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Customer behaviour analysis in a telecom market is a challenging task in the customer relationship management area. In this paper, we propose a customer behaviour recognition model that combines unsupervised classification and supervised classification methods. First, considering the complexity and uncertainty of consumption behaviour, a hybrid model of K-means clustering, the entropy method and customer portrait analysis is applied to segment customers. Second, the segmentation results are subsequently incorporated into the proposed multi-head self-attention-based nested long short-term memory classifier to evaluate the performance of customer behaviour recognition. Third, the proposed framework is applied to a real case obtained from the China telecom market. The results indicate that our model is significantly superior to other traditional customer behaviour classification models. In addition, medium-value customers will make full use of the mobile traffic packet, and the package utilization rate of high-value groups is lower, which may benefit the precision marketing of telecom companies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Smartphones have become increasingly essential in people's daily lives. Studying the enablers that influence students' smartphone buying intentions can inform technology-enhanced learning development, whereas research on brand loyalty and experience is important for marketing strategies. While prior research has acknowledged the importance of brand experience and customer loyalty, little literature has investigated the specific dimensions of brand loyalty and their connection to brand love and trust. This study investigates the effects of brand attributes on loyalty and word-of-mouth engagement in choosing smartphones in China, including the mediating role of brand trust and brand love between brand experience and loyalty. The study adopted a research framework based on the previous literature and tested it empirically. The study adopted a cross-sectional survey method, collecting 369 questionnaires from Chinese students in mainland China. The collected data were analyzed with the help of structural equation modelling by applying AMOS software version 26. The results showed that brand experience had a significant influence on brand trust, brand love, attitudinal loyalty, and word-of-mouth, except for behavioral loyalty. Likewise, the link between brand trust and attitudinal loyalty, behavioral loyalty, and brand love was found to be significant. The effect of brand love on attitudinal loyalty and behavioral loyalty became significant. Additionally, the study confirmed that behavioral trust and brand love significantly mediates the relationship between brand experience–attitudinal loyalty, and brand experience–behavioral loyalty, respectively. The study results provide numerous theoretical and managerial implications to help academicians and practitioners provide better customer and brand relationship management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research is aimed at determining whether eco-friendly technologies go beyond and above in providing business productivity in international tourism. For this, the study obtained data from different databases, and this data range consisted of 2010–2020. The study applied the co-integration analysis, random and static technique, regression analysis technique, split analysis technique, and mediating effect tests on Chinese data. This research shows that tourism business innovation contributed 12%, value proposition as 9%, internal marketing as 16%, customer relationship management as 19.3%, tourists motivation as 34.05%, tourists time as 18.94%, green technological adoption as 17.3%, tourists visit intention as 8.11%, and green technical transfer as 28.1% in study model. Thus, the findings confirmed that international tourism and business productivity have a dynamic empirical nexus with the mediating role of eco-friendly technology adoption. Furthermore, such findings are robust empirically and validate the empirical connections among the study variables. These results imply that Chinese tourism industry stakeholders may use eco-friendly technologies to good effect, significantly enhancing tourism business productivity, international tourists' satisfaction, and tourists' revisit intentions. Hence, the study also directs practical implications related to the study topicality and China's tourism industry for prudent growth acquisition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the importance of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies in improving customer relationships, AI usage in enabling customer relationship management (CRM) capabilities and, in turn, enhancing CRM performance has not yet been investigated. This study from the IT-enabled organizational capabilities perspective investigates the impact of AI usage on CRM performance and the mediating effect of CRM capabilities. We tested our core proposition and theory-driven research model using data collected from a sample of 193 e-commerce enterprises in China. The empirical results indicate that AI usage positively impacts CRM performance and that CRM capabilities positively mediate their relationship. Thus, this paper contributes to IS research with an eloquent theoretical explanation and strong empirical evidence on why e-commerce enterprises deploy AI initiatives to improve their CRM capabilities and performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the impact of data assets on firms' operational efficiency, aiming to show how data assets work in business operations and highlight their key value. Given the rich content, data assets can increase operational efficiency as it embeds firms with valuable information used to optimize resource deployment in production and improve customer relationship management. Using a sample of A-share listed firms in China from 2003 to 2019, we empirically show a consistent and significantly positive relationship between a text-based measure of data assets and operational efficiency. Moreover, the positive effect of data assets on operational efficiency is more pronounced in state-owned enterprises (SOEs), diversified firms with redundant internal information, and firms in a more complex external information environment (i.e. more volatile earnings of the industry or a larger dispersion of analysts' forecasts). As further evidenced by higher turnover ratios of inventory and lower turnover ratios of accounts receivables in firms with data assets, we verify that data assets lead to efficient production management and flexible customer relationship management. Overall, these