Mobile Marketing Association 75 IJMM Winter 2010 Vol. 5. No.

2



INVESTIGATING MOBILE SERVICES
IMPACT ON CONSUMER SHOPPING
EXPERIENCE AND CONSUMER
DECISION-MAKING
Gokhan Karaatli, Jun Ma, Nichaya Suntornpithug


Abstract:
Mobile devices, particularly mobile phones, have become an important part of many peoples lives around the
globe. This phenomenon has made mobile technology a very attractive marketing tool. This research focuses on
mobile services impact on shopping experience. More specifically, this exploratory study investigates consumers
belief with regards to mobile services impact on consumer shopping experience, both in terms of overall shopping
experience and at different stages of the consumer decision-making process (need recognition, information search,
evaluation of alternatives, purchase, and post-purchase). The relationship between these beliefs and intentions to
use mobile services in future shopping activities is also investigated. Findings demonstrate that mobile services can
help improve consumers shopping experience at different stages of the consumer decision-making process, as well
as the overall shopping experience. Furthermore, results provide support for the relationship between consumer
beliefs (mobile services impact on shopping experiences) and intention to use mobile services in shopping.
Keywords: mobile, marketing, mobile service, consumer, buyer, decision making, shopping experience

Introduction
What makes mobile technology unique is its
ability to connect people and companies anytime
and anyplace. Mobile technologys ability to target
individual consumers and the near ubiquity of
mobile devices allow mobile marketing to be very
effective and efficient. This presents a great
opportunity for marketers, considering the ever-
growing number of consumers who want to be
connected and have convenience anytime and
anyplace. The number of people who use mobile
devices and services has been increasing, as well as
the number of companies that have been utilizing
mobile marketing. Currently, there are more than
four billion mobile subsciptions in the world (GSM
World, 2010). The total number of smartphone users
is expected to surpass 1.6 billion users worldwide by
2013 (Morgan Stanley, 2009). Despite the recent
economic downturn, forecasts indicate a promising
future for the mobile environment.
This trend has attracted a significant amount of
research related to mobile marketing and mobile
commerce. Ngai and Gunasekaran (2007) reported
149 m-commerce articles from 73 journals between
2000 and 2003. Leppaniemi, Sinisalo and Karjaluoto
(2006) found 109 mobile marketing articles between
January 2000 and February 2006. Min and Ji (2008),
in a meta-analysis of mobile commerce research in
China, reported 162 papers published in mainland
China, the largest mobile market in the world, during
the period of 2002 and 2006. A comprehensive
review of mobile marketing literature is available in
other articles published in this area, including the
articles cited. The objective of this article is to report
on the findings of an exploratory study conducted to
investigate the impact of mobile services on the
consumer shopping experience, both in terms of
overall shopping experience and at difference stages
of the consumer decision-making process.



