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Wal-Mart is coming to Guelph: Hedonic to utilitarian shoppers’ perceptions
This study extends the application of consumers’ value dimensions by focusing not only on consumers’ hedonic and utilitarian values but also by incorporating the community context. It offers a multi-method qualitative market research approach for discovering insights that would not have emerged with just one method of data collection. This is also the first study to assess consumer responses before a store’s construction.
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Multiple-channel and cross-channel shopping behavior: Role of consumer shopping orientations
The results of this study suggest that high-thrift customers patronizing a cross-channel retailer are less likely to search for competitive offerings online or offline than customers patronizing a multiple channel retailer. Retailer satisfaction was found to be higher for cross-channel compared to multi- channel retailers irrespective of the transaction channel used by consumers.
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Young people’s use of online social networking sites – a uses and gratifications perspective
The online phenomenon of social networking sites (SNSs) has been consistently growing in popularity over the past five years. SNSs constitute a form of virtual community, with sites such as Bebo, Facebook and MySpace commanding a vast global following. A qualitative approach is employed in this paper with a view to exploring the uses and gratifications that girls aged 12-14 years, both seek and obtain from the Bebo SNS.
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Engaging young people online: Hype, empowerment and control
This paper presents the findings of an exhaustive academic study of online engagement by civic and political organizations in Europe. The findings are examined as a source of inspiration and reflection for brands and businesses that want to engage with young people, hear their opinions and concerns about products and services, and genuinely empower them by involving them in decision- making processes. Read Article >>

New media research: User generated social media
This paper explains how research was influential at each stage of a case study in how to engage with youth using social networking culture. It describe the principles of engagement uncovered by the work within the digital marketing arena, focusing on how to engage with consumers in a genuinely participative way, so that they control output and messaging.
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Leveraging social media for the benefit of your brand
This presentation advises companies on how to use social media to navigate corporate crises, the best conversational monitoring tools and monetization techniques. The message: social media is not going away and should therefore be incorporated in firms’ future strategies as a whole, rather than as a bolt-on extra.
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