Introduction

Theory Development

Empirical Explorations

General Discussion

Managerial Implications

Toward a Research Agenda

References

Abstract

As interactive technologies become more pervasive, firms are increasingly conducting customer surveillance—the acquisition, usage, and storage of consumers’ personal data—more covertly and with fewer resources. Privacy calculus—the rational decision to disclose personal data—has dominated the literature to explain rational or calculated reactions to customer surveillance, however, not all reactions can be explained by rational processes. This article advances our understanding of these reactions beyond the privacy calculus concept by proposing attitudes toward customer surveillance. Based on levels of consumer privacy and consumer value concerns, these attitudes are associated with four archetypes—pragmatists, protectionists, capitalists, and apathists. By understanding these attitudes, researchers and managers can gain insight into the diversity of consumers’ concerns regarding both consumer privacy and consumer value in order to better explain observed marketplace behaviors.

Introduction

As marketing embraces the science of analytics (Bauman and Lyon 2013; Moe and Ratchford 2018), marketing managers need to reflect on the impact of surveillance practices on their customers. Customer surveillance, which involves the acquisition, usage, or storage of customers’ personal data (Plangger and Watson 2015), can be a source of competitive advantage by generating customer insights. These customer insights produce market intelligence—data on customers’ needs, preferences, characteristics, behavior, attitudes, and other attributes—to influence, target, and manage customers, as well as to proactively respond to customers’ needs (Holtrop et al. 2017; Kohli and Jaworski 1990; Wood and Ball 2013). Managers have a long history of using customer surveillance and market intelligence to gain a competitive edge and enjoy enhanced customer loyalty, satisfaction, and relationships (Jaworski and Kohli 1993). Marketing intelligence has become a central part of marketing operations for many firms across a wide variety of industries (Albrechtslund 2008; Deighton and Kornfeld 2009; Moe and Ratchford 2018). However, marketing managers also need to scrutinize the effects of surveillance investments on customers’ attitudes, loyalty, and behavior in order to identify and mitigate negative outcomes.