Consumer satisfaction with a mass customized Internet apparel shopping site

Abstract

The present empirically examined customer satisfaction with Internet sites that vary in the opportunity for mass customization. The expectation–disconfirmation model was used as a theatrical framework of the study. Two children's apparel sites were developed as the stimuli: one with a mid level of interactivity and the other with a high level of interactivity, for selection of clothing design options. The data from 208 respondents were analyzed using LISREL 8.72. The finding indicates that both consumers' expectations and perceived performances for the mass customized sites included positive and negative aspects. The results suggest that expectations were not a significant predictor of satisfaction for this innovative shopping experience yet satisfaction was primarily driven by the performance of the site and predicted by disconfirmation of expectations. The findings also suggest that expectations are not related to performance perceptions, possibly due to consumers' lack of familiarity with mass customization. The more interactive site yielded the more positive performance as well as overall positive satisfaction. Nevertheless, the less interactive site, which offers fewer choices than more interactive site, yielded more positive behavioural consequences. The generalization of the results of this study is limited because of lack of random sampling and use of the mock site of children's apparel product category. However, useful theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.

Determinants of clothing repurchase through mobile devices

“…We propose four types of experiential signals: aesthetics, interactivity, enjoyment and personalization of the mobile website. In the clothing industry, they have been given great prominence: they have been used to explain the intention of the consumer to be faithful to the clothing company (Kim and Niehm, 2009;Song, Fiore, and Park, 2007;Sullivan, Kang, and Heitmeyer, 2012), as predictors of satisfaction with the retailer (Lee et al, 2011;Ha and Im, 2012) and of intent to buy clothes online (Kim and Kim, 2004;Lee and Park, 2009;Mccormick and Livett, 2012).…”

“…Consumers improve their perception about the quality of the clothing website, which leads them to a better assessment of the site and more likely to be loyal to it (Kim and Niehm, 2009). It is also important in building satisfactory relationships between the company and the consumer improving user satisfaction (Lee et al, 2011).…”

“…And in practice, many retailers take this into account in the design of their clothing catalogs (Tung, Jai, Davis and Burns, 2014). From the consumer's point of view, Lee et al (2011) have concluded that a high level of personalization of the clothing website has led users to perceive a better performance. Furthermore, these authors also noted that positive experiences with personalization increase buyer's satisfaction.…”

The factors influencing consumers' perceived complexity of online apparel mass customization service usage

“…In addition, the variety of MC options given to the consumer increases as the number of options for the partial design increases, and consequently the level of difficulty of the online apparel mass customization (OAMC) process is relatively high comparing with other product types. For example, the online shopping mall developed in the recent study performed by Lee, Damhorst, Campbell, Loker, and Parsons (2011) provided only 2 or 3 options for 6 partial design parts of 3 apparel items suggested, but the number of total combinations reached to 756.…”

“…Some recent studies for the mass customization report that consumers' satisfaction of and interest in MC reduces as the number of provided options increases (Godek, Brown, & Yates, 2004;Piller, 2003;Lee et al, 2011).…”