Mobile Marketing Association 76 IJMM Winter 2010 Vol. 5. No. 2


THEORETICAL BACKGROUND
The Mobile Marketing Association (2008)
defines mobile marketing as the use of wireless
media as an integrated content delivery and direct
response vehicle within a cross-media or stand-alone
marketing communications program. Since mobile
technology also allows the delivery of products and
services to the users of the mobile devices (Nysveen,
Pedersen, & Thorbjrnsen, 2005), defining mobile
marketing as any form of marketing activity that
occurs with the help of mobile devices might provide
a broader view that encompasses all its capabilities.
While smartphones have become more popular
mobile devices in recent years, notebook computers
accessing wireless Wi-Fi networks are typically not
included in the mobile devices category due to their
limited mobility (Sultan & Rohm 2005).
Mobile technology allows marketers to extend
the reach of their existing services (e.g., delivering
coupons to mobile devices). A unique set of services
available to mobile device users (e.g., location-based
services) has also emerged. Mobile service is the
delivery of any service accessed via mobile devices,
such as mobile phones. The key component that
differentiates mobile services is the increased
accessibility via mobile devices which does not have
the limited mobility found in fixed-location
approaches, such as in-store or via desktop
computer (McClosley, 2004). Mobile service includes
communication (e.g., text messages, e-mail, chat),
locator and information services (e.g., store locator),
commerce transactions (e.g., purchases,
reservations, shopping assistance, and financial
services), and content (e.g., news, updates,
entertainment services) accessed by mobile devices
(Mort & Drennan 2005).
Mobile marketing is not limited to the mobile
Web, but its adoption by consumers and marketers
relies on the capabilities of the mobile Web. While
the technology is available, the limited availability of
user-friendly and useful mobile Web applications has
attributed to, at least in part, designers thinking of
mobile devices as disabled PCs rather than
differently-abled devices with unique capabilities
(Nerger, 2008). The increasing availability of mobile
Web applications (and platforms that allow user-
generated applications) makes the mobile
environment more attractive for many users. The
number of people using the mobile Internet
increased by 61 percent during the first half of 2009
(Novarra, 2009). According to a report from the
market analysis firm Juniper Research (2008),
approximately 1.3 billion wireless subscribers are
expected to use local mobile search services by 2013
worldwide. More user friendly mobile devices,
applications, and services will not only attract more
users but potentially improve consumers experience
with these services as well as the companies who
integrate this mobile environment into their
marketing campaigns. Therefore, it is important to
understand mobile technology and mobile services
impact on consumers, particularly on their shopping
experience.
Mobile Services, Consumer Decision-Making and
Shopping Experience
If marketers want to take full advantage of
mobile marketing, they need to create an
environment, marketing strategies and consumer
understanding that the use of mobile devices and
services can lead to improved consumers
experience. Based on the Theory of Reasoned
Action, consumer behavior can be predicted through
behavioral intentions which are, at least in part,
shaped by beliefs and attitudes (Fishbein & Ajzen,
1975). Over the years, many studies have used this
conceptualization as a base to develop various
theories and models including those related to
acceptance of various technologies (Wang, Lo, &
Fang, 2008; McCloskey 2004; Davis, Bagozzi, &
Warshaw, 1989). Since consumers acceptance (e.g.,


Mobile Marketing Association 77 IJMM Winter 2010 Vol. 5. No. 2


purchase behavior and use behavior) of new
technologies are linked to their beliefs, an important
question addressed in this study is: Do consumers
believe using mobile services in shopping will help
improve their shopping experience compared to a
shopping experience that does not have access to
mobile services? It is important for marketers to
understand and monitor consumers beliefs with
regards to how mobile services influence their
consumer shopping experience, and how these
beliefs might translate into specific behavior or
behavioral intentions that can help predict future
behavior:
H1: Consumers who believe mobile services
improve their overall shopping experience are
more likely to use mobile services in shopping
than those who do not share this belief.
Furthermore, an understanding of the mobile
services impact on different stages of the consumer
decision-making process can help marketers to
develop marketing strategies that target consumers
at different stages of the process as well as those
who hold different beliefs in terms of mobile
services impact on consumer shopping experience.
Need Recognition
The ability to receive and access information
anytime and anyplace makes mobile services more
convenient for consumers than any other
communication tool. If it is going to help them save
time, effort, and money, mobile services can
motivate a consumer to start the buying process.
Mobile technology allows marketers to connect with
consumers whether they are shopping in a store,
driving by, or shopping online and helps in delivering
marketing offers that can be customized to the
needs of the individual user. Therefore, mobile
marketing messages can act as external cues that
help consumers to recognize a need, triggering a
decision-making process that might result in a
purchase. Permission-based (opt-in) information
delivery services such as news (e.g., stock prices),
weather alerts, reminders (e.g., payment due),
updates (e.g., new products, upgrades), and the
delivery of promotional items (e.g., coupons,
discounts, specials) to mobile devices can act as
external drivers. For instance, a reminder received
on a mobile device for an upcoming birthday
accompanied by a list of recommended gifts,
discount offers, and information on nearby stores or
a list of links to Web site addresses can motivate the
recipient to start the buying process for a gift.
Meijer Supercenters, a U.S. Midwest
department store chain, introduced a mobile
marketing campaign in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Through this mobile program, when customers
approached a nearby Meijers gas station, they were
alerted about upcoming gasoline price increases and
given an opportunity to purchase gas before the
increase actually took effect. The program was a
success, and less than one percent of participants
opted out of this 100 percent customer opt-in
program (Marriott, 2006). The success of such
mobile marketing campaigns suggests that
consumers respond to external motivators, and
mobile services can be used to improve customer
experience starting from the need recognition stage.
However, consumers are more likely to use mobile
services and accept mobile marketing if they receive
an added-value, which provides an improvement to
their shopping experience.
H2: Consumers who believe mobile services
improve their shopping experience at the need
recognition stage are more likely to use mobile
services in shopping than those who do not
share this belief.
Information Search
Every buyer decision may not require an
extensive external information search, but in most
cases consumers are involved in information search.
The mobile environment offers the convenience and


