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Should retailers harmonize marketing variables across their distribution channels? An investigation of cross-channel effects in multi-channel retailing

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  • van Baal, Sebastian

Abstract

Retailers with more than one channel of distribution have to decide whether marketing variables such as conveyed image, price, and assortment should be harmonized across channels. This article presents an integrative model and survey results that shed light on this question; its focus is on stores, online shops, and catalogs. The results show that harmonization of marketing variables has advantages and disadvantages: on the one hand, it correlates positively with overall customer loyalty and cross-channel customer retention, i.e., one channel causes more sales in other channels. On the other hand, it also correlates positively with cannibalization within the distribution system. This suggests that general recommendations strictly favoring or disfavoring harmonization do not account sufficiently for the complexity of the problem and retailer heterogeneity.

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  • van Baal, Sebastian, 2014. "Should retailers harmonize marketing variables across their distribution channels? An investigation of cross-channel effects in multi-channel retailing," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 21(6), pages 1038-1046.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:joreco:v:21:y:2014:i:6:p:1038-1046
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jretconser.2014.04.012
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    3. Cao, Lanlan & Li, Li, 2018. "Determinants of Retailers' Cross-channel Integration: An Innovation Diffusion Perspective on Omni-channel Retailing," Journal of Interactive Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 1-16.
    4. Tagashira, Takumi & Minami, Chieko, 2019. "The Effect of Cross-Channel Integration on Cost Efficiency," Journal of Interactive Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 68-83.
    5. JoAnne Labrecque & Maurice Doyon & Raymond Dupuis & Genevieve Dufour, 2019. "Compétitivité du secteur agroalimentaire à l’heure du commerce électronique," CIRANO Project Reports 2019rp-16, CIRANO.
    6. Shakir Goraya, M. Awais & Zhu, Jing & Akram, Muhammad Shakaib & Shareef, Mahmud Akhter & Malik, Aneela & Bhatti, Zeeshan Ahmed, 2022. "The impact of channel integration on consumers’ channel preferences: Do showrooming and webrooming behaviors matter?," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
    7. Tagashira, Takumi, 2022. "Information effects of warehouse automation on sales in omnichannel retailing," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 66(C).
    8. Cao, Lanlan & Li, Li, 2015. "The Impact of Cross-Channel Integration on Retailers’ Sales Growth," Journal of Retailing, Elsevier, vol. 91(2), pages 198-216.
    9. Xiaoxia Chen & Xiaofeng Su & Zhongbin Li & Jingjing Wu & Manhua Zheng & Anxin Xu, 2022. "RETRACTED ARTICLE: The impact of omni-channel collaborative marketing on customer loyalty to fresh retailers: the mediating effect of the omni-channel shopping experience," Operations Management Research, Springer, vol. 15(3), pages 983-997, December.
    10. Jongsoo Kang & Marko Majer & Hyun-Jung Kim, 2019. "Empirical Study of Omnichannel Purchasing Pattern with Real Customer Data from Health and Lifestyle Company," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(24), pages 1-16, December.
    11. Kondo, Fumiyo N. & Okubo, Taishi, 2022. "Understanding multi-channel consumer behavior: A comparison between segmentations of multi-channel purchases by product category and overall products," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 64(C).
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    13. Martin, Jillian & Mortimer, Gary & Andrews, Lynda, 2015. "Re-examining online customer experience to include purchase frequency and perceived risk," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 25(C), pages 81-95.

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