Multichannel Retailing and Consumer Behaviour

See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.
net/publication/329702859
Multichannel Retailing and Consumer Behaviour: Strategy Design

and Implementation
Article in International Journal of Applied Behavioral Economics · December 2014

DOI: 10.4018/ijabe.2014100102
CITATION READS
1 868
4 authors, including:
Manuel Sánchez-Pérez María Belén Marín Carrillo

Universidad de Almería Universidad de Almería
111 PUBLICATIONS 1,233 CITATIONS 17 PUBLICATIONS 39 CITATIONS
SEE PROFILE SEE PROFILE
Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects:
Consumer behaviour of foreign products: Anti-consumption, affinity, perceived value and other variables in the consumption experience
View project
Ph.D. - Customer Value, digital marketing and banking View project
All content following this page was uploaded by Manuel Sánchez-Pérez on 08 October 2019.
The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.

International Journal of Applied Behavioral Economics, 3(4), 17-39, October-December 2014 17
Multichannel Retailing and

Consumer Behaviour:
Strategy Design and Implementation
Manuel Sánchez-Pérez, School of Economics and Business, University of Almeria, Almeria,
Spain
Antonia Estrella-Ramón, School of Economics and Business, University of Almeria, Almeria,
Spain
Cristina Segovia-López, School of Economics and Business, University of Almeria, Almeria,
Spain
María B. Marín-Carrillo, School of Economics and Business, University of Almeria, Almeria,
Spain
ABSTRACT
This article aims to analyse and offer managerial guidance about the processes of planning, implementation
and control of a multichannel strategy within the framework of Multichannel Customer Management Decision
(MCMD). To achieve this objective, firstly we justify the growing adoption of a multichannel strategy by retailers
and channels participants. Following MCMD framework, the authors analyse the consumer behaviours linked
to this kind of strategy in order to deeply understand the factors which affect consumer choice decisions related
to channels. Alternative channels to brick and mortar retail channel are described, such as online channel.
This helps us to offer a guide to define the multichannel strategy. Additionally, they give some ideas about
the implementation of this strategy. Finally, in order to get a feedback to this planning process, the authors
suggest carrying out a control phase. The work ends with conclusions section and future research streams.
Keywords: Channel Migration, Channel Performance, Customer Channel Choice, Multichannel Consumer,
Multichannel Strategy, Omnichannel Consumer
1. INTRODUCTION and the retailing industry (Ramcharran, 2013).

Online sales have come to represent 10% of
Retailers have several available ways to sell sales revenues in the USA (Dunne, 2013) and
their commodities and services. The range of this figure is continuously growing. Indeed,
conventional channel alternatives has been en- companies like Disney or Apple have changed
larged with the widespread use of Internet. This their channels structure, transforming digital
fact has changed consumers’ shopping patterns campaigns ‘from a liability into an asset’ (Rigby,
DOI: 10.4018/ijabe.2014100102
Copyright © 2014, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.
18 International Journal of Applied Behavioral Economics, 3(4), 17-39, October-December 2014
2011). Despite this fact, many retailers are not bile channel. Increasingly, the conception of a
technology-savvy, ignoring this reality, which retailer is changing to a multichannel manager,
can threaten their profitability and survival. combining break-and-mortar store, website,
Undoubtedly, Internet is one the pillars catalogs or direct selling, creating synergies
of the actual retailing strategy because its and providing a better service to their customer.
emergence as a highly effective channel ap- Despite the increasing importance of
peared obvious. Its capacity to deliver ‘tangible multichannel retailing in practice, theoretical
economic gains’ (Vijayasarathy & Tyler, 1997, contribution of a broad theory of how to manage
p. 286) has been the ‘primary catalyst for the several channels together and evidences about
explosion of interest and activity in electronic this results are very limited (Avery et al., 2011).
business’ (Doherty & Ellis-Chadwick, 2010, The purpose of this work is to analyse and of-
p. 946). Specifically, it has become one of the fer managerial guidance about the processes
most important mediums of communication of planning, implementation and control of a
and exchange, joining consumers and retail- multichannel strategy within the framework of
ers’ interests. Publications and research about Multichannel Customer Management Decision
online retailing has increased dramatically year (MCMD) (Neslin & Shankar, 2009). This mul-
by year (Schibrowsky, 2007), even establishing tichannel decision framework is adapted from
implications for many other disciplines (i.e., Blattberg et al. (2008, p. 659; see also Rangan,
legal, computer science, sociological). 1995). The MCMD framework identifies five
Regarding Internet retailing, some re- tasks for a multichannel manager, in particular:
searchers predicted that this way to interact
with consumer could eliminate intermediaries. 1. Analyse Customers: Develop appropriate
For instance, Alba et al. (1998, p. 49) stated: customer segmentation for multichannel
‘disintermediation might be the most important strategy and design.
structural change brought about by interactive 2. Develop Multichannel Strategy: (i)
home’. However, evidences show that Internet Efficiency, segmentation or customer
has not totally destroyed bricks-and-mortar satisfaction; (ii) competition assessment.
retailers (Doherty & Ellis-Chadwick, 2010; 3. Design Channels: (i) Which channels
Dunne, 2013; Levy & Weitz, 2012). should be employed?; (ii) what should
Internet and new technologies have gained be the function(s) of each channel?; (iii)
market penetration and more and more people should customers be ‘right channeled’?
use them. For this reason, some researchers 4. Implement: (i) Marketing programs; (ii)
highlight the idea of combining online and organizational coordination; (iii) marketing
physical sales channels, exploiting the synergies mix coordination.
arising from the integration of e-commerce with 5. Evaluate: (i) Single view of customer or
offline channels (Steinfield et al., 2002). More customer perspective; (ii) channel account-
effective inventories management, implementing or firm perspective.
ing an integration of marketing communication
strategy in a simpler way, or accurate availability More specifically, we aim to provide a
of information and product are clear benefits holistic analysis of the multichannel strategy,
of a multichannel strategy. Therefore, currently encompassing the business perspective (as
a multichannel retailing is almost a strategy strategy) and the consumer perspective (as
unavoidable. Retailers like Zara, Wal-Mart behaviour). Since we base this research in a
or Apple combine traditional physical stores design-implementation-control scheme, we
with online websites. ING Direct, the famous provide a literature review about multichannel
Holland online bank, is now opening physical retailing strategy and consumer behaviour, a
branches around the world. The web-based description of the main selling channels, and
company Amazon.com has expanded to mo- some implementation ideas. Finally, in order
to assess the response of customers to a mul- seek information and shop. Thus, retailers are
tichannel strategy, we have included a section compelled to adopt a multichannel view (IMAP
regarding the control phase of a multichannel Retail, 2010).
strategy. Well-known retailers such as Macy’s, Mark
& Spencer or Barnes & Noble have been selling
their products through the physical store chan-
2. EMERGENCE OF nel almost entirely. Other kind of channels have
MULTICHANNEL RETAILING used mainly by specialist. For example, direct
selling has been the alternative for reaching
Over the last years, retailing channels have
customers for companies like Avon, since 1886,
gained variety and complexity. The increas-
or Littlewoods in UK has sold by catalog since
ing use of Internet or online channel together
1932. Now, these traditional retailers are facing
with the search of an improvement in financial
with financial difficulties and are transforming
outcomes of retailers have come to change
their channels structure in order to introduce
the consumer buying behaviours and retailing
the online channel.
organization drastically.
The adoption of several channels for sell-
The traditional view of selling products
ing to end-consumers is not new and retailers
through store-based and channel-specialized
add more paths to reach the customers. Sears
retailers has change dramatically and in a
has been selling by catalog and store since
relatively short period of time. In particular, the
the beginning of the 20th century (Oharenko,
analysis provided by Thomas & Sullivan (2005)
2006). Today many small and large store-based
found that 63% of customers were store-only
retailers are using more than one channel. On
shoppers, 12% were catalog-only shoppers,
one hand, Walmart, Tesco or Carrefour have
12% were Internet-only shoppers, 12% were
added the online shopping to the conventional
dual channel shoppers, and only 1% of the
store channel. On the other hand, specialists in
customers shopped across all three channels.
online selling, such as Dell, have also adopted
However, nowadays consumers demand more
a store-based channel. Thus, the multichannel
than ever the advantages of digital limitless
retailing is clearly an increasing practice.
product assortments, price transparency, com-
In fact, consumers’ channel usage reveals
ments from users and experts that they can
an increasing heterogeneity and diversity
find in an online channel. But also, consumers
(Konuş et al., 2008), considering more options to
want the advantages of physical stores, such
buy products and services. Multichannel retail-
as the immediate availability of products (for
ing (MCR) is the strategy that involves selling
example for testing them) or enjoy the social
products or services to consumers through more
experience of shopping (Rigby, 2011). We can
than one channel simultaneously (Levy & Weitz,
say that consumers look for utilitarian values
2012). In a similar vein, multichannel shopping
from digital channels and hedonic experiences
refers to buying through several channels in
from physical channels.
parallel. For example, for apparel and clothing a
Consumer shopping behaviour is also en-
consumer visits the store, and uses Internet for
couraging multichannel retailing. Consumers’
booking travels. An evolution (and emerging)
tendency to blend channels during their purchase
of that behaviour is the omni channel shopper,
experience is driven with a very particular way
more informed and always connected, with a
of choosing products that they want, where
sophisticated pattern of buying behaviour, that
they want them, how they want them and with
uses all channels simultaneously (IDC Retail
a variety of delivery options. According to a
Insights, 2010). This definition should be dis-
consumer survey, 78% of North Americans
tinguished from multimedia marketing (MMM),
have used two or more retailing channels
involved in the use of several channels to com-
and 30% have used three or more channels to
municate with customers (Zhang et al., 2010).
3. TASK ONE: ANALYSE explain differences between these segments

