Up the ante: Electronic word of mouth and its effects on firm reputation and performance

Prior management research on firm reputation has acknowledged the importance of word of mouth (WOM) in influencing key choices made by businesses, as well as by individuals. In recent developments, Internet-based WOM forums aggregate vast amounts of information relevant to firm strategy and operations. For example, online social media communities aggregate information generated by both the firm (i.e. firm-generated content FGC) and users (i.e. user-generated content UGC). We theorize that FGC and UGC generate reputation benefits for a company in the form of two intermediate information mechanisms: information diversity and valence. We first undertake a qualitative content analysis to investigate the extent to which FGC and UGC generate information diversity and valence. We then test the hypothesis that both information diversity and valence increase a firm's financial performance. Our findings show that electronic WOM as transmitted through social media communities enhances a firm's reputation and thereby its performance through both these effects (i.e. embedded information and valence). We thus fully delineate the determinants of ‘good reputation’ in these social environments. As part of our robustness checks, we also consider the impact of price and quality, the two specific FGC components, on firm performance. Our findings further confirm these relationships.     

The Mediating Role of Customer Relationship on the Social Media Marketing and Purchase Intention Relationship with Special Reference to Luxury Fashion Brands

The reach of internet technology and social media has opened abundance of opportunities for marketers as well as for consumers across the globe. To anticipate future purchase behavior of consumers, marketers are not leaving any stone unturned. The main objective of this study is to investigate the direct and indirect impacts of social media marketing activities (entertainment, customization, interaction, word of mouth, and trend) on consumers' purchase intentions in luxury fashion brands. This study employed higher order Structural Equation Modeling to test the study model with (n = 243) sample data. We found positive significant impacts of social media marketing and customer relationships on consumers' purchase intentions. In addition, our study model confirmed full mediation of customer relationships in the relationship between social media marketing and consumers' purchase intentions. Based on our research findings, we strongly recommend that marketers of luxury fashion brands engage in social media marketing activities to provide value to customers.     

How Does Brand-related User-generated Content Differ across YouTube,Facebook, and Twitter?

This study tests hypotheses regarding differences in brand-related user-generated content (UGC) between Twitter (a microblogging site), Facebook (a social network) and YouTube (a content community). It tests them using data from a content analysis of 600 UGC posts for two retail-apparel brands (Lululemon and American Apparel), which differ in the extent to which they manage social media proactively. Comparisons are drawn across six dimensions of UGC; the dimensions were drawn from a priori reading and an inductive analysis of brand-related UGC. This research provides a general framework for comparing brand-related UGC, and helps us to better understand how particular social media channels and marketing strategies may influence consumer-produced brand communications.     

Determinants of Consumers’ Purchase Intentions of Organic Vegetables: Some Insights from Malaysia

This study tests the mediating effects of corporate social responsibility (CSR), product image, and corporate reputation on the relationships between green marketing awareness and consumers’ purchase intentions of organic vegetables. Data from 200 valid questionnaires was analyzed utilizing a partial least squares approach. Results show that product image was confirmed as the leading factor that partially mediated the influence of consumer green marketing awareness on consumers’ purchase intentions of organic vegetables, and this was followed by CSR, but that corporate reputation was not established as a mediator. Marketing managers should, therefore, develop various effective strategies to communicate their companies’ product image, embracing green marketing practices in order to increase market awareness, and providing positive recommendations to friends and relatives via various marketing communication channel including the short message service (SMS), emails, and social networking sites (SNS).     

How consumption values and perceived brand authenticity inspire fashion masstige purchase? An investigation

Rising income and the aspirations of the middle-class have resulted in the emergence of a new category of luxury brands popularly known as “masstige brands”. Researchers have attempted to establish masstige branding and masstige marketing as a differentiated research domain from luxury marketing. As an attempt to this end, the current study, which is confined to women's fashion clothing brands, investigates whether various luxury consumption values are equally applicable in inspiring masstige purchase. In addition, this study investigates whether dimensions of perceived authenticity of a masstige brand moderate the association between various consumption values and masstige purchase intention. By employing an online survey, 462 useable responses were collected from middle-income female consumers in India and analysed using PLS-SEM and multi-group analysis. The findings show that functional, experiential and symbolic consumption values inspire masstige fashion purchase but the zero-moment-of-truth consumption value does not. Quality and sincerity (but not heritage) dimensions of perceived brand authenticity enhance the consumption value perceptions leading to masstige purchase. This study is the first of its kind to examine the applicability of various luxury consumption values in masstige consumption besides testing the moderating effect of perceived brand authenticity.     

