Drivers of brand community engagement

Brand community engagement is evolving as a prominent relationship marketing variable that yields promising outcomes for the firms. Drawing upon the relevant premises of social exchange theory, this paper proposes a theoretical model portraying the role of online brand community based benefits (experience based and self-esteem based) and the community relationship investment in predicting the levels of brand community engagement.Data collected through a survey questionnaire technique from 925 members of the firm created online brand communities was employed to test the measurement and structural theory using confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling respectively. The empirical results reveal that the customers’ experiential and self-esteem based benefits drive their brand community engagement. The perceived community relationship investment of the members also drives their brand community engagement positively. The sequential structural model also supported a positive impact exerted by brand community engagement on brand community commitment and brand loyalty. Additionally, it is observed that the focal brand ownership moderates the effect of community benefits and community relationship investment on brand community engagement.This study contributes to the nascent academic research on online brand communities and to the existing understanding of the brand community managers in managing customer engagement in online brand communities, thereby of profound theoretical and managerial relevance.     

Brand trust and engagement in social commerce

With the surge in social media (SM) users around the world, the scope of social commerce (SC) in brand engagement is a prominent area of discussion. The present study empirically investigates the effect of social commerce construct (SCC), multi-dimensional constructs of social presence theory (SPT) and consumer generated content (CGC) on brand trust and brand engagement in SC platforms. An online survey was conducted among 625 Indian consumers who had made more than one purchase using SC platforms in the previous 6 months. Structural equation modelling technique was employed for testing the hypotheses and conceptual model. The results suggest that each element of SCC, SPT and CGC positively contributes to brand trust and engagement. Further, the study provides insight into brand trust and brand engagement in SM, which prompts brand usage intention of the consumers. The insights can be used by managers to create long-term customer relationship management action plans that emphasize brand trust and engagement.     

Role of multidimensional customer brand engagement on customer behavior for online grocery shopping

This study aims to understand the relationship between environmental consciousness and multidimensional (i.e., cognition, affection, and activation aspects) of customer brand engagement (CBE) in relation to online grocery shopping. It also investigates the moderating effect of customer characteristics on the associations among environmental consciousness, CBE, and behavior intention. 358 Korean respondents took part in this research using an online survey to assess the impacts of multidimensional CBE for online grocery. The outcomes reveal that environmental consciousness positively influences cognition and activation aspects of CBE. Additionally, activation, affection, and cognition aspects of CBE positively affect behavioral intention. Multi-group analysis is performed to identify the difference among customers in low and high customer characteristics. In addition, by demonstrating a role for CBE, this study adds to the existing literature on online grocery. Furthermore, the outcomes of this research provide direction for building marketing strategies for online groceries for marketers and practitioners.     

Influence of consumer attitude toward online brand community on revisit intention and brand trust

This study proposes to illustrate the relationships between perceived benefits in using online brand communities, attitudes, revisit intention, and brand trust, and it also assesses the moderating role of two types of online brand communities: marketer- and consumer-created communities. The research model is tested by regression analysis using a random sample of 242 respondents. The study finds that social and informational benefits have positive impacts on attitude, which, in turn, significantly influence revisit intention and brand trust. The moderating effect of the type of online community was significant in predicting the relationship between attitude and brand trust but not between attitude and revisit intention. The study concludes the importance of managing online brand communities through managerial implications.     

Role of customer perceived brand ethicality in inducing engagement in online brand communities

In recent times, ethical consumerism has motivated firms to behave ethically to garner various benefits for their brands. More specifically, firms have become more conscious of consumers' perceptions of brand ethicality. Thus, recent research on this topic attempts to explore the factors that can lead to the formation of perceptions of brand ethicality and its favorable outcomes for the brand. This research contributes to the existing literature on brand ethicality by examining the role of perceived brand marketing communications in engendering perceptions of brand ethicality among consumers. Further, this research explores online brand community engagement as the outcome of perceived brand ethicality. The study's results based on the analysis of 397 responses exhibit that various elements of brand communications tend to generate favorable perceptions of brand ethicality. Such perceptions of the brand ethicality further induce an inclination towards engaging with online communities of such brands. The study offers specific implications for academicians and practitioners.     