Mobile Marketing Association 78 IJMM Winter 2010 Vol. 5. No. 2


flexibility of accessing and sharing information
beyond the capabilities of any other communication
medium. Mobile services can allow access to all
types of products and store-related information by
accessing the information on the mobile Internet,
accessing information previously stored by the
consumer, and communicating with companies and
other consumers (via voice, text, image or video)
with the aid of mobile devices. Mobile devices can
allow convenient storage and access of information
previously sent by marketers (e.g., discount
coupons) and other individuals (e.g.,
recommendations), as well as information collected
by the users themselves (e.g., uploaded product
information or images). This information can be
stored locally in mobile devices or in a remote
location (e.g., remote data access service).
The unique benefit a mobile information search
offers, compared to one from someones home or
office, is the ability to search and access information
regardless of time and place. A buyer can locate and
get directions for stores, receive information on
available parking, store hours, and available sales
promotions. For example, if a consumer wants to
find the three closest Starbucks locations, all they
need to do is to send a text message with a zip code
and the short code MYSBUX. They will receive a
return message with the three nearest Starbucks
locations and click-to-dial phone numbers.
Customers with Web-enabled phones can go to the
Starbucks' mobile site and get a map of the locations
(Quinton, 2007). Once in the store, mobile services
can help consumers locate a specific item and access
any product information that may not be available in
that store environment. Mobile technology and
marketing service applications offer the convenience
of connecting with various information sources
(personal, commercial, public, or experiential)
whenever and wherever a consumer needs
information. This suggests that the use of mobile
marketing services can improve consumer shopping
experience at the information search stage.
H3: Consumers who believe mobile services
improve their shopping experience at the
information search stage are more likely to use
mobile services in shopping than those who
does not share this belief.
Evaluation of Alternatives
Traditional brick-and-mortar shopping
environments have limitations, such as the number
of product alternatives available and the difficulty of
comparing the product alternatives, especially for
more complex products. The online shopping
environment has its own limitations, such as the
inability to touch, feel, or try products, with a few
exceptions such as music and software. Mobile
devices and mobile services can help consumers
enjoy the best of both worlds by combining the
benefits of in-store and online shopping
environments. Shoppers can examine or try an item
in store and initiate a search for similar items
available online or in alternate stores by entering the
product information or simply by scanning the item
using a mobile device supported by mobile services.
This will help increase the number of alternatives in
consumers awareness set, and most likely the
quality level of the items that matches the
consumers needs in the consideration set.
GPShoper, a mobile marketing technology company,
offers a mobile shopping search application where
customers can compare prices for online and offline
locations via their mobile platform using SMS and
wireless Web applications (Burns, 2006). Users can
create shopping lists and share product results with
their friends. Furthermore, access to interactive
online shopping aids or live shopping agents, and the
ability to share the information in the form of text,
image, or video with other decision makers (e.g.,
spouse) can help to reduce the time, effort, and
monetary risks associated with the evaluation of


