Influence of Price on the Dynamic Transformation of Search, Experience and Credence Goods
Parvathy S Nair1, Avinash Shivdas2
1Avinash Shivdas,Department of Management, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, Kollam, India.
2Parvathy S Nair, Department of Management, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, Kollam, India.
Manuscript received on 02 June 2019 | Revised Manuscript received on 10 June 2019 | Manuscript published on 30 June 2019 | PP: 3071-3081 | Volume-8 Issue-8, June 2019 | Retrieval Number: H7076068819/19©BEIESP
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© The Authors. Blue Eyes Intelligence Engineering and Sciences Publication (BEIESP). This is an open access article under the CC-BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)
Abstract: Purpose –Goods and services are traditionally classified as Search, Experience, Credence (SEC) categories. Nevertheless, studies have indicated that the internet has transformed experience goods into search goods, but with contrary findings. This paper aims at evaluating whether products retain their category classification or does external stimuli like price cause products to traverse the SEC continuum. Secondly, post establishing the category, this paper also presents the unique combination(s) of sources of influence that motivates the consumer to make the final purchase decision for product(s) in each of the SEC categories. Design/ methodology – Data collection was employed to collect data across respondents of different ages in a small town in India. Findings – The results of this paper indicated that as prices vary, attributes of goods changes from search to experience, the preferred channels (online/offline) also have shown a change. Additionally, the research reports interesting behaviour with respect to the sources of influence that influence buyers purchase decisions. Originality/ Value – This paper presents that the SEC classification is not static, but the same product traverses across the SEC continuum under the influence of price variation. Also with such variations, the sources of influence for the final product purchase also varies. This could present marketers with insights to adopt dynamic strategies for the same product to gain better market position.
Keyword: Search goods, Experience goods, Credence goods, Consumer behaviour, Price influence, Influencers Paper type Research paper.
Scope of the Article: Aggregation, Integration, and Transformation.