Do consumers' choices change based on when their purchases will be delivered? According to Wharton professor Katherine Milkman, the more immediate the gratification, the more freely customers tend to spend. In the latest in a series of research papers on customer choice, Milkman found that shoppers on an online grocery site were more likely to order junk food or other "want" items when those products would be delivered at an earlier date. The later the delivery date, the more likely the customers were to order "should" items such as fresh produce. Milkman says the findings could have implications for the structure and marketing methods of online retail sites.
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