No abstract

PurposeThis article draws on a reasoned action perspective and the two fundamental dimensions (i.e. warmth and competence) of the Stereotype Content Model (SCM) to analyze customers' chatbot-related attitudes and usage intentions in service retailing. The authors investigate how chatbot, customer, and contextual characteristics, along with perceptions of chatbot warmth and competence, shape customers' chatbot-related attitudes. Furthermore, the authors analyze whether the customer generation or the service context moderates the relationship between chatbot-related attitudes and usage intentions.Design/methodology/approachThe results are based on two studies (N = 807). Study 1 relies on a 2 (chatbot communication style: high vs low social orientation) × 2 (customer generation: generation X [GenX] vs generation Z [GenZ]) × 2 (service context: restaurant vs medical) between-subjects design. Study 2 relies on a similar number of respondents from GenX and GenZ who answered questions on scheduling a service with either the dentist or the favorite restaurant of the respondents.FindingsGenZ shows more positive attitudes toward chatbots than GenX, due to higher perceptions of warmth and competence. While GenZ has similar attitudes toward chatbots with a communication style that is high or low in social orientation, GenX perceives chatbots with a high social orientation as warmer and has more favorable attitudes toward chatbots. Furthermore, the positive effect of chatbot-related attitudes on usage intentions is stronger for GenX than GenZ. These effects do not significantly differ between the considered contexts.Originality/valueThis research formulates future directions to stimulate debate on factors that service retailers should consider when employing chatbots.

Several blogs and websites with a focus on social media marketing suggest that brands can benefit from fostering their Instagram account followers’ fear of missing out (FoMO) by posting ephemeral content. Relying on an online survey with 550 followers of Instagram brand accounts and a scenario-based experiment with 535 participants, this article shows that content ephemerality triggers followers’ FoMO, which increases brand account engagement and brand account fatigue. Brand account engagement (fatigue), in turn, positively (negatively) relates to brand attitude and brand attachment. Further analyses reveal that the total effect of followers’ FoMO on brand attachment is positive and significant, while the total effect of FoMO on brand attitude is not significant. Moreover, content ephemerality has a negative and significant total effect on brand attitude. A key implication of these findings is that it is not beneficial for brands to foster their Instagram account followers’ FoMO by posting ephemeral content.

No abstract