33,484 research outputs found
The use of social media in a B2B context
The advent of Web 2.0 has created new ways to communicate, collaborate and share
content (Enders et al. 2008). Social media builds on the technological and ideological
foundations of Web 2.0 (Kaplan and Haenlein 2010) and encompasses the âactivities,
practices, and behaviours among communities of people who gather online to share
information, knowledge, and opinions using conversational mediaâ (Safko and Brake 2009:
6). Social media, or otherwise âuser-generated communicationâ, now represents a prevalent
source of information; it has changed the tools and strategies companies use to
communicate, highlighting that the information control now lies with the customer (Mangold
& Faulds 2009).
Despite the popularity of social media (SM) and in particular social networking sites (SNS),
their importance in shaping commercial online interaction (Mislove et al. 2007) and their
potential to support brands (Christodoulides 2009), research into SNS is very limited, and
focuses largely on the consumer in a B2C domain. To date, there is paucity of systematic
research on how SNS are used by companies, particularly B2B companies, and how they
contribute to brand objectives.
Anecdotal evidence (e.g. Shih 2009) suggests that SM is important for B2B companies. B2B
companies can use SM and specifically SNS such as Facebook and LinkedIn to
communicate with their customers and suppliers, build relationships and trust, as well as to
identify prospective partners in terms of B2B selling (Shih, 2009). Recently, Michaelidou et
al. (2011) examined the usage of SNS by B2B SMEs and identified a number of perceived
benefits including attracting new customers, cultivating relationships, increasing awareness,
communicating brands, receiving feedback and interacting with suppliers. Further, the
adoption of SM by B2B sales forces has been found to improve sales processes and
relationship sales performance (Rodriguez et al. 2012).
This study builds on the limited literature on SM in a B2B context and aims to identify the
extent of SNS usage, perceived benefits and barriers as well as common metrics used by
B2B organisations
The Influence of Culture on Attitudes Towards Humorous Advertising
open access articl
Who\u27s Trending: #NBA vs #NHL
Many professional athletes across a wide variety of sport have obtained celebrity status and as a result, have become human brands much greater than themselves (Carlson and Donavan, 2013). Previous research analyzed specific cases, individual strategies, and consumer behaviors. However, this study has furthered new knowledge by obtaining a comprehensive description of the differing approaches set in place by the National Basketball Association and the National Hockey League with regard to branding of individual athletes on Twitter. The purpose of this study was to determine in which ways do different sport leagues contrast in how they brand athletes on Twitter. A cross-sectional design was employed to adequately collect data needed with a population that consisted of Twitter accounts of MLB and NBA teams. Six teams from both of leagues were sampled and obtained through stratified random sampling based on number of followers to accurately represent the greater population. Secondary quantitative data was collected and analyzed via an independent t-test. Overall, NBA accounts maintained a significantly higher degree of focus on individual athletes than the NHL on Twitter. Because of this, NBA teams maintain a greater connection between fans and players, communicate more information about playersâ personal lives, and have taken advantage of their ability to become the new gatekeeper
The frontlines of brand risk: interview with Patrick Marrinan
Whether it be the NFL, Dove, Wells Fargo, VW or countless othersâmanagers need only open a daily newspaper to see how things can go terribly wrong for brands. Decline can be fast and the landing hard. In a contemporary marketplace where ideologies reign and social media guarantees the spread of (mis)information at light speed, a lot of what we think we know about brand marketing needs to be rethought through a risk-management lens. âFor me, brand risk is any event, action or condition with the potential to damage a brandâs value, thereby making revenue generation and a companyâs market value less than it should or could have been,â Patrick Marrinan, Managing Principal of Marketing Scenario Analytica, states. In his talk with Susan Fournier and Shuba Srinivasan, Patrick illustrates the many facets of a risk that has only begun to be recognized as a serious threat to carefully cultivated brand assets. Here we share what to watch out for and what brands can do to protect against risk.Published versio
Exploring the commercial value of social networks: enhancing consumersâ brand experience through Facebook pages
Purpose â The purpose of this paper is to understand the factors which impact upon the consumersâ
willingness to utilise company Facebook pages and e-word-of mouth by proposing and testing
a conceptual framework which is inspired by theories in marketing and information systems fields.
