Personalization of the Shopping Experience
M2 Written Assignment: Personalization of the Shopping Experience
Please read and use quotes from:
· The attached Module 2 (M2) reading notes;
· Shapiro, C., & Varian, H.R. (1999). Information Rules: A Strategic Guide to the Network Economy. Boston, MA: Harvard Business Press
Preface & Chapter 1: Pay particular attention to Content Guides on experience goods and the value of information to help you understand these concepts.
Chapters 2, 3, & 4
· The following sections of Wessels, W.J. (2017 Economics, 6th edition. Barron’s Business Review Series: The Theory of Demand (Chapter 18), and price discrimination ([pages 411-413 4th edition] [pp. 428-432 in 5th edition] [6th edition pp. 451-455]), in Chapter 22 (Monopolies)
Instructions
In this exercise, you’ll explore three websites, following links as they offer appropriate alternatives.
Please follow the directions in order.
You might want to print out this assignment!
The objective is to see whether, and if so, how, the website learns what you’re looking for and helps you find it.
The online vendors you will be exploring IN THIS ORDER are:
Powells
Barnes and Noble
Amazon
Step 1. Gather Information by exploring each site
Think about some INFORMATION you’d buy if you could find it in a book. You don’t know the title or author of a book — you just know that you’re curious about something and you want to find a book to help you learn more. OK? Now… let’s go exploring!
What does “exploring” mean? Exploring does NOT mean putting a term in the search engine and counting how many books come up! Instead, it means starting from your search term and working through each site using the hints the site gives you. Does it show you links? Where do they go? Remember – you’re looking for information.
·
Explore the resources the site has to offer on your topic.
Read through the listings of the books that you find, follow links, read reviews and other materials, and let each site help you find the information that you are looking for.
Students who have been successful with this assignment have devoted a minimum of 30 minutes per site.
Step 2. Report your findings
Describe what you found at each site: the books, the information about the books, the “related books,” the related “stuff,” the shopping experience — did the site help you find what you were looking for or was it passive?
Compare and contrast what you found at each of the three sites.
Does the difference in degree of personalization pay off for you as a shopper? Are you likely to find what you want?
Does it pay off for the vendor? Are you likely to spend money at this site? Why or why not?
Step 3. Analyze your findings
Interpret what you observed based on the economic concepts and ideas covered in this module.
Hint: This assignment is about personalization of the shopping experience. It is not about web design.
Explain how the economic concepts and ideas in the readings help you make sense of your findings.
Were you surprised by your results? Or, were your findings consistent with what you expected?
What are your conclusions regarding this exercise?
Notes about submissions:
Students frequently ask me how long this assignment should be—it depends on your writing style, but the range for most students will be three to five pages. What I’m looking for is an analysis in which you draw conclusions, based on your observations and supported by the economic readings for this module listed above and attached.
Be sure to cite your sources (including readings and the 3 online vendors) if you use any ideas from others (whether you’re directly quoting them or not).
Assignments should be single-spaced and left justified (both are the default settings).
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