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The purpose of this paper is to understand how free gifts with purchase influence the purchase satisfaction of online consumers, and compares the difference between the contexts, which the consumers are certain and uncertain with the free gifts before purchase.

This study developed a theoretical model to examine how free gifts with purchase influence the purchase satisfaction of online consumers. The moderating effect of uncertainty was also examined. Using a survey questionnaire, empirical data were collected from 288 Taobao users. The partial least squares technique was used to test the proposed research model.

Perceived usefulness, perceived quality, perceived cost, and perceived ingenuity are antecedents of happiness toward a free gift with purchase. Happiness has a positive effect on the purchase satisfaction of online consumers. Uncertainty is an important moderator.

The findings extend the current state of knowledge about the relationship between online purchase with free gifts and purchase satisfaction, as well as reveal the psychological mechanism of the effects of online purchase with free gifts on purchase satisfaction.

The findings of this study provide e-retailers with a deep understanding of how free gifts with purchase affect the purchase satisfaction of online consumers in different presentation approaches of the gifts.

Knowledge about the role of free gifts with purchase on the purchase satisfaction of online consumers is scarce. This study provides empirical evidence about the effect of free gifts with purchase on the purchase satisfaction of online consumer in different presentation approaches of the gifts.

The underlying thesis of this paper is that consumers will infer that the costs of production of a product that is offered free are low, and this will reduce the price they are willing to pay for the product when it is a stand‐alone offering.

Two laboratory experiments examine how consumers respond to products that have been offered as “free gifts with purchase” of another product.

Study 1 shows, that when an economically identical offer is framed as a joint bundle (Buy X and Y for $), compared with when it is framed as a “Buy one, get one free” offer, consumers are willing to pay less for the product offered “free.” Study 2 shows that, when a product is given away “free,” then consumers are willing to pay less for it as a stand‐alone product, especially when the original promotional offer does not include the price of the free gift.

Results imply that the design and communication of consumer promotions affect the price consumers are willing to pay for a product.

Managerial implications for the design and communication of consumer promotions are discussed.

The paper adds to the growing body of research that shows that a price promotion has more than just an economic effect; it also has an informational effect through which it affects consumer responses.

The boom in live streaming has intensified competition among streamers for viewers' gifts, which makes it meaningful to study the factors that affect the viewers’ gifting behavior. Given the emotional attachment between streamers and viewers, the authors set out to elucidate a new driver on viewer gifting: expressions of the streamer. This research aims to explore the impact of streamer emotions on the viewer gifting behaviors, including free and paid gifting. The loyalty level of the viewers is also introduced as a moderating factor to investigate the heterogeneous effect of streamer emotions on gifting behavior.

The dataset the authors collected consists of two parts, including 1809.69 h of live streaming videos and 358,002 gift giving records. Combined with deep learning methods and regression analysis, the authors performed empirical tests on the 81,110 valid samples. Several robustness checks were also conducted to ensure the reliability of main results.

The empirical results show that streamer emotions do have effects on viewers' free and paid gifting behavior. The authors’ findings show that positive streamer expressions, such as happiness and surprise, have a positive influence on viewer gifting behavior. However, some negative expressions, like sadness, can also have a positive impact. Moreover, the authors discovered that higher viewer loyalty amplifies the positive effect of streamer emotions and reduces the negative effect.

This research contributes to the study about streamer emotions and viewers' consumption behavior, which extends the application of emotion as social information model (EASI model) in the live streaming setting. The authors carefully divide the gifting behavior into two types: free and paid, and study how these two types are affected by streamer emotions. Besides, these effects are analyzed within viewers of different loyalty levels. This study offers practical emotion management strategies for streamers and live streaming platforms to gain more economic profits.

The present study aims to demonstrate that providing a free gift upon purchase may induce consumers to devaluate the main product promoted with the offer. The mediating role of persuasion knowledge and the moderating role of consumer shopping orientation are also examined.

Three studies with between-subject designs are conducted to test the influence of product–gift fit on evaluations of the promoted product.

When a low-fit gift (vs a high-fit gift) is provided as a promotional offer, consumers’ evaluations of the promoted product are undermined. These negative effects are driven by consumers’ activation of persuasion knowledge on the company’s ulterior motive to entice consumers to make a purchase. Such devaluation effects occur especially for consumers with a task-focused shopping orientation, whereas they are mitigated for consumers with an experiential shopping orientation.

