, the research results may lack generalisability. Furthermore, researchers are encouraged to test the proposed hypotheses based on different brand name change cases.Practical implications– The paper includes implications for the alleviation of consumers’ resistance to the brand name substitution, a main determinant for the loss of brand trust and loyalty in the case of brand name change.Originality/value– This paper fulfils an identified need to study how consumers’ resistance to the brand name change can be diminished. Overall, our research supports the use of the RCT for a better understanding of brand name change-related issues.

Relationship-Specific Investment, Guanxi Behavior, and Salesperson-Owned Customer Loyalty Transfer

Customer loyalty has been gaining attention as firms face increasing competition. However, customer loyalty consists of a mixture of loyalty to the firm, as well as to the specific salesperson. By using dyadic data from both buyers and sellers, we investigated the influence of salespersons' and selling firms' behaviors on these 2 types of customer loyalty, and the moderating effect of employees' brand-building behavior in the loyalty transfer process. Our results showed that both salesperson's and selling firm's behaviors can promote the 2 kinds of loyalty, and that salesperson-owned loyalty is positively related to loyalty to the selling firm. Contrary to our prediction, employees' brand-building behavior exerted a significant, negative moderating effect on salesperson-owned loyalty transfer.

I NAZIONALISMI E L’UNITÀ EUROPEA

The essay starts with a critical analysis of the most relevant theories of nationalism in the social sciences and addresses questions such as the emergence of the nation and its ideology-nationalism-that is framed into the broader process of modernization; the intersections between the concepts of nationalism, nation and state; the ambivalent relation between nationalism and democracy; the dual historical root of European nationalism and its transformations in to-day globalized world. Then the focus of the analysis is shifted on the present state of the European Union, and more specifically on the two basic contradictions of European political integration: first, the building of a supranational, multicultural union that makes use of nation states as its bulding blocs, but pretends to get free from the connected nationalisms; second, the transfer by member states to the supranational level of growing portions of their national sovereignty without an equivalent transfer of loyalty and committment by their citizens to the supranational institutions. Finally, the author argues for an effective strategy to build a real supranational union-that is seen as the best way to face the challenges of the contemporay world- through bold reforms of the EU political architecture and the strenghtening of a European identity, a strategy that can also block the resurgence of aggressive nationalism in several EU member states.

Brand name substitution and brand equity transfer

PurposeDespite the prevalence with which firms change the brand names they use, this research stream has received little academic attention. Managers confronted with brand name substitutions fear most a loss of brand equity, which would decrease their market share. This research aims to identify key influences that might enable companies to minimise their brand equity losses in response to brand name substitutions.Design/methodology/approachA preliminary qualitative investigation (20 semi‐directive interviews) pertained to better understand how brand equity loss might be minimised in the case of a brand name substitution. This qualitative research and a relevant literature review provided input for the questionnaire design. Furthermore, the resulting survey data from a sample of 300 consumers served for the test of the research propositions.FindingsThis study identifies five key influence factors that marketing managers can use to transfer brand equity in the case of brand name substitution, based on consumers' knowledge of the brand change, attitude toward brand change, perceived similarity between the old and new brands, degree of attachment to the initial brand, and recognition of the presence of an umbrella brand. Finally, the brand equity dimensions are interrelated, such that the transfer of perceived quality and brand image influences loyalty transfer, and brand quality transfer improves brand image transfer.Originality/valueThis research represents a first attempt to answer the pressing question: how can firms transfer brand equity successfully in the case of brand name substitution? The study also identifies for the first time key influence factors that favour brand equity transfer from an old to a new brand.

