Evaluative cues and services: the effect of consumer knowledge

The purpose of this paper is to provide an insight into the use of evaluative cues by consumers in a services context. In particular, the paper investigates the extent to which consumers' familiarity and objective/subjective expertise affect the degree to which functional and non-functional cues are used in evaluating investment products. The methodology for the study is quantitative, involving a random telephone sample of 1002 respondents broadly representative of the UK population. Means scores for various constructs are used in a regression analysis to test three hypotheses. The findings indicate that greater familiarity is associated with the importance of functional, rather than non-functional, cues in financial services evaluation, as is greater objective expertise. However, no relationship is apparent between subjective expertise and cue utilisation. The study has significant managerial implications, as an informed understanding of how cue utilisation varies with consumers' familiarity and expertise will assist managers in their attempts to formulate marketing strategies that appeal to targeted customer segments. Overall, the paper provides a novel insight into the appropriate conceptualisation of evaluative cues in a services setting, as well as an enhanced understanding of how consumers' utilisation of such cues in their evaluations of a high credence financial services is contingent upon familiarity and expertise.