Mobile commerce is becoming an important component of modern business especially in the retail sector thanks to the fast diffusion of smartphones. This new shopping technique enables consumers to shop wherever and whenever they choose. It also helps retailers to grow their business in omni-channel – many major UK retailers including the “Big Four Grocers” (Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons) have adjusted their digital and category strategies in response to mobile customers. Despite the growing body of literature on mobile commerce, little research has been conducted to provide a comprehensive list of factors that affect the mobile grocery shoppers’ decision-making and their loyalty. In addition, some of the studies had issues relating to inappropriate sampling techniques, which led to unrepresentative findings. This thesis will explore the factors that drive consumers’ intention to use smartphones for grocery shopping, and to identify the key elements that drive consumer loyalty to the mobile grocery provider. Building on an extensive literature review, the key determinants of mobile commerce adoption were analysed with a consideration of issues around online grocery shopping, diffusion of innovation, and customer satisfaction. The key research methods and approaches were compared along with an analysis of the research methods used by the existing literatures, and concluded that a mixed-method approach was the most appropriate way to meet the aim and objectives of this study. Following the research design, the author undertook 32 interviews with shoppers from various backgrounds, 12 of which had previous experience of using a smartphone for grocery shopping. Content analysis was carried out to produce 13 themes relating to the mobile grocery shopping acceptance. Based on the result from the thematic analysis and existing literature, a questionnaire was designed and launched. Three hundred valid responses were collected, including 150 purchasers and 150 non-purchasers. Statistical techniques such as factor analysis and multiple-regression analysis were used to analyse the survey data. Results from the quantitative study suggested there were 7 factors affecting shoppers’ decision to use smartphones for grocery shopping, while purchaser and non-purchaser models showed a different pattern. In parallel, the study also identified factors affecting mobile grocery shopping satisfaction and customer loyalty. Drawing together these findings, the thesis helps grocers to understand their mobile channel customer in a wider angle. It also provides managerial applications to improve both customer experience and digital strategy.
Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:761758 |
Date | January 2018 |
Creators | Li, Junxiong |
Contributors | Shaw, Gareth |
Publisher | University of Exeter |
Source Sets | Ethos UK |
Detected Language | English |
Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
Source | http://hdl.handle.net/10871/34362 |
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