Bridging the online offline gap: Assessing the impact of brands’ social network content quality on brand awareness and purchase intention

Social media is shaping the way companies and brands engage and interact with consumers, particularly Millennials. In light of this growing trend, this study aims to understand the influence of content quality and brand interactivity within social media on consumers' brand awareness and purchase intentions by proposing an empirical model which is tested using structural equation modeling. The study also explores whether the relation between social media stimuli and offline purchase intention is mediated by hedonic motivation, consumer engagement and brand awareness. Results reveal that the quality of content provided by brands on social media and company-users' interactivity are of major importance to Millennials. They increase the hedonic motive derived by these users from social media, strengthen their online engagement and intensify their brand awareness. This heightened online consumer engagement coupled with an increased online consumer brand awareness leads to an increase in the purchase intention of these brands offline. Consequently, companies are encouraged to invest in producing high-quality content on their social media pages, deploy all possible strategies to enhance brand users’ interactivity given the important role these variables play in entertaining, engaging users online, building brand awareness and influencing their offline purchase intentions.     

Desire,need, and obligation: Examining commitment to luxury brands in emerging markets

The availability of a wide variety of luxury brands has resulted in declining commitment toward a single brand. Enhancing brand commitment has, therefore, become a significant challenge for international businesses and marketing managers. We develop a multi–dimensional brand commitment framework underpinned by marketing, organizational, and social psychology literature streams. The simultaneous examination of brand–commitment dimensions based on consumer desire, need, and obligation in our framework offers a novel perspective that advances research on brand commitment. Our findings demonstrate stability of the framework in important emerging markets for luxury brands, namely China, India, Russia, Turkey, and Thailand. The framework, incorporating affective, continuance, and normative brand commitment dimensions, offers a conceptually robust fit. We demonstrate that each brand commitment dimension is influenced by distinct antecedents, and we show the direct and interactional impact of consumers’ emotional attachment, economic motivations, and normative pressures on purchase intentions. Supported by well-established theories in organizational and social psychology, our study offers new insights on how consumers commit to brands. We provide international brand managers with a blueprint for strengthening brand commitment across countries.     

Conceptualizing the brand in social media community: The five sources model

The emergence of social media is challenging the ways that marketing academics and practitioners conceptualize and manage brands. This research explores the consumers׳ specific motivations for the purpose and structure of the consumption of brands in social media community. Keeping the evolving economic relevance of social consumption in mind, the resulting conceptual model has been designed to give a better understanding of the unique branding opportunities and relationships that social media present to brand managers. The research employs a triangulated method that includes a social media-based Facebook focus group and face-to-face interviews. The findings suggest that consumers expect some very specific two-way interactions with brands and that social media may be the only way to effectively deliver these demands. This study identifies five core drivers of brand consumption in a social media community articulated in the Five Sources Model: functional, emotional, self-oriented, social and relational. These core drivers represent unique opportunities for brands to enhance their relationships with their customers and to increase the likelihood of an active and beneficial online community built around their brands. Future research implications are discussed.     

Retailers,don't ignore me on social media! The importance of consumer-brand interactions in raising purchase intention - Privacy the Achilles heel

Effective interactions are essential for retail brands to progressively nudge consumers towards purchase. While social media provides the platform for brands to directly connect with consumers, it is critical that brands take privacy concerns seriously. This paper address common questions retailers ask: How do brands develop effective interactions with consumers on social media? Do consumer-brand interactions impact purchase intention? Does privacy matter? Through 541 UK participant responses and using social exchange theory, this research examines consumer-brand interactions on social media, focusing on how social media activities, attitudes towards social media advertising, and privacy, impact upon purchase intention. Our results show that brands must establish strong relationships through high-quality consumer-brand interactions to significantly raise purchase intentions, while also carefully managing consumers' privacy expectations. Effective privacy management positively mediates the link between social media and purchase intention but ignore privacy, and it becomes the Achilles heel of the relationship.     

“Regretting your brand-self?” The moderating role of consumer-brand identification on consumer responses to purchase regret

Extending the study of consumer-brand relationships in the post-purchase stages of consumer decision making and in situations involving unfavorable comparisons with foregone brands, this research investigates the role of consumer-brand identification on consumer responses to purchase regret. Drawing on regret theory and consumer-brand relationship literature, the authors argue that consumer-brand identification immunizes the brand from the negative consequences of purchase regret through the amplification of consumers' cognitive regret regulation and the attenuation of consumers' behavioral regret coping. An empirical study using scenario manipulation of regret for participants' favorite brands provides support to the protective role of consumer-brand identification. The results indicate that consumer-brand identification attenuates the negative effects of regret on satisfaction and behavioral intentions and strengthens the positive impact of satisfaction on brand repurchase/recommendation intent. The findings enrich regret and consumer-brand relationship theories and provide managerial insights for effective branding strategy development under conditions of intense competitive pressure.     

