Social support, social capital and online community e-loyalty: an empirical study

Online communities, as an essential manifestation of online social relationships, sociality factors (including social support factors and social relationship factors, etc.) ought to facilitate the formation of community trust and community satisfaction. However, although the existing literature has explored the underlying mechanisms of online community trust and satisfaction formation, few studies implemented research from the integrated sociality perspectives. In this thesis, we integrate social capital theory and social support theory to consider social capital and social support as important antecedent social factors in forming community trust and community satisfaction, which influence users' trust and satisfaction in online communities. Community trust and satisfaction further promote community loyalty. Specifically, this thesis scrutinizes the influence of three levels of social support factors such as information support, emotional support, and human-computer network management support and three kinds of social capital such as structure, cognition, and relationship to online community trust and satisfaction. Based on the proposed research model, 430 online community users' survey data were collected through an empirical questionnaire and the research model was tested through the partial least squares structural equation model method. The results of the thesis suggest that social support factors, including information support, emotional support, and interpersonal network interaction support, and social capital factors including structural capital, relational capital, and cognitive capital significantly affect community users' loyalty not only directly but also indirectly through enhancing community users' trust and satisfaction. Thus, users' trust and satisfaction with the community are significant mediating variables.Nas comunidades online, como uma importante manifestação das relações sociais online, os fatores de socialidade (incluindo fatores de apoio social e fatores de relacionamento social) devem facilitar a formação de confiança e satisfação da comunidade. No entanto, embora a literatura existente tenha explorado os mecanismos subjacentes à formação da confiança e da satisfação da comunidade online, poucos estudos consideraram a perspectiva social de forma integrada. Nesta tese, integramos a teoria do capital social e a teoria do suporte social para considerar o capital social e o suporte social como importantes fatores sociais antecedentes na formação da confiança e satisfação da comunidade, que influenciam a confiança e a satisfação dos utilizadores em comunidades online. A confiança e a satisfação da comunidade promovem ainda mais a lealdade da comunidade. Especificamente, esta tese estuda a influência de três níveis de fatores de suporte social - suporte de informação, suporte emocional e suporte de gestão da relação homen-computador - e três tipos de capital social - estrutura, cognição e relacionamento - na confiança e satisfação da comunidade online. Com base no modelo de pesquisa proposto, 430 observações de utilizadores de comunidades online foram recolhidos através de um questionário. O modelo de pesquisa foi testado através de métodos de equação estruturais. Os resultados da tese relevam que fatores de suporte social, incluindo suporte de informação, suporte emocional e suporte de interação de rede interpessoal, e fatores de capital social, incluindo capital estrutural, capital relacional e capital cognitivo, afetam significativamente a lealdade dos utilizadores da comunidade, não apenas diretamente mas também indiretamente, aumentando a confiança e a satisfação dos utilizadores da comunidade; a confiança e a satisfação dos usuários com a comunidade são variáveis mediadoras importantes

Analyzing the effect of social support and community factors on customer engagement and its impact on loyalty behaviors toward social commerce websites.

While research into customer engagement receives much attention, few studies have examined why consumers engage in social commerce and the resulting consequences for companies. This study explores the influence of social support and community factors on customer engagement and the subsequent effects on customer loyalty toward social commerce websites. We propose a model to investigate the differences between the influence of social support and three community factors (community drivenness, community identification and community trust) on customer engagement, and the impact of customer engagement on four customer loyalty dimensions, one transactional (repurchase intention) and three non-transactional (willingness to co-create, stickiness intention and positive eWOM intention). We conducted a survey and collected data from 437 users of Facebook social commerce websites. The findings show that customer engagement is a key predictor of the four dimensions of customer loyalty toward social commerce websites. In addition, the results indicate that social support and two community factors significantly affect customer engagement. We discuss theoretical and managerial implications.This work was supported by the Plan Andaluz de Investigación, Desarrollo e Innovación (convocatoria 2017), Grupo SEJ-567 (Spain)

