A new study has revealed that by making their patrons feel at home in a commercial space, businesses are able to turn their own clients into salespeople.
The new study takes a closer look at this new trend in marketing and proves that a sense of homeyness results in a fierce loyalty in customers, who in turn demonstrate an enthusiasm and sense of commitment that goes beyond the norms.
These emotionally attached customers pay higher tips, volunteer to help the business and serve as ambassadors - convincing friends and family that a certain enterprise is particularly worthwhile.
Co-author Zeynep Arsel, an assistant professor in the Department of Marketing at Concordia's John Molson School of Business, said that people start to feel at home in a commercial place when they experience that place as familiar.
She said that but for that homeyness to work as a marketing tool, the sense of the familiar needs to be coupled with authentic decor, employees who are genuinely interested in what they do, high product quality and a feeling of security in the place.
The sense of domesticity in the commercial space leads customers to believe they are experiencing something different, something unique to that store, restaurant or given experience. Consumers in these spaces believe they are receiving a personal gift or individual attention from the proprietor, a feeling that allows them to become intimately acquainted with the place.
To conduct the research, Arsel and co-authors Alain Debenedetti of Universite Paris Est - IRG and Harmen Oppewal of Monash University interviewed people in France. Participants were asked to talk about their experiences with the commercial places they most cherish, such as cafes and restaurants, as well as department stores, concert halls and libraries.
The new study has been published in the Journal of Consumer Research.
