Modelling the determinants of a simulated experience in a virtual retail store and users’ product purchasing intentions

Abstract

In the past few years, virtual worlds have become increasingly popular, often hosting, in addition to gaming and social activities, commercial activities that can potentially not just cater for in-world demand but also go beyond the virtual environment’s boundaries. The purpose of this paper is to examine the determinants of users’ simulated experience in a virtual store and to show the subsequent impact of that experience on engagement. The outcome of that engagement was examined in relation to enjoyment and satisfaction, including the role of satisfaction in purchasing the real product. An experimental quantitative approach was followed, testing three models of constructing user experience. Our empirical analysis examined confounding factors of a simulated retail experience and the critical role of that experience, along with hedonic and utilitarian values, in engagement. Engagement and enjoyment were found to influence user satisfaction positively when choosing clothing products and, in turn, user satisfaction was found to influence purchasing intention positively for these products.

Keywords:

• user experience
• engagement
• enjoyment
• satisfaction
• purchase intention
• virtual retail store
• metaverses

Acknowledgements

The work described in this paper was partially supported by a grant from the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China (Project No. A-PL25).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Savvas Papagiannidis

Savvas Papagiannidis is the David Goldman Professor of Innovation and Enterprise in the Newcastle University Business School, UK. He holds a PhD in theoretical physics and a second doctorate in business administration. Upon completion of his PhD, he joined the ebusiness@newcastle research team, working on a number of Internet-related research projects. His work has been published in several academic journals and presented at international conferences. His research interests include management of Internet and emerging technologies, e-business, e-marketing and e-learning, and entrepreneurship. Savvas has started a number of electronic business ventures and also worked as a freelance Internet developer, winning entrepreneurial awards.

Eleonora Pantano

Eleonora Pantano is a post-doctoral research fellow at University of Calabria, Italy, in cooperation with Technical University of Eindhoven, The Netherlands. She holds a PhD in Psychology of Programming and Artificial Intelligence. Her research interests are related to the management of advanced technologies and innovation in retailing, with emphasis on the investigation of consumer behaviour. Furthermore, she is member of the editorial board and an ad hoc reviewer of numerous international journals. She was the Highly Commended award winner of the 2008/2009 Emerald/EMRBI Business Research Award for Young Researchers.

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Eric W.K. See-To

Eric W.K. See-To is an assistant professor at Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering, Hong Kong Polytechnic University. Eric’s research focuses on strategy and consumer behaviours in mobile and digital environments, and business intelligence and knowledge mining. He studies the role of information and digital interaction, empowered by technology, in formulating business model and marketing strategy, and the practical applications of business intelligence and knowledge mining. Eric was previously a business theme member of the £12 million digital economy research hub at the University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne in the UK. His work has been published in Journal of Management Information Systems, Research Policy, Electronic Markets, Information Systems Frontiers, and Journal of Electronic Commerce Research.

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Michael Bourlakis

Michael Bourlakis works at Brunel Business School, West London, UK. He sits on the editorial board of five journals, and is the editor of the International Journal of Business Science and Applied Management (http://www.business-and-management.org). Michael has received funding from various bodies, such as, inter alia, the European Union, the Food Standards Agency, and the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport. He is a member of the European Technology Platform ‘Food for Life’ (EU) program and a member of the academic committee of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT). He has published more than 140 papers in various outlets, including papers published in, inter alia, the European Journal of Marketing, Journal of Marketing Management, Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Environment and Planning D.

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