The effects of social media based brand communities on brand community markers, value creation practices, brand trust and brand loyalty

Social media based brand communities are communities initiated on the platform of social media. In this article, we explore whether brand communities based on social media (a special type of online brand communities) have positive effects on the main community elements and value creation practices in the communities as well as on brand trust and brand loyalty. A survey based empirical study with 441 respondents was conducted. The results of structural equation modeling show that brand communities established on social media have positive effects on community markers (i.e., shared consciousness, shared rituals and traditions, and obligations to society), which have positive effects on value creation practices (i.e., social networking, community engagement, impressions management, and brand use). Such communities could enhance brand loyalty through brand use and impression management practices. We show that brand trust has a full mediating role in converting value creation practices into brand loyalty. Implications for practice and future research opportunities are discussed

A Social Relational Model for Firm-Hosted Virtual Communities: The Role of Firm Support

Since the ease of participation and the usefulness of information provided by online groups continue to proliferate in the World Wide Web, people increasingly participate in different forms of virtual community (i.e. online forums, bulletin boards, message boards, chat rooms) for their purposes, such as solving problems, building social relationships, sharing passions, developing professionals. Accordingly, an increasing number of companies are now attempting to exploit this phenomenon by hosting and supporting their own online community for commercial and non-commercial purposes, such as building relationships with their customers, getting their feedback, strengthening the brand, and reducing customer service costs by enabling customer-to-customer problem solving (e.g. Wiertz and Ruyter, 2007). Typical examples of these firm-hosted online communities are Dell Community, Lego® Message Boards, Manhattan GMAT Forums, Ford Forums, iPod (Apple) Discussions, etc. The purpose of this study is to examine factors such as consumers\u27 feelings (sense of community, trust) and the host firm\u27s supports that motivate consumers to exhibit their voluntary contributions and continue their membership in a firm-hosted online community. This dissertation conceptualizes a relational social model in which sense of virtual community and virtual community loyalty are hypothesized to influence customer trust in the host firm and customer citizenship performance (loyalty intention to the host firm, voluntary participation, voluntary cooperation), respectively. Three components of the firm\u27s support to the virtual community—support for member communication, content enhancement and recognition for contribution—are theorized to moderate the relationships between sense of virtual community and trust, and between virtual community loyalty and customer citizenship performance. The overall finding that emerges from the dissertation is that customer citizenship performance is impacted by a customer\u27s sense of virtual community, loyalty to the community, and customer trust in the host firm. Of the three firm support variables, only support for member communication moderates the relationship between virtual community loyalty and voluntary participation. The dissertation makes four theoretical and managerial contributions. First, the paper presents an interdisciplinary review of extant literature on firm-hosted virtual communities and builds on it to develop a conceptualization of relationships between customer-customer social outcomes and customer-business relational outcomes. Second, while previous research has predominantly focused on firm support as an antecedent of trust in customer-business dyadic relationships (Porter, 2004), this research investigates the role of firm support as a moderator of social relational relationships. Third, the study extends the notion of relationship marketing to include customer-customer relationships which has been forgotten in the marketing literature (Clark & Martin, 1994). The implication is that the host firm can use customers themselves to build long-term customer relationships, and based on it to maintain and increase the firm\u27s market share. Finally, from a managerial perspective, this study proposes a general framework that can enable companies to better understand some of the key aspects that define and drive loyalty in online communities. Since sense of community is unique to a specific community, this dissertation also illustrates that a virtual community is an inimitable asset which can be used as a strategic tool to build competitive advantage by a firm in an online environment

The Impact of Customer Experience in Online Brand Communities on Customer Engagement and Purchase Intentions Among Arab Internet Users: Theoretical Analysis, Conceptual Framework and Research Agenda

