Status: completed
Description
The sharing economy has become a central element of the global economy with enormous growth still to come (PWC, 2015). Car sharing is one of the prime examples of the sharing economy (Botsman & Rogers, 2010) and it is predicted to see a massive further growth from seven million users worldwide in 2015 to 36 million in 2025 (Frost & Sullivan, 2016). There is little doubt about the potential of the sharing economy in general and car sharing in particular, however, we lack clarity on the specifics of this potential. Yet, these specifics allow companies to design their offerings to profit from this rapidly changing market. Early predictions have vastly overestimated car sharing adoption (Baum & Pesch, 1994; Georg Wilke, Susanne Boehler, Daniel Bongardt, Carolin Schaefer-Sparenberg, 2007; Loose & Mohr, 2004). Two reasons might have caused this, first car sharing adoption has shown not to replace but to complement car ownership (Reutershan & McBroom, 2016). Second, adoption is still low, since BCG (2016) found that only 10% of registered users actually use the cars multiple times per month. we believe there is a gap in research clearly understanding the car sharing adoption process. For example, given the high share of non-active or light car sharing users, what shapes consumer attitudes, what makes them register for a car sharing service and what makes them actually use the service? Adoption is also particularly relevant against the background of various business models (see e.g. Münzel et al., 2017; Perboli et al., 2017). Which business model will be likely perceived as most compatible with consumers lifestyle and thus adopted by which customer segment? Those insights will inform managerial decision-making in launching, continuing or discontinuing car sharing services as well as other scholars or consultants aiming to predict the market potential for car sharing. Such insights are managerially relevant leading Deloitte (2017) to warn: “providers […] need to be aware that the various car sharing business models are very distinctive with specific success factors (p. 6).” This research therefore aims to make two main contributions: First, turning to innovation diffusion (e.g. Rogers, 2003) and car sharing literature (e.g. Schaefers, 2013) Thus, we develop an innovation adoption model for car sharing. Thus, we investigate the adoption process along the stages of attitude formation, decision for using the offer and the actual usage behavior.We empirically test it in a field study in collaboration with a major car manufacturer launching a station-based car sharing service. Our second contribution is to shed light on which car sharing business models (e.g. free floating versus station based, different versions of the car fleet or different pricing models) will be most likely compatible with consumer preferences and thus most likely be adopted by consumers. The dimensions of the car sharing business model are developed based on car sharing and business model literature (e.g. Münzel et al., 2017; Perboli et al., 2017) as well as literature on the sharing economy, in particular access-based services (Bardhi & Eckhardt, 2012; Lamberton & Rose, 2012). To test the preference compatibility, we ran a Factorial Survey testing seven different dimensions of the business model: type of market mediation, price model, fleet, mode of drive, pick-up and drop-off mode, availability, and service level.
Involved Persons
