Value Development During the Self-Design Process: A Demonstration and Explanation of the 'Swoosh' Effect

摘要

We ask two research questions: 1. Does the value development during self-designing with a configurator follow a power law or a " swoosh"-curve? The relevance of this question results from a puzzle: While research repeatedly found a strongly increased willingness to pay for self-designed products than their off-the-rack counterparts, the market share of self-designed products in any given category remains low and the rates of customers who do not finish the process are extremely high. It is thus likely that the subjective value consumer expect to derive from self-designing develops during the process of self-designing. But how? 2. In which stage of the self-design process does which category of knowledge influence value? It is plausible that the subjective value the customers expect during self-designing is a function of their current knowledge. We argue that the influence of different categories of knowledge (knowledge how the configurator works, knowledge about one's own preferences) changes as the process unfolds. Understanding the drivers of value is not jusi of theoretical import, it is also the basis for managerial implications.