Drawing on the service ecosystem theory and customer experience and engagement theory, this study examines the relationship between customer experience, customer engagement, and purchase intentions in online settings. Customer experience is operationalized into pragmatic, hedonic, sociability, and usability, whereas customer engagement is operationalized into the attitudinal and behavioral engagement. This study was undertaken among members of online communities from The Arab Administrative Development Organization (ARADO); a specialized organization affiliated with the League of Arab States. The study delves identifying into which customer experience may elevate customer engagement, how the specific customer experience elevates customer engagement to potentially lead to a purchasing intention in online brand communities

The motivations and outcomes of consumer engagement with online sexual health communities

PhD ThesisThe continuous improvement in living standards has resulted in increasing attention being paid to personal health. The definition of health nowadays no longer refers only to physical or mental health, it also includes sexual health. Sexual health is not only understood in a narrow sense as Sexually Transmitted Diseases (hereafter STDs), but also the enjoyment and satisfaction of having sex with partners. Positive sexual experiences are beneficial to both physical and mental health (Hensel et al., 2016). Although, despite it being an important part of our lives, sometimes sexual health is difficult to discuss due to the stigmatization and discrimination associated with STDs, which can affect patients’ intention to seek a doctor’s advice, leading those patients in need to ignore their illness for fear of unfair treatment which in turn can lead to serious physical outcomes and psychological burdens. The National Health Services (NHS) is under enormous pressure from an increasing demand for consultation; in 2020 more than 60 million people were listed as registered with the NHS (NHS Digital, 2020). This sometimes results in patients not being able to seek medical attention promptly or having only a short consultation time, which is sometimes not sufficient to properly address an individual’s health concerns, and more specifically their concerns about STDs. By gathering users from multiple backgrounds and experiences to form a virtual online community, Online Sexual Health Communities (OSHCs) provide a platform for information sharing and the exchange of emotions (relating to sexual health). Combining the advantages of a virtual environment such as unrestricted time and space, OSHCs not only provide a convenient and effective consultation with users who may have similar health issues but also reduce the pressure on the NHS (Nagendra et al., 2020). Despite the relevance of health communities in today’s societies, the reasons why consumers engage with OSHCs has rarely been studied, nor has the consequences of such engagement on consumers’ psychological and physical wellbeing. This study believes that learning about the motivations and outcomes of OSHC engagement is conducive to enriching the existing engagement literature in the field. From a practical point of view, it provides a more comprehensive guide for those establishing, or seeking to establish, OSHCs. Accordingly, a clear understanding of a user’s motivation for engaging with an OSHC iii can better help the founders of sexual health forums in improving their online communities. Furthermore, understanding the outcome of their engagement can help public organizations understand their influence on individuals’ wellbeing. Scholars are calling for qualitative research on the impact of social media on consumer behaviour and societal wellbeing (Davis et al., 2016; Shensa et al., 2017). The present study lies within transformative consumer research, which focuses on significant social issues and challenges (Davis and Ozanne, 2019). Interviews were chosen for data collection due to their ability to uncover underlying motivations, beliefs, attitudes, and feelings (Rubin and Rubin, 2005), particularly in discussions involving sensitive or embarrassing topics (for example, body image concerns and self-esteem) (Malhotra et al., 2007). The author of this thesis conducted semi-structured interviews with 20 participants from one of the most popular OSHCs on Facebook namely PrEp Facts: Rethinking HIV Prevention and Sex. Data were analysed through both manual coding and NVivo. Ten themes emerged from the interviews including eight motivations and two consequences of engagement, which enabled the development of a conceptual framework of engagement with OSHCs The contributions of this study can be viewed from both a theoretical and practical perspective. Theoretically, this study provides a conceptual framework regarding the motivations and consequences of consumer engagement. This study sheds light on eight motivations: information quality, information quantality, social support, fear, source credibility, convenience, online community quality, and privacy concerns. There are two outcomes of consumer engagement with OSHCs (health empowerment and entertainment), which contribute to the existing literature. Specifically, this study offers a comprehensive understanding regarding consumer engagement towards OSHCs, which can help online community moderators develop a better virtual environment based on consumer demands. Future research around this subject should use quantitative research methods to further verify the model developed in this study

