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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the influence of source credibility, message credibility and tie strength, on acceptance and subsequent forwarding of electronic word of mouth (EWOM). Forwarding EWOM (FEWOM) also depends on personality traits, which this work investigates in form of moderation effect of individual regulatory focus. Design/methodology/approach Hypotheses are developed using social exchange theory and the elaboration likelihood model and tested using structural equation modelling. Data were collected online, using a random sample of 324 respondents in India. Findings Findings indicate that source credibility and tie strength are instrumental in influencing acceptance of EWOM. A strong mediation role of acceptance of EWOM, confirms that people tend to forward information online only if they accept it. Research limitations/implications This study represents a unique effort to focus on the combined effects of message credibility, source credibility and tie strength on acceptance and subsequent forwarding of EWOM. Originality/value This study provides original insights about antecedents of FEWOM as well as the role of individual regulatory focus as a moderator in the process.

Purpose Superior functionality of smartphones makes them a potential retailing channel, despite their slow adoption. The purpose of this paper is to identify convenience factors that influence consumption experience and intention to continue shopping on a mobile phone. Design/methodology/approach This study was carried out on students using a survey method. This study was conducted in the National Capital Region of India due to its large and diverse population. A purposive sampling technique was used to contact 380 respondents. Findings The data were analysed using a structural equation model. The results indicate search and possession convenience to be positively related to consumption experience while search, evaluation and post-purchase convenience are positively related to continuance usage intention. The findings of this study provide evidence that mobile phone is an effective channel for shopping due to search, evaluation, possession and post-purchase convenience. Research limitations/implications This study used student population between the age group of 20 and 30 years, thereby limiting the generality of the results. Practical implications This study provides insights to retailers and brand managers for crafting their mobile marketing strategies. Originality/value This study explores and uncovers, for the first time, convenience dimensions of a mobile shopping channel across various stages of consumers’ purchase cycle.

The global e-commerce market is expected to be around USD 66,932 billion by 2030, 1 with India emerging as the second-largest digital economy with a projected 1 billion users and an e-commerce market size of USD 300 billion. 2 The COVID-19 induced restrictions have caused a strong rise in the industry, especially in India, with Google investing USD 4.5 billion in JioMart. 3 However, the enhanced demand for e-commerce during the COVID-19 period, coupled with product shortages, induced the consumer perception of vulnerability and risk, leading to non-optimal purchase experiences (Billore & Anisimova, 2021; Kitz et al., 2021;Sadiq et al., 2021). With multiple countries now easing restrictions, e-marketers must enhance the technology-driven purchase experiences to prevent consumer migration to traditional shopping methods (Kursan, 2021).Marketers strive to enrich a consumer's experience, right from product exploration to its purchase and consumption . E-commerce technology advancements have empowered the consumer with the 'shop-anytime-anywhere' advantage

Significant growth along with higher purchasing power of Indian customers has led to stiff competition in Indian healthcare sector. Customer perception of service quality plays a significant role when choosing or preferring a particular hospital. The objective of this study is to find out customer preference for healthcare services delivered by both public and private hospitals in India. For this purpose 'SERVQUAL' instrument was used to measure patients' perception about service quality delivered by both public and private hospitals located in the capital city of India. An analysis covering 192 patients revealed gap between patients' expectations and perceptions across public and private hospitals with reference to quality of services delivered on selected parameters. In this article logistic regression analysis was used to forecast the probability of a patient to visit public hospital over private hospital and vice versa. The regression model used had a classification accuracy of 94.9%. Preference for a particular hospital across various clusters was identified using cluster analysis. The findings of the present study aims to provide hospital managers an insight for efficient resource allocation and mobilization based on patients' evaluation of service quality delivered by these hospitals.