A Study on the Consumers' Inherent Characteristics Influencing on the Relationship Building Intention with the Salesperson: Relational Benefits as Mediating Variables

영업사원과의 관계구축 의도에 영향을 미치는 소비자의 내재적 특성에 관한 연구: 관계적 혜택을 매개변수로

As the competition intensifies and the market matures, marketers are more and more concerned with the relationship marketing. Many of the previous researches have pointed out that not all of the consumers are relationship-oriented. But none of the previous research has systematically investigated this issue. This research investigated the relationship among the three concepts: consumers' intrinsic characteristics, perceived importance of relational benefits, and relationship building intention with the salesperson. In this research the perceived importance of relational benefits is treated as mediating variable in the relationship between consumers' intrinsic characteristics and relationship building intention with the salesperson. The conceptual model in this study can be depicted as follows. From the consumers' perspective relational benefits can be defined as "the additional benefits consumers can receive in addition to core services through the long-term relationship with the service provider." And in this study two kinds of relational benefits are adopted by reviewing the previous research: confidence benefits and social benefits. Relational benefit received from the salesperson is very important to predict consumers' relationship building intention with the salesperson. The more relational benefits consumer wants from the salesperson, the more relationship building intention he/she has. From this point two hypotheses are derived as follows. Hypothesis 1: As the perceived importance of confidence benefit from the salesperson increases, the relationship building intention with the salesperson increases. Hypothesis 2: As the perceived importance of social benefit from the salesperson increases, the relationship building intention with the salesperson increases. In this study four individual characteristics(risk taking tendency, variety-seeking tendency, product knowledge, trust orientation) are hypothesized to influence the perceived importance of confidence benefits from the salesperson. And three individual characteristics(interpersonal orientation, price consciousness, trust orientation) are hypothesized to influence the perceived importance of social benefits from the salesperson. These 7 hypotheses are as follows. Hypothesis 3: As the risk taking tendency increases, the perceived importance of confidence benefits from the salesperson decreases. Hypothesis 4: As the variety-seeking tendency increases, the perceived importance of confidence benefits from the salesperson decreases. Hypothesis 5: As the product knowledge increases, the perceived importance of confidence benefits from the salesperson decreases. Hypothesis 6: As the trust orientation increases, the perceived importance of confidence benefits from the salesperson increases. Hypothesis 7: As the interpersonal orientation increases, the perceived importance of social benefits from the salesperson increases. Hypothesis 8: As the price consciousness increases, the perceived importance of social benefits from the salesperson decreases. Hypothesis 9: As the trust orientation increases, the perceived importance of social benefits from the salesperson increases. The whole model in this study can be depicted as follows: Data were collected from the 396 consumers who actually trade stocks through the salesperson and were analyzed using structural equation model. The analysis results show that consumers' perceived importance of relational benefits(confidence benefit and social benefit) play the roles of mediating variables in the causal relationship between consumers' inherent characteristics and their relationship building intention with the salesperson. As for the individual characteristics, the influences of variety-seeking tendency, trust orientation, and price consciousness are statistically significant. It was found that variety-seeking tendency has a significant negative effect on the perceived importance of confidence benefit, and that trust orientation has a significant positive effect on the perceived importance of both of confidence and social benefit. Finally it was also found that, on the contrary to the influence direction suggested in the hypothesis, price consciousness has a significant positive effect on the perceived importance of social benefit.

경쟁이 심화되고 시장이 포화되면서 관계마케팅에 대한 관심은 증대하고 있다. 그런데 많은 연구들이 모든 소비자가 관계지향적인 성향을 가지고 있는 것은 아니라는 점을 지적하고 있다. 그렇지만 어떠한 성향을 가진 소비자가 관계지향적인 성향을 가지고 있는가에 대한 본격적인 연구는 이루어지지 않았다. 본 연구는 영업사원이 제공하는 관계적 혜택(확신 혜택 및 사회적 혜택)에 대한 중요성 지각을 매개 변수로 소비자의 어떠한 내재적 특성이 영업사원과의 관계구축 의도에 영향을 미치는가를 분석하고 있다. 본 연구의 가설에서 확신 혜택에 대한 중요성 지각에 영향을 미칠 수 있는 소비자의 내재적 특성으로 위험감수 성향, 다양성추구 성향, 제품지식, 타인 신뢰 성향 등의 변수를 제시하였으며, 사회적 혜택에 대한 중요성 지각에 영향을 미칠 수 있는 소비자의 내재적 특성으로 대인성향, 가격민감도, 타인 신뢰 성향 등의 변수를 제시하였다. 실제로 영업사원과의 거래를 통해 증권거래를 하고 있는 소비자 396명으로부터 자료를 수집하였다. 구조방정식 모델을 이용하여 분석한 결과, 소비자의 내재적 특성과 영업사원과의 관계 구축 의도의 인과관계에 있어서 관계적 혜택에 대한 중요성 지각이 매개 변수로서의 역할을 하고 있는 것으로 나타났다. 또한 소비자의 내재적 특성 가운데 다양성 추구 성향은 확신 혜택에 대한 중요성 지각에 음의 영향을 미치는 것으로 분석되었으며, 타인 신뢰 성향은 확신 혜택 및 사회적 혜택 모두의 중요성 지각에 양의 영향을 미치는 것으로 분석되었다. 또한 가격 민감도는 가설에서 설정된 방향과는 다르게 사회적 혜택의 중요성 지각에 양의 영향을 미치는 것으로 분석되었다.