• Asia Marketing Journal
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.29-47
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• 2013

Distribution channel decisions involve long-term commitments with other firms that are very difficult to change or replace. In particular, marketing channel decisions in emerging markets are much more complicated due to unfamiliar conditions and problems such as lack of market data and distribution systems. Therefore, when a company considers changing or introducing a marketing channel in an area, it is much more difficult to judge its effectiveness in an emerging market than in a developed market. In this study, we investigate the development process of a new direct marketing channel of Hongfu Fertilizer Company (hereafter Hongfu), a medium-sized Chinese fertilizer manufacturer, and propose an approach to test the feasibility of this new marketing channel in the Chinese rural market. We measure the effectiveness of Hongfu's new marketing channel from two perspectives: i) from customers' perspective through direct responses of farmers, which showed that a new channel can increase the convenience and lower the purchasing costs for the farmers, and ii) from the company's perspective, by calculating the incremental profit of the company using the expansion factor (T/Q) method, which suggested that the execution of Hongfu's strategy to expand a new marketing channel will result in an increase in profits. The results of this study contribute to the development of a methodology to test the feasibility of a new direct marketing channel in the emerging markets such as the Chinese rural market. Traditional and indirect distribution channels in emerging markets are generally not very efficient and difficult to change. Especially, in emerging markets, like the Chinese rural market, the methods of testing channel feasibility must be different from that of developed markets. Considering market situations, market experiments can be more effective then systematic market surveys in testing channel feasibility in emerging markets. This study implies that managers must learn to cope with a transition from the traditional marketing channels in emerging markets. With the development in farmers' understanding of marketing concept, the transition from traditional marketing channel is unavoidable for all firms. Farmers in China are generally very conservative, however, their buying behaviors are changing. Therefore, fertilizer companies should try to adjust in accordance with farmers' demand characteristics that the efforts to meet the economic needs of farmers with new marketing channels as well as trust building are critical in the near future.

• Information Systems Review
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.115-134
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• 2021

Recently, the amount of money that foreigners buy from online shopping sites in Korea has been increasing, especially by Chinese consumers. In this study, we researched the effects of Chinese consumers' reviews, inquiries, and bargains on loyalty, and how these effects differ by gender so that Korean online sellers can take advantage of these opportunities. In order to verify the research model, a survey was conducted on Chinese consumers with online purchasing experience and 231 valid samples were collected and analyzed. As results, reviews, inquiries, and bargaining had the positive impacts on the loyalty of Chinese consumers. The impact of reviews on loyalty was higher in women, and the impact of inquiries and bargains on loyalty was higher in men. This study can help Korean online sellers effectively respond to Chinese consumers' reviews, inquiries, and bargains needs. This study, also, can help they understand and deal with the difference between the effect on reviews to women and the effect of inquiries and bargaining to men.

• Management & Information Systems Review
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• v.38 no.4
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• pp.1-24
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• 2019

This study confirms the responses of consumers when the composition of emoticon bundles can be selected by individuals in MIM service. This aims to verify that customized bundling is a valid marketing strategy in the MIM emoticon market. Currently, the emoticon bundling used in Korean MIM services is in the form of pure bundling. As a result, Consumers must purchase an entire bundle even though he/she doesn't need to use all the emoticons contained in it. Some researches(e.g. Hitt & Chen, 2005; Wu & Anandalingam, 2002) show that when consumers value only part of the products or services included in pure bundling, customized bundling is much more profitable. In their works, customized bundling is appropriate when marginal costs are near zero. Information goods, such as emoticons, meet the condition. On the other hand, customized bundling increase the choosable options, so it can pose a problem of complexity (Blecker et al., 2004). And consumers may experience information overload(Huffman & Kahn, 1998). Thus, judgement on the necessity to introduce customized bundling needs to be made through empirical analyses in the light of characteristics of the product and the reaction of consumers. Results show that when customized bundling was introduced, consumers' purchase intention and willingness to pay significantly increased. Purchase intention for customized bundles has increased by 0.44 based on the five point Likert scale than the purchase intention for existing pure bundles. The increase in purchase intention for customized bundles was statistically independent of the existing purchasing experience. In addition, the willingness to pay was increased by about 2.8% compared to the price of the existing emoticon bundles in the whole group. The group with experience in purchasing pure bundles were willing to pay 5.9% more than pure bundles. The other group without experience in purchasing pure bundles were willing to buy if they were about 5% cheaper than the existing price. Overall, introducing customized bundling into emoticon bundles can lead to positive consumers responses and be a viable marketing strategy.

