EN
Research Problem – The car industry is undergoing significant shifts, as the market will
experience more change within the next ten years than in the 50 years before. To approach
customers with innovative concepts will become the omnipotent challenge for the
manufacturers, while a brands’ success is closely connected to its point of sale presentation
and communication. In fact, traditional marketing concepts turned into futile concepts,
likewise customers seek for true experiences at all touch points and applications like
multisensory-marketing have become the focal factor of success.
Purpose of the Study – Despite the significance of innovative point of sale approaches,
quantitative studies and coherent literature for the automotive industry have not been
previously published or can’t be adapted adequately. Hence, the present dissertation strives to
develop and test a theoretical model of experiential shopping, which integrates the concepts of
point of sale and multisensory marketing equally.
Design/Methodology/Approach – A quantitative baseline study (n=229) is stating the basis
of the present study, in order to test the research hypothesis grounded on a literature review of
secondary research. Descriptive- and multivariate analysis have been accomplished to infer
meaningful results.
Findings/Implications – In fact, customers are likely to benefit from cohesive point of sale
materials, which are facilitating the buying process and enticing the shopper to the final
purchase. Furthermore, different sensorial inputs impact the customers’ purchasing decision
and intention to recommend the product and brand respectively.
Research Limitations – Direction of future research and limitations of the actual study are
present. The main limitation is the measurement of non-observable phenomena with a
quantitative baseline study. The results have therefore to be reviewed within a field test of
laboratory test, in order to verify behavioural issues.