Consumer Use of Product Information under Web and Mobile Channels in e-Commerce: A Process Design Perspective

Description

Although prior research has revealed that online product reviews influence sales, we still donot know whether the effects of online reviews on consumer decisions in web commercediffer from that in mobile commerce due to changes in computing environments such asscreen sizes and time constraints. To fill this research gap, we strive to answer the followingquestions: (1) How do consumers process product review information in a m-commercecontext in ways that differ from web commerce? (2) How to personalize m-commerceprocesses to facilitate consumer purchase decisions?In this project, we integrate behavioral research, econometric analysis, and design science infour main phases of research, in order to generate both research and real-world impacts:(1) Integration of Two Well-Known Theories: In order to investigate how consumersbehave in m-commerce, we will draw on two information processingtheories—Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM) and Regulatory Focus Theory(RFT)—to examine how consumers process information found in product reviews andhow the channels (i.e. web vs. mobile) moderate the effects of product reviewinformation on users’ decision making (e.g., purchase, subscription).(2) Panel Data and Econometrics Analysis: We have established collaborations with amajor e-commerce company in Asia to collect longitudinal data on product reviewinformation and individual user-level transaction data. We will use text-miningtechniques to extract the content and sentiment from a large volume of textual productreview data and develop an econometric model to analyze the relationship betweenvarious product-quality cues processed by users and users’ purchase decisions in am-commerce context.(3) Validation of Results using Lab and Field Experiments: To further validate ourfindings from econometric analyses using observational data, we will conduct labexperiments to test subjects’ amount of cognitive elaboration, a core variable in ELM. Incollaboration with the same e-commerce company, we will also conduct a series oflongitudinal field experiments to allow subjects to freely navigate the designated mobileapps and the web sites and conduct transactions.(4) Design of Personalized M-commerce Processes and Interfaces: This project willdevelop a framework of personalized, dynamic communication process to improveconsumer decision making in m-commerce based on the existing information processingtheories and business insights gained from our empirical and experimental analyses.By triangulating information-processing theories, process design and mobile analytics, thisproject will offer managerial insights as well as process customization mechanisms fore-commerce firms to increase sales in an increasingly mobile-centric world.