1. 在数字平台上争夺注意力：新闻机构的案例

原标题：Competing for attention on digital platforms: The case of news outlets

期刊：Strategic Management Journal

作者：Meyer Tim; Kerkhof Anna; Cennamo Carmelo; Kretschmer Tobias

出版时间：2024-04-04

DOI：10.1002/smj.3600

摘要：平台通常被认为有利于企业，尤其是小型企业，因为它有助于企业接触更广泛的消费者群体并提高知名度。然而，这种逻辑依赖于平台将消费者偏好与互补品特征相匹配的能力。除了这种匹配机制外，我们还认为平台还能将消费者的注意力引导到互补品上，而互补品则会争夺消费者的注意力。我们认为，在无法事先观察到互补者特征的情况下，这种关注机制尤为突出，并认为与规模较小、范围较小的互补者相比，规模较大、范围较广的互补者更能抓住消费者的注意力。我们在新闻聚合器的背景下正式提出并检验了这一观点，强调了互补者吸引注意力的能力在评估企业从平台参与中获益的重要性。

Abstract: Platforms are often assumed to benefit firms, especially smaller ones, by facilitating access to a broader consumer base and increasing visibility. However, this logic relies on platforms” ability to match consumer preferences to complement characteristics. In addition to this matching mechanism, we posit that platforms also broker consumer attention towards complements, which then compete for this attention. We propose that this attention mechanism is particularly prominent in settings where complement characteristics cannot be observed ex-ante, and argue that complementors' with larger scale and broader scope are better positioned to capture attention than smaller and less broad ones. We formalize and test this intuition in the context of news aggregators, highlighting the significance of complementors' ability to draw attention in evaluating their benefits from platform participation.

2. 产品数字化与差异化战略变革： 来自图书出版业的证据

原标题：Product digitization and differentiation strategy change: Evidence from the book publishing industry

期刊：Strategic Management Journal

作者：Miller Cameron D.; Wang Richard D.

出版时间：2024-02-15

DOI：10.1002/smj.3586

摘要：我们研究了产品数字化对企业战略变革的推动作用。产品数字化会削弱企业通过物理产品属性实现差异化的能力，促使企业更加重视非物理产品属性，以保持竞争优势。我们预计，对于那些在数字化时代到来之前一直奉行物理差异化战略的企业来说，这种影响会更加明显。然而，我们认为存在抵消力量，即非物理差异化的内部供应成本和外部市场对其的需求能够减轻这种影响。来自亚马逊 Kindle电子书生态系统中的出版商的证据支持了我们的假设。本研究是不断发展的数字战略文献与经典竞争战略文献之间的桥梁。我们将讨论我们的发现如何与一系列行业相关。

Abstract: We study product digitization as an impetus for firm strategy change. Product digitization can erode a firm's ability to differentiate through physical product attributes and prompts them to increase emphasis on nonphysical product attributes to sustain their competitive advantage. We expect this effect is pronounced among firms that have pursued a physical differentiation strategy prior to the digital age. However, we expect that countervailing forces exist such that the internal supply cost of and the external market demand for the nonphysical differentiator mitigate this effect. Evidence from publishers in the Amazon Kindle e-book ecosystem supports our hypotheses. This study bridges the growing digital strategy literature and the classical competitive strategy literature. We discuss how our findings are relevant to a range of industries.

3. 数字平台中的监控和冷启动问题：来自在线劳动力市场的理论与证据

原标题：Monitoring and the Cold Start Problem in Digital Platforms: Theory and Evidence from Online Labor Markets

期刊：Information Systems Research

作者：Liang Chen; Hong Yili; Gu Bin

出版时间：2024-03-06

DOI：10.1287/isre.2021.0146

摘要：在线劳动平台通常采用声誉系统和监控系统来缓解道德风险。尽管声誉系统有减少道德风险的潜力，但它们存在着“冷启动问题”，即没有建立声誉的新参与者面临较高的进入障碍，因为雇主主要根据他们现有的声誉选择工人。监控系统提供雇主对工人行为的直接监督，提供了一种不同的方法。通过跟踪和报告工人的努力水平，监控系统减少了事后信息不对称，从而降低了雇主对工人的道德风险。然而，与声誉系统不同，监控系统并不直接解决事前信息不对称，无法帮助雇主识别合适的工人。这种固有的局限性引发了人们对其解决冷启动问题有效性的质疑。在本文中，我们首先提出了一个简化的理论模型，描述了在声誉和监控系统存在的情况下工人的进入过程。然后，基于一份来自领先的在线劳动平台的独特数据集，我们通过检查监控系统引入后工人的进入行为的变化以及相关项目结果来实证调查监控系统对进入障碍的影响，这些结果包括雇主的招聘偏好、招聘价格和项目绩效。我们利用了监控系统在两种项目类型（基于时间的项目和固定价格项目）中的不同可用性。采用了包括9344个固定价格项目和3118个基于时间的项目为样本进行差异法估计，我们报告称，监控系统的引入使时基项目的投标数量增加了27.8%，而增加的投标主要来自缺乏平台声誉的经验不足的工人。我们进一步发现，在引入监控系统后，雇主对经验丰富的工人的偏好减少，伴随着劳动成本平均降低19.5%，而我们观察到项目完成和评级没有显著减少。我们的结果共同表明，监控系统缓解了在线平台的冷启动问题。