CUSTOMERS. MULTICHANNEL (Dholakia et al., 2010).
CUSTOMER BEHAVIOR Extant research on consumer behaviour
in multichannel environments has identified
Firms need an understanding of the factors that several motivations and antecedents to explain
affect consumers’ channel choices across stages the adoption and use of the different channels.
of the buying process (Neslin et al., 2006). Shop- For instance, Balasubramanian et al. (2005)
ping in retail environments is a fundamental as- suggest that consumers choose and use differ-
pect of consumer behaviour and is influenced by ent retailing channels under the consideration
complex and varying psychological processes of the following five factors: economic goals,
(Dholakia et al., 2010). For example, consum- self-affirmation, searching symbolic meaning,
ers shop to pursue a variety of goals, from searching socialization and experiential impact,
basic functional drives (e.g., satisfy hunger) and the use of shopping-related schemas and
to more complex motivations (e.g., enhancing scripts. These aspects, which refer to consum-
self-esteem, interacting with significant others ers’ motivations towards retailing channels,
or just dispelling boredom) (Balasubramanian determine an accurate consumers’ multichan-
et al., 2005; Sivaramakrishnan et al., 2007). In nel choice.
addition to these conscious motives, consumer Channel attributes influence consum-
shopping behaviour is also influenced by non- ers’ channel choices. Dholakia et al. (2010)
conscious processes (Chartrand et al., 2008), categorize channel attributes considering sev-
values, emotions and experiences (Dholakia eral dimensions. First, one of the most basic
et al., 2010). Thus, past behaviour is a strong characteristic is whether the channel is used
predictor of future behaviour (Schoenbachler primarily for purchase or for information.
et al., 2002). For example, prior research has Nevertheless each channel can provide both
examined how perceptions and behaviour are functions. Another critical dimension by which
shaped by various elements of the retailing en- channels can vary is whether they are physical
vironment, such as store layout (Morales et al., or virtual. Third, channels vary in their degree
2005), background music (Morin et al., 2007), of accessibility. With the widespread adoption
and website design (Mandel & Johnson, 2002). of wireless Internet and mobile phones, some
It is important to understand how consum- channels can be accessed by virtually anyone
ers utilize the multiple media and channels avail- across the globe, whereas others, such as an
able to them, manage their complementarities ATM, are stationary and available to a geo-
and conflicts, and come to rely on particular graphically limited consumer base. The fourth
media and channels (Kumar & Venkatesan, dimension is in the type of communication that
2005; Neslin et al., 2006; Rangaswamy & van a channel permits. For example, some online
Bruggen, 2005). channels such as email lists allow only asyn-
Customer segmentation is a critical as- chronous communications. In contrast, other
pect of effective multichannel strategy design channels such as telephones permit real-time
(Neslin et al., 2006). Given its relevance, synchronous communication with a retailer or
several studies have used customers’ channel other consumers. Fifth, channels also vary in
usage as the basis for segmentation (i.e., Keen the nature of their interface. For example some
et al., 2004; Konuş et al., 2008). Although channels such as a retail store offer a fixed
existing segmentation studies provide useful interface to all consumers, while the interface
insights into how consumers differ in their use of other channels such as an online portal can
of channels, more information remains to be be customized to suit an individual consumer’s
known regarding their underlying motivations, tastes and preferences. The sixth dimension is
dispositions, psycho-social influences, and how the level of convenience a channel provides to
product category and marketer actions help its customers (i.e., wide opening hours, proximal
convenience, assortment). Seventh, channels affect subsequent channel choices in a specific

