Omnichannel interactions and customers’ value co-creation behavior : evidence from city corporation areas of Bangladesh | |
| Author | Hossain, Md. Julhaz |
| Call Number | AIT Thesis no.AB-23-03 |
| Subject(s) | Natural foods Consumer behavior--Bangladesh Customer relations--Bangladesh |
| Note | A Thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Agribusiness Management in Agribusiness Management |
| Publisher | Asian Institute of Technology |
| Abstract | Organic food is gaining popularity among consumers on a global scale owing to its multiple benefits. Despite the emerging potential, its market share is still relatively limited and confronted with several challenges. On account of this, engaging consumers to value co-creation behavior (VCB) helps organic food firms tackle challenges and unlock opportunities. In this respect, investigating diverse factors’ effects on VCB is crucial. However, the study on drivers of VCB, focusing on the organic food sector, with a special reference to city corporation areas of Bangladesh, is scarce. Therefore, to close the identified gaps, this study examines how customer trust, product quality, customer value, customer engagement, online channel interactivity and offline channel interactivity affect consumers’ organic food VCB in city corporation areas of Bangladesh. The responses were obtained from 353 organic food consumers who had omnichannel experiences, utilizing the structured questionnaire, in-person survey and purposive sampling approach, from Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC), Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC), and Rajshahi City Corporation (RCC) in Bangladesh. Building on Social Exchange Theory (SET), this quantitative study utilized Partial Least Square-Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) for response estimation. The assessment confirmed that product quality, customer trust and customer value positively influenced customer engagement, and then customer engagement substantially influenced VCB and successfully mediated the relationship of product quality, customer trust, and customer value with VCB. In addition, the effects of online channel interactivity and offline channel interactivity on VCB were positive, however, they were unable to moderate the relationship between customer engagement and VCB. This research articulates a broader understanding and outlines theoretical and practical implications for policy makers, researchers, organic food consumers, businesses, farmers and intermediaries to accelerate the organic food sector’s growth in Bangladesh. |
| Year | 2023 |
| Type | Thesis |
| School | School of Environment, Resources, and Development |
| Department | Department of Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources (Former title: Department of Food Agriculture, and BioResources (DFAB)) |
| Academic Program/FoS | Agribusiness Management (AB) |
| Chairperson(s) | Zulfiqar, Farhad |
| Examination Committee(s) | Datta, Avishek;Himanshu, Sushil Kumar |
| Scholarship Donor(s) | Asian Development Bank-Japan Scholarship Program (ADB-JSP) |
| Degree | Thesis (M. Am.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2023 |