|
|
The Dynamics of Online Purchase Visits: Inertia or Switching? |
Zelin Zhang1(),Xia Wang2(),Peter T. L. Popkowski Leszczyc3(),Xiao Zuo4() |
1. School of Business, Renmin University of China, Beijing 100872, China 2. School of Business, Renmin University of China, Beijing 100872, China 3. School of Business, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2R6, Canada 4. Baidu Marketing Research Institute, Beijing 100085, China |
|
|
Abstract This paper studies the dynamics of online purchase patterns, focusing on the impact of the channel used on conversion probability, as well as the transition of channel use over time. A novel data set from a major Chinese online travel agency is used for analysis, consisting of four months of data with 24,337 store visits through three types of channels: direct visit, search advertising and referral. Results of a Bayesian multinomial logit model show that the search channel significantly affects consumers’ conversion probability, and show a high degree of inertia in channel use. This finding contrasts sharply with suggestions of previous research that most future purchases will converge to the direct-visit channel.
|
Keywords
conversion probability
direct visit
search engine
referral
|
Issue Date: 12 April 2016
|
|
|
Viewed |
|
|
|
Full text
|
|
|
|
|
Abstract
|
|
|
|
|
Cited |
|
|
|
|
|
Shared |
|
|
|
|
|
Discussed |
|
|
|
|