Discovering Perceived Value of Mobile Services

TLDR: In this paper, the Critical Incident Technique (CIT) was employed to discover customers' value perceptions of different mobile services in everyday life situations, and the findings reveal multiple value perception of mobile services, some of which have not been reported earlier in e-service contexts (e.g. self-respect, time to pay, anonymity).

Abstract: Customer perceived value has been recognized as one of the driving factors behind a company’s success, since it increases customers’ willingness to buy and decreases their search intentions for alternative offerings. In order to discover customers’ value perceptions of different mobile services in everyday life situations, we employ the Critical Incident Technique (CIT). The findings reveal multiple value perceptions of mobile services, some of which have not been reported earlier in e-service contexts (e.g. self-respect, time to pay, anonymity). The identified value perceptions are grouped into context-related and content-related value perceptions. Furthermore, we propose that the context-related value perceptions (conditional and epistemic value) trigger mobile service use and enhance the experienced content-related value (emotional, social, monetary and convenience value). Based on the findings, we create a mobile perceived value (MPVal) framework that is applicable in the mobile service use context and recognizes situational value-enhancing elements. The results of the study provide insights for further research and theory development in the mobile field. The findings may help companies to understand better how mobile services create value for customers in different situations, to position their services relative to competitors’ services, and to communicate the appropriate value propositions to potential customers.