ONLINE COMMUNITIES: AN EXAMINATION OF ONLINE COMMUNITY-BASED CASE STUDIES

Billions of people access the Internet and the World Wide Web every day. Inside this vast network, individuals interact with one another, whether consciously or unconsciously, sharing thoughts, views, and information at an unfathomable rate. The creation of Online Communi-ties (OCs) is based on this perpetual phenomenon, which happens silently in everyone's life. Without a thorough comprehension of every component triggered by these architectures, which is highlighted across disciplines, definitions, categorizations and classifications, it would be difficult to obtain a profound understanding of OCs. Intercepting such tendency, which is defined by the widespread use of OCs, is becoming a rising priority for businesses and marketers. This topic will be studied through an in-depth examination of selected case studies, which show a wide range of community uses in a variety of disruptive business models. Twitch’s analysis triggers the creation of a specific category, namely community incubator, where professional streamers can monetize their content with a level of interactivity never seen before. Estetista Cinica represents one of the most resonant cases of cultivation, investment and social influence in the OC, to the point of building a business around it. OneDay Group, on the other hand, has built its success thanks to the unique management of its OC, represent-ing their targeted customers, on which communication and marketing are continuously pro-jected. Finally, Meta has been launched with the aim of developing a metaverse, meaning an immersive virtual environment, namely, surreality. This case study suggests the emergence of a fourth classification of disruptive OC-based business models, described as the all-around OCs.Billions of people access the Internet and the World Wide Web every day. Inside this vast network, individuals interact with one another, whether consciously or unconsciously, sharing thoughts, views, and information at an unfathomable rate. The creation of Online Communi-ties (OCs) is based on this perpetual phenomenon, which happens silently in everyone's life. Without a thorough comprehension of every component triggered by these architectures, which is highlighted across disciplines, definitions, categorizations and classifications, it would be difficult to obtain a profound understanding of OCs. Intercepting such tendency, which is defined by the widespread use of OCs, is becoming a rising priority for businesses and marketers. This topic will be studied through an in-depth examination of selected case studies, which show a wide range of community uses in a variety of disruptive business models. Twitch’s analysis triggers the creation of a specific category, namely community incubator, where professional streamers can monetize their content with a level of interactivity never seen before. Estetista Cinica represents one of the most resonant cases of cultivation, investment and social influence in the OC, to the point of building a business around it. OneDay Group, on the other hand, has built its success thanks to the unique management of its OC, represent-ing their targeted customers, on which communication and marketing are continuously pro-jected. Finally, Meta has been launched with the aim of developing a metaverse, meaning an immersive virtual environment, namely, surreality. This case study suggests the emergence of a fourth classification of disruptive OC-based business models, described as the all-around OCs

Brand Community Oriented Channel Coordination: An Empirical Study on Chinese Tire Market

