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The purpose of the research was to investigate the attitudes and perceptions of e‐markets as members of their value chain.

A questionnaire was developed and sent electronically to members of a textile industry e‐market.

The research showed that most of the companies participated in more than one e‐market. As indicated by the research, only 52 percent of respondents indicated that they had a positive experience with e‐markets, suggesting that there was room for improvement. However, 72 percent of respondents agreed that e‐markets increased business opportunities, 52 percent said it increased distribution channels, 60 percent noted it increased exposure of their company and 64 percent of members noted that they provided more transparent competition.

The research was limited to a small sample of textile e‐markets which may limit the generalizability of the results. Like all e‐commerce, e‐markets need to generate enough traffic so they can generate profit through revenue streams such as advertisement, memberships, transactions, and specific services.

To have an effective e‐market site managers and marketers need to provide a critical mass of accurate up‐to‐date knowledgeable information. Moreover, e‐markets need to establish trust with prospective buyers and sellers. “Community message boards” are important because they provide members opportunities to exchange all kinds of information on the e‐market, thus building trust among each other.

Electronic commerce has revolutionized the process of creating and distributing products and services. It is now asserted that electronic transactions can take place wherever there is access to the internet, a development that technically erases the geographic borders of traditional markets.

The purpose of this article is to compare the consumer decision‐making behavior between married and cohabiting couples.

Data were collected from 40 cohabiting couples and 53 married couples in a western state via a self‐administered questionnaire. The structure and the instrument used replicated the Gadis et al. study in exploring consumer decision‐making processes of married couples.

Married couples tended to be more syncratic than cohabiting couples in their decision to purchase forms of savings in this phase, but more autonomic when purchasing alcoholic beverages. Cohabiting couples were found to be more syncratic in their decision making for these products at this phase than married couples. The results, when compared to those of 18 years ago found that men and women of married couples make purchasing decisions separately, while men and women of cohabiting couples made most of theirs together. Implications of the findings were then discussed.

Marketers, when attempting to reach married couples today, should focus media and advertising communication efforts on two audiences rather than one since either the husband or wife may be making the decision. The communication strategy used should focus on the joint nature of both processes since cohabiters showed a propensity toward syncratic strategies in all three phases. Advertising and message strategies should focus on how single people of the opposite sex decide on product purchases together since cohabiters are more like single people in their decision‐making behavior.

This study compares consumer decision making among married and cohabiting couples.

The purpose of this study is to show manufacturers and dealers of residential air‐conditioning systems how to raise the equity of their brands, enabling them to sell more premium systems and increase their revenues and profit margins.

For such products the consumer decision‐making process is complex and high involvement, and most purchasers are unacquainted with brands. A self‐administered survey was developed to assess which attributes were most important to consumers, to what degree brand influenced the price they would pay, and where they searched for product information, as well as demographic characteristics.

In total, 140 homeowners showed that reliability, serviceability and energy‐saving features were the attributes consumers desired most. Brand name communicated quality to them, but was not an important choice criterion. However, consumers were willing to pay more for an air‐conditioner with a reputation for quality. Results also indicated that consumers searched for product information from friends and family, manufacturers' websites and brochures, but not from the Yellow Pages or through salespeople. However, dealers were highly influential during the decision‐making process by helping consumers to refine their choice criteria and choose systems that satisfied their end goals.

If consumers were better informed about the important attributes of a particular brand (reliability, serviceability and energy efficiency), they would be willing to pay more for it. To raise brand awareness, HVAC manufacturers should use broadcast media that include television and radio frequently and seasonally, and supplement them with outdoor or print to gain brand awareness and knowledge, thus increasing the likelihood that brand becomes a criterion in the decision‐making process. All advertising and promotion should steer consumers to the manufacturers' website, which should be filled with home‐owner‐oriented information about the features and, most importantly, the benefits of the brand. Manufacturers can raise brand equity among consumers through comparative executions that spell out the positive attributes of their system versus other brands. This will differentiate their brand(s) from competitors, and position themselves differently in the minds of consumers.

The study showed that brand name was not an important criterion in the consumer decision‐making process for purchasing replacement residential air‐conditioning (HVAC) systems. Since consumers are not knowledgeable about air‐conditioning brands, they assume homogeneity and shop for price.