results suggest that data assets are valuable in the efficiency improvement of firms by facilitating information uses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Data mining technologies have been employed in a variety of business managements for discovering useful commercial knowledge or marketing model for many years. Hence, the major marketing issue for airlines is to identify and analyse valuable air travellers recently, so that airlines can attract them for enhancing the profits and growth rates. However, growth rates are always an important issue for airline industries. An empirical case of air travellers’ markets in Taiwan is implemented in this research. This research proposes a model (FSLC model, RFM model based) via the data mining technologies to discover valuable travellers for airlines. This study partitions the market of air travellers in Taiwan, and the paper generates useful association rules to find an optimised target market for dynamic marketing or CRM systems. Nevertheless, the results of this research can be applied on marketing or CRM systems of the airline industry for identifying valuable travellers. Finally, the purpose of this research is to find high-value markets for marketing or CRM systems of airlines in Taiwan, and the framework can be applied to other industries as well. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Customer churn will cause the value flowing from customers to enterprises to decrease. If customer churn continues to occur, the enterprise will gradually lose its competitive advantage. When the growth of new customers cannot meet the needs of enterprise development, the enterprise will fall into a survival dilemma. Focusing on the customer churn prediction model, this paper takes the telecom industry in China as the research object, establishes a customer churn prediction model by using a logistic regression algorithm based on the big data of high-value customer operation in the telecom industry, effectively identifies the potential churned customers, and then puts forward targeted win-back strategies according to the empirical research results. This paper analyzes the trends and causes of customer churn through data mining algorithms and gives the answers to such questions as how the customer churn occurs, the influencing factors of customer churn, and how enterprises win back churned customers. The results of this paper can better serve the practice of customer relationship management in the telecom industry and provide a reference for the telecom industry to identify high-risk churned customers in advance, enhance customer loyalty and viscosity, maintain "high-value" customers, and continue to provide customers with "value" and reduce the cost of maintaining customers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Circular economy (CE) initiatives are taking hold across both developed and developing nations. Central to these initiatives is the reconfiguration of core supply chain management (SCM) processes that underlie current production and consumption patterns. This conceptual article provides a detailed discussion of how supply chain processes can support the successful implementation of CE. The article highlights areas of convergence in hopes of sparking collaboration among scholars and practitioners in SCM, CE, and related fields. Design/methodology/approach: This article adopts a theory extension approach to conceptual development that uses CE as a "method" for exploring core processes within the domain of SCM. The article offers a discussion of the ways in which the five principles of CE (closing, slowing, intensifying, narrowing, dematerialising loops) intersect with eight core SCM processes (customer relationship management, supplier relationship management, customer service management, demand management, order fulfilment, manufacturing flow management, product development and commercialization, returns management). Findings: This article identifies specific ways in which core SCM processes can support the transition from traditional linear approaches to production and consumption to a more circular approach. This paper results in a conceptual framework and research agenda for researchers and practitioners working to adapt current supply chain processes to support the implementation of CE. Originality/value: This article highlights key areas of convergence among scholars and practitioners through a systematic extension of CE principles into the domain of SCM. In so doing, the paper lays out a potential agenda for collaboration among these groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), business environmental uncertainty, a restricted flow of personnel and materials, and changes in consumer demand have impacted business operations and financial performance. This study investigates the relationship between COVID-19, customer concentration, and sustainable growth based on data from listed companies in China. The results reveal that COVID-19 has had a negative impact on sustainable growth, but customer concentration can mitigate this negative association. By emphasizing the moderating effect of customer concentration on the relationship between COVID-19 and sustainable growth, this study provides new insights for firms who are seeking to mitigate the negative shocks of COVID-19 and promote sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With increasing technology advancement, online shopping, and growth of affordable segment, smartphone users' switching behavior is becoming a concern for smartphone companies. To fill the research gap that persists in relation to the switching behavior of smartphone users from a multidimensional view, this study integrates the push-pull-mooring model to investigate and classify factors that affect the switching behavior of smartphone users. To test the hypotheses in relation to different predictors, data were collected from a survey of 246 users of the top ten smartphone brands in China and analyzed using structural model equation through regression analyses. The results revealed that the pull, push, and mooring factors have a significant impact on the switching behavior of smartphone users. While the pull effects have a stronger impact than push effects, the mooring factors were found to have a significant and strongest effect on smartphone users' switching behavior. In particular, subjective norm showed the greatest impact on switching behavior, product quality and obsolete features showed significant and weak impact while brand image, switching cost, and poor customer service did not show any significant impact. These findings provide useful implications and insights for smartphone brands to develop