Multiplechannel and crosschannel shopping behavior: role of consumer shopping orientations

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of consumer shopping orientations on consumer's channel choice, crosschannel shopping behavior, and shopping outcomes. Design/methodology/approach Using multiple sources of data including surveys of store, web, and crosschannel shoppers and their transaction information, the impact of consumer shopping orientations on comparisonshopping, likelihood of crosschannel usage, purchase outcomes including unplanned purchasing, retailer satisfaction, intent to return/abandon purchases, and share of category purchases are investigated. Findings Results suggest that highthrift customers patronizing a crosschannel retailer are less likely to search for competitive offerings online or offline than customers patronizing a multiple channel retailer. Further, retailer satisfaction is higher for crosschannel compared to multichannel retailers irrespective of the transaction channel used by consumers. Research limitations/implications The data have external validity; however, they lack the control possible in laboratory experiments. Future research should examine if the findings can be replicated in multiple retail sectors. Practical implications These results suggest that brickandclick retailers can exploit synergies between their channels through order online and pick up in store strategies for greater profitability than those who operate multiple independent channels. Originality/value This paper examines managerial implications of multiple independent channel vs crosschannel strategies by retailers using data from customers of a commercial retailer.