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This paper empirically examines consumer normative expectations ofpreferential pricing (price discount) in the US versus China. It was found that merit and personal relationship have a significant impact on expected discount in both countries, the impact of merit on expected discount is stronger in the US than in China, and that in China personal relationship has a stronger effect than merit on expected discount. Findings demonstrate both the similarities and differences in consumer expectations of preferential treatment in the US versus China and have implications for preferential treatment practices in these two countries.
Preferential treatment (e.g., price discount or premium service offered to selected consumers) is a key aspect of relationship marketing that aims to enhance customer relationships (Gwinner, Gremler, & Bitner, 1998; Lacey, Suh, & Morgan, 2007). The impact of a preferential treatment on relationship quality is conditional upon whether the preferential treatment is consistent with consumer normative expectation of preferential treatment, that is, the preferential treatment that a consumer feels s/he is entitled to (i.e., ought to receive) given his/her relationship with the seller (e.g., being a frequent customer) (Boyd & Helms, 2005; Lacey et al., 2007; Wetzel, Hammerschmidt, & Zablah, 2014). The current research reports the results of a scenario experiment designed to compare consumer normative expectations of preferential treatment in the US versus China. In the extant literature, it has been suggested that a focus on meritbased preferential treatment (e.g., loyalty programs) versus personal-based preferential treatment (e.g., renqing or favor doing) is a key difference between relationship marketing in the US versus China (Ambler, Styles, & Xiucun, 1999; Lovett, Simon, & Kali, 1999; Wu & Chiu, 2016). The focus of relationship marketing in the US on merit-based preferential treatment is evident in De Wuff et al.(2001:35) definition of preferential treatment as "consumer's perception that a retailer treats and serves its regular customers better than non-regular customers": This definition appears to assume that the sole basis for preferential treatment is customer relative status or merit (regular versus non-regular customers). In contrast, relationship marketing in China is based on guanxi, which can be defined as personal relationships with implications for continual exchange of preferential treatments or favors (renqing) (Ambler et al., 1999; Lovett et al., 1999; Wu & Chiu, 2016).
An important...