Even Johan Lanseng

Electronic healthcare: a study of people's readiness and attitude toward performing self‐diagnosis

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the introduction of self‐service technology (SST) in health diagnosis as a means to reduce costs and improve quality in the health care sector – at the same time.Design/methodology/approach – A survey with an internet‐based medical self‐diagnosis application as the focal technology is conducted. The research hypotheses are tested by using a scenario and questionnaire approach, in which respondents prior to responding read a scenario.Findings – To test the hypotheses, structural equation modeling using LISREL was performed. It was found that the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) for users, described according to the Technology Readiness Index (TRI) as pioneers, has a very good ability to predict future behavioral intent. TAM has an excellent capability to predict future behavioral intent of this new application in this new context, i.e. health care services.Research limitations/implications – The paper only tests TAM for a given population described as pion...

Brand alliances: the role of brand concept consistency

Purpose – Previous research demonstrates the importance of product category fit in evaluating brand alliances. However, many factors determine fit between alliance partners. For example, conclusions from brand extension research suggest that the evaluation is a question not only of product category fit, but also of brand concept consistency. Therefore, this study introduces brand concept consistency in research on brand alliances.Design/methodology/approach – The paper builds on the categorization and incongruence literature. An experiment was employed to test the two hypotheses in the study.Findings – The results indicate that both product category fit and brand concept consistency influence consumers evaluations. However, the results also show that product category fit is important in only functional and mixed‐brand concept‐based alliances. For expressive brand alliances, product category fit is not important in evaluating the alliance.Practical implications – Managers should take care in finding poten...

The principal’s and agents’ contribution to customer loyalty within an integrated service distribution channel

A large number of service corporations are configured with headquarters that determine the major principles of operation (services, pricing, marketing and advertising) and regional salesforces that are responsible for acquiring new customers and catering to the needs of existing customers. This separation of work within the corporation opens up a principal‐agency approach to the service production and delivery. Develops a conceptual model to examine the individual and joint work done by headquarters and regional salesforces in creating customer loyalty. Uses an external dyadic channel perspective ‐ i.e. channel and customer. A relationship between the channel and the customer is hypothesized to be one where customers perceive the regional salesforces to be their focal point to the company. Proposes and empirically tests a conceptual model based on data from 1,400 individual customers of a Norwegian life insurance company. Analyses data using structural equation modelling. Estimates headquarters’ and regional salesforces’ contribution to customer satisfaction and loyalty on the attribute level, based on path coefficients. Concludes by claiming that headquarters’ contribution to customer loyalty is more significant than that of the regional salesforces. These findings challenge headquarters’ assumptions about improving customer relations through regional salesforces. From a managerial perspective, information regarding channel members’ individual and joint contribution to customer loyalty is vital with regard to resource allocation to improve customer satisfaction and thus customer loyalty.

Service differentiation: A self‐image congruency perspective on brand building in the labor market

Purpose n n n n– Service‐dominant logic of marketing claims that employees knowledge and skills are the firms only sustainable advantage. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the importance of branding in attracting the right employees. n n n n nDesign/methodology/approach n n n n– This paper employs the image congruency hypothesis and social norms from consumer behavior. To test the hypotheses empirically, it uses a scenario‐based survey of respondents recruited from job‐seeking graduate students. n n n n nFindings n n n n– Based on data sampled and analyzed, it finds that both image congruency between prospective employee and preferred employer and social norm weigh in when job seekers decide on the preferred employer. n n n n nResearch limitations/implications n n n n– The paper tests the model only on first‐time job seekers. This group may have greater desire to find a job than employed job seekers do. However, it believes that image congruency and social norm will impact the latter groups attitudes regarding employer. n n n n nPractical implications n n n n– For managers who need to differentiate their market offering the findings illuminate the importance of branding and brand building not only in the consumer market but also in the labor market. It is all about attracting the right customers and moreover, the right employees to serve them. n n n n nOriginality/value n n n n– To the knowledge, this is the first study in the field of employer branding that uses the image congruency hypothesis to study branding in the labor market, thereby linking branding to organizational behavior.

Incumbent Versus Newcomer Advantages: A Fundamental Motives Explanation—An Abstract

Previous research associates the brand incumbency advantage with lower risk and costs (Kardes et al. 1992; Muthukrishnan 1995; Schmalensee 1982). This paper argues that the incumbency advantage is related to consumer’s fundamental motives (Griskevicius and Kenrick 2013). Sticking to the incumbent is functional when environmental challenges, such as threats from pathogens, are looming. Further, evolutionary psychology assumes that the human brain is modular, such that when the pathogen threat is gone, other systems may be activated to deal with other challenges, including kin care and mating. In these cases, a preference for the newcomer can be more functional.

Relevant Sex Appeals in Advertising: Gender and Commitment Context Differences

This research investigates differences in mens and womens attitudes toward ads featuring product-relevant sex appeals. It is found that women, but not men, were more negative toward an ad featuring an attractive opposite-sex model when their commitment thoughts were heightened. Women were also more negative toward an ad with an attractive same-sex model in the presence of commitment thoughts, but only when they scored high on sociosexuality. Men appeared unaffected, regardless of their level of sociosexuality. Commitment thoughts were manipulated by two types of prime, a parenting prime (study1) and a romantic prime (study 2). Results are explained by differences in how men and women react to sexual material and by differences in mens and womens evolved mating preferences.