vary in how easily they allow the consumer to usage situation positively. In fact, experts from
switch from one particular channel of a firm to the industry considers that multichannel shop-
another or to a competitor’s channel (Verhoef et pers offer strong loyalty in each channel and are
al., 2007). The eighth dimension is a channel’s more likely to influence others to adopt certain
degree of flexibility in the organization and retailer (Retailer Online Integration, 2010).
portrayal of their assortment. Clearly organized The importance of the different channel
and categorized products will help consumers attributes for consumers’ channel choices might
to process the information and adopt their final differ across the stages of the buying process
decision. Finally, channels vary in the extent to depending on the goals consumers pursue in
which they store a customer’s behavioral history. each stage of the buying process (Balasub-
Whereas some channels (i.e., online shopping) ramanian et al., 2005; Huffman & Houston,
maintain a permanent or historical record of a 1993; Lee & Ariely, 2006). In the search stage,
customer’s transactions, others (i.e., a retail consumers strive for gathering accurate and
store) retain little or no memory. relevant information that enables them to make
Schoenbachler et al. (2002) include the well-informed decisions (Carlson et al., 2008).
customer’s perceived risk as a main constitu- In the purchase stage, consumers are aiming
ent in their proposal of multichannel shopping for buying the selected product for the lowest
behaviour model. Perceived risk is considered as price (Balasubramanian et al., 2005; Hamilton
a barrier that prevents consumers from using a & Chernev, 2010). Finally, in the after-sales
specific channel (Meuter et al., 2005). Perceived stage, consumers want to minimize effort us-
risk represents a function of uncertainty about ing the products and services (Keeney, 1999).
the potential outcomes of behaviour and the pos- Perceived price can also affect consum-
sible unpleasantness of these outcomes (Gensler ers’ channel choices (Venkatesan et al., 2007).
et al., 2012). The perceived risk can be financial, The higher the perceived price in a channel,
social, or physical or some combination. It is the less likely consumers are to choose that
hypothesized to be derived from several factors channel (Verhoef et al., 2007). So consumers
including the customer’s familiarity with the aim for minimizing the cost to buy a product
channel, familiarity with the specific company, (Balasubramanian et al., 2005). Hence, one
familiarity with the brand name, the price of might expect that a channel’s perceived price
the product/service, perception of security of is the most important channel attribute in the
information, perception of security of purchase, purchase stage (Gensler et al., 2012).
and guarantees (Schoenbachler et al., 2002). Perceived convenience, which refers to the
Consumers might be locked in to a specific perceived ease and speed with which a consumer
channel, such as when the previous use of a can gather information, purchase a product, or
channel increases the likelihood of using that conduct transactions, has in general a positive
channel again in the future (Johnson et al., 2003). effect on consumers’channel choices (Frambach
The experience and time that consumers spend et al., 2007). This channel attribute seems espe-
in shopping is higher in a multichannel setting. cially relevant for consumers’ channel choices
In particular, it is estimated that multichannel in the after-sales stage (Keeney, 1999).
shoppers spend on average 15%-30% more time Finally, perceived risk can result from a
than one channel shoppers. And even more, omni poor product choice due to the consumer’s
channel shoppers dedicate to shop 20% of time inability to judge the quality of the product ac-
more than simply multichannel ones (Retail curately when using a particular channel (Gupta
Online Integration, 2010). Experience effect et al., 2004). It can also result from an expected
might thus appear as a specific type of channel loss of money by a consumer (Sweeney et al.,
loyalty. Dholakia et al. (2005) and Thomas & 1999). Losses might, in particular, occur when
Sullivan (2005) find that prior channel choices consumers actually spend money (i.e., purchase
and after-sales stage). Thus, it is expected that of usefulness, trust, and enjoyment, which in
risk is more relevant for consumers’ channel turn influence consumers’ attitudes toward
choices in the purchase and after-sales stage e-shopping. At the same time, consumer
compared to the search stage (Gensler et al., perceptions of usefulness and attitude toward
2012). e-shopping influence intention to e-shopping,
Overall, as prior research reveals, the while perceived ease of use does not influence
consumer behaviour with regard to retailing attitude toward shop online. Additionally, shop-
multichannel choices is influenced by several ping enjoyment and trust play significant roles
antecedents and motivations (i.e., shopping in consumers’ adoption of e-shopping.
motivations, consumers’ attitudes, prior experi- Soopramanien & Robertson (2007) model
ence, channel attributes) (see Figure 1). how socio-demographic variables, attitudes and
Finally, related to this first task that pursues beliefs towards Internet shopping affect both
analyse customers, it is interesting to highlight the adoption decision and usage of the online
the importance of testing the degree of custom- shopping channel. Previous research about
ers’ technology acceptance and adoption. In shopping through Internet focuses on whether
other words, a way to identify those factors to adopt online shopping but this paper extends
that cause people to accept and make use of this research by delineating non-adopting
systems developed and implemented by oth- individuals into non-browsing and browsing.
ers, in this case multichannel retailing. Davis They demonstrate that there is a fundamental
(1989) proposed the Technology Acceptance behavioural difference between three forms of
Model (TAM) to explain the potential user’s behaviour: that is, those that purchase online,
behavioural intention to use a technological those that browse online but then purchase in-
innovation. TAM is based on the theory of store and those that do not shop online at all.
reasoned action (Fishbein & Ajzen, 1975), a
psychological theory that seeks to explain be-
haviour. TAM involved two primary predictors, 4. TASK TWO: DEVELOP A
perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness MULTICHANNEL STRATEGY
and the dependent variable behavioural inten-
Traditional retailers store-based and catalog-
tion, which the theory of reasoned action as-
based are adding new sales channels, evolving
sumed to be closely linked to actual behaviour.
towards multi-channel retailers, with special
Specifically, the Technology Adoption Model
emphasis on electronic channels. However, the
(TAM) helps us to identify factors that cause
adoption of a multichannel strategy is a gradual
people to accept and make use of multichan-
process that goes from one format to the fully
nel retailing. According to O’Cass & Fenech
functional multichannel, through intermediate
(2003), TAM has been successfully applied in
situations in which there is a head channel (Levy
a range of marketing contexts, including online
& Weitz, 2012). Retailers are more likely to
retailing, to understand and explain consumer
pursue easy-to-accomplish, low intensity and
information systems adoptions (Ha & Stoel,
informational integration when developing an
2009; Soopramanien & Robertson, 2007).
online presence and few retailers offer complex
In particular, Ha & Stoel (2009) integrate
channel integration capabilities (Steinfield et
e-shopping quality, enjoyment, and trust into
al., 2005). Specifically, the traditional store
a technology acceptance model (TAM) to
channel remains as the central channel from
understand consumer adoption of e-shopping.
which the retailer links other channels (such
E-shopping quality for apparel products consists
as online one), and sometimes each channel
of four dimensions: web site design, customer
keeps all functions autonomously.
service, privacy/security, and atmospheric/ex-
The development of a multichannel strategy
periential. A structural equation model reveals
can be considered from several perspectives.
that e-shopping quality determines perceptions
Figure 1. Antecedents of consumers’ channel choices
From a strategic point of view, is a business the other channels in the long term. Cannibaliza-
growth strategy (Levy & Weitz, 2012) addressed tion is more accentuated in catalog channel and
to current and new consumers using new retail complementarity in online channel.
formats. From the consumer perspective, the Developing a multichannel strategy
basic objective of the strategy is to maximize requires overcoming certain issues, such as
multichannel customer perceived value (Payne to provide an integrated experience across
& Frow, 2004). Finally, from the point of view different formats (Zhang et al., 2010). Since
of the decisions of retailing, the development each channel offers unique benefits, customer
of a multichannel strategy allows to overcome profiles using each are not identical, establishing
the limitations of unique formats. a continuum between the homogenization of
Beyond the benefits of each channel, a the supply and maintenance of a differentiated
multichannel strategy involves three major offering for each channel (Zhang et al., 2010).
advantages. First, it helps to overcome the Specifically, the aspects that define multichan-
limitations of existing formats, increasing nel strategy are the centralized database, brand
assortment through optimal management that image, assortment, pricing policy and reducing
improves the supply at a lower cost and more migration between channels. However, as we
effective inventory management. Second, it have noted previously, cost derived from operate
also allows increasing customer satisfaction and through several channels can do multi-strategy
loyalty, more convenient shopping and accurate unfeasible (Levy & Weitz, 2012).
delivery to customers with smaller increases In practice there is no consensus about the
in spending, which can generate an increase optimal strategy for an integrated multichan-
in customer spending share for the company nel management. As a way to get this channel
(IDC Retail Insights, 2010). Retailers can get integration, some retailers decide to increase
more knowledge of customer buying behaviour, collaboration between channels by changing
especially through analytics that provide online management responsibility from staff that is
trading (Neslin et al. 2006, Stone et al., 2002). only dedicated to online programs to offline
Finally, it is an option to expand the company’s programs (Gill et al., 2013). However, to fully
market to new segments and geographic areas. exploit the potential of multichannel marketing,
These benefits translate into a better retailers must use Internet channel not only to
understanding of customer buying behaviour, inform customers about their company and
more lasting relationships (Payne & Frow, offering, but also to sell products and services
2004), as well as the development of a spanning and to provide additional features, which sup-
capability to coordinate operation between dif- port channel switching or interactive com-
ferent channels (Day, 1994) that can provide a munication (Müller et al., 2005). Moreover,
competitive advantage. In mature sectors, such little is known about the level of diversity in
as retailing, multichannel strategy is one of the multichannel retailing strategies and the drivers
alternatives to increase competitive advantage. behind retailers’ strategic choices (Müller et al.,
However, the cost advantage that could mean 2005). In this section, we offer a classification
for the company this growth option implies of the strategies deployed in the European retail
also some disadvantages, such as cannibaliza- grocery industry in terms of two factors that are
tion problems between channels and damage assumed to influence multichannel strategies
synergies (avery et al., 2011; Falk et al., 2007). choices: individual retailer’s general marketing
More specifically, Avery et al. (2009) found that strategy and national market structures (Müller
when a retailer opens physical stores, this new et al., 2005). In particular, Müller et al. (2005)
channel catches market share from online and define six classes of multi-channel strategies
catalog sales in the short term. However, this found after analysing 25 European retail gro-
new channel offers complementary effects with
cers with an important physical presence (i.e., automated retailing (Levy & Weitz, 2012),
physical stores): conforming the following seven categories:
• Online Advertising Approach: Charac- • Direct Selling: Including field account