REPRESENTING EUROPE: THE EMERGING ‘CULTURE’ OF EU DIPLOMACY

Debate over ‘loyalty transfer’ in the European Union (EU) centres on the assumption that elite socialisation and ‘spillover’ processes lead inevitably to changes in the behaviour and identities of European officials. This article interrogates that notion by exploring how officials in the EU external delegations represent Europe. The Lisbon Treaty (2009) will transform the delegations in ways that are emblematic of the EU's evolution as a global actor. Drawing on empirical insights we examine the way EU diplomats embody the European idea and understand their role in promoting ‘the European Union interests and values around the world’. At a moment of historic transition, the article highlights some of the cultural dynamics currently transforming European diplomacy and how officials conceptualize their work of ‘delivering EU external relations policy’. We argue that Europeanization and loyalty transfer are complicated by inter‐institutional rivalries that raise problematic questions over who can best claim to ‘speak for Europe’.

Customer loyalty to food retailers in Northern Ireland: ‘devoted loyals’ or ‘promiscuous switchers’?

AbstractStore loyalty is a major challenge for food retailers, and the food retail market in Northern Ireland has been subject to considerable change in the past decade. Although shoppers will often patronize many stores, they typically have a primary affiliation to a ‘main’ food store that captures the majority of their food purchases. This study uses a unique approach to segmenting customers into groups based on loyalty in terms of both the type of data used to generate a loyalty score and the data collection techniques used. Innovative projective techniques have been used alongside traditional questioning techniques to reveal ‘behavioural’ and ‘emotional’ loyalty indicators, and in doing so create a holistic measure of customer loyalty to a main food store, allowing customers to be segmented into groups based on loyalty. A paper‐based questionnaire was administered to 152 food shoppers from throughout Northern Ireland. Responses to traditional questioning formats and projective techniques (cartoon friends and mini case studies) were analysed and used to generate a loyalty score for each respondent. The first group of customers nearly always visit the same store, are willing to recommend the store to others and are less likely to switch to a competitor, even when offered an incentive to do so. They also rate the ‘hard’ attributes of this store highly. As a result of these characteristics, customers in this segment were termed ‘devoted loyals’. The second group of customers may occasionally use a different supermarket for food shopping, some would consider switching to a competitor if offered an incentive, and they rate ‘hard’ store attributes at a slightly lower level than the ‘devoted loyals’. Based on their group profile, these customers were assigned the title of ‘susceptibles’. The third group of customers are less willing to actively encourage friends and family to shop at a specific store. Many in this group did not consider their current store as their number one choice in the next few years. An incentive to switch to a competitor store is more likely to trigger a transfer of loyalty by this group. These customers were termed ‘promiscuous switchers’.

Loyalty transfer from offline to online stores in the UK grocery industry

PurposeAims to examine the effectiveness of UK supermarkets in transferring store loyalty to online loyalty.Design/methodology/approachAn online survey of university staff is used to test both the brand equity proposition that loyal customers are more likely to adopt brand extensions, and the double jeopardy model's prediction that market leaders benefit disproportionately from loyalty transference.FindingsThe study provides support for the brand equity and double jeopardy propositions. Tesco's and Sainsbury's dominance of both the online and offline markets, coupled with their retention indices of 92 per cent (Tesco) and 76 per cent (Sainsbury's), support the brand equity view. Tesco also attracts a disproportionately higher percentage of its customers from competitors (67 per cent) compared with Sainsbury's (14 per cent), suggesting that it is benefiting from its market leadership position, as predicted by the double jeopardy model.Research limitations/implicationsThe relatively small size and restricted nature of the sample means that the exploratory findings now need to be investigated more rigorously. A larger sample would permit a more detailed exploration of the relationships between the different aspects of online loyalty.Practical implicationsThe research suggests that smaller retail brands have two main options, namely growing the size of the brand or building a niche brand. For a market leader the challenge is to become a “super‐loyalty brand”. That is, to achieve levels of loyalty higher than predicted by the double jeopardy effect, either through segmentation or through better service provision than that of competitors.Originality/valueThis is the first study to examine transferability of store loyalty to online loyalty and demonstrate the usefulness of the brand equity and double jeopardy models for understanding and predicting loyalty transfer behaviour.