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The effect of type of company doing home delivery during a pandemic on consumers' quality perceptions and behavior.
- Source :
- International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management; 2022, Vol. 52 Issue 11, p1-24, 24p
- Publication Year :
- 2022
-
Abstract
- Purpose: In the COVID-19 pandemic, consumers increasingly opt for, or are forced to, use home delivery services. The authors study retailers' decisions regarding "delivery mode", which is about outsourcing (vs. insourcing) the delivery service to a traditional delivery company or an unbranded carrier and its effects on consumers' perceived overall quality, perceived hygienic quality, and subsequently, willingness to stay with the firm beyond the pandemic. Design/methodology/approach: A pre-test, an experiment and a post-test were conducted with participants from the UK (Total N = 380). Findings: The results of this study show that (1) in a pandemic, perceived hygienic quality overshadows perceived service quality as a key determinant of consumers' choices, and (2) while consumers have a relatively negative view of the hygienic level of unbranded carriers, they do not differentiate between traditional delivery carriers and retailer-branded carriers. Thus, they are equally interested in using the services of the latter ones. Originality/value: This study shows that during a health crisis, consumers change their hierarchy of motivations to reflect the new protection motivations. The authors usher perceived hygienic quality as a variable that should be seriously considered as both a tactical and a strategic variable affecting the attractiveness of alternative home delivery methods and consumers' intentions to continue using them after the pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 09600035
- Volume :
- 52
- Issue :
- 11
- Database :
- Complementary Index
- Journal :
- International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 160709643
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1108/IJPDLM-08-2020-0272