Mobile Marketing Association 79 IJMM Winter 2010 Vol. 5. No. 2


alternatives. Overall, consumers who use mobile
marketing services are likely to have an enhanced
shopping experience while evaluating product
alternatives. Therefore, one can expect consumers
to rely on mobile services at this stage of the
decision-making process as long as they are
convinced these mobile services can improve their
experience.
H4: Consumers who believe mobile services
improve their shopping experience at the
alternative evaluation stage are more likely to
use mobile services in shopping than those who
does not share this belief.
Purchase
With the help of mobile services, consumers can
follow the store map displayed on their mobile
device giving the exact location of any item in the
store, go through the shopping list in the device,
display promotions available for alternative brands,
and keep track of the total spending as the shopping
progresses. Consumers can also be notified on the
availability of a sales promotion on a near-by item.
The checkout and payment experience at the point-
of-purchase (e.g., in-store or at a vending machine)
can be improved by scanning the fingerprint
protected mobile device, which can work as a digital
wallet, allowing the purchaser to complete the
entire transaction at once. Mobile devices can be
used as digital wallets; consumers can make the
payment by transferring the funds electronically, use
electronic coupons, exchange store, membership
and credit card information, and keep electronic
receipts of transactions. Cashless parking allows the
motorist to use their mobile phone to pay for
parking charges quickly, easily, and safely. When
Borders in the United Kingdom offered digital
delivery of discount coupons, 69% wanted to receive
mobile vouchers and 50% opted in to receive future
offers. One offer achieved a 19% redemption rate,
double that of the printed voucher alternative
(Mobile Marketing Magazine, 2007).
Mobile marketing applications include delivery
as well. Some products (e.g., music, movies,
software) can be delivered to mobile devices
directly, and can be used via mobile device or
transferred to other devices. Major League Baseball
and Tickets.com have created a barcoded ticket that
fans can use instead of a paper ticket. Fans do not
have to wait in line to get tickets, and the electronic
version of the ticket delivered to their mobile
devices can be scanned at the gate. Mobile delivery
and redemption can reduce the cost of ticketing by
as much as 80% compared to paper based tickets
and there are fraud reduction benefits as well,
according to Active Media (Mobile Marketing
Magazine, 2006). All of these examples suggest that
mobile services can improve the consumer shopping
experience at the purchase stage by making the
product ordering, purchasing and payment more
convenient, potentially saving time and money.
H5: Consumers who believe mobile services
improve their shopping experience at the
purchase stage are more likely to use mobile
services in shopping than those who does not
share this belief.
Post-Purchase
Since beliefs and attitudes of others (e.g.,
family, friends, experts) or additional information
(e.g., a very attractive sales promotion) can help
consumers purchase decisions, a shopping
environment supported with mobile services has
potential to improve the quality of a buyers
purchase decision and can help consumers feel more
confident with their purchase decisions. If the
consumer shopping experience throughout the
consumer decision-making process is improved, the
level of buyer regret and costs associated with less
than acceptable choices may be reduced and the


Mobile Marketing Association 80 IJMM Winter 2010 Vol. 5. No. 2


consumer is more likely to be satisfied with the
product purchased.
Mobile services can also improve post-purchase
customer service experiences. Consumers can
receive updates on the order status for items
purchased. The locator services are helpful for
locating a business for a post-purchase service. In
addition, consumers no longer have to worry about
proof-of-purchase for returns or warranty repair
services, since all the information can be stored and
exchanged wireless, whether the consumer is in-
store or at another location. Customer support (e.g.,
technical support) can be enhanced by delivering
more interactive content (e.g., images, video), to
consumers regardless of their location. In addition to
delivering bar-coded mobile tickets, VIP Line passes,
and electronic coupons to their customers mobile
devices, the Luxor Casinos utilizes mobile marketing
to inform guests when their rooms are ready. They
also send customers an invitation when they arrive
in the Las Vegas area allowing them to pre-register
using their mobile phones before they arrive at the
hotel (Internet Ad Sales, 2006). The use of mobile
services can offer improved benefits (convenience,
savings, and instant communication) and reduced
risks (performance risks, financial risks, time risks)
which may lead to more satisfactory post-purchase
experiences for consumers, as well as an enhanced
shopping experience overall. However, consumers
willingness to use mobile services at the post-
purchase stage will also depend on forming beliefs
that these mobile marketing services will offer
benefits they value.
H6: Consumers who believe mobile services
improve their shopping experience at the post-
purchase stage are more likely to use mobile
services in shopping than those who does not
share this belief.


