The Web offers opportunity for competition on the “specialty” axis instead of the price axis. From a marketing perspective, it is rarely desirable to compete solely on the basis of price. Instead, marketers attempt to satisfy needs on the basis of benefits sought … The ability to compete on dimensions other than price will become especially critical in categories where brands are perceived as substitutes, since it allows for more opportunities to differentiate along other dimensions.
Predictor: Hoffman, Donna L.
Prediction, in context:In the December 1995 issue of the Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, Special Issue on Electronic Commerce, Donna L. Hoffman, Thomas P. Novak, and Patrali Chatterjee propose a structural framework for examining the explosion in commercial activity on the Web. They are with Project 2000: Research Program on Marketing in Computer-Mediated Environments, Owen Graduate School of Management at Vanderbilt University. They write:ÒThe Web offers opportunity for competition on the ÔspecialtyÕ axis instead of the price axis. From a marketing perspective, it is rarely desirable to compete solely on the basis of price. Instead, marketers attempt to satisfy needs on the basis of benefits sought (TK), which means pricing is dependent upon value to the consumer, not costs. Such opportunity arises when the offering is differentiated by elements of the marketing mix other than price … As evidence that this is occurring, consumers indicated that price was the least important product attribute considered when making online purchases (Gupta, 1995 ). The ability to compete on dimensions other than price will become especially critical in categories where brands are perceived as substitutes, since it allows for more opportunities to differentiate along other dimensions.Ó
Date of prediction: January 1, 1995
Topic of prediction: Getting, Sharing Information
Subtopic: Medical/Professional
Name of publication: Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication
Title, headline, chapter name: Commercial Scenarios for the Web: Opportunities and Challenges
Quote Type: Direct quote
Page number or URL of document at time of study:
www.ascusc.org/jcmc/vol1/issue3/hoffman.doc
This data was logged into the Elon/Pew Predictions Database by: Guarino, Jennifer Anne