The perceived value of mobile apps that assist in-store purchasing: A hybrid cost-benefit approach[Valeur perçue des applications mobiles d’aide à l’achat en magasin : une approche hybride par les coûts et les bénéfices]

This article aims to identify the benefits and costs related to the use of mobile apps that assist in-store purchasing, considering the concept of "perceived value." While the use of smartphones in stores has become more common, the use of mobile apps raises questions about creating value for consumers and retailers. So far, research has focused on the use of mobile apps outside of the store, leaving their in-store uses unexplored. By way of an exploratory qualitative study, this work identifies the sources of value creation and destruction for mobile apps that assist in-store purchases. The main theoretical contributions of this work are, firstly, the identification of costs (e.g., dependence, social self, loss of purchasing pleasure, and so on) specific to mobile apps and their use in stores and, secondly, the identification of conditional elements (e.g., degree of personalization, type of store, and so on) that may affect the perceived intensity of the benefits and costs. From a managerial perspective, this article highlights the importance of the levers involved in the perceived value of a mobile app and provides some recommendations for reducing the perception of costs.