competitive strategies for customer relationship management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper aims to investigate how to improve new product performance in turbulent circumstances of emerging economies. Design/methodology/approach: This paper used regression analysis to examine the performance impact of customer relationship management (CRM) and product development management (PDM) concentration strategy in new product development (NPD). A detailed contingent analysis of the market and institutional environments in emerging economies is also conducted based on a survey of 114 Chinese high-tech manufacturers. Findings: The research findings show that PDM has a stronger positive effect on new product performance than CRM in emerging economies and that the contingent effects of the market and institutional environment vary. More specifically, technological turbulence and enforcement inefficiency can positively moderate the relationship between CRM and new product performance, whereas the moderating effect of market turbulence on CRM is negative. Meanwhile, enforcement inefficiency negatively moderates the effect of PDM on new product performance, while the moderating effect of market turbulence on PDM is positive. Research limitations/implications: This paper is limited to a survey of high-tech manufacturing enterprises in China. Further research should continues to explore and document the strategic issue about NPD in emerging economies by longitudinal study. Originality/value: This paper contributed to theoretical and practical initiatives on the strategic issue of NPD and provided firms a further understanding of how to select the right NPD strategy in emerging economies to improve new product performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The customer relationship management (CRM) plays a pivotal role in running a company. Therefore, it is important to identify the customer preference of products and services provided by an industry and/or a company. The numerous research works are published on how to identify the customer preference and recognize the right customer. It is essential to select ideal customers in business. Moreover, a challenging issue is to analyze service quality. Also, determining the factors is essential, which influence consumer's perception of service quality. In this paper, we propose the hybrid optimization method of big data mining and provide a heuristic method to determine the consumers' preference even in the case where Arrow's contradict situations occur in big data analysis. Both the methods play a central role in analyzing a CRM case and the experiment provides the comparison of its efficiency with conventional methods. The paper consists of brief introduction of latent semantic indexing (LSI) and probabilistic LSI (PLSI). The next section is spent on how to identify group preference and raise the contradict problems in group decision making presented by Kenneth Arrow. The following section provides heuristic method to solve such conflict situation by an optimization approach. Finally, we will provide our application to gas station companies in China and show how the methods work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Service Industries Journal is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate effects of two integrative mechanisms of third-party logistics (3PL) integration (i.e. information sharing and process coordination) between users and providers on relationship satisfaction, and further explores how partnership-surrounding (e.g. legal unprotectability) and partnership-specific barriers (e.g. measurement difficulty and cooperation difficulty) influence 3PL integration in the context of Chinese 3PL practices.Design/methodology/approach Using data collected from 247 3PL users in China, this study uses the structural equation modeling method to empirically examine the relationship among partnership-surrounding/specific barriers, 3PL integration and relationship satisfaction.Findings The results show that information sharing has no significant effect on relationship satisfaction, while process coordination has a positive effect on relationship satisfaction and partially mediates the relationship between information sharing and relationship satisfaction. Furthermore, as partnership-specific barrier, measurement difficulty and cooperation difficulty are negatively related to information sharing and process coordination. Surprisingly, as partnership-surrounding barrier, legal unprotectability is not significantly related to information sharing but is positively related to process coordination.Originality/value As a comprehensive study on 3PL user-provider relationship in China, this study extends existing 3PL literature by providing evidence about the importance of 3PL integration and different types of barriers to 3PL integration, also providing managerial implications for 3PL users, providers, law and regulation makers about how to better implement 3PL integration in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to examine retail customers of China and Korea with a view to understanding the differences in the effects of customer equity on perceived store loyalty. We built a modified model of retail customer equity incorporating three drivers of retail customer equity (experience equity, brand equity and relationship equity), and further substantiate the relationships among the three equity drivers. For this purpose, we measured the customer equity of large scale discount stores located in China and Korea. The result shows that experience equity and brand equity significantly influence customer loyalty, whereas relationship equity does not. The relationships among the three drivers of customer equity revealed that experience equity significantly affects both brand and relationship equities, but relationship equity does not significantly affect brand equity. Based on country level analysis, on Korean side the experience equity influences relationship equity, brand equity and store loyalty, whereas on Chinese side, experience equity influences relationship equity and brand equity [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Online customer segmentation is a significant research topic of customer relationship management. Previous literatures mainly studied the differences between non-purchasers and purchasers, lacking further segmentation of online purchasers. There is still existing significant heterogeneity within purchaser-groups. This paper focuses on Chinese online purchaser segmentation based on large volume of real transaction data on Taobao.com, we firstly extracted and investigated Chinese online purchaser behavior indicators