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Introduction
Multichannel service is a technology-driven service solution that allows service providers to interact with customers through websites, physical stores, kiosks, social media, mobile devices, networked appliances and more (Rigby, 2011; Harris et al., 2018). It is the set of activities involved in selling merchandise or services through more than one channel or all widespread channels (Beck and Rygl, 2015). For example, Macy’s department store has used a multichannel strategy that allows customers to browse clothes on their online channel; then, when they walk into a physical store, their mobile application for Macy’s notifies them of the specific location where the clothes are displayed. However, various channels are usually designed and managed independently, which is very likely to result in data mismatch and information inconsistency for transition between the different channels (Saghiri et al., 2017). As a result, achieving the integration of information and services from multiple channels is becoming a high priority for retailers.
Furthermore, the emergence of technology and advancements in digitalization has greatly changed the retail landscape into a seamless multichannel service experience. In this manner, a customer’s multichannel service delivery experience can be optimised when the seamless synergetic collaboration and management of the numerous available service entities converge with the customer (Verhoef et al., 2015; Pantano and Viassone, 2015; Li et al., 2018). In turn, this situation promises service excellence for the customer (Payne and Frow, 2005; Lemon and Verhoef, 2016). Because customers experience the service directly from the point of origin or the factory, the customer experience is critical to the success of the service (Berry et al., 2006; Bitner et al., 2008; Melis et al., 2015). An optimised customer experience is theorized as the potential for the involved service entities’ sustainability in the competitive market (e.g. Falk et al., 2007; Patrício et al., 2008; Cao and Li, 2015, 2018; Tivasuradej and Pham, 2019). Using the retail market in Taiwan as an example, multichannel shopping has become the norm for consumers. Consumers can purchase products from a physical store in Taiwan, such as one of Far Eastern Sogo’s eight branches or one of Costco’s 14 branches in Taiwan, or from their online store (https://istore.sogo.com.tw/, 2018 revenue of approximately $NTD 46bn, or...