METHODOLOGY
Data collection was done in two phases. In the
first phase, a convenience sample of students from a
university in the Midwest United States was used.
Those who agreed to participate were asked to fill
out a paper copy of the survey questionnaire. In the
second phase, a combination of convenience
sampling and snowball sampling were used to
recruit participants. Participants received an
invitation e-mail and were asked to fill out an online
version of the survey questionnaire used in the first
phase. The analysis presented in this article is based
on the data collected from 120 participants in 2009.
Four incomplete surveys were omitted. Fifty-four
percent of the respondents were male. Sixty-seven
percent were between the ages of 20-29. Fifty-six
percent reported to have some college degree,
whereas 25.9% had a college degree and 12.9% had
a graduate degree. Although 45% reported less than
$20,000 in annual income, all income categories
were represented, including 10% with $100,000 or
more annual income. All but one participant
indicated that they use a mobile device; 57.8% of the
participants reported having a mobile device with
Internet access; 41.4% indicated that they have no
Internet access on their mobile device.
The survey questionnaire used for the data
collection was developed by the authors and pre-
tested prior to the data collection. A statement
providing the definition of mobile devices was
provided to ensure participants did not include their
experiences via notebook computers in response to
the questions measuring their belief and behavior
related to mobile devices. Participants were
presented with a list of various mobile services, such
as shopping assistance, digital payment, product
updates, locater services, as well as more traditional
items such as voice services and SMS or text
services, and were asked to indicate which of these
mobile services they have used via their mobile


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devices in the past. In the following question,
participants likelihood of using each of these
services in the future (assuming they are provided at
a cost and a level of service acceptable to the user)
were measured using a using a 10-point semantic
differential scale (1=very unlikely to 10= very likely).
Twenty-three items were developed to measure
consumers beliefs on mobile services ability to
improve consumer experience at different stages of
the consumer decision-making process as well as
overall shopping experience. Participants were asked
to report mobile services impact on various aspects
of their shopping experience when compared to a
shopping experience with no access to mobile
services. They were asked to report their level of
agreement or disagreement with 23 statements
using a 5-point Likert scale. These items were used
to develop the multi-item scales measuring
consumer shopping experience at different stages of
the consumer decision-making process (need
recognition, information search, evaluation of
alternatives, purchase, post-purchase behavior).
Factor and reliability analyses were conducted
on the 23 items in order to determine the final
multi-item scales. Factor analysis results were
obtained using principles components analysis with
varimax rotation. Table 1 presents the summary
results from these analyses and the resulting multi-
item scales.
Fifteen scale items across five stages provided a
multi-item measure of shopping experience that had
reliability scores (Cronbachs alpha) ranging between
.83 and .92, with the percentage of variance
explained ranging between 77.14 and 85.87.
Another item (Improve my overall shopping
experience) was also retained from the original list in
order to measure the mobile services impact on the
overall shopping experience and for validity check.

Table 1: Summary results of factor and reliability analysis for multi-item scales measuring consumer shopping
experience at the five stages of the buyer-decision process


Scale Items
Eigen
Value
% Variance
explained
Cronbachs
alpha
Need Recognition
Help me stay better informed through reminders and updates
Improve my ability to receive timely information
1.72 85.76 .83
Information Search
Help me find more information
Make information search easier
Help me find products easier
Help me find more products
3.19 79.78 .92
Evaluation of Alternative
Help me compare products easier
Help me compare prices easier
Help me evaluate products better.
2.57 85.55 .92
Purchase
Make product ordering process easier
Make product purchase more convenient
Help me make purchase decision quicker
2.58 85.87 .92
Post Purchase Behavior
Help me chose better products
Improve my confidence in the purchase decisions I make
Improve the level of customer service I receive
2.31 77.14 .85