The authors believe that only by applying both theories will provide a more complete understanding
of the relationship between brand experience and Facebook. The research model attempts to illustrate
the factors according to customersâ intrinsic and extrinsic motivations and their impact on brand
experience, brand Facebook page loyalty and e-word-of-mouth (E-WOM).
Design/methodology/approach â The authors adopted an online survey method for data collection.
The subjects the authors used were Facebook users. The data were collected in Taiwan over spring 2011.
The authors then used the structural equation model to analyse the data collected.
Findings â The findings suggest that users are influenced by the technical characterises of a brand
Facebook page, such as ease of use and usefulness, which might be combated by attempting to reduce
customer effort when accessing Facebook pages. The authors conclude that customer effort influenced
brand experience and consequently loyalty to brand Facebook pages and E-WOM.
Research limitations/implications â The limitations of this study relate to the investigation of
consumer perspectives in a specific geographical context and time frame.
Originality/value â The studyâs contributions are both theoretical and practical, as it offers new
insights into brand experience attitudes in an online environment and useful insights to companies
willing to market themselves on Facebook.
Keywords Marketing, Facebook, Virtual community, Extrinsic motivations, Intrinsic motivations
Paper type Research pape
Impact of Advertising Variability on Building Customer Based Brand Personality under Competitive Environment : Empirical analysis in reference to Mexico
The brand equity is built around brand personality as one of the core dimensions. The psychographic variables like emotions associated with the brand image constitute the personality of a brand. Although the experiences of the consumers with the brand cultivate such personality, advertising plays a dominant role in personality creation. This paper attempts to explore the mechanism that builds brand personality through media communication like advertising and word of mouth. The discussions in the paper integrate advertising variability concepts with brand personality and present viable propositions as managerial implication for building the brand personality considering the variables of marketing communication. The hypotheses set within the integrated framework lead to the construct of advertising model cohesive to the brand personality measures. In building this framework analysis of the concepts of brand equity and advertising, communication, personality and loyalty have been critically examined and tested on the basis of two separate studies conducted in Mexico.Brand personality, Brand Relationship, Adverstising impact
Impact of Advertising Variability on Building Customer Based Brand Personality under Competitive Environment : Empirical analysis in reference to Mexico
The brand equity is built around brand personality as one of the core dimensions. The psychographic variables like emotions associated with the brand image constitute the personality of a brand. Although the experiences of the consumers with the brand cultivate such personality, advertising plays a dominant role in personality creation. This paper attempts to explore the mechanism that builds brand personality through media communication like advertising and word of mouth. The discussions in the paper integrate advertising variability concepts with brand personality and present viable propositions as managerial implication for building the brand personality considering the variables of marketing communication. The hypotheses set within the integrated framework lead to the construct of advertising model cohesive to the brand personality measures. In building this framework analysis of the concepts of brand equity and advertising, communication, personality and loyalty have been critically examined and tested on the basis of two separate studies conducted in Mexico.Brand Personality, Brand Relationship, Advertising Impact
Counterfeit versus original patronage: Do emotional brand attachment, brand involvement, and past experience matter?
To enhance brand performance and to protect original brands from the unprecedented upsurge of counterfeits, marketers are continuously looking for effective anti-counterfeiting methods. Developing and maintaining emotional brand attachment and brand involvement with consumers have become a strategic marketing endeavor of luxury brands. A significant question bearing both theoretical and practical implications, however, is whether emotional brand attachment or brand involvement is more apposite to warrant a luxury brandâs performance and to safeguard the original brand from counterfeits, which remains unanswered. To address this knowledge gap, a survey was conducted. On the basis of an empirical study, this paper reveals that emotional brand attachment is a more prominent influencer than brand involvement to escalate original brand patronage although the effect of brand involvement is also significant. However, while improved brand involvement pushes consumers to patronize counterfeits, higher emotional brand attachment does not result in increased counterfeit patronage. These effects do not vary as a function of previous experience of either originals or counterfeits. Findings of this research contribute to brand literature by presenting empirical evidence of distinct influence of emotional brand attachment over brand involvement, which represents significant practical implications in relation to strategic brand management and anti-counterfeiting strategies
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