Members of traditional tyre marketing channel aims to maximize profit for individual business, even at the cost of overall benefit of tyre marketing channel and tyre manufacturers, resulting in high channel cost. Practice focusing on channel relationship marketing has alleviated the tension among channel members. Yet profit diluted by disorderly competition in this industry has deteriorated channel performance. There is growing need to research on how to enhance channel performance and ensure benefit of channel members. Focus of related research is shifting from customers to relationship marketing, forming a trend in theoretical research on brand relationship. Branding is a fundamental element for competitive advantage and value creation for business today. Setting up a high-value brand in highly-competitive marketing environment has been the focus of marketers. Brand community research based on customer relationship also becomes the new hotspot in theoretical research on brand relationship. Existing research on relationship marketing only takes channel relationship or customer relationship into account. Research on channel relationship seldom consider the influence of final consumers on channel performance while research on final consumers usually ignore the channel relationship, setting apart these two most significant players in relationship marketing rather than combine them together. In fact, channel and end user are interactive. Discontinuity in channel relationships will affect customer experience brought by the products or service to end user, while review and purchase on products or service by final consumers will influence the performance of channel members. Considering the limitations of existing research, this article researched the potential mutual influence between channel relationship and customer relationship for the first time. Based on theory of channel relationship and customer relationship, including the manufacturers’ non-direct-profit relationship investment to end users by leveraging brand community, it proposes the industry brand community-oriented channel relationship model. Integrating these two factors in relationship marketing would bring new perspective and reference for related research. Based on proposed research model, this article gains scale through reference to related research, qualitative analysis and pretest. Based on field research on retailers and end users in replacement market for truck and bus tyre industry in China, using statistical analysis such as CFA(Confirmatory factor analysis), structure equation modeling and regression equation, the findings of positive research on industry brand community-oriented channel relationship model proposed by this article are listed as below. 1) Not only channel relationship influences channel performance, brand community based on end user relationship also influences channel performance, which is consistent with the proposition of this article. 2) Theories regarding channel relationship marketing and customer relationship marketing are applicable to truck and bus tyre industry in China. 3) Non-direct-profit RSIs by manufacturers would indirectly influence channel performance through brand community integration Based on literature review, model proposition and positive finding, the theoretical and practical contribution of this article includes the following aspects. 1) In the research of relationship marketing, not only the interactive influence of different B2B channel players shall be included, end users’ influence shall be considered as well. ‘Push’ strategy shall integrate with ‘pull’ strategy. Research on end users and channels could be integrated through brand community integration, which would be complimentary to existing research, also could be theoretical reference and practical guide to marketing practice. 2) This positive research proves that theories of relationship marketing is applicable to tyre industry in China. China’s market is unique and tyre industry has its own features compared to other industries. This research finds that trust and commitment of channel members and relationship investment by seller significantly influence the channel member performance. External environment has a moderating effect on channel member performance. Therefore, manufacturer shall pay attention to external environment, especially market diversity and changing environment, to adjust strategy accordingly. Manufacturer shall also communicate with agents and retailor to enhance trust and commitment. This article provides positive evidence and reference for relationship marketing theory. 3) This thesis contributes to clarify how manufactures’ non-direct-profit RSIs influence performance by retailor and other channel members. It is proved that although manufactures do not face consumers directly, its non-direct-profit RSIs will affect the end users’ trust and commitment to company and brand, and further influence their brand community identity, and ultimately channel members’ performance. 4) This research proposes comprehensive model on industry goods relationship marketing from theory, which is highly relevant for industry goods relationship marketing in China. Industry goods has its unique features. Manufacturer shall ensure channel member’s performance by outstanding channel relationship marketing, as well as form brand community integration through relationship investment on end user, to improve channel member’s performance and sales. Research has shown that the “push strategy” and “pull strategy” could organically combined and this conclusion provides theoretical guide and practical suggestion for companies’ marketing

The Relationship of Online Brand Community, Value Creation Practices, Brand Trust, and Brand Loyalty

Objective: Companies are realizing the potential of the online brand community to increase consumer relationships. Online Brand community keeps customers using the company's products through all community activities. This study investigates the effect of the activity in the online brand community on value co-creation practices to create brand trust and brand loyalty. Design/Methods/Approach: An online survey was conducted by distributing a questionnaire among 319 members of an online brand community. The collected data was analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). Findings: Online brand communities influence value co-creation practices (social networking, community engagement, impression management, and brand use). In this study, social networking and impression management influence brand trust and brand loyalty. However, community engagement and brand use do not affect brand trust. The role of brand trust affects the creation of brand loyalty in online brand community members. Originality/Value: This study examines the effect of value co-creation practices in online brand communities on brand trust and brand loyalty in brand communities found in one country with a high collectivity level. Not all community value co-creation activities have the effect of creating brand trust due to conditions within the community. Practical/Policy implication: The practical implication is to guide marketers to pay attention to some value co-creation activities in online brand communities that can create brand trust in brand communities with a high culture of collectivity. Companies understand the dynamics of online brand communities and relevant strategies in high collectivity cultures, as well as leveraging the potential of social networks while overcoming the challenges posed by the abundance of information on the internet