Discerning Buyers

Quality-Quantity Tradeoffs in Consumption
Rodrigo Dias, Eesha Sharma & Gavan Fitzsimons
Journal of Consumer Research, forthcoming

Abstract:
Tradeoffs between quality and quantity are widespread in consumer decision-making. While existing research has focused on situational and contextual factors driving choices of higher-quality or higher-quantity purchases, in the current work we find that consumers possess generalized preferences for quality or quantity across purchase categories. Some consumers systematically prefer quality over quantity, and others systematically prefer quantity over quality. In 32 studies (N = 24,404) that use correlational, experimental, and longitudinal designs, and proprietary data from the Federal Reserve Bank, the current research introduces quality-quantity preferences as a novel facet of consumer decision-making. Studies 1–3 demonstrate quality-quantity preferences as an individual difference, develop the ‘quality-quantity tradeoffs’ scale to measure it, and demonstrate that it is different from related existing constructs. Studies 4A-5 show that consumers who prefer quantity over quality spend more money, borrow more, and accrue more debt, indicating that quality-quantity preferences are consequential. Taken together, our findings underscore the importance of quality-quantity preferences as a driver of consumer behavior and pave the way for future research investigating the causes and consequences of consumers’ dispositions toward quality or quantity.

Influencer Authenticity: To Grow or to Monetize
Cristina Nistor, Matthew Selove & Miguel Villas-Boas
Management Science, forthcoming

Abstract:
Social media influencers can grow their number of followers by endorsing products that are authentic for their social media persona or, alternatively, monetize their followers by endorsing a wider variety of products. We develop a dynamic model in which an influencer continuously decides whether to be authentic as she balances increasing awareness with generating revenues from sponsored posts. We derive conditions in which the influencer is authentic during an early growth phase, but she becomes inauthentic once a large enough fraction of potential followers are aware of her. Celebrities become inauthentic at a lower awareness level than pure social media influencers. If posts can go viral, the influencer initially is inauthentic as she hopes to go viral, she later becomes authentic to grow awareness rapidly, and she eventually becomes inauthentic again.

Do Consumers Respond to Social Movements? Evidence from Gender-Stereotypical Purchases After #MeToo
Clément Bellet, David Dubois & Frédéric Godart
Management Science, forthcoming

Abstract:
This paper explores whether and how consumers respond to global social movements challenging systemic discrimination and stereotypes. We examine the impact of the #MeToo movement on the market for products with stereotypical markers of femininity. Our analysis of high-frequency stockout and price data from a leading global fashion retailer spans from January 2017 to December 2018 and covers 32 countries, or 89% of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) population. Using a triple-difference approach across time, countries, and products, we identify changes in product-level stockouts, corresponding to a drop in the purchase of stereotypically “feminine” items. Our findings suggest a sudden shift in demand, with no immediate adjustments in product assortments or pricing. We discuss potential driving mechanisms, as well as implications for product management and marketing in marketplaces where segmentation is gender based.

Positive Emotions During Search Engine Use: How You Feel Impacts What You Search for and Click On
Sarah Whitley, Anindita Chakravarty & Pengyuan Wang
Journal of Marketing, forthcoming

Abstract:
The authors examine how positive incidental emotion influences online search and ad click-through rates. They predict and find that although positive incidental emotion is irrelevant to the search task, it has the effect of priming emotionally congruent thoughts, which increases the likelihood that consumers will use positive emotion words as keywords in their search queries. This use of positive emotion keywords, in turn, increases the likelihood of clicking on paid search ads. Results from six studies support this prediction and the role of lower persuasion knowledge as a mechanism. Specifically, the use of positive emotion keywords in search queries reduces the likelihood that consumers will use persuasion knowledge toward sponsored content in the form of paid search ads -- making them more likely to click on the ads. This examination of the role of positive incidental emotion and the use and consequence of positive emotion keywords in search queries has important implications for advertisers’ search engine keyword targeting strategies.

Narratives and Valuations
Dor Morag & George Loewenstein
Management Science, forthcoming

Abstract:
Although the significance of narrative thinking has been increasingly recognized by social scientists, very little empirical research has documented its consequences for economically significant outcomes. The current paper addresses this gap in one important domain: valuations. In three experiments, participants were given the opportunity to sell an item they owned (mug in Study 1, hat in Studies 2 and 3) using an incentive-compatible procedure (multiple price list). Prior to making selling decisions, participants were randomly assigned to either a narrative treatment, in which they were asked to tell the story of their item, or a list treatment, in which they were asked to list the characteristics of their item. The narrative treatment led to significantly higher selling prices and increased rates of participants refusing all offered prices. We further explore potential mechanisms, and the impact of different types of narratives, by analyzing self-reported classifications of, and employing natural language processing techniques on, participants’ narratives.