Hedonic and utilitarian use of user-generated content on online shopping websites

The Internet has made it possible for consumers to share reviews, opinions, and thoughts about products and services on online shopping websites. This user-generated content (UGC), which can be considered to be part of social commerce, is likely to influence other consumers’ attitudes toward a product and subsequent purchase intentions. The purpose of this study was to investigate two major uses of UGC: hedonic and utilitarian, and how they impact purchase intentions, along with users’ trust for different types of comments and reviews. Also investigated are associations between hedonic use, utilitarian use, and trust, with purchase behavior at online shopping websites. Results of this study will add to the domain knowledge related to marketing and how it impacts consumer psychology and behavior. From a practitioner perspective, marketers need to understand the impact of UGC so they can monitor this method of marketing communication as it can impact trust and purchase intentions.     

Why strategy is key for successful social media sales

Many successful companies spend substantial time and effort engaging with potential consumers on social media sites. They determine how consumers spend their time online and develop interesting content to increase awareness and enjoyment of the brand—often only to lose those potential customers because the purchase process becomes too difficult once consumers have decided to buy the product. New technology recently introduced by third-party vendors allows companies to offer a sales option directly on social media websites such as Facebook and Instagram. In this article, we present the effects on the consumer decision process created by the ‘Buy Now’ option across the consideration, evaluation, purchase, and post-purchase stages. We compare and contrast three distinct decision models: (1) traditional media only, (2) traditional media and social media with only a communication capability, and (3) traditional media and social media with the added function of immediate purchase. We argue that though the possibility of buying on social media will decrease the number of brands considered and evaluated, the number of purchases and amount of brand advocacy will increase significantly due to the ease of purchase. We conclude with some recommendations on future research.     

Big data on a smaller scale: A social media analytics assignment

It is truly important for students to understand how to monitor online marketing buzz. This assignment, social media analytics, utilizes the content analysis research method to build student's in-depth understanding on how to evaluate and interpret user-generated content (UGC) to create social media campaigns. The authors adapted Resnik and Stern's (1977) coding scheme for UGC. Through experiential learning, students immerse themselves in data and analyze UGC. The assignment scored high in knowledge acquisition as a pedagogical tool. Finally, the authors provide an updated social media analytics coding scheme, guidelines for instructors, student rubric information, and student learning outcomes.     

Is beauty always good? Effects of visual presentation of Influencer’s aesthetic labor on brand purchase intention

Aesthetic labor plays a crucial role in social media influencer marketing. Based on the theories of aesthetic labor and social media influencers, this study aims to identify the psychological mechanism and boundary conditions of the effects of visual presentation of influencers’ aesthetic labor on consumers’ brand purchase intention. The results of five studies indicate that the visual presentation of influencers’ aesthetic labor and consumers’ regulatory focus have an interactive effect on brand purchase intention. Specifically, promotion-focused consumers (vs. prevention-focused consumers) are more willing to purchase brands endorsed by influencers with a high-level (vs. low-level) visual presentation of aesthetic labor through para-social relationships. Furthermore, the homophily between influencers and consumers moderates this interaction effect. These findings have significant managerial implications for influencers and other retailing marketers to leverage aesthetic labor to win consumers’ purchase intention towards related brands.     

A study of antecedents and outcomes of social media WOM towards luxury brand purchase intention

This research develops a conceptualized model that illuminates the role of luxury perceptions in explaining consumer engagement in social media WOM and luxury purchase intention. It also explores the moderating effects of consumer demographic characteristics and perceived social status. The proposed model is validated by using SEM in AMOS against 282 samples, and chi-square difference test is applied to test the moderating effects. The findings demonstrate that social media WOM positively influences consumer luxury purchase intention. Perceived quality highly influences functional and social value, and social media WOM is strongly influenced by personal and functional value. This research 1) highlights the powerful role of social media WOM in enhancing luxury brands purchase intention, 2) extends current body of knowledge of the social media WOM and its focal antecedents, and 3) shows how consumer characteristics (e.g., age, gender, income, education, perceived social status) are important for developing customized marketing strategy to promote luxury brands on SNS. Overall, this study helps firms to understand which aspect of luxury brands to be emphasized to initiate consumers into social media WOM, which in turn, influences purchase intention.     

The Effects of Credible Online Reviews on Brand Equity Dimensions and Its Consequence on Consumer Behavior

Consumers are using social media platform to gain and share knowledge on brands. In the virtual environment, consumers are exposed to various online reviews on brands that leave an impression of brands on the minds of the consumers. The present study combines Yale attitude change model and attribution theory to examine the effects of credible online reviews on brand equity dimensions. The present study views, through the lens of Yale attitude change model, the various factors that affect credibility evaluation of online reviews. Further, attribution theory is used as the theoretical backbone to analyze the effects of credible online reviews on brand equity dimensions and finally on purchase intention. This study uses structural equations modeling (SEM) to investigate the impact of online credible reviews on customer based brand equity (CBBE) dimensions and its consequence on consumer behavior (purchase intention). Results indicate that source and review quality are the most important factors that affect consumer's credibility evaluation of a review. Online credible reviews have more significant impact on brand awareness, perceived value and organizational associations and thus leads to consumer's purchase intention in the context of consumer electronic products in India.     