Effect of social support on customer satisfaction and citizenship behavior in online brand communities: The moderating role of support source

Customers often join online brand communities to seek support from others when they encounter product problems. Some customers who receive good social support exhibit customer citizenship behavior. This study develops a theoretical model to investigate how social support influences customer citizenship behavior through customer satisfaction with firms in online brand communities. Moreover, the moderating role of support source (i.e., firms vs. other customers) is measured. The research model is tested by using the Partial Least Squares technique. The results show that informational and emotional support significantly affects the customer citizenship behavior of providing feedback to the firm, recommendations, and helping other customers through customer satisfaction in online brand communities. Moreover, informational and emotional support from firms and other customers exert different effects on customer satisfaction.     

The new wave of AI-powered luxury brands online shopping experience: The role of digital multisensory cues and customers’ engagement

Academic literature retains a dearth of empirical evidence of the cutting-edge aspect of artificial intelligence (AI)-powered digital assistance and digital multisensory cues, despite the prospect of these factors on real-life customers' luxury brand online shopping experience. Thus, the aim of this study is to examine the significant pathway and effects of AI-powered digital assistance toward customers’ luxury brand online shopping experience. Drawing on S–O-R (Stimulus, organism, and response) and TRAM (Technology Readiness and Acceptance Model) paradigm, a multi-method research design was deployed to investigate constructs. Firstly, semi-structured interviews were utilized to explore customers' online behavior under the luxury brands and information technology aspect. Secondly, survey data were collected and analyzed by using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) and fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA). The PLS-based analysis of quantitative data confirmed the exploratory insights of qualitative findings, establishing the connections of AI-powered digital assistance, customer engagement, and customers' luxury brand online shopping experience. Research findings also suggest that customer engagement plays a mediation role in the relationship between AI-powered digital assistance and customers' luxury brand online shopping experience. Besides, digital multisensory cues moderate the relationship between AI-powered digital assistance and customer engagement. Further, fsQCA complements the findings of PLS-SEM that reveal the significant combination of factors that lead to the perceptions of customers' luxury brand online shopping experience.     

The effect of negative online customer reviews on brand equity and purchase intention of consumer electronics in South Africa

This study investigated the effect that negative online customer reviews have on brand equity and purchase intention. This research examined the influence of negative electronic word of mouth (eWOM) on brand equity, as influenced by customer review quality, product involvement and source credibility. A 3 (high quality review versus low quality review versus no review) × 2 (high product involvement versus low product involvement) factorial experiment with 236 respondents was conducted. The results revealed that the presence of negative eWOM has a significant detrimental effect on brand equity and purchase intention. Furthermore, the effect of negative online customer reviews is more detrimental to the brand equity of a high involvement product than a low involvement product. The results also revealed that high quality reviews are more influential than low quality reviews with respect to brand equity, and the difference between the levels of eWOM source credibility has no significant effect on brand equity.     

Antecedents of participation in online brand communities and their purchasing behavior consequences

This study intends to fill some gaps in knowledge about online communities and their influence on consumers’ purchase decisions. A review of the extant literature on online brand communities reveals that most prior studies have focused on identifying the factors associated with joining and participating in online communities. However, limited studies examine the implications of participation in online brand communities in terms of consumer behaviors, such as brand liking and intention to purchase the brand. In addition, these few studies have either focused on the influence of operational elements of the online community on purchase intention or on the influence of community members’ characteristics regarding purchase intention. Therefore, this study aims to provide an integrated framework for operational and user characteristics’ antecedents associated with consumers’ participation in online brand communities and their effect on purchase decisions. Structural equation modeling was used to test the conceptual model. Data were collected via a survey of the Facebook pages of 282 members of Egyptian telecommunication companies. The findings provide insights into how these antecedents should be managed to enhance participation in virtual telecommunication communities.     

Do brands’ social media marketing activities matter? A moderation analysis

Considering the increased interest in the role that a brand's social media marketing activities (SMMA) play in providing better experiences, the current study examines associations among SMMA, brand experience, purchase intention, and attitude towards the brand. This study also assesses the customer generation (Millennials vs. Non-Millenials) and customer engagement level (high vs. low) as moderators in the SMMA-brand experience link. 413 responses were collected from individuals who follow a brand on social media and employed structural equation modelling for the analysis purpose. The results suggest an essential role of SMMA in driving brand experience, purchase intention, and attitude towards the brand. Results also establish that the SMMA-brand experience link varies across consumer generation (Millennials vs. Non-Millenials) and customer engagement level (high vs. low) with the brand's SMMA. These results aid marketers in realizing the role of consumers' generation and their engagement level relating to SMMA-brand experience relationship. The study concludes with implications, limitations, and future research avenues.     

