Turley & Milliman (2000)

• Retail Store Architecture


  - Identified and reviewed 60 studies which all found a statistically significant relationship between some aspect of atmospherics and shopping behaviour

  - The article argues that it is possible to create atmospheres which influence consumers to spend money
• Retail Store Architecture cont.

  They grouped atmospheric variables into 5 categories

  - External variables: Signs, displays, size of buildings, style, location

  - General interior variables: Colour, schemes, flooring, lighting , music, scents, aisle width

  - Layout and design space: Allocation of space, placement of merchandise, placement of till, waiting space, changing rooms

  - Point-of-purchase and decoration variables: Wall decorations, certificates, point of purchase display

  - Human variables: Uniforms, employee characteristics, crowding, privacy, customer characteristics
• External Variables


  - Research into external variables shows the importance of store exterior and window displays

  
  

  - Turley and Milliman identified that more research needs to be done into these variables as it is the first thing consumers will see
• General Interior Variables


  - Far more research in general interior variables

  
  

  - General perceptions of the interior can affect approach/avoidance behaviour

  
  

  - Music is highly researched and shown to affect sales, arousal levels, perceptions of actual time spent in the environment and flow through the store

  
  

  - Music affects behaviour even when not conscious of the music itself

  
  

  - A more recent focus has been on odour or smell and colour, both have shown to influence purchases, time spent in the store and pleasant feelings and can be used to attract consumers to certain displays

  
  

  - Lighting also affects the store image
• Layout and design space variables

  - Layout and design variables are also being explored

  
  

  - Some research suggests that the layout can be used to influence purchases

  
  

  - Research also highlights the importance of the relationship between consumer knowledge of the store layout and unplanned purchasing

  
  

  - Unplanned purchases are higher when consumers are unfamiliar with the store layout which may explain why supermarkets change layout frequently
• Point of purchase and decoration variables

  - Studies into point of purchase and decoration variables show that

  
  

  - Product displays can manipulate sales as can in store signage like special offer information

  
  

  - However, results from research into use of shelf space in inconclusive and there are many other variables impacting on this relationship
• Human variables


  - Human variables is a new category

  
  

  - Turley and Milliman divided these into two: influence of other shoppers and the influence of retail staff on customer behaviour

  
  

  - One key area is crowding

  
  

  - Perceived crowding tends to have a negative influence on shopping satisfaction with customers doing less browsing and comparison shopping, fewer purchases, and lower ratings of enjoyment and excitement

  
  

  - Professionally dressed staff have a positive effect on satisfaction and the number of staff available in the store can have a positive effect on ratings of service quality
• Turley and Milliman


  - Turley and Milliman established that the retail environment can be shaped in many ways to elicit a variety of behaviours from shoppers

  
  

  - Purchasing behaviour is the most important dependent variable in most studies although time spent in the store and ratings of enjoyment are also common

  - They identified a need for development of theory in the area of consumer psychology

  - New research can contribute to theoretical explanation
• areas that would benefit from more research

  - Turley and Milliman identified some areas they thought would benefit from more research such as

  
  

  - Exterior building shape

  
  

  - Building style

  
  

  - Landscaping

  
  

  - Signage from the exterior

  
  

  - Different odours

  
  

  - Relationship between different groups of people and their response to different odours

  
  

  - Different floor coverings
• Example research: Layout and Design

  - How are customers asked to wait to be served?

  
  

  - Is there a long queue where customers are called to the next available checkout or multiple queues?

  
  

  - Do these impact on customers' perceptions of waiting time or on approach/avoidance behaviour?
• Example research: waiting room design and furnishings


  - How does this affect customer attitudes?

  
  

  - Within the area of point of purchase and decoration variables, how do artworks and certificates demonstrating staff qualifications and competencies and television sets for customers to watch whilst waiting to be served have an effect?
• Example research: employee uniforms

  - The impact of staff wearing uniforms is far more significant than has previously been recognised but more research is needed