terized by a very limited use of the online management, service, and personal
channel’s marketing potential because it representation
does not offer products to sold on-line • Outlets: Including retail branches, stores,
and no value-adding features online (e.g., depots, and kiosks
ALDI, LIDL). • Telephone: Including traditional tele-
• Online Information Center: Grocery phone, facsimile, telex, and call centre
retailers that offer slightly more value- contact
adding features online are focused on • Direct Marketing: Direct mail, radio, tra-
passively provide information to visitors ditional TV, etc., but excluding e-commerce
to the websites (e.g., SPAR, SAFEWAY). • E-Commerce: Email, the Internet, and
• Online Service Center: Grocery retail- interactive digital TV
ers that do not sell any product online but • M-Commerce: Including mobile tele-
make extensive use of its interaction and phony, SMS and text messaging, and WAP
customer-retention potential, for example and 3G mobile services.
offering a database of recipes (e.g., REAL, • Automatic retailing (vending)
a German hypermarket chain).
• Focused Multichannel Grocer: Grocery All these categories of channels can be
retailers that sell product only online and represented on a continuum of forms ranging
characterized by a limited amount of value- from purely physical to completely virtual.
adding features (e.g., ASDA). Anyway, new terms are coined for channels
• Service Oriented Multichannel Grocer: covering similar features, for example, ‘smart
Grocery retailers that sell product only shopping’, including newscasts, websites and
online and offer extensive content and bookshelves (Atkins & Kim, 2012). Also,
customer retention building features (e.g., evolution is continuous, increasing existing
INTERMARCHE). channels, especially since the new channels
• Service Oriented Multichannel derived from social media (i.e., Facebook,
Megastores: Strategy follows by retail- Twitter, Foursquare). Next, we analyze the
ers that extensively uses online channel, situation of the various alternatives to physical
offer online grocery shopping but with channels, with particular reference to online
different regional scope (e.g., AUCHAN, indications for future developments and impact
CARREFOUR, SAINSBURY). on the configuration of a multichannel strategy.
The conventional and most frequent chan-
nel used by retailers is the store. However, online
5. TASK THREE: DESIGN channels and catalog count up a significant
RETAIL CHANNELS quota. More detailed data of these channels
are next offered.
In the context of the configuration of distribution Electronic retailing, also called Internet
channels, data on changes in the sales through retailing, online retailing, and e-tailing, is a
different channels confirm that companies are retail channel whereby consumers directly
expanding their range of options. buy goods or services from a seller, without
Payne & Frow (2004) identify six main an intermediary. The process is performed over
types of channels. However, it can be added the Internet, with virtual platforms evoking a
brick-and-mortar retailer. Besides that, online
Table 1. Digital buyers worldwide, by region, 2011-2016 (millions)
hRegion 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Asia-Pacific 334.8 391.1 457.6 523.1 591.7 653.5
Western Europe 156.8 168.6 178.8 186.1 192.1 197.3
North America 156.7 164.2 171.3 178.8 185.8 192.6
Eastern Europe 63.9 75.2 85.2 95.2 102.5 107.4
Latin America 50.3 63.6 73.0 82.5 90.6 97.5
Middle East & Africa 30.0 40.9 49.8 58.6 65.8 73.1
Worldwide 792.6 903.6 1,015.8 1,124.3 1,228.5 1,321,4
Source: eMarketer (2013)
shopping exhibits a strong cross-channel influ- the growth of the Asia-Pacific region, being
ence. Thus, store sales influenced by online China the primary driver of growth in the area
research are three-to-five times larger than total (see Table 2 for ranking of countries). A pros-
electronic sales (IDC Retail Insights, 2010). pering middle class and an increasing trust in
The evolution of online sales is unstop- online shopping are main causes of this growth.
pable, growing every year and giving rise to Also, the importance of Asia-Pacific as
new businesses. The largest online retailing primary market for online shopping is evident,
companies in the world are Alibaba (www.al- becoming Internet one of the main channel for
ibaba.com), Amazon.com (www.amazon.com), e-tailing (see Table 3). Expectations for Western
and eBay (www.ebay.com). As it is discussed Europe and North America are similar, with
below, B2C e-commerce sales grow every year Internet as second or third shopping channel.
and are forecasted to grow at greater than 10 For Easter Europe, Latin America, and Middle
per cent annually (eMarketer, 2013), faster than East & Africa, though growing, the forecasting
other channels. Table 1 depicts an estimation of shows a minor share respect to conventional
the size of online consumers worldwide, and a channels like store or direct selling. Lack of
forecast until 2016. USA is the main country infrastructures, limited services offered and
in online shopping, followed by Japan, though the patterns of buying behaviour are possible
China is expecting to rank the second country in reasons for these data.
the World in 2013. It is particularly interesting
Table 2. Top 5 countries in B2C ecommerce sales, 2011-2013 (billions $)
Country 2011 2012 2013

1. US 301.69 343.43 384.80
2. China 56.69 110.04 181.62
3. UK 109.03 124.76 141.53
4. Japan 112.78 127.82 140.35
5. Germany 38.08 47.00 53.00
Note: includes travel, digital downloads and event tickets purchased via any digital channel (including online,
mobile and tablet), excludes gambling; ranked by 2013: * excludes event tickets; **includes sales from businesses
that occur over C2C platforms; excludes Hong Kong
Table 3. B2C ecommerce sales share worldwide, by region, 2011-2016 (% of total)
Region 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Asia-Pacific 27.9 30.5 33.4 36.2 38.2 39.7
Western Europe 28.0 26.9 25.7 24.3 23.4 22.6
North America 35.9 33.5 31.5 29.7 28.8 28.2
Eastern Europe 3.6 3.8 3.9 3.9 3.8 3.7
Latin America 3.1 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.6 3.5
Middle East & Africa 1.6 1.9 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.3
Note: includes travel, digital downloads and event tickets purchased via any digital channel (including online, mobile
and tablet), excludes gambling; numbers may not add up to 100% due to rounding
Though sales through Internet have posi- Also, the behaviour is different depending
tive forecast, and electronic retailers are gain- on the product category. Cosmetic, personal care
ing market share, the predictions made at the and wellness are industries of great importance
beginning of the Internet era have not become for the direct selling (see Figure 2). Neverthe-
a reality: retailers are not cannibalising their less this channel has a big challenge to reduce
own customers, virtual intermediaries have high turnover of trade key pieces for a business
not controlled the market, and the high-street that has its cornerstone in dealing directly with
still exists (Doherty & Ellis-Chadwick, 2010). the customer. The future business also involves
Direct selling has increased in recent years using all the possibilities Internet and social
fuelled by an increasingly interesting career that networks can offer as additional communication
requires little or no investment. The number of with the buyer.
vendors has grown in recent years, standing at The telemarketing, located between direct
46,090,251 professionals worldwide in 2012 selling and distance selling, is one of the best
(Table 4). Direct selling reached 73,276 billion markets overcoming the crisis with business
$ in 2012, increasing by 5.4% compared to figures of about 7,900 million $ in Europe,
2011. It is a form of sale with a long tradition in through over 60 channels dedicated to 24 hours
countries like USA and Japan, remain marginal television teleshopping. The biggest market is
in Europe and Africa/Middle East. the UK, with 40 channels and a turnover of
Table 4. Global sales and direct selling community (2012)
Region Retail sales (millions $) Size of direct selling community