Abstract: Many online labor platforms employ reputation systems and monitoring systems to mitigate moral hazard. Whereas reputation systems have the potential to reduce moral hazard, they suffer from the cold-start problem, in which new entrants without an established reputation face a high entry barrier as employers predominantly select workers based on their existing reputation. Monitoring systems, providing employers with direct oversight of workers’ actions, offer a different approach. By tracking and reporting workers’ effort levels, monitoring systems reduce ex post information asymmetry and, thus, lower employers’ expected moral hazard risk from workers. However, unlike reputation systems, monitoring systems do not directly address ex ante information asymmetry, failing to assist employers in identifying the right workers. This inherent limitation raises questions about their effectiveness in resolving the cold-start problem. In this paper, we first propose a stylized theoretical model that characterizes worker entry in the presence of reputation and monitoring systems. Based on a unique data set from a leading online labor platform, we then empirically investigate the effect of monitoring systems on the entry barriers by examining the change in workers’ entry behaviors after the introduction of the monitoring system along with associated project outcomes, which include employers’ hiring preferences, hiring prices, and project performance. We exploit the differential availability of the monitoring system across two project types: time-based projects, for which the monitoring system is accessible, and fixed-price projects, for which it is not. Employing a difference-in-differences estimation with a sample including 9,344 fixed-price projects and 3,118 time-based projects, we report that the introduction of the monitoring system increases the number of bids on time-based projects by 27.8%, and the incremental bids predominantly originate from inexperienced workers who lack platform reputation. We further find that, following the introduction of the monitoring system, employers’ preference for experienced workers diminishes, accompanied by an average reduction of 19.5% in labor costs, whereas we observe no significant decrease in project completion and review rating. Our results collectively suggest that monitoring systems alleviate the cold-start problem in online platforms.

4. 曲线数字营销设计：圆形虚拟元素提升在线点击率

原标题：Curvy Digital Marketing Designs: Virtual Elements with Rounded Shapes Enhance Online Click-Through Rates

期刊：Journal of Consumer Research

作者：Biswas Dipayan; Abell Annika; Chacko Roger

出版时间：2023-12-12

DOI：10.1093/jcr/ucad078

摘要：随着数字平台在网上购物、广告和营销活动中的日益普及，更加重要的是更好地理解数字界面上虚拟元素的设计如何影响点击行为。网站和在线广告包含虚拟元素，如行动呼应按钮、图像和标志。这项研究探讨了在线广告和网站上虚拟元素的曲线形状与锐角形状对点击率（CTR）的影响。一系列研究的发现，包括三项实地实验和一项眼动追踪研究，表明网站和在线广告中采用曲线（而不是锐角）形状的元素能够产生更高的CTR。过程证据表明，曲线（而不是锐角）的数字元素增强了视觉吸引力，导致了接近动机和更高的CTR。在实际应用方面，这项研究的发现对于设计在线广告和网站界面以及数字营销策略具有重要意义。具体而言，渴望获得更高点击率的数字营销人员将受益于在网站和在线广告中采用更多曲线（而不是锐角）的虚拟元素。

Abstract: With the growing prevalence of digital platforms for online shopping, advertising, and marketing activities in general, it is imperative to better understand how designs of virtual elements on digital interfaces influence click behavior. Websites and online advertisements contain virtual elements such as call-to-action buttons, images, and logos. This research examines how curved versus sharp angled shapes of virtual elements in online ads and on websites influence click-through rates (CTRs). The findings of a series of studies, including three field experiments and an eye tracking study, show that website and online ad elements in curved (vs. sharp angled) shapes generate higher CTRs. Process evidence suggests that curved (vs. sharp angled) digital elements enhance visual appeal, leading to approach motivation and greater CTR. In terms of practical implications, the findings of this research have strong relevance for designing online ads and website interfaces and for digital marketing strategies. Specifically, digital marketers desiring higher click rates would benefit from having more curved (than sharp angled) virtual elements on websites and in online ads.

5. 卖家是否从赞助产品列表中获益？来自在线市场的证据

原标题：Do Sellers Benefit from Sponsored Product Listings? Evidence from an Online Marketplace

期刊：Marketing Science

作者：Mingyu Joo, Jiaqi Shi, Vibhanshu Abhishek

出版时间：2024-03-19

DOI：10.1287/mksc.2021.0293

摘要：在线市场上的赞助商产品列表是第三方卖家在有机产品列表中添加的广告。本文研究了卖家的管理问题：赞助列表是否优于有机列表，以及不同位置的表现有何不同。我们对一个移动应用程序进行了大规模的实地研究，通过实验和自然变化发现，消费者更喜欢排名靠前的有机列表，而不是相同产品/位置的赞助列表。在排名靠后的位置，消费者对赞助商和有机列表漠不关心。一项机制检验表明，排名靠前的有机列表比卖方补贴的赞助列表更可信。尽管消费者偏好有机列表，但模拟分析表明，如果可以用排名靠前的赞助列表取代排名靠后的有机列表，广告卖家可能会从中获益。

