OPENING THE SOCIAL MEDIA BLACK BOX - A FEATURE-BASED APPROACH

In this study we analysed 25 social media tools that have a significant penetration in the market, and defined a comprehensive list of features related to social media technologies. Using a grounded approach, we conducted a cluster analyses to organize tools and their features into categories. Groups of tools that share similar capabilities emerged from the data. Finally, we identified similarities in features among tools in the same cluster. The result is a feature-based classification of the social media tools that are available in the market. The paper proposes a set of research questions intended to guide future studies related to social media features within the organization

The use of social media by adults with chronic illness: analysing the support mechanisms of four social media platforms

Social media technologies are increasingly utilized by patients, leading to development of online social groups where patients share experiences and offer support to their peers on these platforms. Yet, there is limited research investigating actual use of social media platforms by patients with chronic illness. In order to gain an understanding of this growing trend, this study conducts a technology feature analysis of the technology features of four of the most used social media tools to date: Facebook, Instagram, Reddit and YouTube in order to determine how the features and mechanisms available on these tools present the key functionalities of these social media tools. We discover that the Uses and Gratifications Framework can augment the Honey Comb framework to examine the features of social media technologies

Towards Social CRM – Scoping the Concept and Guiding Research

Web 2.0 and Social Media (SoMe) provide new opportunities for collaboration and co-value creation which supports a customer-centric management. Social Customer Relationship Management (SCRM) addresses these opportunities and aims at a high stakeholder engagement as a means to establish mutually beneficial relationships. At present, scholars attempt to comprehend what constitutes SCRM. This paper reviews state-of-the-art scholarly literature to provide a consolidated view on the current SCRM knowledge base. It reveals concurrent opinions, diverging perceptions and future directions for research along the dimensions SCRM definitions, objectives and approaches. We conclude that SCRM as a novel concept requires transformational efforts among all organizational parts. Approaches towards SCRM align on organizational determinants, CRM processes, the customer relationship lifecycle or develop conceptual models. We propose that research further explore this domain to progress the understanding of SCRM as basis for corresponding frameworks