Store Atmospherics and Experiential Marketing: A Conceptual Framework and Research Propositions for An Extraordinary Customer Experience

TLDR

Store atmospherics, including sensory factors, are manipulated to shape consumer responses, and experiential marketing leverages these sensory elements to influence behavior, prompting retailers worldwide to adopt customer experience management as a core strategy. The paper aims to propose a conceptual framework for an extraordinary customer experience and to present research propositions that advance knowledge in this area. The authors employed desk research, reviewing store atmospherics and customer experience literature from the 1950s through 2011, to construct the theoretical framework. The study concludes that retailers must incorporate customers' holistic experience as a critical tool for managing operations amid global competition.

Abstract

The components of a store atmosphere that can be manipulated to generate answers on individuals are related tosensory factors. Experiential marketing that enhances the sensory aspects of consumption helps in understandingthe impact of retail environment on consumer behavior. Retailers around the world have embraced the concept ofcustomer experience management, with many incorporating the notion into their mission statements, searchingfor the creation of a distinctive customer experience for their customers (Verhoef et al., 2009). The mainobjective of this paper is to propose a conceptual framework for an extraordinary customer experience. Theconstruction of this theoretical paper was possible through the usage of desk research methodology. We reviewedthe theory on store atmospherics and customer experience, both related to the retail setting, beginning on the1950's and ending on 2011. We also provide some research propositions aiming to develop the knowledge in thisfield. It is concluded that it is imperative for retailers today to take in account customers' holistic experience as arelevant tool to manage the retail operation in a scenario of global competition.