• Korean Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.45-51
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• 1993

The purpose of this study is to provide some information for the proper education on clothing wearing habits so that the education may be performed in the direction of social needs according to the social change and in the direction of the needs and interest of the high school girl students in their adolescence by being conscious of the influence of clothing on the high school girl students. I have used questionaire as an instrument of measurement. The length of the time of survey is from February 11, 1991 to February 28. The subjects are 544 first grade girl students of general high schools in Cheong-Ju, Choong-Ju, and Je-Cheon. The analysis of the data includes frequency, percentage, average person's Correlation Program, t-test, ANOVA, Scheffe's test. The conclusion of this study is as follows: The first, it is shown that (l)students's interest in the design and fashion of clothing is significantly related to the socio-anthropological and socio-psychological factors such and the education level of their fathers, the education level of their mothers, monthly income of their homes, the clothing habits of their home economics teachers, the subjects which they are interested in, their average scholoary achievements, their religious background, and whether they have boy friends or not, etd. (2)students' interest in purchasing of clothing is significantly related to the socio-anthropological and socio-psychological factors such as the education level of their fathers, the education level of their mothers, monthly income of their homes, the clothing habits of their home economics teachers, the subjects which they are interested in, their average scholoary achievements, and whether they have boy friends or not, etc. (3)students' interest in the social-psyclological aspect is significantly related to the socio-anthropological and socio-psychological factors such as their living area, the clothing habits of their home economics teachers, etc. (4)students' interest in the clothing construction is significantly related to only the clothing habits of their home economics teachersl. (5)students' interest in the clothing management is significantly related to the socio-anthropological and socio-psychological factors such as the education level of their parents, the age of their mothers, their religious background, and their sisters. The second, as for the interest of the high school girl students in clothing, it has been shown that those who wear school uniforms tend to have more interest than those who wear free-choice clothes in such areas as shopping, the construction, and management. As for the other two areas, that is, disign and fashion, and the interest in socio-psychological dependence there has been little meaningful difference between the two groups, while the uniform group has shown more interest than the other group. The third, the interest of hish school students in clothing is considered to be most seriously influenced by their socio-psychological dependence out of five areas of interest. It has been shown that the proportion of the content dealing with clothing wearing life in the high school home economics texbooks in relatively small, especially in such areas as socio-psychological dependence, shopping, management, and design and fashion except in construcion.

• Korean journal of food and cookery science
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.342-352
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• 2016

Purpose: This study conducted an Importance-Performance Analysis (IPA) of selective attributes of Home Meal Replacement (HMR) as well as it examined the consumers' needs and willingness to buy HMR products to explore the need for developing more HMR products. Methods: This study was conducted among domestic consumers living in Seoul and its metropolitan areas, in the age range from the 20s to the 50s, and who had experience in purchasing HMR products. From the 490 surveys retrieved, 472 (96.3%) valid surveys were analyzed. Results: The analysis of the frequency of consuming HMR products showed the following results: 247 respondents answered '1-3 times a month' (52.3%); 167 respondents stated '1-2 times a week' (35.3%). With respect to the reason of purchase, 'simplicity of the recipe' was the most common, accounting for 188 respondents (39.8%), followed by 'time efficiency' accounting for 172 respondents (36.4%). Analysis of the demand for bibimbap (mixed rice) HMR products showed that 'chicken bibimbap' had the highest preference with 5.32 points, followed by 'bulgogi bibimbap' (5.08 points), and 'kimchi bibimbap' (4.96 points). In the case of HMR products that need to undergo further development, 'low-sodium products' received the highest points of 5.41 points, followed by 'small packaged products' (5.05 points), and 'functional products' (4.98 points). The factor analysis of the 13 selective attributes showed that they can be divided into 3 factors. The IPA analysis of the selective attributes of HMRs showed 'hygiene', 'taste', 'easy to go packaging', 'convenience in intake', and 'accessibility' in the 1st quadrant. In the 2nd quadrant, 'price' and 'freshness' were shown as the factors. In the 3rd quadrant, 'easy to serve', 'familiar food menu', and 'consistent menu' were shown as the leading factors, and in the 4th quadrant, 'saving labor' was the only factor. Conclusion: Based on these results, the research concludes that with respect to developing HMR products, there is a high demand for low sodium, low calorie, small packaged products; thus, showing the need to develop various HMR products for customer satisfaction. Furthermore, it shows that there is a need to consider developing HMR products that can maintain freshness at an affordable price.

