Rethinking a Designers’ Rule of Thumb: Influence of Information Seeking and Consumption Goals on Mobile Commerce Interface Design

We investigated whether adding product information in mobile commerce improved consumers’ attitudes toward a product and whether this relationship was moderated by consumption goals. We conducted two field experiments in which we recruited parents in Korea and the USA and asked them how they evaluated two childcare hybrid products (HPs) newly developed by Samsung Electronics designers. The results revealed that participants exposed to additional information about the HPs evaluated them more favorably than those who were not exposed. However, this relationship disappeared when a consumption goal was activated. Our findings establish a dynamic relationship between information seeking and consumption goals, asking designers to rethink their rule of thumb in the mobile commerce context.

Examining consumer affective goal pursuit in services

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate how consumers’ affective goal pursuit influences the relationship between their affect and satisfaction in services. In particular, it examines when affect can directly influence satisfaction and when such an impact is mediated by perceived service quality. Design/methodology/approach This research explores consumers’ consumption goals in three different service contexts, i.e., a primarily pleasure-seeking hedonic service context, a primarily arousal-seeking hedonic service context and a utilitarian (non-affect-seeking) service context. Findings Results from two studies show that the primary affective consumption goal determines which specific affect can directly influence satisfaction. Other desirable non-primary affect influences satisfaction through the mediation of perceived service quality. Research limitations/implications This research focuses on the service contexts in which consumers’ primary consumption goals vary. Further research may focus on the priority and strength of a consumer’s various consumption goals in different services and study how the priority and strength of different consumption goals determine how affect influences quality and satisfaction. Practical implications The study provides several insights for service providers and retailers to recognize that consumers’ primary consumption goals may vary in different service contexts, for different consumers, and even at different usage situations. Accordingly, marketers need to develop different strategies for consumer with different goal pursuit in services. Originality/value While the literature has documented that consumer affect influences consumer satisfaction in general, it is unclear how different consumption goals influence the impact of affect on satisfaction. This research contributes to the consumer goal literature by demonstrating the importance of primary consumption goals in the post-consumption evaluation of services.

Overview of historical and future trends of commercial aircraft fuel efficiency

The common factor for all airlines in reducing aircraft operating costs is improving fuel economy. Many international organizations such as EASA, ICAO or ICCT as well as aircraft operators put strong emphasis on improving aircraft fuel efficiency not only for economical but also for ecological reasons. It can be noticed that biggest improvements are achieved through implementation of new aircraft models and engines. Fuel consumption goals have been set by ICAO to achieve an annual improvement of 2% from year 2020 to 2050, however according to some experts this goal is probably is not going to be met as industry is lagging approximately 12 years behind this plan due to technological and economic reasons.

Aliada: An Online Platform Matching Maids with Customers in Mexico

This case puts students in the shoes of Mexican entrepreneur Rodolfo Corcuera of the tech startup Aliada, an online platform that matches maids with customers in Mexico City. With backing from one of Mexico City's newest venture capital firms, Corcuera's business now needs to scale, and he is considering how best to position his offering to those on whom his business model depends–maids and customers. To tackle this, students will learn about basic concepts from psychology that can inform marketers. More specifically, they will learn how basic human needs (nurturance, security) fuel self-regulatory goals (promotion and prevention goals, respectively), which in turn impact how people approach their consumption goals. Students will analyze Aliada's current Facebook ads, watch videos of some of Aliada's current maids and customers to assess whether they seem more motivated by promotion or prevention goals, and recommend optimal messaging for Facebook ads and subway banners in order for Corcuera to be most appealing to these two target audiences who may have different motivations.

Resiliency Analysis of Energy Demand System in Finland

Investigating the performance and productivity level of different energy consuming sectors in all countries is an inevitable action. This procedure will be conducted by comparing the energy input and the output of the system which is vital to ensure that the system is used properly. The proper utilization of systems will lead to more efficiency in the energy consumption section. One of the most important tasks in this type of study is the analysis of uncertainty indicators. The analysis and evaluation of uncertainty indices in energy consumption system is a tool that prioritizes the indicators in terms of importance and impact on each of the consumption targets. These consumption goals include energy, environmental, technical, economical, and social objectives. Ultimately, the output data of the uncertainty analysis will be very helpful for making the system more reliable and usable. In this study, we first introduced different sectors of the energy consumption system in Finland and examined each of these sectors in terms of physical and environmental goals. Then the uncertainty indexes in different sectors are extracted, evaluated qualitatively and quantified using the fuzzy logic method. Finally, indicators are prioritized based on the level of effectiveness and uncertainty. According to the results of this research, among 44 considered indices, the security of energy supply, carbon emission, equivalent annual cost, reliability, and political acceptability are respectively the most important indices for energy, environmental, economic, technical and social goals.