The role of the brand in driving online loyalty for multichannel retailers

Multichannel retailers offer shoppers the possibility to cross channels to complete their shopping process. Multichannel retailers, unlike pure online sellers, offer shoppers multiple contact points to experience the brand. Also, multichannel retailers can leverage the trust and attachment to their brands that has been built with their offline presence to drive customers to buy online. Our paper explores the role of the customer relationship with the brand, with variables such as brand trust, brand attachment and length of brand relationship, as drivers of loyal behaviours towards the online channel. We compare the impact of these variables with those of the technology acceptance model. Multiple linear regression analysis is applied to data collected through a survey answered by 1533 multichannel retail shoppers in two product categories (apparel and consumer electronics) in two countries (UK and Spain). Our findings show that both brand trust and brand attachment have a positive impact on loyal behaviours towards the online channel, and that different loyalty behaviours, i.e. purchase intentions, word of mouth and electronic word of mouth are explained by different variables.     

Exploring the Antecedents of Brand Loyalty and Electronic Word of Mouth in Social-Media-Based Brand Communities: Do Gender Differences Matter?

ABSTRACT

Recently, social media have emerged as key marketing communication channels. In this context, consumers are increasingly gathering in online communities which have been identified as social-media-based brand communities (SMBBCs). However, notwithstanding scholars' attention towards SMBBCs, the role of consumers' gender in developing brand loyalty intention (BLI) has been scarcely explored by literature. Moreover, scant attention has been given to the analysis of whether gender is related to different propensities towards brand recommendation—identified as a proactive behavior towards a positive electronic word of-mouth diffusion (E-WOM)—in the social media context. Hence, this research aims to explore the antecedents of BLI and E-WOM by focusing on consumers' gender differences. A structural equation model has been created based on 250 surveys collected among SMBBCs of an American sportswear brand. The results showed that male consumers' BLI is influenced by engagement in SMBBCs. Instead, brand trust was the main antecedent of females' BLI.     

在线品牌社群社会资本对消费者品牌幸福感的影响机制研究

文章从社会资本的视角，探讨在线品牌社群对消费者品牌幸福感的影响机制。基于680份有效问卷，运用偏最小二乘法对假设进行检验。研究结果表明：在线品牌社群社会资本会通过促进社群幸福感（社群主观幸福感、社群心理幸福感和社群社会幸福感）进而促进品牌幸福感；在社群幸福感内部，社群社会幸福感会促进社群心理幸福感，而二者都会促进社群主观幸福感；在线品牌社群访问频率在社群主观幸福感与品牌幸福感之间起到正向调节作用。研究结论丰富了在线品牌社群和品牌幸福感理论，且对品牌建设实践具有指导价值。     

Promoting continual member participation in firm-hosted online brand communities: An organizational socialization approach

In the age of social media, an increasing number of firms have begun to host online brand communities (OBCs) to strengthen their relationship with their consumers. Despite the popularity of firm-hosted OBCs, building a successful online brand community is still a challenge for every firm because of the nature of voluntary participation. This paper introduces an organizational socialization approach to promote sustained member participation, a deciding factor for the success of online communities. Based on theory of organizational socialization, this study identifies three typical socialization tactics employed by sponsors of OBCs (i.e., member education, interaction support, and participation feedback). Further, we present an empirical study to examine their effects on members' membership continuance intention using the data collected from several firm-hosted OBCs. The mediator role of community identification and the moderator role of membership duration are investigated, and theoretical and managerial implications for community management are discussed.     

Exploring the impact of different factors on brand equity and intention to take up online courses from e-Learning platforms

Understanding service branding from the customer perspective is helpful for various organizations to attain a competitive edge and build a strong customer base. This research work aims to evaluate the various dimensions and constructs that affect brand equity and user's willingness to undertake courses from various e-Learning providers. Data for the quantitative study was obtained using a questionnaire based survey. Analysis of the 378 responses reveals that consumer experience is a strong predictor of both brand meaning and customer satisfaction. Although brand meaning positively impacts brand equity, brand awareness demonstrates a negative effect on brand equity. However, brand equity and customer satisfaction have a significant and positive impact on intention to undertake courses from online learning platforms. The study concludes with discussion on different implications, shortcomings, and directions for future research.     

