Virtual Experiential Marketing Practices: An Examination of the Moderating Effects

This research is to investigate the moderating effects of virtual experiential marketing elements on online consumers´ attitude and behaviors. In the study, the concept of experiential marketing is adopted for virtual environment practices. Characteristics of virtual experiential marketing are discussed and its elements are identified as sense, interaction, pleasure, flow, and community relationship. A primitive research framework is provided and it depicts the relationships among variables. It is proposed that shopping orientations, prior purchase, and information technology (IT) usage level have moderating effects on the impacts of virtual experiential marketing on online browse intention and on the impacts of virtual experiential marketing on online purchase intention. An empirical study was conducted through a questionnaire development composed of virtual experiential marketing elements and samples were collected from Taiwanese online games players. The managerial implications and directions for the further research are brought out at the end.