Surrogate Internet Shopping Malls: The Effects of Consumers' Perceived Risk and Product Evaluations on Country-of-Buying-Origin Image

망상대구점(网上代购店): 소비자감지풍험화산품평개대원산국형상적영향(消费者感知风险和产品评价对原产国形象的影响)

Internet has grown fast and become one of the most important retail channels now. Various types of Internet retailers, hereafter etailers, have been introduced so far and as one type of Internet shopping mall, 'surrogate Internet shopping mall' has been prosperous and attracting consumers in the domestic market. Surrogate Internet shopping mall is a unique type of etailer that globally purchases well-known brand goods that are not imported in the market, completes delivery in the favor of individual buyers, and collects fees for these specific services. The consumers, who are usually interested in purchasing high-end and unique but not eligible brands, have difficulties to purchase these items overseas directly from the retailers or brands in other countries due to worries of payment failure and no address available for their usually domestic only delivery. In Korea, both numbers of surrogate Internet shopping malls and the magnitude of sales have been growing rapidly up to more than 430 active malls and 500 billion Korean won in 2008 since the population of consumers who want this agent shopping service is also expending. This etail business concept is originated from 'surrogate-mediated purchase' and this type of shopping agent has existed in many different forms and also in wide ranges of context level for quite a long time. As marketers face their individual buyers' representatives instead of a direct contact with them in many occasions, the impact of surrogate shoppers on consumer's decision making has been enormously important and many scholars have explored various range of agent's impact on consumer's purchase decisions in marketing and psychology field. However, not much rigorous research in the Internet commerce has been conveyed yet. Moreover, since as one of the shopping agent surrogate Internet shopping malls specifically connect overseas brands or retailers to domestic consumers, one specific character of the mall's, image of surrogate buying country, where surrogate purchases are conducted in, may play an important role to form consumers' attitude and purchase intention toward products. Furthermore it also possibly affects various dimensions of perceived risk in consumer's information processing. However, though tremendous researches have been carried exploring the effects of diverse dimensions of country of origin, related studies in Internet context has been rarely executed. There have been some studies that prove the positive impact of country of origin on consumer's evaluations as one of information clues in product manufacture descriptions, yet studies detecting the relationship between country image of surrogate buying origin and product evaluations rarely undertaken regarding this specific mall type. Thus, the authors have found it well-worth investigating in this specific retail channel and explored systematic relationships among focal constructs and elaborated their different paths. The authors have proven that country image of surrogate buying origin in the mall, where surrogate malls purchase products in and brings them from for buyers, not only has a positive effect on consumers' product evaluations including attitude and purchase intention but also has a negative effect on all three dimensions of perceived risk: product-related risk, shipping-related risk, and post-purchase risk. Specifically among all the perceived risk, product-related risk which is arisen from high uncertainty of product performance is most affected (${\beta}$= -.30) by negative country image of surrogate buying origin, and also shipping-related risk (${\beta}$= -.18) and post-purchase risk (${\beta}$= -.15) get influenced in order. Its direct effects on product attitude (${\beta}$= .10) and purchase intention (${\beta}$= .14) are also secured. Each of perceived risk dimension is proven to have a negative effect on purchase intention through product attitude as a mediator (${\beta}$= -.57: product-related risk ${\rightarrow}$ product attitude; ${\beta}$= -.24: shipping-related risk ${\rightarrow}$ product attitude; ${\beta}$= -.44: post-purchase risk ${\rightarrow}$ product attitude) as well. From the additional analysis, the paths of consumers' information processing are shown to be different based on their levels of product knowledge. While novice consumers with low level of knowledge consider only perceived risk important, expert consumers with high level of knowledge take both the country image, where surrogate services are conducted in, and perceived risk seriously to build their attitudes and formulate decisions toward products more delicately and systematically, which is in line with previous studies. This study suggests several pieces of academic and practical advice. Precisely, country image of surrogate buying origin does affect on consumer's risk perceptions and behavioral consequences. Therefore a careful selection of surrogate buying origin is recommended. Furthermore, reducing consumers' risk level is required to blossom this new type of retail business whether its consumer are novices or experts. Additionally, since consumer take different paths of elaborating information based on their knowledge levels, sophisticated marketing approaches to each group of consumers are required. For novice buyers strong devices for risk mitigation are needed to induce them to form better attitudes and for experts selections of better and advanced countries as surrogate buying origins are advised while endorsement strategy for the site might work as a reliable information clue to all consumers to mitigate the barriers to purchase goods online. The authors have also explained that the study suffers from some limitations, including generalizability. In future studies, tests of and comparisons among different types of etailers with relevant constructs are recommended to broaden the findings.

