BLENDED SHOPPING

Evaluation Method and Interactive Approaches

Britta Fuchs, Thomas Ritz

Faculty of Electrical Engeneering and Information Technology, FH Aachen, Eupener Str. 70, 52070 Aachen, Germany

Bastian Halbach, Florian Hartl

Faculty of Electrical Engeneering and Information Technology, FH Aachen, Eupener Str. 70, 52070 Aachen, Germany

Keywords: eCommerce, Blended shopping, Web 2.0, Social networks.

Abstract: In this paper we sketch the sales channels retail and eCommerce. Afterwards the integration of both

channels to blended shopping is explained. The behaviour of consumers is influenced by technology driven

trends like the development of web 2.0, especially social networks. The combination of the presented topics

is the basis for a method to structure the development of blended shopping concepts for retailer. Two

prototypes based on the basis of this method are sketched. The paper closes with a future outlook.

1 INTRODUCTION

The shopping world for consumers and traders

changed rapidly during the last years. ECommerce is

accepted next to traditional sales channels and leads

– besides other technology-driven trends – to a

complex environment for merchants, consumers and

manufacturers. Web 2.0 and social networks

influence the shopping behaviour of consumers.

But nevertheless “the digital world” is no

integrated part of traditional commerce yet. In this

paper we seize these trends and sketch a method that

enables retailers to blend retail with web-based

content and services in order to create fitting

shopping experiences or provide appropriate

information.

2 RETAIL, ECOMMERCE,

BLENDED SHOPPING

Since a couple of years eCommerce is an established

distribution channel besides traditional retail. Many

trade chains and merchants run both channels in

parallel but don’t apply an integrated approach. This

was documented in two field studies (Fuchs & Ritz,

2009b), (Fuchs & Ritz, 2009a).

Following both sales channels will be sketched

and afterwards blended shopping as combination of

both channels will be explained.

2.1 Traditional Retail and eCommerce

Once traditional retail was the main sales channel

for consumer goods (Krafft & Mantrala, 2006).

Traditional retail combines physical presentation of

goods with advice, instant availability and additional

services. Digital information regarding customer and

buying behaviour are often not available, especially

when consumers pay cash. Nowadays traditional

retailers face challenges arising from increasing

competition (Riekhof, 2004). Due to this more and

more trade chains and merchants offer their goods as

well via webshop (Krafft & Mantrala, 2006).

ECommerce is a distance selling approach

making use of latest technology to support the sales

process. In general this contains no physical contact

between product and customer (until fulfilment) as

well as between merchant and customer. Easily

comparable products like books, DVD/CD and

electrical equipment (Kroeber-Riel & Weinberg,

2008) have the biggest share in eCommerce. The

buying decision is made on a more rational way and

is less emotionally influenced (Mobile Fachgruppe

im BVDE, 2008). Distribution of web-enabled

mobile devices contributes to the establishment of

mCommerce (Dholakia, Rask, & Dholakia, 2006),

514

Fuchs B., Ritz T., Halbach B. and Hartl F..

BLENDED SHOPPING - Evaluation Method and Interactive Approaches.

DOI: 10.5220/0003300005140517

In Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Web Information Systems and Technologies (WEBIST-2011), pages 514-517

ISBN: 978-989-8425-51-5

 2011 SCITEPRESS (Science and Technology Publications, Lda.)

which offers new possibilities of blended shopping

concepts. Until now obstacles regarding usability

(e.g. difficult navigation with mobile devices) often

cause a lack in acceptance.

2.2 Blended Shopping

Blended shopping is defined as “execution of the

transaction phases (information, mediation,

negotiation, contracting, fulfillment and after-sales)

involving both, real sales and presentation

mechanisms as well as network based sales

functionality” (Fuchs & Ritz, 2009a).

The basic idea of blended shopping is to

compensate disadvantages of one sales channel by

advantages of the other. Selecting processes of both

channels for one purchase could be an advantage for

the customer (e.g. selecting a pair of ski in the

branch and let it be delivered at home by

eCommerce, because the customer don’t like to

carry them when continuing shopping that day) and

the merchant (keeping and/or increasing

turnover/satisfied customer).

Precondition of blended shopping is that the

merchant runs a webshop as well as a branch

network. This combination is already quite

established (Krafft & Mantrala, 2006). Blended

shopping seizes the so called multi-channel

behaviour of customers which is already object of

investigation. Multi-channel behaviour describes

how consumers make use of different distribution

channels for one purchase.

In a study (van Baal & Hudetz, 2008) the authors

found out that customers make use of the advantages

of both sales channels dependent on their needs and

attitude, e.g. ¼ of purchases in 2008 were prepared

by using the respectively other channel. It has

become a common practice to touch and test the

product in a branch and order it by eCommerce. But

this does not necessarily imply that collecting

information about a product and contracting is done

by the same retailer. Blended shopping enables

merchants to keep customer and turnover within the

enterprise by facilitating the customers’ sales

process.

But blended shopping is scarcely supported by

the merchants yet (Fuchs & Ritz, 2009a). Until now

traditional retail and eCommerce are in practice

viewed as separate channels which may jeopardize

the turnover of the other.

3 WEB 2.0 AND SOCIAL

NETWORKS

The situation in retail is affected by trends emerging

from the widespread availability of internet (ARD-

/ZDF-Medienkommission, 2009) like web 2.0 and

based on this the development of social networks

The term web 2.0 was coined in 2004 (O'Reilly,

2005) as further development of the internet after

analyzing the results of the dot com bubble burst.

