2021-03-18

Assistant Professor Jeeyeon Kim of the College of Management, National Sun Yat-sen University, has recently been awarded The Sangjeon Prize of Academic Excellence in Channel and Retailing Study: New Academic Research Award by The Korea Distribution Association for her overall research work in retailing industry and marketing. Professor Kim has also recently published her research findings on the influence of product launch in large third-party offline channels on digital sales of online retailers in the Journal of Business Research, an authoritative international journal in the field of marketing, proving that product launch in offline channels can increase retailers’ mobile sales.


Professor Kim, who comes from South Korea, was awarded The Sangjeon Prize of Academic Excellence in Channel and Retailing Study: New Academic Research Award in December last year for her excellent research work in digital marketing and multi-channel retailing: the relations between offline, online and mobile channels and consumer behavior across channels. The Prize is conferred to Korean researchers for achievements in retailing industry and distribution studies and is sponsored by South Korean conglomerate Lotte Corporation in honor of late Chairman Shin Kyuk-ho's business philosophy and achievements in the distribution industry. Professor Kim’s research achievements have also won her this year’s NSYSU Yat-Sen Management Research Excellence Award for the third time in a row.


The recent publication of From clicks to bricks: The impact of product launches in offline stores for digital retailers in the Journal of Business Research is a continuation of Professor Kim’s dissertation on multi-channel retailing and the influence of offline store presence on digital sales. Many small and medium “digital-first” retailers opt for distributing their products through large third-party offline channels to avoid the high costs of maintaining a physical store. Taking the context of beauty products as an example, Professor Kim found out that at first, following a product launch in third parties’ offline stores, purchases for the product in digital channels – desktop and mobile, increase across regions, with an upward trend more prominent in the mobile channel. As the number of offline stores increases, the positive effect of the offline product launch on desktop purchases weakens but remains consistent for mobile purchases. According to her analysis, launching products in a small number of offline partner stores in the region is an efficient strategy to boost digital sales by even 135%.


Previously, following her research interests, Professor Kim also analyzed another important, though less studied factor influencing consumers’ online shopping behavior – offline social interactions. She found out that although overall offline social interactions intensify digital shopping, passive offline social interactions – with close friends and neighbors have a normative influence on us, making us less likely to shop online, since online shopping lacks the “local aspect”, while active social interactions – with people over a local tie can increase online shopping demand, thanks to the informational influence. Professor Kim further demonstrated that consumers’ preferences for online shopping help Internet retailers further improve online sales performance, suggesting businesses target regions where active offline social interactions are dominant and online shopping preferences are under-developed.


Professor Kim is currently researching digital consumers’ well-being in South Korea – the daily usage and shopping behavior in digital channels (desktop and mobile) brings to consumers’ well-being. “I hope that through my research, I can give some insights to companies that want to expand their channels, work digital, or have an interest in digital transformation.”, she said.


As a marketing specialist, Kim loves digital media, technology media-aided marketing, and new technologies. She strongly encourages her students to follow new trends and learn about new technologies. “New technologies are now necessary for survival, as it’s difficult for the companies to meet customers in person because of the pandemic.” Professor Kim also emphasized the importance of following one’s true interests. “Our life will be enriched and we will be happier doing what we really like. Also, studying what you have an interest in can make writing papers less painful!”

 

From clicks to bricks: The impact of product launches in offline stores for digital retailers, Journal of Business Research

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2019.08.025


Offline social interactions and online shopping demand: Does the degree of social interactions matter?, Journal of Business Research

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2017.09.022