• Current Research on Agriculture and Life Sciences
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.182-192
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• 2013

Since the Korean apple industry needs to expand its export market in Southeast Asia, this study investigates the attributes of Korean apples affecting consumer preference in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand. Based on an Importance-Preference analysis, the results are summarized as follows. First, price is the most important determinant for purchasing Korean apples by Southeast Asian consumers, except in Malaysia. Second, managing the intrinsic(sweetness and chewing texture) and extrinsic(surface and color) factors needs to be well maintained. Third, the priority of the marketing factor(wrapping) should be lowered. Fourth, while the importance of extrinsic factors(shape and size) is low, satisfaction is high, so these factors need to be managed to avoid overkill. Overall, Korean apples should have their own merits with an appropriate proper price, while maintaining a high quality. The results of this paper may provide suitable strategies for promoting apple exports to Southeast Asia.

• Journal of Distribution Science
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.103-110
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• 2016

Purpose - This study investigates the improvement of rationalization of distribution structure in Korean diamond market. It also explores the international distribution of diamond and how the distribution of Korean diamond market system was improved. This study also for providing the evaluation method in case of purchasing diamond on the consumers. Research Design, Data, and Methodology - The research investigates how international diamond distribution market has been changed since 1933 by De Beers. The international Diamond rough stone has been deregulated in supply and demand by Debeers since July, 2000, therefore, the price maintenance policy of diamond market also has been changed. In the short term, the diamond price in market has been down, whereas, in the long term, the market share of Debeers has affected the high quality of diamond price in world market. Before 1985, both G color and VVS1 clarity were used as the level of percentages in the diamond certificate of authenticity in Korea. But, after 1985, the diamond certificate of authenticity uses Diamond Grading Report. Results - Between the 1970's and 1980's, Debeers had controlled about 80 percentages of international diamond supply market. But, Debeers share in diamond market fell by 60 percentages in 2000's. Debeers supplied 31%(4390 carets) of international diamond supply and 41%(39 billion dollars) in 2003. However, Debeers shares 50% of market shares in the diamond supply market by Alosa in Russia. In Korea, the diamond grading report system has been used since 1985. But, the diamond grading report system has price bubbles and much irrational parts in grading system methods. Conclusions - 4C, the grading system of diamond, is a method for comparing and evaluating diamond objectively. Diamond is graded according to its color, cut, clarity, and carat. The price of diamond is determined based on its each item. Consumers purchase diamond for the purpose of investment and wearing. In terms of investment, it is recommended to purchase diamond with color of D grade, cut with Excellent or Very Good Cut grade, Clarity of FL or IF, and more than 3 carat. As for wearing purpose, it is highly recommended for diamond to have color of F or G grade, cut of Excellent or Very Good Cut, clarity of VS2 or SI1, and more than 1 carat Before 2000, Central Selling Organization(CSO) distributed about 80 percentages rough diamond to world market exclusively by purchase, classification, assessment, and sales. After 2000, Dbeers diamond company looses slowly market shares, while Almosa diamond company etc. in Russia are taking over world market shares more and more. Debeers market shares have been falling over the years, and the international diamond markets are gradually growing by other international diamond companies. But, there is no change in Korean diamond market after 1980's. Korean diamond distribution needs to follow international level of Diamond Grading System. By using different grading systems with different panel members, Korean diamond grading system needs to follow international perfect grading systems to grow diamond markets and maintain within top 10 diamond markets countries.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.195-205
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• 2019

