Saurabh Bhattacharya

Appraisal of literature on customer experience in tourism sector: review and framework

A substantial body of literature has been built up in experience marketing. In spite of that there is no cohesive framework that has systematically examined antecedents, formation and implications of customer experience, or has classified different aspects of customer experiences. The purpose of this article is to derive an integrative review of published articles on consumer experience and its related topics. The study synthesizes the research on customer experience through two different but interrelated streams: (1) experience as a product attribute or a complete product and (2) consumer experience created due to customer interaction with the physical environment or people. This article develops a framework that corroborates literature related to (1) definitional aspects of customer experience, (2) formation of customer experience, (3) asserting consumer psychology in engaging in the creation of experience and its consumption and (4) the effects of customer experience. We first review available prior research and present the salient features of these articles and their findings. The research gaps are then identified and a set of propositions provided, followed by directions for future research. This article also identifies some methodological issues that are relevant in the context of individual level effect on customer experience.

Corporate Name Change and the Market Valuation of Firms: Evidence from an Emerging Market

Abstract Investors’ responses to a firm’s name change and the determinants of their response are scantly explored areas in the field of behavioral finance. Based on a sample of 415 Indian firms from 2005 to 2014, this study suggests that investors respond positively to the announcement of firm name changes. Furthermore, the study indicates that when firms do not indicate geographical specificity in the name and have a specific rather than generic name, then the firm will experience greater abnormal returns. Also, when firm names are fluent and are associated with the owner’s family name, again, abnormal returns generated are positive. Nevertheless, as a firm ages and investors gain more information about it, then abnormal returns due to name change decrease.

Whistleblowing policy disclosure: evidence from an Indian emerging market

Purpose – This paper aims to investigate factors which drive firms to disclose whistleblowing policies in one of the emerging markets, i.e. India. Design/methodology/approach – A sample of 200 Bombay Stock Exchange-listed Indian firms is analyzed using Tobit regression. Findings – Promoter shareholding, proportion of independent directors and specific positions like chief ethical officer influence disclosure of whistleblowing policies. Originality/value – This paper presents the first empirical study where principal-principal conflict theory is extended to explain drivers of whistleblowing policy disclosure and, hence, brings new insights to the literature on whistleblowing policy disclosure.

The Market Value of Celebrity Endorsement: Evidence From India Reveals Factors That Can Influence Stock-Market Returns

ABSTRACT Studies in Western countries about stock-market response to celebrity endorsement news have produced mixed results. The current study, in comparison, examined stock-market response from an emerging market—India. The authors investigated determinants of positive abnormal stock-market returns, analyzing 149 endorsement news events from 2003 to 2014. The results indicate that, in India, variables such as endorsement announcement specificity, the reputation of the endorsing celebrity, and whether the endorsing company is of Indian origin can generate positive abnormal returns.

Celebrity Endorsement and Market Valuation: Evidence from India

Celebrity endorsement is one of the popular means of communication in advertising (Biswas et al. 2006; Pringle 2004; Spry et al. 2011; Tong and Hawley 2009). But does celebrity endorsement enhance long-term market performance of the firm? Extant literature does not answer this question. It generally focuses on effectiveness of overall marketing or advertising expenditure (Joshi and Hanssens 2010; Luo and Jong 2012). However, celebrity endorsement is a very specific, expensive, and significant form of advertisement technique (Thwaites et al. 2012) and calls for specific attention in terms of long-term financial returns. Furthermore, depending on national culture, its effectiveness may vary (Choi et al. 2005). Celebrity endorsement is the most commonly used means of advertising in India. According to an estimate, endorsement business in India is more than US

Communicating CSR practices – Role of internationalization of emerging market firms

321 million (Mithel and Hector 2013). Given the significance of celebrity endorsements in India, it becomes vital to explore how such endorsement impacts long-term valuation of Indian firms. Since India is an emerging economy, many multinationals intend to expand their market in India. It is inevitable for managers intending to operate in India to understand if endorsements financially pay off or not in this country. To explore long-term financial effectiveness of celebrity endorsements in India, we rely on source credibility model (Ohanian 1990) and efficient market hypothesis (Fama 1970).

Online Review Helpfulness: Role of Qualitative Factors

Abstract Emerging markets suffer from institutional voids, and in such resource deficient economies, corporate social responsibility is given scant attention. However, when firms from emerging markets globalize, international stakeholders become suspicious about firms’ products, services, and business practices. Grounded in the liability of emergingness and legitimacy theory and using a sample of 134 manufacturing firms from one emerging market, India, this study explores how firms’ international diversification intent and market-seeking motives influence emerging markets’ firms communication of socially responsible activities as an attempt to eliminate illegitimacy. Furthermore, the study reveals that business group affiliation enhances the influence of internationalization on firms’ communication of socially responsible activities.