Asia/Pacific 73,276 46,090,251
Africa/Middle East 1,260 n.a.
North America 33,854 16,612,880
Latin America 32,594 14,579,271
Western Europe 17,743 2,574,043
Central & Eastern Europe 8,149 8,782,005
Global 166,876 89,675,927
Source: World Federation of Direct Selling Associations (WFDSA)
Figure 2. Global sales of direct selling by product category
$2,000 million , also generating higher spend- Mobile shopping represent a further step in
ing per person, about $25 for the 16 channels the digitalization of shopping, changing how,
in Germany, and 12 from the European aver- when, and what of selling. Since consumers
age. The outlook in Spain for the coming years are constantly connected, the whole retailer’s
postulates high growth of this channel as a business is affected by this channel. The growth
result of digital television and the increase in potential of mobile shopping is evident: 49% of
broadband connections, according to a study in us consumers own a Smartphone, and 60% of
Western Europe TV shopping. The duration of these shoppers use their phones in the buying
time devoted to such programs has increased process (Deloitte, 2012). Consumer shopping
since the advent of digital television, especially via mobile phones is expected to grow in EU
on the fringes and less attractive advertising reaching 6.8% of total web sales in 2017 (For-
schedules. rester research, 2012).
Regarding vending, this sales channel rev-
enues reached approximately 17,556 million $
in 2008, according to figures compiled by data- 6. TASK FOUR: IMPLEMENT A
monitor. There exist about 3.8 million vending MULTICHANNEL STRATEGY
machines in Europe, resulting in an average of a
With regard to the implementation stage, a key
vending machine for every 187 people, whereas
issue is about organization structure enhancing
in Japan, there is a vending machine for every
potential advantages from multichannel envi-
20 people. Catalog is an important channel for
ronment. In this sense, literature reveals that lack
European and American consumers, within the
of channel coordination can lead to “inefficient
category of remote channels.
or sub-optimal” expenditure decisions. Indepen-
dent decision-making at the channel level easily and handling fees (Neslin & Shankar, 2009).
could produce communications and pricing Another way to charge differential prices and
decisions that are inconsistent across channels avoid conflict is to sell similar, but not exactly
and therefore detract from the overall clarity the same items in different channels—a practice
of the brand meaning (Calder & Malthouse, known as marketing of branded variants (Bergen
2005). To the contrary, joint optimization de- et al., 1996). Anyway, the viability of previous
creases the firm’s total marketing expenditures practices will depend on how much of the dif-
because each channel realizes that its efforts ferences in prices and products do customers
might cannibalize sales through the firm’s other notice and how deeply they care about such
channel. Integrated multichannel marketing can differences (Morwitz et al., 1998).
improve marketing efforts through coordinated Steinfield et al. (2005) point out several
marketing programs (Neslin & Shankar, 2009). factors that influence the use of click and mortar
These programs can take the form of traditional features by retailer:
integrated marketing communications tactics
such as the consistent use of the same logo or • Product Type: The specific types of
value proposition in all the channels. Another products and services that a retailer sells
promising area is cross-channel promotions can determine the adoption of strategies in
(e.g., inter-channel cross-selling promotions). multichannel context. The characteristics of
Developing an integration channel man- products and services can influence the way
agement strategy gives rise to the following a channel might be used, due to variations
issues (Payne & Frow, 2004): how to achieve in such factors as the physical properties of
brand consistency in the formal communica- the product, the value of the product, and
tions programmes of different channels; how the frequency with which the product is
to achieve consistency in the way customers purchased. The Web enables consumers to
experience the company when they deal with become aware of and transact with Internet
its various channels; how to ensure the com- retailers who may be located anywhere.
munications and services a customer receives However, some products and services must
through different channels are coordinated and be both produced and consumed locally,
coherent, tailored to their particular interests, while others such as larger appliances may
and cognizant of their previous encounters with be more costly to transport.
the company; and how to optimize the return on • Firm Structure: Retail chains and sole pro-
resources deployed across different channels. prietorships may adopt different strategies,
Other crucial issue in implementation is since they may manage a different number
coordination of the marketing mix across chan- of firm locations. Adding a channel can
nels (Neslin & Shankar, 2009). In this sense, help extend the reach of a firm beyond its
should the products and prices be the same or traditional physical outlets, addressing new
different in multiple channels? Research reveals geographic markets. For example, retail
that multichannel firms provide extra benefit to chain firms are more likely to have estab-
customers, enabling these firms to charge higher lished distribution centres, and are more
prices (e.g., Ancarani & Shankar, 2004). How- likely to have experience in coordinating
ever, because differential prices across channels multiple-location operations. However, a
may potentially lead to customer confusion and retailer with a single location is limited in
resentment and channel cannibalization and exploiting its physical presence.
conflict, it appears that firms typically charge the • Firm Resources: Existing information
same posted prices across channels (Pan et al., technology resources, such as the number
2004). Nevertheless, the firm might effectively of PCs in the firm, the extent to which
charge different prices by channel-specific these PCs are networked, and other indica-
use of price promotions or through shipping tors of information technology stocks are
important enablers for e-commerce (Zhu suggested several key steps to overcome this
& Kraemer, 2002). Other resources include planning process:
a firms’ brand name, quality of existing
supplier relationships, and possession of • Develop strategic multichannel goals.
a range of other complementary assets, as • Understand customer and channel touch
well as capital and human resources that points to leverage advantage.
can be utilized to facilitate its e-commerce • Undertake a review of industry structure
(Steinfield et al., 2002). In addition, com- and channel options, including a review of
panies which already engage in catalog channel economics.
sales have an established infrastructure and • Understand channel usage patterns.
business model which can be applied and • Develop an integrated channel manage-
enhanced with relative ease to handle or- ment strategy.
ders in others channels (e.g., e-commerce,
m-commerce). Therefore, once the planning of the mul-
tichannel strategy and its posterior implemen-
tation are finished, the firm could get some
7. TASK FIVE: EVALUATE. measures in order to assess and control the
ASSESS THE CUSTOMER performance of this multichannel strategy. To
RESPONSE TO A achieve this goal, some authors suggest that
MULTICHANNEL STRATEGY tracking the effectiveness of a multichannel
strategy requires a set of metrics and not just
Some of the advantages of the implementation
one measure (Bazett et al., 2005).
of a multichannel strategy are increased reach
In order to guide the choice of these indica-
to the target group (with more channels we can
tors, the first decision to consider is to define the
reach a higher number of customers), better
perspective from which we evaluate the strategy.
customer service, higher levels of customer
In other words, the multi-channel strategy can
satisfaction (Moriarty & Moran, 1990), and
be assessed either from a customer perspec-
even higher levels of acquisition of products
tive (using behavioral measures), or from a
(Kumar & Venkatesan, 2005). In particular,
firm perspective (using observable measures),
it has been proved that those customers who
called unobservable and observable constructs
interact with the firm through more channels
respectively by Gupta and Zeithaml (2006).
are more profitable than those ones who interact
Firms could also consider a combination of
through a less number of channels (Kumar &
both perspectives.
Venkatesan, 2005). Despite the fact that some
From a firm perspective, a multichannel
of the previously shown advantages could be
strategy can be assessed using measures about
decisive to integrate a multichannel strategy in
contribution to profit. For example, Neslin et al.
the firm, we can also remark some disadvan-
(2006) proposed theoretically as performance
tages. For example, a multichannel strategy
measures the following information:
could lead to a channel conflict and decreasing
returns as more channels are utilized (Sharma
& Mehrotra, 2007). • What is the contribution of an additional
In order to deal with the implementation of channel?
a multichannel strategy with more probability • What is the contribution of each channel?
of success (Sharma & Mehrotra, 2007), firms • What channels synergize best with others?
need to develop effective multichannel strate-
gies, or in other words, firms have to plan the In a similar vein, Kumar & Venkatesan
process. In particular, Payne & Frow (2004) (2005) proposed using the following observable
constructs to assess performance of multichan- Weinberg et al. (2007) theoretically review

nel shoppers: more metrics to assess the multichannel strategy,
such as return-on-investment of multichannel
• Revenues, or lifetime purchases of the marketing (ROI). They highlight the role of
customer. the multichannel strategies developed through
• Share of wallet, or average ratio of the rev- Internet and emphasize the process of the cre-
enues from the customer to the customer’s ation of metrics that measure the impacts and
annual budget for information technology overall performance of multiple channels. It is
in the analysis time period. not enough to create a multichannel strategy and
• Cumulative profits obtained from a cus- design an organizational structure to support
tomer or past customer value. it. Organizations have to effectively measure
• Probability that a customer is still alive or multichannel performance in order to improve
likelihood of being active. this strategy in the future. Thus, they propose
web-based analytics to get more metrics about:
In particular, these authors are interested
in knowing if customers who shop across mul- • Website traffic.
tiple channels are different from single-channel • Catalog products viewed.
shoppers in terms of the previously mentioned • Number of page views per visit.
customer-based metrics. They use a combina- • Customer satisfaction with particular
tion of test procedures, in particular, (i) they features.
tested for each customer-based metric, whether • Click-thru conversion rates.
the mean of at least one group (where the groups
are determined by the level of multichannel On the other hand, we can also assess
shopping, i.e., shopped in one channel, in two a multichannel strategy from a customer’s
channels, in three channels, or in four chan- perspective. In particular, Neslin & Shankar
nels) is significantly different from the rest of (2009) have noted that one of the requirements
the groups using a MANOVA procedure; (ii) for successful evaluation of the multichannel
additionally they conduct a post-hoc analysis of strategy and implementation is to take into ac-
the difference in means of the customer-based count the voice of customers, e.g., using data
metrics for all four groups. This analysis al- on how each customer utilizes each channel.
lows them to understand where the differences Noble et al. (2005) employed a value
are in the customer-based metrics across the perspective to develop a model of magnitude
various groups. Specifically, they want to know differences in consumers’ derived utilitar-
whether customers who shopped in a single ian values across different channels. These
channel differ from customers who shopped in utilitarian values, opposed to hedonic value,
two, three, or four channels. Their conclusions are dominantly functional, instrumental and
highlight that at least in business-to-business cognitive in nature and are a means to an end
settings, multichannel shoppers provide better and are often equated to rational motives of
benefits than single-channel shoppers. Spe- time, place and possession needs (Noble et
cifically, their results show that multichannel al., 2005). In particular, they examined the
shoppers are more loyal (as measured by share influence of the utilitarian values of informa-
of wallet and likelihood of being active) and tion attainment, price comparison, immediate
more profitable (as measured by past customer possession and assortment seeking on channel
value) than single-channel shoppers, possibly information search and ultimately purchase
because they are aware of options available to frequency across brick and mortar, catalog
them and purchase products in the mediums and Internet retail channels. Specifically, they
most convenient to them. hypothesize that consumer information attain-
ment, consumer price comparison, immediate
possession and assortment seeking is positively sumer’s channel choice antecedents in Figure
associated with channel information search. 2). They assume that consumers choose the set
Additionally, these hypotheses are stronger in of channels that maximize their utility in each
case of Internet channel, followed by catalogs stage of the buying process. Channel utility is
and brick and mortar. To test these hypotheses thus expressed as:
they use a structural model and their findings
indicate that: (i) the Internet provides greater .
information attainment than the brick and
U c ,i , p ,s = ác + çc , p + vc ,s + ∑ â attribute a ,s a ,i ,c ,s
a ∈A
+φs previous usec ,i , p ,s + ∑ ä like s ′,s c ,i , p ,s '
s ' ∈S
∀c ∈ C , i ∈ I , p ∈ P, s ∈ S, s ' ≠ s
mortar or catalog channel, (ii) regarding price

