Positioning products in business-to-consumer electronic commerce: Differential effects of product positioning on affect and cognition

Continuous progress in the capabilities of Internet technologies has enabled the creation of Virtual Product Experiences (VPEs) in business-to-consumer electronic commerce. While issues surrounding VPEs have gained some attention in information systems research, studies of VPEs are still few and far between. However, it has been demonstrated that the concept of presence is an important determinant of consumer reactions to VPEs. Presence is defined as the experience of virtual objects as actual physical objects.;While researchers have studied the primary antecedents and cognitive reactions to presence, affective reactions have not been addressed. Further, the positioning of the product in electronic commerce as important factor influencing these cognitive and affective reactions has thus far not been considered.;The current research builds on literature from information systems, marketing, and psychology to hypothesize effects of presence on affective and cognitive reactions, as well as the role of product positioning. A laboratory experiment was conducted, followed by a field experiment to test the hypothesized relationships in different contexts. The results of this research demonstrate the importance of affective reactions, in addition to cognitive reactions, to presence. The research also shows an influence of product positioning on affective and cognitive reactions in complex ways.