Mobile Marketing Association 82 IJMM Winter 2010 Vol. 5. No. 2


RESULTS
A review of the frequency distribution of the
responses to sixteen items that measured mobile
services impact on shopping experience shows that a
considerable proportion of the participants believe
that mobile services can potentially improve the
various aspects of the shopping experience. A
summary of these individual item frequency
distributions are provided in Table 2, which shows
the aggregate frequencies for strongly agree and
agree, as well as strongly disagree and disagree
categories due to space considerations.
Among all the five stages of the consumer
decision-making process, more respondents seem to
agree that mobile services can help improve the
consumer experience at the need recognition stage.
Only 6.45% did not agree based on the average of
two items that made up the need recognition stage
(NR1 and NR2). Consumers also believe that mobile
services can improve shopping experience at the
information search stage (on average, 16.45%
disagreed IS1, IS2, IS3, and IS4), followed by
evaluation of alternatives (22.23% disagreed EA1,
EA2, and EA3), purchase (26.7% disagreed P1, P2,
and P3), and post-purchase stage (32.8% disagreed
PP1, PP2, and PP3), respectively. This is rather
promising news for marketers, considering many
consumers have had limited experience with mobile
services besides voice and SMS or text services. For
instance, while 76% of respondents use text services
on their mobile devices, 58.3% have access to the
Internet on their mobile devices. Of those who have
access to the Internet, 17.9% reported to have used
their mobile devices for shopping on the mobile
Internet and 9% for shopping assistance.
A series of analysis were conducted to test the
potential effect of the demographic variables on the
mean scores of mobile services impact on shopping
experience. Independent-samples t-test (for gender
variable) and ANOVA results indicated no evidence
of significant gender, age, income or level of
education effect on mobile services impact on
either overall shopping experience or at either of the
five stages of the consumer decision-making
process. All the tests were conducted at alpha level
.05.
Correlation scores between the mean belief
scores indicating the impact of mobile services on
shopping experience at each stage of the consumer
decision-making process (need recognition,
information search, alternative evaluation, purchase,
and post purchase) and the overall shopping
experience were positive and significant at alpha
level .01 (.38, .58, .59, .71, .81, respectively). These
results provide support for the validity of the multi-
item scales developed for measuring mobile services
impact on consumer shopping experiences. A
significant (p<.01) and positive correlation between
the mean scores indicating the impact of mobile
services on each stage of the consumer decision-
making process, as well as overall shopping
experience, and the self-reported likelihood of using
mobile services such as shopping assistance (ranging
from .35 to .59) show that as the perceived value of
mobile services on shopping experience increases,
consumers are more likely to use mobile services
such as shopping assistance.
Next, mean scores for mobile services impact
on the five stages of the consumer decision-making
process were aggregated, with the categories of
strongly agree and agree, strongly disagree and
disagree, and neutral being collapsed to create a
three group variable. Then, a series of independent-
samples t-tests were used to test the six hypotheses.
The mean score for Likelihood of using mobile
(shopping assistance) service for those who believe
(agree) mobile services help improve overall
shopping experience (M=6.21, SD=3.16) was
compared to the mean score of those consumers


Mobile Marketing Association 83 IJMM Winter 2010 Vol. 5. No. 2


Table 2: Frequency distribution - Consumer beliefs on mobile services impact on shopping experience

Item Freq Percent Item Freq Percent
Help me stay better informed
through reminders and updates (NR1)

Help me evaluate products better
(EA3)

Disagree/Strongly Disagree 10 8.6 Disagree/Strongly Disagree 31 26.9
Neutral 31 26.7 Neutral 49 42.6
Agree/Strongly Agree 75 64.7 Agree/Strongly Agree 35 30.5
Total 116 100.0 Total 115 100.0
Improve my ability to receive timely
information (NR2)