This research extends the conceptualization of product–gift fit and challenges the common claim that free gift promotions maintain the value of the promoted product. By instigating a mechanism underlying consumers’ objections toward low-fit gifts, this research implies that consumers may think of an implicit cost to a free offer based on their knowledge of companies’ tactics.

Marketers should be aware of the fact that a certain gift may come at a cost for companies and bring about negative inferences regarding the main product. They need not only to select a gift that drives sales but also to be cautious about the gift’s influence on perceptions of the main product. Marketers should ensure that the gift has a good fit with the product while trying to discover a unique gift for consumers. Marketers should also provide an offer that matches shopping orientation of the target consumers.

This research reveals counterevidence to prior research claiming that free gift promotion does not hurt the perceived value of the promoted product. It enhances a theoretical understanding of devaluation effects and provides useful implications for designing and targeting free gift promotion.

From a relational perspective, this research aims to answer the following question: How can human resource management (HRM) and innovation in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) be articulated at different levels through gift/counter–gift relationships?

The authors' longitudinal and exploratory study was conducted in an innovative SME that constitutes an “emblematic” case. The data were gathered from diverse sources: 2 life stories, 21 semi-structured interviews, observations and documentary analyses.

The results provide a dynamic view of the relationship between HRM and innovation through multi-level analysis. The authors consequently propose a three-step process: freeing up, mobilizing and rethinking gifts.

This article examines how to articulate HRM and innovation in SMEs through gift/counter-gift theory. This relationship is analyzed from a relational and multi-level perspective.

The purpose of this paper is to compare the impact of different multi-unit promotions (MUPs) and a single-unit promotion (SUP) on store-level sales and consumer-level purchase probability and quantity decision.

The paper combines two empirical studies. Study 1 applies a hierarchical multiplicative model to store-level sales data for four product categories provided by a large Dutch retail chain. Study 2 presents a laboratory experiment in which the quantity requirements of the two focal MUP frames are manipulated to assess their impact on consumer purchase decisions.

The paper provides empirical evidence for the superiority of the “X for $Y” above “X + N free”, which confirms the hypotheses based on prospect theory, mental accounting and theory about gift-giving. Quantity requirements of four to five units show the largest effects. In addition, the superiority of the “X for $Y” frame holds for functional product categories, but not for the hedonic categories.

The paper provides managerial insights into the relative effectiveness of alternative MUPs and an SUP and how this promotional effectiveness depends on the type of product category and quantity requirements.

This paper combines actual sales data and experimental data. This “mixed approach” extends existing knowledge by comprehensively evaluating two MUP frames, namely, “X + N free” and “X for $Y” promotions, and an SUP.

The aim of this paper is to shed light on the determinants of consumers' evaluations and purchase intentions of gift promotions. Factors analysed relate to the promoted product, the gift, the relationship between the product and the gift, and consumer traits and perceptions.

A 2 (product type: utilitarian vs hedonic) × 2 (gift type: utilitarian vs hedonic) × 2 (brand type: high equity vs medium equity) between‐subjects factorial design was undertaken. Structural equation modelling was used to test the hypotheses on a sample of 247 respondents in the UK.

Gift attractiveness is the most important driver of consumers' overall evaluation of gift promotions, followed by the attitude toward the promoted brand, the perceived fit between the promoted product and the gift, the hedonic nature of the gift, plus value expression and entertainment benefits perceived by consumers. Results also reveal that deal proneness is positively associated with the hedonic benefits of value expression benefit and entertainment benefit. Finally, the overall evaluation of gift promotions with both brand attitudes and deal proneness positively influences consumers' purchase intentions.

To generalise these findings, future research should use a wider sample.

The findings of this study provide guidelines for marketers designing their gift promotional strategies.

The increased popularity of gift promotions necessitates a better understanding of the factors influencing consumers' evaluations. This study addresses the lack of research in this area by simultaneously investigating the effect of different key factors.

Findings are presented from an empirical investigation among the youth market for financial services. Attention is focused on account ownership and use of services, together with attitudinal data pertaining to banks and building societies and the services they provide; of particular interest is evidence of split banking and bank switching. Overall, the heterogeneity of the youth market with respect to needs, attitudes and behaviour is highlighted, and a number of implications for the marketing strategies of banks and building societies are suggested.