Units of time do matter: How countdown time units affect consumers' intentions to participate in group-buying offers

A key feature of fixed-price group buying is the use of time-limited promotions, but few studies have examined the potential effect of different countdown formats. This study incorporates the unit effect and temporal focus theories to examine how different countdown time units affect consumers' group-buying participation intentions, as well as the mechanisms and functional contexts of time units. The empirical results indicate that countdowns expressed with a contracted scale (vs. an expanded scale) reduce perceived time remaining until the end of the group-buying offer, shift consumers' temporal focus to the present, and increase group-buying participation intentions. Temporal focus mediates the countdown time unit effect on group-buying participation intentions. Furthermore, hedonic (vs. utilitarian) products enhance the countdown time unit effect. The countdown time unit effect is stronger for consumers with high (vs. low) promotion skepticism.