Make product ordering process
easier (P1)

Disagree/Strongly Disagree 5 4.3 Disagree/Strongly Disagree 29 25.0
Neutral 17 14.7 Neutral 56 48.3
Agree/Strongly Agree 94 81.0 Agree/Strongly Agree 31 26.7
Total 116 100.0 Total 116 100.0
Help me find more information (IS1)

Make product purchase more
convenient (P2)

Disagree/Strongly Disagree 18 15.5 Disagree/Strongly Disagree 28 24.1
Neutral 27 23.3 Neutral 42 36.2
Agree/Strongly Agree 71 61.2 Agree/Strongly Agree 46 39.7
Total 116 100.0 Total 116 100.0
Make information search easier (IS2)

Help me make purchase decision
quicker (P3)

Disagree/Strongly Disagree 14 12.2 Disagree/Strongly Disagree 36 31.0
Neutral 41 35.6 Neutral 39 33.6
Agree/Strongly Agree 60 52.2 Agree/Strongly Agree 41 35.3
Total 115 100.0 Total 116 100.0
Help me find products easier (IS3) Help me chose better products (PP1)
Disagree/Strongly Disagree 19 16.5 Disagree/Strongly Disagree 30 26.1
Neutral 53 46.1 Neutral 44 38.3
Agree/Strongly Agree 43 37.4 Agree/Strongly Agree 41 35.7
Total 115 100.0 Total 115 100.0
Help me find more products (IS4)

Improve my confidence in the
purchase decisions I make(PP2)

Disagree/Strongly Disagree 25 21.6 Disagree/Strongly Disagree 40 34.4
Neutral 49 42.2 Neutral 38 32.8
Agree/Strongly Agree 42 36.2 Agree/Strongly Agree 38 32.8
Total 116 100.0 Total 116 100.0
Help me compare products easier (EA1)

Improve the level of customer
service I receive (PP3)

Disagree/Strongly Disagree 24 20.7 Disagree/Strongly Disagree 44 37.9
Neutral 49 42.2 Neutral 40 34.4
Agree/Strongly Agree 43 37.1 Agree/Strongly Agree 32 27.6
Total 116 100.0 Total 116 100.0
Help me compare prices easier (EA2)

Improve my overall shopping
experience

Disagree/Strongly Disagree
22 19.1
Disagree/Strongly Disagree
35 30.7
Neutral 49 42.6 Neutral 44 38.6
Agree/Strongly Agree 44 38.3 Agree/Strongly Agree 35 30.7
Total 115 100.0 Total 114 100.0




Mobile Marketing Association 84 IJMM Winter 2010 Vol. 5. No. 2


who do not share the same beliefs (disagree)
(M=1.89, SD=1.76). The alpha level was 0.5 and the
difference was found to be statistically significant
(t(54) = 6.62, p< .01), supporting H1.
The same analysis was conducted for each stage
of the consumer decision-making process. Table 3
summarizes the results of the analysis carried out for
hypothesis testing. The results provide support for
all six hypotheses. These results suggest that those
consumers who believe mobile services (shopping
assistance) improve their shopping experience
(overall and at each five stage of the consumer
decision-making process) are more likely to use
mobile services in shopping than those who does not
share this belief.
DISCUSSION AND IMPLICATIONS
The results from this exploratory research
provide some promising evidence for addressing the
central question of this study. There are a significant
number of consumers who believe that mobile
services can improve their shopping experience and
those who hold such beliefs are more likely to use
mobile services such as shopping assistance.
Furthermore, consumers believe that mobile
services can improve the shopping experience at
different stages of the consumer decision-making
process, more so at the need recognition and the
information search stages than the alternative
evaluation, the purchase or the post-purchase
stages. Future investigation is needed to find out
whether this is the case, and if so what might be
behind this pattern.
If marketers can successfully communicate the
benefits of being connected to consumers, they will
finally have a medium that will allow them to
connect with customers anytime and anyplace. The
effectiveness of various marketing efforts such as
promotions can be monitored more effectively with
the mobile platform. However, if marketers want to
increase the number of consumers that adapt
various mobile services and join mobile marketing
campaigns, it is important to understand what
consumers value, especially in the context of the
consumer decision-making process and shopping
behavior in general. If consumers believe that the
use of mobile services and engaging in mobile
marketing offer them significant benefits that
Table 3: Independent-samples t-tests
Likelihood of Using N Mean SD df t
Mobile Service
Overall Shopping Experience
Low
High
19
38
1.89
6.21
1.76
3.16
54 6.62**
Need Recognition
Low
High
8
91
1.38
4.24
.744
3.08
38 6.87**
Information Search
Shopping Assistance Low
High
17
54
1.71
5.04
1.53
3,27
58 5.74**
Evaluation of Alternatives
Low
High
25
39
2.16
5.28
1.91
3.37
61 4.72**
Purchase
Low
High
28
35
2.07
6.26
1.84
3.05
57 6.72**
Post Purchase
Low
High
35
30
2.46
6.00
2.31
3.29
50 4.95**
Significance at *p 0.05, **p 0.01


