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Purpose Considering the increasing impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) on financial technology (FinTech), the purpose of this paper is to propose a research framework to better understand robo-advisor adoption by a wide range of potential customers. It also predicts that personal and sociodemographic variables (familiarity with robots, age, gender and country) moderate the main relationships. Design/methodology/approach Data from a web survey of 765 North American, British and Portuguese potential users of robo-advisor services confirm the validity of the measurement scales and provide the input for structural equation modeling and multisample analyses of the hypotheses. Findings Consumers’ attitudes toward robo-advisors, together with mass media and interpersonal subjective norms, are found to be the key determinants of adoption. The influences of perceived usefulness and attitude are slightly higher for users with a higher level of familiarity with robots; in turn, subjective norms are significantly more relevant for users with a lower familiarity and for customers from Anglo-Saxon countries. Practical implications Banks and other firms in the finance industry should design robo-advisors to be used by a wide spectrum of consumers. Marketing tactics applied should consider the customer’s level of familiarity with robots. Originality/value This research identifies the key drivers of robo-advisor adoption and the moderating effect of personal and sociodemographic variables. It contributes to understanding consumers’ perceptions regarding the introduction of AI in FinTech.

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The role of satisfaction and website usability in developing customer loyalty and positive word-of-mouth in the e-banking services Luis V. Casaló Carlos Flavián Miguel Guinalíu Article information:To cite this document: Luis V. Casaló Carlos Flavián Miguel Guinalíu, (2008),"The role of satisfaction and website usability in developing customer loyalty and positive word-of-mouth in the e-banking services"If you would like to write for this, or any other Emerald publication, then please use our Emerald for Authors service information about how to choose which publication to write for and submission guidelines are available for all. Please visit www.emeraldinsight.com/authors for more information. About Emerald www.emeraldinsight.comEmerald is a global publisher linking research and practice to the benefit of society. The company manages a portfolio of more than 290 journals and over 2,350 books and book series volumes, as well as providing an extensive range of online products and additional customer resources and services.Emerald is both COUNTER 4 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation. AbstractPurpose -Customer loyalty and positive word-of-mouth (WOM) have been traditionally two main goals aimed at by managers. Focusing on the online banking, the importance of these concepts is even greater due to the increasing competence in electronic commerce. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to characterize both concepts in the e-banking context. Design/methodology/approach -The influence of satisfaction and website usability in developing customer loyalty and positive WOM in the e-banking business were measured. After the validation of measurement scales, hypotheses are contrasted through structural modelling. Findings -This research showed that satisfaction with previous interactions with the bank website had a positive effect on both customer loyalty and positive WOM. In addition, website usability was found to have a positive effect on customer satisfaction and, as expected, loyalty was also significantly related to positive WOM. Practical implications -In order to develop customer loyalty and positive WOM, banks that operate in the internet should: prioritize ease-of-use in website development, and identify the needs of online customers (e.g. in terms of services offered) in order to offer them what they really want. Originality/value -Although the increasing competitiveness in e-business is motivating an exponential growth in the number of studies that analyze loyalty development and WOM in the internet, there is still a lack of studies that analyze the formation of both concepts in the e-banking context. Thus, this work represents a new contribution to the field of online banking, which has acquired a notable popularity in recent years.

Service robots and artificial intelligence promise to increase productivity and reduce costs, prompting substantial growth in sales of service robots and research dedicated to understanding their implications. Nevertheless, marketing research on this phenomenon is scarce. To establish some fundamental insights related to this research domain, the current article seeks to complement research on robots' human-likeness with investigations of the factors that service managers must choose for the service robots implemented in their service setting. A three-part framework, comprised of robot design, customer features, and service encounter characteristics, specifies key factors within each category that need to be analyzed together to determine their optimal adaptation to different service components. Definitions and overlapping concepts are clarified, together with previous knowledge on each variable and research gaps that need to be solved. This framework and the final research questions provide a research agenda to guide scholars and help practitioners implement service robots successfully.

PurposeThe purpose of this research is to analyse the influence of perceived web site security and privacy, usability and reputation on consumer trust in the context of online banking. Moreover, the paper also aims to analyse the trust‐commitment relationship since commitment is a key variable for establishing successful long‐term relationships with customers.Design/methodology/approachThe paper describes the positive effects of security and privacy, usability and reputation on consumer trust in a web site in the online banking context. Besides this, it also suggests that trust has a positive effect on consumer commitment. After the validation of measurement scales, the hypotheses are contrasted through structural modelling. Finally, the paper compares the hypothesised model with a rival one in order to test the mediating role of trust.FindingsThe data showed that web site security and privacy, usability and reputation have a direct and significant effect on consumer trust in a financial services web site. Besides this, consumer trust is positively related to relationship commitment. Finally, it is observed that trust is a key mediating factor in the development of relationship commitment in the online banking context.Research implications/limitationsThe high costs every company has to face in order to attract new customers make it increasingly necessary to reinforce the ties established with customers. In this respect, this research offers several alternatives for improving the levels of consumer trust and commitment in the context of online banking. The limitation is that data were collected to a web survey only of Spanish‐speaking subjects.Originality/valueThis study proposes a model for analysing empirically the link between security, privacy and trust, amongst others, in the online banking context.

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PurposeThe importance of virtual brand communities is growing day by day as a result of consumers increasingly using online tools to contact fellow consumers in order to get information on which to base their decisions. For this reason, this work aims to explore some of the effects of participation in a virtual brand community on consumer behaviour.Design/methodology/approachThe paper proposes the positive effects of participation in a virtual community on both consumer trust and loyalty to the product, brand or organisation around which the community is developed. In addition, it also proposes a positive effect of trust on consumer loyalty. After the validations of measurement scales, the hypotheses are contrasted through structural modelling.FindingsThe data, obtained through a web survey using members of several free software virtual communities, show that participation in the activities carried out in a virtual community may foster consumer trust and loyalty to the mutual interest of the community (the free software in this case). In addition, the study also found a positive and significant effect of consumer trust on loyalty.Research limitations/implicationsData were collected thanks to a web survey using Spanish‐speaking subjects.Practical implicationsThe high costs every company has to face in order to get new customers make it increasingly necessary to reinforce the ties established with customers. In this respect, this study has shown that managers may foster consumer trust and loyalty by developing virtual brand communities and promoting consumers' participation in them.Originality/valueMost of the works that are focused on virtual communities have been conducted at the conceptual level. Thus, with the aim of moving on this topic, this study analyses empirically the effects of participation in a virtual brand community on consumer behaviour.