Applying an eMASS Customization Program as a Research Tool to Evaluate Consumer Benefits

Area of Science:

• Consumer Behavior
• Marketing Technology
• Online Retailing

Background:

• Personalization and relationship marketing are key areas of study.
• Mass customization via marketing technology is crucial for personalized consumer experiences.

Purpose of the Study:

• Examine consumer research methods using online surveys and data analysis.
• Investigate perceived benefits, emotional attachment, attitudes, and loyalty intentions in mass customization.
• Analyze how individual characteristics, like fashion innovativeness, affect consumer responses.

Main Methods:

• Conducted an online survey with 290 female apparel shoppers in South Korea.
• Utilized an established mass customization program on a retail website.
• Employed structural equation modeling (SEM) and latent mean analyses (LMAs) for data analysis.
• Implemented a hierarchy of invariance tests (configural, metric, scalar) before SEM and LMA.

Main Results:

• Consumer responses to product customization were analyzed.
• The study identified factors influencing loyalty intentions in online apparel shopping.
• Differences in consumer responses based on fashion innovativeness were explored.

Conclusions:

• Sophisticated statistical procedures, including invariance testing, ensure the validity of findings on consumer behavior.
• The study highlights the importance of measurement invariance for accurate mean comparisons in consumer research.
• Findings provide a valid framework for understanding consumer responses to mass customization in online retail.