Investigating the effect of customer-generated content on performance in online platform-based experience goods market

As COVID-19 persists, a new normal has emerged in our lives and consumption patterns. The rapid rise in demand for online consumption without physical contact is a prime example of this shift. Online platform-based markets have evolved into retail channels, allowing consumers to purchase both search goods and experience goods without contact. The platform provides an environment where customers can encounter a diverse range of customer-generated content (CGC) and gain insights into the purchasing experiences of others. However, despite the growing trading volume and diversification of products traded, relatively few studies exist on purchasing tangible experience goods in the online platform-based market. Therefore, this study investigates the impact of CGC (i.e., content and valence) on the market performance of experience goods, such as sales and sales rank in the platform-based market. We first examine the customer experience-related content in CGC in this market and then investigate the effect of CGC on market performance, such as sales and search ranks. We use crawled data from a platform that sells and rents artwork for empirical analysis. LDA topic modeling findings reveal that CGC has three primary topics (i.e., basic, artist, and style). The regression analysis results show that only style-related content improves performance, whereas basic-related content negatively affects search ranks. The valence of CGC does not significantly impact either performance measure. Additionally, we consider the role of rental services in this market and find that rental volume and search rank have an inverted U-shaped relationship. This study has important implications because it proposes a research framework and empirical model for examining the impact of CGC on performance in the online platform-based market for experience goods. It also has important managerial implications for platforms and sellers looking to enhance their market performance by monitoring CGC.     

The role of customer satisfaction in enhancing customer loyalty in Malaysian Islamic banks

This study examines the role of customer satisfaction in enhancing the loyalty of Muslim and non-Muslim customers in the Malaysian Islamic banking industry. Respondents are the customers (Muslim and non-Muslim customers) visiting the bank counters and have an account with Islamic banks. A total of 660 questionnaires were distributed, and 440 were returned. The results indicate that customer satisfaction has a statistically significant positive effect on customer loyalty and intentions to switch for Muslim and non-Muslim customers. However, there were significant differences in the effects of customer satisfaction on customer loyalty and intention to switch for Muslim and non-Muslim customers. The effect of customer satisfaction on customer loyalty and intention to switch is greater for the non-Muslim than the Muslim customers.     

Leveraging Online Communities to Support the Brand and Develop the Community

While numerous organizations and consumers utilize interactive online marketing activities (e.g., creating discussion forums, having brainstorming sessions, and running surveys) to interact with the brand and fellow brand users, there is little research that addresses how important it is to offer community members activities based on their motivations to participate in the community. This research is an important first step at examining the degree to which marketers need to match marketing activities in online communities with community member motivations to affect brand and community outcomes. Using a longitudinal study of 256 members from 9 marketing research online communities in 3 different industries, this research finds that online communities can be used to positively influence a broad range of brand assessments, brand-supportive behaviors, and community-supportive behaviors. Furthermore, leveraging marketing activities in online communities is more complex than previously thought.     

“Happy Together”: Effects of Brand Community Engagement on Customer Happiness

Because the pursuit of happiness is fundamental, humans perform a wide range of activities, including consumption, to lead a happy life. For marketers, findings from positive psychology suggest that customer happiness may arise through customer engagement. This article proposes a conceptual framework of customer happiness in brand communities and analyzes the effect of customer engagement on customer happiness, as well as on the ultimate outcomes of word of mouth and purchase intentions. Structural equation modeling provides a test of the model through an empirical study with 518 members from the online brand community for a German automotive brand. Customer engagement exerts a significant positive effect on customer happiness, which in turn increases positive word of mouth and purchase intentions. Therefore, marketing managers should invest in brand communities to engage customers and build and maintain their happiness and loyalty.     

How social presence drives commitment and loyalty with online brand communities? the role of social commerce trust

Increasing interest in social commerce has been accompanied by concerns about creating high-quality customer relationships. Brands are particularly interested in how they may foster the creation of commitment and loyalty regarding their online social commerce communities. The present study contributes to this question by examining the relationship between social presence and customer relationship quality by means of customer commitment and loyalty. More specifically, this study clarifies the role of social commerce trust in this relationship. Based on 189 questionnaires from social commerce users, the direct relationships between social presence and commitment as well as loyalty are not supported, in contrast to prior findings. The results show that social commerce trust fully mediates the relationship between social presence and commitment as well as loyalty in social commerce online brand communities.