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Exploring drivers of customer engagement with voice interface in E-retail

Astha Sanjeev Gupta (Marketing Area, International Management Institute New Delhi, Delhi, India)
Jaydeep Mukherjee (Marketing Area, Management Development Institute, Gurgaon, India)

International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management

ISSN: 0959-0552

Article publication date: 9 January 2025

73

Abstract

Purpose

E-retailers face challenges in adding, engaging and retaining customers. Voice interface is a new and more inclusive modality that provides customers with a hands-free, convenient e-shopping option and is relevant for e-retailers. However, the voice interface is significantly different from the text interface that consumers are accustomed to. This study investigates customer experiences with voice interface for search and selection of products on e-commerce platforms and its subsequent impact on customer engagement and enhanced usage.

Design/methodology/approach

We conducted 34 in-depth interviews with executive management students. For analysis and findings, we used a grounded theory paradigm and thematic analysis.

Findings

Based on in-depth probing and analysis consumers' experiences with voice interfaces in e-commerce platforms, we identified two enablers: customer satisfaction and awe-experience that positively impacted and two inhibitors: risk perceptions and inertia that negatively impacted customer engagement and enhanced usage of voice interface.

Originality/value

Voice interface is transforming the customer journey in the online shopping domain. How customers experience voice interfaces when searching and selecting products on e-commerce platforms impacts their engagement with the platform and their intentions to use voice modality to interact with the e-retailer in the future. The findings substantiate tenets of dual-process theory and found that enabling and inhibiting factors are independent and can coexist. The study identifies the most salient factors that positively and negatively affect customer engagement and enhanced usage of voice interfaces.

Keywords

Citation

Gupta, A.S. and Mukherjee, J. (2025), "Exploring drivers of customer engagement with voice interface in E-retail", International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management, Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJRDM-08-2024-0390

Publisher

:

Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2024, Emerald Publishing Limited

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