Background: The food and food service influence the quality of life and the general health condition of older persons living in long-term care (LTC) facilities. Purchasing good food materials is a ground of good food service. In Korea, the residents in LTC facilities should pay for the cost of food materials and ingredients out of their pocket because it is not covered by LTC insurance. This study explored what factors affect the cost of food materials paid by LTC facility residents and which factor affects most. Methods: We used data from the study on out-of-pocket payment on national LTC insurance, which surveyed 1,552 family caregivers of older residents in LTC facilities. We applied conditional multi-level model, of which the first level represents the characteristics of care receivers and caregivers and its second level reflects those of LTC facilities. Results: We found that the facility residents with college-graduated family caregivers paid 11,545 Korean won more than those with less than elementary-graduated ones. However, the income level of family caregivers did not significantly affect the amount of the food material cost of the residents. The residents in privately owned, large, metropolitan-located facilities were likely to pay more than those in other types of facilities. The amount of the food material cost of the residents was mainly decided by the facility level factors rather than the characteristics of care recipients and their family caregivers (intra-class correlation=82%). Conclusion: These findings suggest that it might be effective to design a policy targeting facilities rather than residents in order to manage the cost of food materials of residents in LTC facilities. Setting a standard price for food materials in LTC facilities, like Japan, could be suggested as a feasible policy option. It needs to inform the choice of LTC users by providing comparable food material cost information. The staffing requirement of nutritionist also needs to be reviewed.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.22 no.6
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• pp.666-679
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• 2022

With the development of information and communication technology, borders are removed and consumer needs are diversified, so a new consumption form called overseas direct purchase has emerged and has been growing over the past few years. In this study, for the most common purchasing agency service among various types of overseas direct purchase, an empirical study was conducted on the effects of the content and logistics attributes of the overseas direct purchase platform on the perceived value and purchase intention of consumers. Data were collected from 273 domestic male and female adult consumers who had experience in information search related to overseas direct purchase, and the results of statistical analysis were summarized as follows. First, among the attributes of overseas direct purchase content and logistics attributes, only the attractiveness of content had a significant effect on the perceived value of consumers. Second, all perceived values of consumers were linked to purchase intentions, but among them, sensory values had a greater influence. Through these research results, it is suggested to increase the attractiveness of the web/app contents of overseas direct purchase service agents, and to improve the quality of services that can arouse sensory consumption experiences to meet the changing needs of consumers.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.22 no.9
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• pp.308-321
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• 2022

The purpose of this study is to understand how self-esteem, shopping motivations, and shopping tendencies affect the clothing purchase behavior of the so-called "MZ generation," a cohort that includes both millenials and Generation Z and exerts significant influence in various areas. The results of this study can be summarized as follows: First, it was found that extrinsic purchase motivations (purchased made due to the influence of other people), trend-seeking shopping tendencies, and pleasure-seeking shopping tendencies had a positive and significant effect on personal needs among the sub-factors of clothing purchase behavior of the MZ generation. Second, it was found that the MZ real purchase shopping motivations, trend-seeking shopping tendencies, pleasure-seeking shopping tendencies, and convenience-seeking shopping tendencies had a positive and significant effect on actual needs among the sub-factors of clothing purchase behavior among the MZ generation. Third, it was found that social self-esteem, extrinsic purchase motivations, and convenience-seeking shopping tendencies had a positive and significant effect on clothing marketing strategies among the sub-factors of clothing purchase behavior of the MZ generation. On the other hand, personal self-esteem was found to negatively affect the marketing strategies of clothing purchase behavior. In other words, the expectation that the MZ generation would buy clothes in accordance with their individual preferences and beliefs was not supported by the findings of this study. It would appear that the beliefs and behaviors of the digitally savvy MZ generation are changed by the fashion trend-related information they readily access when purchasing clothing. From the above research results, it can be concluded that there many variables that influence the clothing purchase behavior of the MZ generation and it is thus necessary to consider this cohort a new consumer segment and establish marketing strategies accordingly.