Managers use knowledge of innate consumer innovativeness (inherent interest in new products and services) to adapt the marketing mix to preferences of the consumers most likely to adopt new products/services. As mere interest in new products/services may not sufficiently characterize early adopters in contexts with price differences between established and innovative, new products/services, this article introduces the concept of innate willingness to pay for innovations (IWTPI). Based on data from Germany, Indonesia, Bolivia, USA, and Japan, it tests hypotheses about the antecedents to IWTPI, the moderating effects of IWTPI on the formation of customer satisfaction, and their differences between products and services. IWTPI tends to be positively influenced by income (satisfaction), financial expectations, and importance of status symbols and negatively influenced by female gender, savings orientation, and stress avoidance. These effects are moderated by cultural and economic factors. IWTPI positively moderates the effects of perceived quality (only for products, not services), competitive advantages, public brand image, and social recognition and negatively moderates the effect of perceived value on customer satisfaction. These results inform managers on how to adapt marketing strategy to early vs. late adopters in different country and industry contexts with price differences between established and innovative, new products/services.
Background: Corporate social responsibility (CSR) has been studied extensively in developed countries. However, although most of the world's consumers live in developing countries, the study of CSR in developing countries in general, and in Bolivia in particular, still is very limited. Developing countries are characterized by widespread poverty, corruption, inequality, social exploitation, and environmental pollution and, consequently, offer abundant opportunities for CSR. In addition, research on CSR in developing countries has the potential to promote equality, social justice, transparency, and accountability by holding frequently irresponsible local and international organizations to account. For that purpose, this study explores the nature of CSR practices and their effectiveness in influencing consumer attitudes in Bolivia as the least developed among the developing countries in the Americas. To this end, this study uses data collected in Bolivia through both structured surveys (quantitative data) and unstructured questionnaires/in-depth interviews (qualitative data). Using structural equation modeling of the quantitative data on two product categories and multiple brand contexts from 1016 consumers, this study tests a series of hypotheses on the consequences of CSR practices in developing countries. The results indicate that CSR practices exert both a direct influence on customer satisfaction and an indirect, mediated influence on customer loyalty. Moreover, the results of qualitative data analysis suggest that multinational companies and young managers are leading the way in implementing CSR practices in Bolivia. Managerial implications are discussed.
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