ABSTRACT

Customization tools enable computerized service interactions that increase customer value. This value is affected by customers’ co-creation efforts. During the customization process, customers weigh the cost of their resources (e.g. ideas, time, knowledge) against the resources invested by a service company (e.g. online support, product warranty) to evaluate the fairness of the process. This study examines how customer satisfaction is affected by perceptions of fairness during the customization process, as well as the number of customization options offered by a customization tool. Two experiments show that, regardless of the number of customization options, customers always evaluate a company more positively when the customization process is fair. Product category involvement and customer expertise also moderate the relationship between customization and satisfaction. As this research indicates, customization must be designed carefully to avoid undesirable marketing outcomes.

摘要

定制工具可实现增加客户价值的计算机化服务交互。该价值受到客户共同创造努力的影响。在定制过程中，客户权衡他们的资源成本（例如想法、时间、知识）与服务公司投入的资源（例如在线支持、产品保修），以评估过程的公平性。本研究探讨了客户满意度如何受定制过程中的公平感知以及定制工具提供的定制选项数量的影响。两个实验表明，无论定制选项有多少，当定制过程公平时，客户总是会更积极地评价一家公司。产品类别参与和客户专业知识也调节定制和满意度之间的关系。正如这项研究表明的那样，必须仔细设计定制以避免不良的营销结果。