Consumer intentions to engage in s-commerce: a cross-national study

Social media has reached global proportions; yet, little is known about how consumers engage with firms in ways that lead to social commerce (s-commerce) – an emerging area of importance in the literature. This study addresses this gap and extends previous research by examining factors that influence consumers’ intentions to engage in s-commerce in four countries: Chile, Spain, South Africa and Australia. Specifically, this study develops and tests a model of consumers’ intentions to engage in s-commerce through brands’ Facebook pages incorporating personal variables (involvement in brands’ products and services, satisfaction with brands’ Facebook page), trust variables (message credibility of Facebook posts, trust in firms’ Facebook) and social variables (peer communication, social media dependency, online social interaction propensity) on predicting intentions to purchase products and services through brands’ Facebook pages if s-commerce was available to them. The findings show that the main drivers of s-commerce engagement are message credibility, trust in the brands’ Facebook, involvement, peer communication and online social interaction propensity, as influencers of consumer satisfaction with brands’ Facebook and social media dependency, which in turn drive intentions to engage in s-commerce. Contributing to theory and practice, these relationships are discussed for the four countries involved in the study.     

Whose voice is heard? The influence of user-generated versus company-generated content on consumer scepticism towards CSR

ABSTRACT

Social media is increasingly used to communicate corporate social responsibility (CSR). Stakeholders respond to CSR messages with user-generated content (UGC), signalling approval or disapproval, potentially shaping consumers’ perceived legitimacy and scepticism towards CSR. Few studies have explored how UGC shapes these consumer responses. In the context of the UK food retail industry, this study explored what makes UGC more or less believed than company-generated CSR communication on social media. Through qualitative inquiry, the study identified that unique characteristics of social media, such as system-generated cues, lead UGC to be more believed than company-generated content, shaping perceived legitimacy. The study indicates the risks of communicating CSR through social media may be greater than previously suggested. It identifies recipient-related conditions under which these risks can be minimised.     

How do social media influencers inspire consumers' purchase decisions? The mediating role of parasocial relationships

In recent years, social media influencers (SMIs) have become part of the strategic communication of firms because the traditional form of mass media communication is losing its effectiveness. Thus, it is imperative to study the effects of communication through SMIs on marketing outcomes, such as purchase intentions. Based on the fairness dimensions, that is, information, distributive, interpersonal, and procedural, and dimensions of source credibility, that is, attractiveness, expertise, trustworthiness, and similarity, this research investigated how technology-oriented SMIs (T-SMIs) foster parasocial relationships (PSRs) with followers. Purposive sampling was employed to collect data from 506 active social media users. Data were analysed through IBM AMOS and SPSS 26. The results of the study suggested that attractiveness, expertise, trustworthiness, similarity, interpersonal, procedural, and information fairness are positively related to fostering PSR with followers. In contrast, distributive fairness does not strengthen PSR with followers; furthermore, the study findings suggested an indirect positive influence of attractiveness, expertise, trustworthiness, similarity, interpersonal, procedural, and information fairness on the purchase intentions of consumers via PSR. This study is useful for academia and industry since it fills important gaps in the literature and provides recommendations to brand managers of technology companies about selecting appropriate SMIs for the endorsement of their brands.     

Social Media's Impact on the Consumer Mindset: When to Use Which Sentiment Extraction Tool?

User-generated content provides many opportunities for managers and researchers, but insights are hindered by a lack of consensus on how to extract brand-relevant valence and volume. Marketing studies use different sentiment extraction tools (SETs) based on social media volume, top-down language dictionaries and bottom-up machine learning approaches. This paper compares the explanatory and forecasting power of these methods over several years for daily customer mindset metrics obtained from survey data. For 48 brands in diverse industries, vector autoregressive models show that volume metrics explain the most for brand awareness and purchase intent, while bottom-up SETs excel at explaining brand impression, satisfaction and recommendation. Systematic differences yield contingent advice: the most nuanced version of bottom-up SETs (SVM with Neutral) performs best for the search goods for all consumer mind-set metrics but Purchase Intent for which Volume metrics work best. For experienced goods, Volume outperforms SVM with neutral. As processing time and costs increase when moving from volume to top-down to bottom-up sentiment extraction tools, these conditional findings can help managers decide when more detailed analytics are worth the investment.