Digital Customer Experience bei Online-Kaufprozessen – Ansätze für kleine und mittlere Online-Handelsunternehmen zum Management der Digital Customer Experience

This paper explores the Digital Customer Experience within the context of online purchasing processes and offers guidance on how small and medium-sized online retailers can manage it effectively. As a key success factor, the Digital Customer Experience is highly relevant for these retailers, who face rising customer expectations, increasing market concentration, and limited resources.

A critical review of the literature reveals that the Digital Customer Experience has not yet been conceptualised across the entire customer journey in online purchasing contexts. Furthermore, there is a lack of specific management approaches tailored to online retailers for delivering a consistent, positive Digital Customer Experience.

To address this research gap, the study examines which management approaches small and medium-sized online retailers can adopt to manage the Digital Customer Experience effectively, taking customer expectations and company-specific factors into account.

The study employs a multimethod qualitative research design. Data were collected using theoretical sampling through semi-structured interviews with current and potential online consumers, as well as expert interviews with professionals responsible for managing the Digital Customer Experience in small and medium-sized online retailers. The data were analysed using summarising qualitative content analysis.

A key academic contribution lies in the conceptualisation of the Digital Customer Experience in online purchasing processes, focusing on conative and sensory dimensions, complemented by affective, cognitive, and relational aspects to provide a more comprehensive theoretical foundation.

Additionally, a Digital Customer Experience Management Model is developed for small and medium-sized online retailers, identifying key determinants, areas of responsibility, and expected outcomes. Based on this model, context-specific management approaches are derived, depending on company size, product characteristics, ordering frequency, customer needs, and the degree of digitalisation.