Mobile Marketing Association 85 IJMM Winter 2010 Vol. 5. No. 2


outweigh the costs, they are more likely to adopt.
Improving the customer experience is essential for
building and maintaining lasting, successful
relationships with customers, and smart mobile
devices and value-added mobile services can help
facilitate this for marketers. It is important to fully
understand the potential and implications of utilizing
mobile technology in consumer marketing from the
marketers and consumers point of view.
While consumers beliefs play an important role
in shaping their behavior, positive or negative
experiences reinforce or change the prior beliefs and
attitudes consumers may have. Therefore, it is
important to consider consumers past experiences
with mobile services and mobile marketing
applications as well. Relatively small percentages of
participants in this study reported having used
mobile services that can enhance a consumer
shopping experience, such as shopping assistance
(8.6%), receiving promotional messages (20.7%),
digital coupons (14.7%) and digital tickets (14.7%),
product updates (17.2%), shopping on the mobile
Internet (13.8%) and digital payment (10.3%),
financial services such as banking (19%), and remote
data access (7.8%). Experiencing mobile marketing
services in shopping first hand may increase the
perceived value of these services in shopping and
consumers likelihood of utilizing mobile services in
future shopping occasions. Repeat behavior usually
indicates a positive past experience, in this case the
use of mobile services in shopping. Hence, mobile
marketers need to promote trials and develop
promotional strategies that communicate how
mobile services can enhance consumer shopping
experience.
Although respondents have answered the
questions of likelihood of using mobile shopping
services with the assumption of acceptable cost and
service quality, these factors may have contributed
to the low numbers of past use behavior, since the
convenience sample used in the study had a heavily
skewed distribution of age (67.2% between the ages
of 20-29) and income (71% under $40K). Measuring
participants level of awareness and familiarity with
various mobile services and applications as well as
some attitude measures of mobile technology could
provide some additional insights.
Overall, a better understanding of mobile
services impact on the consumer decision-making
process can help marketers develop and target
marketing strategies at consumers with different
needs at different stages of the process as well as
those consumers who hold different beliefs in terms
of mobile services impact on consumer shopping
experience.
Among others, some challenges yet to be
addressed include cost of service, lack of sufficient
infrastructure, user-friendly mobile applications,
consumers concerns over privacy and security, and
the threat of government regulations.

Gokhan Karaatli*
Department of Management and Marketing
Doermer School of Business
Indiana University - Purdue University Fort Wayne
United States
karaatlg@ipfw.edu

Jun Ma
Department of Management and Marketing
Doermer School of Business
Indiana University - Purdue University Fort Wayne
United States
maj@ipfw.edu

Nichaya Suntornpithug
Department of Management and Marketing
Doermer School of Business
Indiana University - Purdue University Fort Wayne
United States
suntornn@ipfw.edu

*Corresponding author




Mobile Marketing Association 86 IJMM Winter 2010 Vol. 5. No. 2


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