IRS 2020 KOKOROK

The KOKOROK IRS aims tostudy the role of social factors on collaborative consumption platforms in relation to the intention to purchase or use a service, as well as perceptions of contamination. Here are some key points to help you understand.

Shared Consumption

Sharing economy brings together two consumers who exchange a good or service. The rise of digital platforms has contributed to the growth of this type of consumption and is profoundly changing the economic models and the terms of peer-to-peer exchanges. The sharing economy has two distinctive features compared to traditional consumption: the phenomenon of “contagion” and the presence of characteristic social elements.

Contamination Phenomenon

Buying a used item on LebonCoin, renting an apartment on Airbnb, or purchasing pre-owned clothing on Vinted are all situations that can raise concerns about hygiene and cleanliness, given that the items in question are used or shared. The literature refers to this phenomenon as contamination.

Social Factors

The characteristic social elements, for their part, encompass the various forms of advertising: from the most concise and formal ad to one that employs full-fledged storytelling.
 
This project brings together a team of four CERAG members with different scientific approaches within the field of marketing: Soffien Bataoui (project leader, digital marketing; his dissertation focused on social elements on websites and their influence on internet users’ behavior), Emmanuelle Boch (qualitative approach; has worked on charitable giving), Marie-Laure Gavard-Perret (generalist approach and scientific expertise for the project), and Jessica Gérard (quantitative approach, who previously worked on social elements in online HR recruitment during a prior IRS project). In addition, there was an intern, Mélanie Arnaud, who was trained in qualitative interview methods during the project. This project received a budget of 24 K€, which was used to compensate respondents, hire an intern, and pay a panelist; the remaining budget will be invested in future publications.
 
The study unfolded in three stages: 1) mass distribution of a simple questionnaire, 2) recruitment of approximately 100 respondents through the panelist, and 3) in-depth interviews conducted by Mélanie Arnaud with 30 individuals with diverse backgrounds. This part of the project was carried out during the COVID-19 pandemic, so the interviews had to be conducted via Zoom. This had a positive aspect—the interviews could be conducted throughout France—but also some negative aspects: it was difficult, if not impossible, to interpret the respondents’ body language or perceive their emotions, and technical glitches had to be taken into account.
 
The next phase of the study will employ a more quantitative methodology: Soffien Bataoui designed a fictional platform resembling BonCoin with several categories of products and services. The same ad was created in three versions with varying levels of social elements. Take, for example, an apartment rental ad. The first level provides very little information about the person posting the ad—we have their initials and a few basic details about the apartment. The second level includes the person’s first name, a photo, and a less impersonal text. The third level features a warm, conversational text punctuated with emojis and incorporating storytelling elements. All three listings must appear authentic; the comments below the listings are identical, so the goal is to focus on the listing itself. During this quantitative study, respondents will be randomly assigned to one of the three listing levels. The purpose of the research is to understand social interactions on the platform based on the amount of information provided. A sense of human warmth will influence the intention to rent the apartment.


Publications resulting from this project

• BOCH, E., GERARD, J., BATAOUI, S., and GAVARD-PERRET, M.L. (2021). “Forms of Social Interaction in Collaborative Consumption Practices: A Qualitative Study of Consumers and Buyers.” Roubaix, 24th: Etienne Thil Symposium.
• An article to be published soon in *Décisions Marketing* in late 2021 on the qualitative study
• A presentation at the International Marketing Trends Conference, to be held January 20–22, 2022, in Rome, on the quantitative study, with the goal of publishing this paper internationally