Ciro Eduardo Gusatti

THE INFLUENCE OF WEBSITE SIGNALING IN PERCEIVED QUALITY AND INTENTION TO BUY ON INTERNET SERVICES

Este artigo tem como objetivo verificar a influência da sinalização de websites na qualidade percebida e na intenção de compra de serviços na internet. Para isso, um experimento foi conduzido a partir da definição de uma empresa fictícia de serviços e do desenvolvimento de websites com diferentes níveis de qualidade e investimento. Os canais digitais foram acessados, o serviço analisado e, posteriormente, avaliado. Resultados provenientes de ANOVA e testes de correlação confirmaram que a plataforma digital tem força de sinalização e influência sobre a qualidade percebida e intenção de compra de um consumidor que julga um serviço on-line. A teoria base para a elaboração do estudo foi a Sinalização da Qualidade, que foi aplicada para análise experimental em um grupo de universitários, qual resultou em 135 questionários válidos.

An Experimental Study on the Effect of E-Servicescape in Quality Signals in Websites: An Abstract

Several studies have sought to investigate the potential of marketing efforts as a tool for quality signals (Kirmani and Rao 2000). Harris and Goode (2010) present a model of e-servicescape from dimensions of websites that influence the customer’s perceptions about products and services offered on the Internet. The development of an experiment is aimed to verify the relationship of cause and effect between variables. The procedure includes the development of platforms with different quality levels (high, medium, and low). The channels were accessed and analyzed by students and then assessed the credibility of the signal (quality signals). The theory of quality signals is based on the assumption that, in the negotiating process, the parties involved have access to different amounts of information (Akerlof 1970). This situation is recognized as scenarios of “information asymmetry” (Kirmani and Rao 2000). The greater the asymmetry of information and the difficulty in identifying the customer a quality product at the time of purchase, the greater the relevance of the company transmitting signals to consumers about the quality (Rao; Qu; Ruekert 1999). Harris and Goode (2010) e-servicescape model presents three dimensions that result in perception of quality digital environment organizations: aesthetic appeal, design/functionality, and financial security/environment. The guidelines of the platforms were signed from theoretical references of Harris and Goode (2010) model. The website with the highest quality with excellence should encompass all dimensions of the model. The website of average quality contemplates the dimensions with less force. The low quality neglected the majority of elements. The characterization of service and brand was created with the objective of having control of their effects on the prior knowledge by the consumer. Undergraduate students were chosen as the sample. According to Hair et al. (2005), 30 observations are sufficient to perform the analysis of variance (ANOVA); however, due to the intention of greater consistency in the database, it has reached the number of 40 observations per treatment. Regarding exposure to the websites, there was a total balance in the number of participants in each treatment. Forty individuals (33.3 %) were exposed to high-quality website, 40 individuals (33.3 %) to medium-quality website, and the other 40 subjects (33.3 %) were exposed to low-quality website (n = 120). The H1 hypothesis relates to the measurement of differences from the website with the factor dependent on the credibility of the signal that was observed from the ANOVA test of a factor variable. With F 370.1 and p < 0.05, reject the null hypothesis and confirm that there are significant differences between the means of the credibility of the signal groups in relation to treatments. Tukey’s test, in which the groups are compared pairwise, demonstrated that the differences between means were also significant among themselves. Thus, confirming the hypothesis that the perception of investment or credibility of the signal is perceived as a significant difference in websites of different qualities. The second hypothesis (H2) suggested that the e-servicescape is positively related to the credibility of the signal of the website. Pearson correlation was considered significant (level below 0.01). The correlation coefficient (r) shows that there is a strong association (r = 0.92) between the variable x (e-servicescape) and the variation in another variable y (website credibility of the signal); an increase in e-servicescape is accompanied by an increase in the perception of the sign of the investment website, thus, confirming the second hypothesis of the study (H2). The results are important theoretically because they meet other studies that verify the digital platforms of organizations as signaling elements of the quality on the Internet.

Challenges of institutional communication and positioning in the tobacco market given sector restrictions

Several countries support the World Health Organization (WHO), through the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), in initiatives aimed at consumption and tobacco production restriction. Among these countries is Brazil. The adoption of smoke-free laws resulted in the formation of a split scenario in the south. In the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Santa Catarina and Paraná (Brazil), located in hundreds of communities that have, in tobacco culture, the basis of its economy. The amount of 651 is producing counties, 650,000 people working in rural areas and 30,000 jobs generated in the urban area. Considering the economic importance of the activity, this article seeks to examine how corporate communication operates in the position before the political and social constraints faced by the sector. Therefore, there was a study of a single case of an exporter of Tobacco Company from Rio Grande do Sul, a state in Brazil. The research presents economic data and description of the antismoking movement to contextualize the market situation. The theoretical foundations are discussed and compared to the strategies adopted by the company. Interviews with employees of the communications sector and printed materials (newsletters, newspapers, magazines and advertisements) subsidized the data for analysis. Through the Adequacy Standard Method, there was a convergence of concepts defended by authors from the fields of communication and marketing to institutional actions. It was identified that the sector companies are facing difficulties in communication and positioning in the market related to tobacco restrictions.

The Effects of Quality Signals Through Website Context Based on Trust in the Internet Service

Buyers and sellers involved in a transaction have access to different amounts of information related to the quality of a product or service (Spence 1973). This phenomenon is recognized as “asymmetric information”. The uncertainties arising from asymmetric information about a product potentialize the problem recognized as “adverse selection”. To avoid adverse selection organizations must invest in quality signals. Wells, Valacich and Hess (2011) suggest that quality signals to the buyer in internet could be presented through the site conditions on the organization’s website. This research follows a descriptive and causal approach, to establish through an experiment the cause–effect relations between investment in organization’s website and confidence about the service on the internet. Wells, Valacich and Hess (2011) suggest that a potentially credible signal of quality to the buyer on the Internet could provide a very good condition to the consumer believe in the organization’s website content. Schlosser, White and Lloyd (2006) argue that investment in the website of an organization could influence the perceptions of online buyers. H1: The investment of a service organization in the development of website can be recognized by consumers on the internet.