comparison, the brick and mortar channel pro- where:
vides greater price comparison value than the
Internet, with negative relationships in catalog U c,i, p,s : Utility of channel c for consumer i
and Internet channels, (iii) the brick and mortar for product p in stage s
channel was found to provide greater possession ác : Constant for channel c
value than the Internet or catalog channel and
finally, (iv) assortment seeking is positively çc, p : Constant for channel c and product p
associated with channel information search,
with Internet being the strongest, followed by vc,s : Constant for channel c and stage s
catalogs and brick and mortar.
âa ,s : Parameter of channel attribute a in stage
Additionally, Merriless & Frenech (2007)
modelled the intention to use different chan- s
nels as another way to assess the performance attributea ,i,c,s : Consumer i’s perception of
of a multichannel strategy. Trust in supplier, channel c along channel attribute a in stage s
catalog layout, price and guarantee joined φs : Parameter of channel experience within
determine customer satisfaction. At the same stage s
time, this customer satisfaction determines
previous usec,i, p,s : Variable indicating
intention to use different channels. Spefically,
a two-equation model of the buying process is whether consumer i has chosen channel c for
developed, as follows: product p in stage s previously
äs ′,s : Parameter of channel spill over from
INT = f (SAT ) stage s’ to stage s
likec,i, p,s ' : Consumer i’s likelihood to choose
SAT = f (P, L, S ,G )
channel c for product p in stage s’
where INT refers to behavioural intentions; Other authors have taken into account the
SAT refers to customer satisfaction; P refers to two previously mentioned perspectives (i.e.,
perceived fair price; L refers to catalog layout; composite approach) and have used together
S refers to friendly staff telephone operators; G perception measures and observable measures.
refers to guarantees. An interesting example is given by Bazett et al.
In a similar vein, Gensler et al. (2012) (2005). These authors assessed the multichan-
provide a more integrative approach toward nel performance from this joint perspective
consumers’ channel choice intentions by addressing the problem in a wider way. They
considering all stages of the buying process developed a balanced scorecard, which com-
(search, purchase, and after-sales), and taking bines measures that best fit the firm strategic
into account channel attributes, experience, and objectives (e.g., if the firm has fixed a financial
spill over effects when examining consumers’ objective it could consider a measure of revenue
channel choice intentions (see a review of con- minus direct product costs and costs of running
Figure 3. Multichannel Balanced Scorecard
the channels). Figure 3 shows the set of metrics shoppers offer strong loyalty in each channel
proposed within this approach. and are more likely to influence others. It is
Finally, Table 5 shows a summary of the interesting to analyse the multichannel loyalty,
measures explained in this section. Specifically especially respect to a single-channel strategy.
we have split this table into three parts: the first On the other hand, unifying several chan-
one refers to the first group of research that uses nels in an unified retailing strategy, breaking bar-
observable measures (firm perspective) to assess riers between channels and providing superior
a multichannel strategy, the second one refers service at more efficient costs is a very complex
to the research that uses unobservable measures business transformation. Customer purchasing
(customer perspective) to assess a multichannel in a multichannel setting (usually, supported
strategy, the last one refers to those research with a mobile), involves knowing in deep the
that uses a mixture of both perspectives (firm cross shopping ehaviour generated. Research on
and customer). this matter is required. Also, most of measures
are designed and oriented for single-channels,
not providing enough knowledge of cross-
8. FUTURE RESEARCH selling, unique customer ehaviour, etc. Thus,
DIRECTIONS developing new measures to assess multichan-
nel activity, identifying buying patterns across
Formulation and implementation of a multi-
different channels is essential for monitoring the
channel strategy is a complex issue. If it is not
success of the strategy and carry out changes.
properly controlled, consumer satisfaction and
Finally, since purchasing behaviour differs
profits can be at risk. It is necessary to deepen
between product categories and consumers,
into organizational problems, and related re-
segmentation analysis is welcome for a better
sources and management capabilities of this
targeting of strategies.
strategy. Sinergies, complementaries, integra-
tion of communications, or data analytics are
examples of capabilities required for success
with a multichannel strategy. Also, experts
from the industry considers that multichannel
Table 5. Summary of indicators explained for assessing multichannel strategy
Observable Measures Key References

Contribution of an additional channel
Contribution of each channel Neslin et al. (2006)
Channels which synergize best with others
Revenues, or lifetime purchases of the customer.
Share of wallet
Kumar & Venkatesan (2005)
Cumulative profits obtained from a customer.
Probability that a customer is still alive.
ROI of multichannel strategy
Web-based analytics: web-site traffic, catalog products viewed, number of page views Weinberg et al. (2007)
per visit, custmer satisfaction with particular features and click-thru conversion rates
Unobservable Measures Key References
Voice of customers: how each customer utilizes each channel Neslin & Shankar (2009)
Utilitarian values of information attainment, price comparison, possession and
assortment seeking on channel information search Noble et al. (2005)
Purchase frequency across brick and mortar, catalog and Internet retail channels
Intention to use different channels Merriless & Frenech (2007)
Channel choice: for search, for purchase and for after-sales Gensler et al. (2012)
Composite Approach Key References
Results
Customer and stakeholders
Bazett el at. (2005)
Core processes
People and knowledge
9. CONCLUSION a comprehensive understanding of multichan-

nel consumer behavior in order to implement
This article supports the theoretical basis re- multichannel strategies offering a superior value
lated to the accomplishment of multichannel for consumers. The traditional approach to dis-
strategy from a dual perspective (e.g., organiza- tribution strategy based on one channel (physical
tion and consumer). It offers a comprehensive store, catalog sales or direct selling, basically),
framework to analyse and guide the process have evolved into multichannel operators with
of developing, implementing and control of a a more integrated, customer-centered approach.
multichannel strategy. Framed in the Multichan- This performance was driven by the desire of
nel Customer Management Decision model consumers to communicate with retailers at any
(Neslin & Shankar, 2009), it seeks to highlight time and any place.
the relevance of the optimal integration of The reality of channel use indicates the
channels in order to maximize profits and value strong growth experienced by online channels
(to organization and consumers, respectively). linked to new information technologies. Many
Retailers can’t afford to avoid thinking affluent consumers are technology savvy, being
about the adoption of a multichannel strategy frequent online buyers; they usually turn to their
on their businesses. Companies need to reach mobile to buy or support their shopping practice.
These are a primary group to target a mobile and REFERENCES