and classified them into six types by cluster analysis, these six categories are: economical purchasers, active-star purchasers, direct purchasers, high-loyalty purchasers, risk-averse purchasers and credibility-first purchasers; then we built an empirical model to estimate the sensitivity of each type of online purchasers to three mainstream promotion strategies (discount, advertising and word-of-mouth), and found that economical purchasers are the most sensitive to discount promotion; direct purchasers are the most sensitive to advertising promotion; active-star purchasers are the most sensitive to word-of-mouth promotion; finally, the implications of online purchaser classification for marketing strategies were discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hotel chains should understand the effectiveness of the benefits offered by their programs and the influence of customer relationship management (CRM) initiatives of individual hotels because of the high operating costs of loyalty programs and the risk of creating an affinity to the rewards they offer rather than to the brand itself. This study determines the effect of the satisfaction of hotel loyalty program members on the benefits they receive, and the CRM efforts of individual hotels on the quality of their relationship with the brand. The sample was drawn from mainland Chinese customers because of the growing importance of the Chinese tourism market. Results reveal that program benefits have no significant effect on the quality of the relationship of the member with the hotel brand. The communication of the program to its members and the customer orientation of individual hotels are the key determinants of relationship quality. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Copyright of Journal of China Tourism Research is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

As E-commerce is developing in China, using E-commerce becomes more important to small and medium enterprise (SMEs). The small business has several advantages, including low cost and the ability to begin on a part-time basis. E-business technology can strengthen these advantages. In this paper, the authors introduce the ECRM and E-business strategy in enterprise and use VAR model to analyze how E-Business Application affects business performance in emerging countries like China. The results show that E-business application can improve the sales performance of small business, and E-business is an important factor to success. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An increasing number of organizations are now implementing customer relationship management (CRM) systems to support front-line employees' service tasks. With the belief that CRM can enhance employees' service quality, management often mandates employees to use the implemented CRM. However, challenges emerge if/when employees are dissatisfied with using the system. To understand the role of front-line employee users' satisfaction with their mandated use of CRM in determining their service quality, we conducted a field study in one of the largest telecommunications service organizations in China and gathered time-lagged data from self-reported employee surveys, as well as from the firm's archival data sources. Our results suggest that employees' overall user satisfaction (UserSat) with their mandated use of CRM has a positive impact on employee service quality (ESQ) above and beyond the expected positive impacts that job dedication (JD) and embodied service knowledge (ESK) have on ESQ. Interestingly, the positive effect of UserSat on ESQ is comparable to the positive effects of JD and ESK, respectively, on ESQ. Importantly, UserSat and ESK have a substitutive effect on ESQ, suggesting that the impact of UserSat on ESQ is stronger/weaker for employees with lower/higher levels of ESK. Finally, ESQ predicts customer satisfaction with customer service employees (CSWCSE); ESQ also fully mediates the impacts of UserSat and ESK, and partially mediates the impact of JD, on CSWCSE. The results of this study emphasize the importance of user satisfaction in determining employees' task outcomes when use of an information system is mandated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on social exchange and customer relationship marketing theory, this study examines how ethical leadership contributes to inter-organizational conflict management (task conflict (TC) and relationship conflict), and the moderating role of task interdependence in these relationships. Data was collected from 81 suppliers and 45 corresponding managers of a large group company in China. Results show that ethical leadership is negatively associated with the levels of inter-organizational conflict, whether task or relationship. Task interdependence significantly moderates the relationship between ethical leadership and TC. Managerial implication in terms of creating sound buyer-supplier relationship through an ethical perspective is discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Consumer Sentiment Index (CSI), a leading macroeconomic indicator, reflects consumers' assessments of current financial situations, forecasts consumers' buying behavior, and allows business organizations, such as banks, to capture business opportunities. There is a consensus that the trend of the CSI can forecast consumption activities in a vast array of markets. However, this study demonstrates that it does so for banks only if and when the characteristics of client behavior are taken into account. The study thus contributes to filling a gap in the bank management literature. The managerial implication is that to improve performance, banks should focus on the bank-client relationship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a case study of a multi-national company's Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system implementation in China. The implementation in China was part of the first wave of the global implementation of the CRM-system. Although the company has extensive experience in implementing systems in its different global subsidiaries, and has planned the implementation well, the implementation in China was not a complete success. Based on the study, we identify three issues that were not stressed enough in the current CRM literature: 1) understanding the difference between the organizational culture in which the system is developed, as well as the national culture in which the system is implemented, 2) the ability to operationalize visions into goals and measures, and 3) the need to ensure system and data quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reports the results of a study of customer knowledge management (CKM) of