Abstract: Sponsored product listings on online marketplaces are third-party sellers’ ads blended in organic product listings. This paper investigates a seller’s managerial questions: whether a sponsored listing outperforms an organic listing and how the performance varies by positions. Our large-scale field study on a mobile app with experimental and natural variation finds that consumers prefer organic listings in the top-ranked positions to sponsored listings of the same product/position. Consumers become indifferent between sponsored and organic listings in the lower-ranked positions. A mechanism check suggests that top-ranked organic listings are perceived as more credible than seller-subsidized sponsored listings. Despite consumers’ preference for organic listings, a simulation analysis shows that an advertising seller may benefit financially if a lower-ranked organic listing can be replaced with a top-ranked sponsored listing.

6. 推动全球电子商务的网站本地化策略：个人主义和集体主义的调节作用

原标题：Website Localization Strategies to Promote Global E-Commerce: The Moderating Role of Individualism and Collectivism

期刊：MIS Quarterly

作者：Tailai Wu; Chih-Hung Peng; Choon Ling Sia; Yaobin Lu

出版时间：2024-03-01

DOI：10.25300/MISQ/2022/15542

摘要：网站本地化在指导企业如何在有本地业务的国家定制网站方面发挥着重要作用。然而，很少有关于网站本地化的研究从理论基础的角度对这一主题进行系统研究。借鉴理论驱动的消费者-公司认同视角，我们提出三种网站本地化策略（网站相似性策略、网站独特性策略和网站声望策略）对本地用户感知到的网站本地化有积极影响，而本地用户感知到的网站本地化又与本地用户的网站忠诚度有关。我们进一步研究了这些网站本地化策略在跨文化环境中的影响，重点是文化的个人主义-集体主义维度。基于我们在美国和中国的在线实验，我们发现这些网站本地化策略对消费者感知到的网站本地化有显著影响，而感知到的网站本地化与消费者的网站忠诚度有关。我们还发现，网站独特性和网站声望策略对来自集体主义社会的人比对来自个人主义社会的人更有效，而网站相似性策略在不同社会类型中并无差异。这些发现凸显了网站本地化策略对于全球电子商务网站定制的重要性。

Abstract: Website localization plays an important role in guiding firms on how to customize websites across countries in which they have a local presence. However, few studies on website localization have systematically examined this topic from a theoretically grounded perspective. Drawing upon the theoretically driven consumer-company identification perspective, we propose that three website localization strategies (web similarity strategy, web distinctiveness strategy, and web prestige strategy) have positive effects on local users' perceived website localization, which, in turn, is related to local users' website loyalty. We further investigate the effects of these website localization strategies in a cross- cultural setting, focusing on the individualism-collectivism dimension of culture. Based on our online experiments in both the United States and China, we find that these website localization strategies have significant impacts on consumers' perceived website localization, which is related to consumers' website loyalty. We also find that web distinctiveness and web prestige strategies are more effective for people from collectivistic societies than for those from individualistic societies, whereas web similarity strategies do not differ across societal types. These findings highlight the importance of website localization strategies for customizing websites for global e-commerce.

7. 电子商务市场中的自我偏爱：赞助广告和自有品牌的作用

原标题：Self-Preferencing in E-Commerce Marketplaces: The Role of Sponsored Advertising and Private Labels

期刊：Marketing Science

作者：Long Fei; Amaldoss Wilfred

出版时间：2024-03-29

DOI：10.1287/mksc.2022.0262

摘要：传统上，电子商务市场使第三方卖家能够向潜在消费者销售商品，并从销售中获得佣金。近年来，电子商务平台开始利用自有品牌和赞助广告来产生额外收入。使用博弈论模型，我们研究了平台何时以及为什么可能会倾向于在赞助广告中偏爱自有品牌，以及这对消费者和第三方卖家的影响。我们的分析表明，即使在均衡状态下平台以比第三方卖家更低的价格提供自有品牌，但自我偏爱会损害消费者利益。此外，平台的这种自我偏爱可以提高一些第三方卖家的利润。我们还发现，对于平台来说，在赞助广告显著增加需求时，自我偏爱其自有品牌并不总是最优的选择。此外，自有品牌和赞助广告作为互补品可以提高平台的利润。

Abstract: Traditionally, e-commerce marketplaces have enabled third-party sellers to sell to potential consumers and have earned commission from the sales. In recent years, e-commerce platforms have begun to leverage private label and sponsored advertising to generate additional revenue. Using a game-theoretic model, we examine when and why a platform may seek to give preference to its private label in sponsored advertising, and its impact on consumers and third-party sellers. Our analysis shows that self-preferencing hurts consumers even though in equilibrium the platform offers the private label at a price lower than the price of third-party sellers. Furthermore, such self-preferencing by the platform can improve the profits of some third-party sellers. We also find that it is not always optimal for the platform to self-preference its private label in sponsored advertising, particularly when advertising significantly increases demand. Moreover, the private label and sponsored advertising function as complements improving the platform’s profits.