One of the core principles of web 2.0 is the

architecture of participation instead of passive

consumption of content as it has been before. The

penetration of broadband connection at decreasing

cost is assumed to be an important precondition for

user participation (Horrigan, 2006).

Participation is the basis for social networks. The

idea of social networks is not new but the actually

widespread distribution was enabled by web 2.0.

Bigger parts of services allocated to web 2.0 can be

described as social software. They all have

centralizing human social behaviour in common.

Testimonials and user-generated content result

from the activity in social networks and influence

the purchase decisions of consumer.

4 INTERACTIVE CONCEPTS

The trends described in the chapter before make

clear that merchants and consumers operate in a

complex context. Because of available information

and communication technologies as well as social

networks consumers are very well informed about

products and offers but they have to structure the

information themselves. And information from the

internet is still separated from the retailer’s branch.

We focus our research on exploring how

information of third parties can be integrated within

traditional retail stores in a structured way.

Consumers make use of web 2.0 and social networks

at home, we search for ways to embed these sources

into the sales process at the POS. Usage of web-

based platforms and contents presumes access to the

internet. This can be realized either by stationary

terminals within the shop or by consumers’ mobile

web-enabled devices. Both possibilities differ in

strategic impacts like e.g. investments in

infrastructure and require different frameworks e.g.

for appropriate presentation of content related to

environmental, situational and device-dependent

circumstances. In the upcoming chapter we present

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an approach to gather information services from

product characteristics.

5 EVALUATION METHOD

For merchants it is often difficult to decide if

investments in product information systems

(providing public accessible information related to

one or more products) are reasonable and how the

solution should look like. To support the decision

process, a method was developed to evaluate the

given situation, to derive requirements regarding the

product information system and to support the

development of possible approaches.

This method allows structured guidance but

demands individual assessment of each situation.

We identified three core factors which we apply in

this method with differentiated characteristics:

customer, product and shopping experience. The

factors customer and product are closely connected,

e.g. the product type influences the information

demand of the customer. Two prototypes created on

the basis of this method are outlined in the upcoming

chapter.

6 PROTOTYPES OF PRODUCT

INFORMATION SYSTEMS

As mentioned, web-based content can be integrated

in the shop either by terminals or by consumers’

mobile devices.

In subsection 6.1 and 6.2 prototypes for both

scenarios are outlined which have been developed

upon results of the evaluation method (chapter 5). In

subsection 6.3 both concepts are compared.

6.1 Sensor-based Sales Terminal

Information terminals in shops are no new idea. One

well known example is the barcode scanner in super

markets where the customer can check the price of a

product. Since a few years merchants try to develop

new concepts of offering digital information on

demand, e.g. drug stores connecting product and

information system with health guidance.

At the moment the service terminals present

available information but do not respond to the

specific needs and do not interact with the customer

like an “advisor”. Solutions to overcome this lack

were developed by applying sensor-supported

interaction. A physical product is connected via

RFID-technology with a terminal located at the

retailer. When a consumer picks up a product, the

system starts to interact. It identifies the product and

gives advice what should be tested (e.g. “try the

sports modus of this camera by focussing a moving

person. Check the result on the screen.”).

Additionally information like testimonials from

social networks is embedded. The concept aims to

generate shopping experience in order to establish an

emotional commitment of the consumer. An

illustration of the concept is given in figure 1.

Figure 1: Interaction sensor-based sales Terminal.

6.2 Mobile Solution

Widespread availability of web-enabled devices is a

precondition for the usage of mobile applications. It

can be assumed that already a relevant rate of

consumers makes use of mobile internet and in

future the rate will increase (Tudor & Pettey, 2010).

Availability of potential consumers will have

impact on the economic assessment. When

developing solutions for mobile devices special

basic conditions have to be respected as changing

light, disconnection time, limited screen size and so

on. This illustrates the necessity of analyzing the

given or targeted situation. As a mobile blended

shopping solution an iPhone application was

developed which enables the consumer to receive

necessary information like testimonials and prices in

the shop during testing the product.

This app can be offered by a merchant to

structure information and refer to linked products or

accessories. An illustration of the concept is given in

figure 2.

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Figure 2: Concept web 2.0 in the shop.

Following advantages and disadvantages of the

described prototypes are compared.

6.3 Comparison of Concepts

The main benefits of the stationary prototype are the

interaction and the advice generated from the system

for more complex products which need to be

explained. This service integrates all information

necessary for the buying decision and offers a

shopping experience as well. Disadvantages are the

needed costly infrastructure and the development of

advisory structure and content.

The presented mobile solution concentrates on

providing the needed information rather than a

shopping experience. The customer receives

information independent from the merchant which

excludes cross selling impulses or any other form of

influence. The merchant’s efforts are reduced to

providing needed information in an appropriate

format for mobile devices.

In conclusion both prototypes address different

shopping situations and depend highly on the

product and the target group.

7 FUTURE PROSPECTS

In this paper we presented the necessary theoretic

background to describe the idea of blended

shopping. The developed method to evaluate

requirements for blended shopping solutions was

described. With the help of prototypes we proved the

useful utilization of concepts. We emphasize that

this method do not include a cost-benefit analysis,

new concepts are needed to analyze the cost benefit

relation with regards to customer satisfaction.

We started developing blended shopping

concepts for consumer mass products, for future

projects we focus on supporting mass customization

configuration within branches. This will bridge the

gap between mass and individual production and

will enhance mass customization approaches.

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