Consumer Experience of Foreign Products in China: The Role of Digital Media

Digital media are relevant touch points that contribute to shape the customer journey and allow consumers to engage more with firms. In particular, they play a primary role in the largest web-user base in the world, China. Internet also represents an increasing channel for Chinese consumers to purchase any type of products, including foreign brands. In this market, the main Internet access point is represented by mobile phones. This has led firms to substantially increase their expenditure in mobile advertising and e-commerce platforms’ implementation. This article aims at contributing to the recent marketing literature that conceptualize customer experience as a dynamic process by analyzing the customer journey in China related to foreign brands. A mixed method approach is adopted, consisting of focus groups and a preliminary questionnaire. Results show that digital media play a main role in the consumer journey of Chinese consumers, as information tool and increasing purchase channel.