cross-channel shopping experience. But other
channels have also grown, such as direct sales. Alba, J., Lynch, J., Weitz, B., Janiszewski, C.,
In short, a multichannel reality tries to satisfy Lutz, R., Sawyer, A., & Wood, S. (1997). Inter-
a more heterogeneous consumer in the form of active Home Shopping: Consumer, retailer and
manufacturer incentives to participate in electronic
access to the purchase. Anyway, though Internet marketplaces. Journal of Marketing, 61(3), 38–53.
is reshaping the commercial world, more that doi:10.2307/1251788
the demise of breaks-and-mortar, the trend is
ang, X., Ratchford, B. T., & Shankar, V. (2004). Price
heading towards a complementarity between
Dispersion on the Internet: A Review and Directions
‘breaks’ and ‘clicks’. for Future Research. Journal of Interactive Market-
From a strategic standpoint, multichannel ing, 18(4), 116–135.
strategy can be considered a growth strategy,
Atkins, K. G., & Kim, Y. K. (2012). Smart shopping:
but also a different alternative to manage retail Conceptualization and measurement. International
formats. Its benefits in terms of increased sales, Journal of Retail & Distribution Management, 40(5),
more segments reached, or customer loyalty is 360–375. doi:10.1108/09590551211222349
clear, but we have also presented the problems
Balasubramanian, S., Raghunathan, R., & Mahajan,
of cost and coordination related to providing V. (2005). Consumers in a multichannel environment:
an integrated experience. The organization of Product utility, process utility, and channel choice.
a multichannel strategy requires solving the Journal of Interactive Marketing, 19(2), 12–30.
dilemma complementarity/cannibalizing for doi:10.1002/dir.20032
each channel giving specific advantages in terms Bazett, M., Bowden, I., Love, J., Street, R., & Wilson,
of information and promotion, assortment or H. (2005). Measuring multichannel effectiveness
price. Manufacturers should also consider retail using the balanced scorecard. Interactive Marketing,
margins of competing products in order to incor- 6(3), 224–231.
porate a direct channel, in addition to retailers. Bergen, M., Dutta, S., & Shugan, S. M. (1996).
At the very least, they need to understand the Branded Variants: A Retail Perspective. JMR,
opportunities available to them and recognize Journal of Marketing Research, 38(1), 9–19.
how their companies may be vulnerable if rivals doi:10.2307/3152009
seize those opportunities first. Blattberg, R. C., Kim, B. D., & Neslin, S. A. (2008).
The review on consumer choice behaviour Database Marketing: Analyzing and Managing
reveals complexity and heterogeneity in the Customers. New York: Springer; doi:10.1007/978-
0-387-72579-6
determinants of channel choice, although it
is found a preference for those retailers that Calder, B. J., & Malthouse, E. C. (2005). Manag-
offer multiple paths. Motivations, channel ing Media and Advertising Change with Integrated
characteristics, perceived risk, previous experi- Marketing. Journal of Advertising Research, 45(4),
356–361. doi:10.1017/S0021849905050427
ence price and level of convenience determine
the net income. Finally, we conclude that the Carlson, K. A., Janiszewski, C., Keeney, R. L., Krantz,
complexity of the channels, with multiple D. H., Kunreuther, H. C., & Luce, M. F. et al. (2008).
A theoretical framework for goal-based choice and
interactions and online information systems,
for prescriptive analysis. Marketing Letters, 19(3-4),
requires using scorecards to monitor tracks of 241–254. doi:10.1007/s11002-008-9043-4
activity. And data analytics is a ‘must have’
capability for retailers. Chartrand, T. A., Huber, J., Shiv, B., & Tanner,
R. J. (2008). Nonconscious goals and choice. The
Journal of Consumer Research, 35(2), 189–201.
doi:10.1086/588685
Davis, F. D. (1989). Perceived usefulness, perceived Gensler, S., Verhoef, P. C., & Böhm, M. (2012).
ease of use, and user acceptance of information tech- Understanding consumers’ multichannel choices
nology. Management Information Systems Quarterly, across the different stages of the buying process.
13(3), 318–340. doi:10.2307/249008 Marketing Letters, 23(4), 987–1003. doi:10.1007/
s11002-012-9199-9
Day, G. S. (1994). The capabilities of market-driven
organizations. Journal of Marketing, 58(4), 37–52. Gupta, A., Bo-Chiuan, S., & Walter, Z. (2004). An
doi:10.2307/1251915 empirical study of consumer switching from tradi-
tional to electronic channels: A purchase-decision
Deloitte (2012). Mobile retailing. Are you ready for perspective. International Journal of Electronic
radical change? Available at: https://www.deloitte. Commerce, 8(3), 131–161.
com/assets/Dcom-UnitedStates/Local%20Assets/
Documents/Consumer%20Business/us_retail_mo- Gupta, S., & Zeithaml, V. (2006). Customer met-
bile%20retailing_091212.pdf rics and their impact on financial performance.
Marketing Science, 25(6), 718–739. doi:10.1287/
Dholakia, R. R., Zhao, M., & Dholakia, N. (2005). mksc.1060.0221
Multichannel retailing: A case study of early expe-
riences. Journal of Interactive Marketing, 19(2), Ha, S., & Stoel, L. (2009). Consumer e-shopping
63–74. doi:10.1002/dir.20035 acceptance: Antecedents in a technology accep-
tance model. Journal of Business Research, 62(5),
Dholakia, U. M., Kahn, B. E., Reeves, R., Rindfleisch, 565–571. doi:10.1016/j.jbusres.2008.06.016
A., Stewart, D., & Taylor, E. (2010). Consumer
behavior in a Multichannel, Multimedia Retailing Hamilton, R., & Chernev, A. (2010). The impact of
Environment. Journal of Interactive Marketing, product line extensions and consumer goals on the
24(2), 86–95. doi:10.1016/j.intmar.2010.02.005 formation of price image. JMR, Journal of Marketing
Research, 47(1), 51–62. doi:10.1509/jmkr.47.1.51
Doherty, N. F., & Ellis-Chadwick, F. (2010).
Internet retailing: The past, the present and the Huffman, C., & Houston, M. J. (1993). Goal-oriented
future. International Journal of Retail & Dis- experiences and the development of knowledge. The
tribution Management, 38(11/12), 943–965. Journal of Consumer Research, 20(2), 190–207.
doi:10.1108/09590551011086000 doi:10.1086/209343
Dunne, P. M. (2013). Retailing. United States: Johnson, E. J., Bellman, S., & Lohse, G. (2003).
Cengage Learning. Cognitive lock-in and the power law of practice.
Journal of Marketing, 67(2), 62–75. doi:10.1509/
eMarketer (2013). Ecommerce Sales Topped $1 Tril- jmkg.67.2.62.18615
lion for First Time in 2012. Available at: http://www.
emarketer.com/Article/Ecommerce-Sales-Topped- Keen, C., Wetzels, M., de Ruyter, K., & Feinberg,
1-Trillion-First-Time-2012/1009649. Retrieved R. (2004). E-tailers Versus Retailers: Which Fac-
July 5, 2013. tors Determine Consumer Preferences. Journal of
Business Research, 57(7), 685–695. doi:10.1016/
Falk, T., Schepers, J., Hammerschmidt, M., & S0148-2963(02)00360-0
Bauer, H. (2007). Identifying Cross-Channel Dis-
synergies for Multichannel Service Providers. Keeney, R. (1999). The value of internet commerce to
Journal of Service Research, 10(2), 143–155. the customer. Management Science, 45(4), 533–542.
doi:10.1177/1094670507306683 doi:10.1287/mnsc.45.4.533
Fishbein, M., & Ajzen, I. (1975). Belief, Attitude, Konuş, U., Verhoef, P. C., & Neslin, S. A. (2008).
Intention and Behavior: An Introduction to Theory Multichannel shopper segments and their covariates.
and Research. California: Addison-Wesley. Journal of Retailing, 84(4), 398–413. doi:10.1016/j.
jretai.2008.09.002
Frambach, R., Roest, H. C., & Krishnan, T. (2007).
The impact of consumer internet experience on Kumar, V., & Venkatesan, R. (2005). Who are the
channel preference and usage intentions across the multichannel shoppers and how do they perform?
different stages of the buying process. Journal of Correlates of multichannel shopping behavior.
Interactive Marketing, 21(2), 26–41. doi:10.1002/ Journal of Interactive Marketing, 19(2), 44–62.
dir.20079 doi:10.1002/dir.20034
Lee, L., & Ariely, D. (2006). Shopping goals, goal O’Cass, A., & Fenech, T. (2003). Webretailing
concreteness, and conditional promotions. The adoption: Exploring the nature of internet users’
Journal of Consumer Research, 33(1), 60–70. webretailing behaviour. Journal of Retailing and
doi:10.1086/504136 Consumer Services, 10(2), 81–94. doi:10.1016/
S0969-6989(02)00004-8
Mandel, N., & Johnson, R. (2002). When web pages
influence choice: Effects of visual primes on experts Oharenko (2006). Historic Sears, Roebuck and Co.
and novices. The Journal of Consumer Research, Catalog Plant (IL) (Images of America). Mount
29(2), 235–245. doi:10.1086/341573 Pleasant, SC: Arcadia.
Merrilees, B., & Fenech, T. (2007). From catalog Payne, A., & Frow, P. (2004). The role of multichan-
to Web: B2B multi-channel marketing strategy. nel integration in customer relationship management.
Industrial Marketing Management, 36(1), 44–49. Industrial Marketing Management, 33(6), 527–538.
doi:10.1016/j.indmarman.2006.06.014 doi:10.1016/j.indmarman.2004.02.002
Meuter, M., Bitner, M. J., Ostrom, A., & Brown, S. Ramcharran, H. (2013). E-Commerce Growth and
(2005). Choosing among alternative service delivery the Changing Structure of the Retail Sales Industry.
modes: An investigation of consumer trial of self- [IJEBR]. International Journal of E-Business Re-
service technologies. Journal of Marketing, 69(2), search, 9(2), 46–60. doi:10.4018/jebr.2013040104
61–83. doi:10.1509/jmkg.69.2.61.60759
Rangan, V. K. (1995). Designing Channels of Distri-
Morales, A., Kahn, B. E., McAlister, L., & Bro- bution, Note 9-594-116, Harvard Business School,
niarczyk, S. M. (2005). Perceptions of assortment Boston, MA.
variety: The effects of congruency between consum-
ers’ internal and retailers’ external organization. Rangaswamy, A., & Van Bruggen, G. H. (2005).
Journal of Retailing, 81(2), 159–169. doi:10.1016/j. Opportunities and Challenges in Multichannel Mar-
jretai.2005.03.007 keting: An Introduction to the Special Issue. Journal
of Interactive Marketing, 24(2), 5–11. doi:10.1002/
Morin, S., Dubé, L., & Chebat, J.-C. (2007). The dir.20037
role of pleasant music in service scapes: A test
of the Dual Model of Environmental Perception. Retail Insights, I. D. C. (2010). Unified Retailing-
Journal of Retailing, 83(1), 115–130. doi:10.1016/j. Breaking Multichannel Barriers. Global Retail In-
jretai.2006.10.006 sights Executive. Available at: http://info.hybris.com/
rs/hybris/images/IDC-Multichannel-EN.pdf?mkt_to
Morwitz, V. G., Greenleaf, E. A., & Johnson, E. J. k=3RkMMJWWfF9wsRokuqjJZKXonjHpfsX57e4
(1998). Divide and Prosper: Consumers’ Reactions kX6ezlMI%2F0ER3fOvrPUfGjI4ATMFiI%2FqLA
to Partitioned Prices. JMR, Journal of Marketing zICFpZo2FFQA%2BKHdZM%3D%5D
Research, 35(4), 453–463. doi:10.2307/3152164
IMAP Retail Report (2010). Retail Industry Global
Neslin, S. A., Grewal, D., Leghorn, R., Shankar, V., Report -2010.
Teerling, M. L., Thomaas, J. S., & Verhoef, P. C.
(2006). Challenges and Opportunities in Multichannel Rigby, D. (2011). The future of shopping. Harvard
Customer Management. Journal of Service Research, Business Review, 89(12), 65–76.
9(2), 95–112. doi:10.1177/1094670506293559 Schibrowsky, J. A., Peltier, J. W., & Nill, A. (2007).
Neslin, S. A., & Shankar, V. (2009). Key Issues The state of internet marketing research: A review
in Multichannel Customer Management: Current of the literature and future research directions.
knowledge and future directions. Journal of In- European Journal of Marketing, 41(7/8), 722–733.
teractive Marketing, 23(1), 70–81. doi:10.1016/j. doi:10.1108/03090560710752366
intmar.2008.10.005 Schoenbachler, D. D., & Gordon, G. L. (2002).
Noble, S. M., Griffith, D. A., & Weinberger, M. Multi-channel shopping: Understanding what drives
G. (2005). Consumer derived utilitarian value and channel choice. Journal of Consumer Marketing,
channel utilization in a multi-channel retail context. 19(1), 42–53. doi:10.1108/07363760210414943
Journal of Business Research, 58(12), 1643–1651. Sharma, A., & Mehrotra, A. (2007). Choosing an
doi:10.1016/j.jbusres.2004.10.005 optimal channel mix in multichannel environments.
Industrial Marketing Management, 36(1), 21–28.
doi:10.1016/j.indmarman.2006.06.012
Soopramanien, D. G. R., & Robertson, A. (2007). Venkatesan, R., Kumar, V., & Ravishanker, N. (2007).
Adoption and usage of online shopping: An empirical Multi-channel shopping: Causes and consequences.
analysis of the characteristics of “buyers” “browsers” Journal of Marketing, 71(2), 114–132. doi:10.1509/
and “non-internet shoppers”. Journal of Retailing jmkg.71.2.114
and Consumer Services, 14(1), 73–82. doi:10.1016/j.
jretconser.2006.04.002 Verhoef, P. C., & Lemon, K. N. (2013). Successful
customer value management: Key lessons and emerg-
Steinfield, C., Adelaar, T., & Liu, F. (2005). Click ing trends. European Management Journal, 31(1),
and Mortar Strategies Viewed from the Web: A 1–15. doi:10.1016/j.emj.2012.08.001
Content Analysis of Features Illustrating Inte-
gration Between Retailers’ Online and Offline Verhoef, P. C., Neslin, S., & Vroomen, B. (2007).
Presence. Electronic Markets, 15(3), 199–212. Multichannel consumer management: Understand-
doi:10.1080/10196780500208632 ing the research-shopper phenomenon. International
Journal of Research in Marketing, 24(2), 129–148.
Steinfield, C., Bouwman, H., & Adelaar, T. (2002). doi:10.1016/j.ijresmar.2006.11.002
The dynamics of click and mortar e-commerce: Op-
portunities and management strategies. International Vijayasarathy, L. R., & Tyler, M. L. (1997). Adop-
Journal of Electronic Commerce, 7(1), 93–119. tion factors and electronic data interchange use: A
survey of retail companies. International Journal of
Subramanian, S., Wan, F., & Tang, Z. (2007). Giving Retail & Distribution Management, 25(9), 286–292.
an ‘e-Human Touch’ to e-tailing: The Moderating doi:10.1108/09590559710185763
Roles of Static Information Quantity and Consump-
tion Motive in the Effectiveness of an Anthropo- Weinberg (2007). Multichannel marketing: Mind-
morphic Information Agent. Journal of Interactive set and program development. Business Horizons,
Marketing, 21(1), 60–75. doi:10.1002/dir.20075 50(5), 385-394.
Sweeney, J., Soutar, G., & Johnson, L. (1999). The World Federation of Direct Selling Associations.
role of perceived risk in the quality–value rela- (2012). Global statistics. Available at: http://www.
tionship: A study in a retail environment. Journal wfdsa.org/about_wfdsa/?fa=globalStats
of Retailing, 75(1), 77–105. doi:10.1016/S0022- Zhang, J., Farris, P. W., Irvin, J. W., Kushwaha,
4359(99)80005-0 T., Steenburgh, T. J., & Weitz, B. A. (2010). Craft-
Thomas, J., & Sullivan, U. (2005). Managing marketing integrated multichannel retailing strategies.
ing communications with multichannel consumers. Journal of Interactive Marketing, 24(2), 168–180.
Journal of Marketing, 69(4), 239–251. doi:10.1509/ doi:10.1016/j.intmar.2010.02.002
jmkg.2005.69.4.239
Manuel Sánchez-Pérez is a Professor of Marketing in the Department of Economics and Business, University
of Almeria, Spain. He has a PhD in marketing from University of Valencia. His interests include Retailing
Management and Strategic Marketing.
Antonia M. Estrella-Ramón is a Research Assistant of Marketing at the Department of Economics and
Business, Unirsity of Almeria, Spain. She has a PhD in Marketing from University of Almeria. Her interests
include Marketing Management and Consumer Behavior.
Cristina Segovia-López is a Research Assistant of Marketing at the Department of Economics and Busi-
ness, University of Almeria, Spain. She has a PhD in Marketing from University of Almeria. Her interests
include Marketing Management and Strategic Marketing.
María B. Marín-Carrillo is an Associate Professor in Management at the Department of Economics and
Business, University of Almeria, Spain. She has a PhD in Management from University of Almeria. Her
interests include Management and Organization Science.
View publication stats