互联网快速增长, 已经成为一个重要的零售渠道, 并出现了各种互联网零售商, 又称电子零售商. 一种网上代购店蓬勃发展起来, 吸引了国内市场的消费者. 这是一种独特的电子零售商, 他们从全球购买国内市场尚未进口的名牌产品, 寄给个人购买者, 并收取服务费. 有些消费者喜欢高端独特但无进口资格的品牌, 却因付款问题或国内的寄送问题很难直接从海外零售商处购买. 在韩国, 网上代购店的数量和销售量快速增长-2008年韩国有超过430个活跃商店和5000亿销售额, 需要这种代购服务的消费者数量也在急剧增加. 这种电子零售的概念源于 "代理中介采购" -种存在已久的形式和内容多样化的代购. 通常市场经营者面对的是购买者的代表人而非本人, 由消费者决定的代理购买者影响越来越大. 很多市场营销和心理学领域的学者都研究过代理对消费者购买决定的影响范围. 然而, 在互联网商务方面却没有深入的研究. 此外, 网上代购店作为代理购买者, 将海外品牌或零售商同国内消费者连接起来. 它有一个特点, 代理购买国, 即代购商品所在国的形象对消费者的态度和购买倾向有重要影响, 还会影响消费者在进行信息处理时所感知的风险维度. 然而, 尽管对原产国不同维度的影响已有很多研究, 对网络内容的相关研究却很少. 已有研究证明, 原产国信息作为产品制造情况的线索对消费者的评价有正面影响, 但对这种形式下网络代理购买国的形象和产品评价之间的关系进行的研究却很少. 因此, 作者们发这种具体的零售渠道很值得研究, 重点结构间的系统关系以及各自不同的路径很值得探索. 已有研究证明代购原产国, 也就是代购店购买商品所在地的形象, 不仅对消费者的产品评价(包括态度和购买意向)有正面影响, 还对感知风险的三个维度有负面影响: 产品相关, 行员相关, 以及购买后的风险. 在所有的感知风险中, 由于对产品性能的高度不确定性, 产品相关的风险受负面形象的影响最大(${\beta}$= -.30), 其次是航运相关风险(${\beta}$= -.18)和购买后的风险(${\beta}$= -.15). 对产品态度(${\beta}$= .10)和购买倾向(${\beta}$= .14)也有一定影响. 此外, 经证明, 感知风险的三个维度通过对产品的态度作为中介, 对购买倾向有负面的的影响(${\beta}$= -.57: 产品相关风险${\rightarrow}$ 对产品的态度; ${\beta}$= -.24: 航运相关风险${\rightarrow}$ 对产品的态度; ${\beta}$= -.44: 购买后风险${\rightarrow}$ 对产品的态度). 从更多的分析可以看出, 消费者处理信息的路径会因其对产品知识的等级不同而改变. 新手购买者知识等级较低, 只会考虑感知风险, 而知识等级较高的专家购买者则会考虑到代理购买国的形象和感知风险两个方面, 对产品形成更准确更系统的态度和决定. 这同之前的研究相一致. 本研究提出一些理论和实际的建议. 代理购买国的形象会影响消费者的风险感知和行为结果, 因此应谨慎选择代购国家, 如果这种新型的零售业务快速发展起来, 应控制好消费者的风险, 无论是新手或专家. 另外, 由于消费者各自知识等级不同, 处理信息的路径也不尽相同, 针对不同消费者应形成成熟的市场营销手段. 新手购买者需要风险消减方面的建议, 以帮助他们形成更好的态度, 而专家购买者应选择更好更发达的国家进行代购. 消费者可以使用担保策略来促使在线购物的顺利进行. 本研究没有拘于概括性等限制. 在今后的研究中, 应进一步测试比较有相关结构的不同电子零售商.