Taiwanese service businesses in China. Over 600 questionnaires were sent out to the Taiwanese directors and staff in 150 Taiwanese service businesses in Kun-Shan City, China, with 322 valid responses included in the study. Four relationships were examined in the study: the correlation between CKM and organizational performance, between CKM and the learning organization, between organizational performance and the learning organization, and finally the effect of the learning organization on the relationship between CKM and organizational performance. Findings and conclusions are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose -- The purpose of this study is to investigate how hotels are implementing customer relationship management (CRM) practices at the property level. Design/methodology/approach -- Semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with 45 hotel managers from 17 hotels. The interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using content analysis. Findings -- All participating hotels have practices in place to manage customer relationships. The most commonly cited goal for CRM is guest retention. Evaluation and control are perceived as very important activities not only to create value for the customers, but also to track the performance of the guest contact departments and the customers' evaluations of the hotel/restaurant experiences. Research limitations/implications -- The sample is probably biased towards hotels that are most interested in CRM and are heavily weighted towards higher tariff properties. Practical implications -- The study modified Buttle's CRM value chain to analyze hotels' CRM practices. Results of the study provide a source for industry practitioners to compare and benchmark their practices and to obtain useful CRM ideas. Originality/value -- CRM-related research in the hotel industry has looked at a variety of specific practices and its role in achieving overall objectives at the corporate strategic level. Yet, no research has been done to investigate CRM practices at the property level for hotels using the CRM value chain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - There is a growing interest in brand formation and brand valuation among global firms today, but global marketers typically ignore one of the key factors of brand building - corporation ability association (CAA). This paper aims to explore the structural relationship between CAA and consumer-based brand equity variables and its product-market outcomes. Design/methodology/approach - Utilizing Aaker and Keller's theoretical framework of brand equity, this paper develops a brand equity model combining customer-based brand equity with product-market outcome approaches. A set of scales are developed and tested on a national sample of Chinese consumers. Findings - The data provide support for ten of the 12 hypotheses. The results indicate that CAA is an important factor in building and preserving brand equity. CAA and brand awareness have impact on quality perception, which has positive impact on brand resonance, brand extensibility, and price flexibility. Brand resonance has positive influence on brand extensibility and the intention to repurchase. Practical implications - For global marketers operating in China, brand equity is a cultural market-based asset and global companies must focus on building corporation ability association in China in order to enjoy the substantial competitive and economic advantages provided by brand equity. Theoretically, the proposed brand equity model is an extension of the model proposed by Keller. Originality/value - For the first time, CAA is integrated into fhe brand equity model. This may provide a theoretical base for further research in the endorsement role of company ability in brand equity building. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the roles of brand equity and corporate reputation in customer-relationship management (CRM) in the large transitional market of China. The study draws on various theoretical perspectives to develop a conceptual framework for the direct and indirect relationships between brand equity (and its antecedents), corporate reputation and CRM performance. Hypotheses were proposed and tested in the context of an empirical study of customers of financial institutions in China. The empirical findings confirm the validity of the framework and afford various insights into the dual roles of corporate reputation in the proposed relationships, and into the antecedents and role of brand equity.Corporate Reputation Review (2006) 9, 179–197. doi:10.1057/palgrave.crr.1550027 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While traditional campaign management in the banking industry selects quality customers for a particular product, the 'next product to offer' model selects the products to cater for the needs and priorities of each customer. A CRM research team of the Chinese University of Hong Kong initiated an 11-month joint research project with the Standard Chartered Bank (HK) on the design and implementation of a next product to offer system. The system consists of two major components: (1) data cleansing and fusion, (2) integrating bank strategies with customer information. It is the first of its kind in Hong Kong and a simplified version of the system and its implementation process is reported in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ability to maximize customer loyalty through close and durable relationships is critical to retail banks' ability to grow their businesses. As banks strive to create and manage customer relationships, several emerging trends affect the approach and tools banks employ to achieve sustainable growth. CRM is highly exercised in the industry like hospitality, services industry etc. but it is having equal importance in the retail industry also. The results of this research paper shows that the customers don't take a single second when it comes to change the preference and break the loyalty for an organization, in such a situation it the CRM of the organization which will compel the customers to visit the retail outlet again and again. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Leading polymer additives supplier Songwon Industrial Co Ltd of South Korea recently announced a new business structure for its operations in China. The company says this will be effective in the second quarter of 2010 and will create the foundation from which it will continue to build its presence and customer relationships in the country. Songwon subsequently signed an agreement to form a joint venture to manufacture and sell polymer antioxidants in China. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]