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Electronic commerce in retailing: Convenience, search costs, delivery and price across retail formats

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Abstract

The research explores the impact of electronic commerce in retailing. Four retail formats are examined: in‐store, catalog, cable TV, and the World Wide Web. 112 products were “shopped” in the fall of 1995 and again in the fall of 1997 across the four formats.

The results show a significant difference in shopping availability, time taken to shop, and speed of delivery across the four formats. Total cost of the product was not significantly different across the four formats and cost showed less variability across the formats in 1997. WWW was lowest price in 1995 and in‐store lowest in 1997. Time spent shopping dropped from 1995 to 1997 with catalog the fastest followed by in‐store, WWW, and cable TV. Delivery time also changed from 1995 to 1997, with the WWW exhibiting faster delivery times than cable TV, but still lagging catalogs. The study also suggests that there is strong potential for the merging of the three non‐store formats, given their similar structures for channel support, including telemarketing and fulfillment.

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  1. Robert H. Smith School of Business, University of Maryland, 4348 Van Munching Hall, College Park, MD, 20742, USA

    Jonathan W. Palmer

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  1. Jonathan W. Palmer
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Palmer, J.W. Electronic commerce in retailing: Convenience, search costs, delivery and price across retail formats. Information Technology and Management 1, 25–43 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1019152403937

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