Thesis
The influence of servitization and digital transformation on consumer preferences in energy markets: a discrete choice experiment for digitized product-service bundles and its implications for market strategies
- Creator
- Rights statement
- Awarding institution
- University of Strathclyde
- Date of award
- 2025
- Thesis identifier
- T17286
- Person Identifier (Local)
- 201553357
- Qualification Level
- Qualification Name
- Department, School or Faculty
- Abstract
- This thesis is motivated by the need to gain a clearer understanding of the competitive landscape for the energy consumer market. The concept of digital servitisation (product-service bundles) is offered as an approach to create additional consumer benefits. The thesis is based on a discrete choice experiment (DCE) involving digitalised electricity product-service bundles. The first part of the thesis (Chapters 1-2) presents the research motivation and objectives. It lays the theoretical and methodological foundations by discussing the evolution of economic theories. It also covers the basics of DCEs, traces their theories and examines different estimation models. Finally, the survey design based on a servitisation model is presented. The second part and first application (Chapter 3) investigates influences on preference reliability. It tests whether preferences are subject to change due to situational context prior to a purchase decision. The investigation is based on a split sample DCE survey where respondents were asked to evaluate different attributes of a purchase alternative either before or after the preference elicitation. Two logit model estimations are used to test for preference differences between the two sample groups. Statistically significant estimates for a measurable effect of context on preferences are found. The third part and second application (Chapter 4) focuses on product and service attributes within a DCE. It assesses whether there are synergies between the product and service attributes in a bundled offer. Particular attention is paid to servitisation and hybrid value creation. Methodologically, multiple conditional logit models are estimated to examine interaction effects for all attribute combinations. This is done to identify significant interaction effects and to provide evidence for the impact of bundling on positive or negative customer utility. Based on defined synergy cases, statistical evidence for synergies and antagonisms in specific cases and attribute combinations is found. The fourth part and third application (Chapter 5) examines how different attribute levels, which differ in their degree of digitisation, can be compared by evaluating the alternatives with their respective perceived utilities. Methodologically, this is done by applying a Hierarchical Bayes (HB) routine, which is used to estimate the part-worth utilities from the observed choices. A correlation analysis between the categories in the HB estimation is also performed, as well as a multiple regression analysis and a conditional logit model estimation. These methods are used to establish a relationship between perceived utility and perceived digital maturity of product attributes. The results show that respondents tend to derive utility from digitised service attributes across many service dimensions. Nevertheless, the influence of the price attribute, which dominates decision-making in our context, remains high. Overall, as set out in the concluding chapter, all the chapters build on one another to investigate the economic relationship between servitisation, digitisation and preferences. They add to the quantitative body of research on servitisation. A new perspective based on the economic utility evaluation of servitisation is offered. The main contribution of the thesis is that technology and digitisation affect utility and preferences either directly or through attitudes. Under certain conditions, customers value digital product-service bundles more than their non-digital counterparts.
- Advisor / supervisor
- Turner, Karen R.
- Rommel, Kai
- Resource Type
- DOI
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