Multichannel Retailing and Consumer Behaviour

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Multichannel Retailing and Consumer Behaviour

Uploaded by

Document Information

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Multichannel Retailing and Consumer Behaviour

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.

Multichannel Retailing and Consumer Behaviour: Strategy Design

Article in International Journal of Applied Behavioral Economics · December 2014

Manuel Sánchez-Pérez María Belén Marín Carrillo

SEE PROFILE SEE PROFILE

Ph.D. - Customer Value, digital marketing and banking View project

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.

Multichannel Retailing and

1. INTRODUCTION and the retailing industry (Ramcharran, 2013).

3. TASK ONE: ANALYSE explain differences between these segments

convenience, assortment). Seventh, channels affect subsequent channel choices in a specific

Figure 1. Antecedents of consumers’ channel choices

• Online Advertising Approach: Charac- • Direct Selling: Including field account

Table 1. Digital buyers worldwide, by region, 2011-2016 (millions)

hRegion 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Table 2. Top 5 countries in B2C ecommerce sales, 2011-2013 (billions $)

Country 2011 2012 2013

Table 3. B2C ecommerce sales share worldwide, by region, 2011-2016 (% of total)

Region 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Table 4. Global sales and direct selling community (2012)

Region Retail sales (millions $) Size of direct selling community

Figure 2. Global sales of direct selling by product category

constructs to assess performance of multichan- Weinberg et al. (2007) theoretically review

mortar or catalog channel, (ii) regarding price

Figure 3. Multichannel Balanced Scorecard

Table 5. Summary of indicators explained for assessing multichannel strategy

Observable Measures Key References

9. CONCLUSION a comprehensive understanding of multichan-

These are a primary group to target a mobile and REFERENCES

View publication stats

You might also like