Using Social Media for Business Communication: A Symbolic Interaction Perspective

It is important to understand the symbolic meaning of social media perceived by users in a particular communication context, as it may completely deviate from designers’ original intentions. In the exploratory case study of Moon Struck hotel in China, we investigate how customers interpret this hotel’s use of WeChat (the most dominate instant messaging tool in China) for business communication and how customers respond to messages received from WeChat in this context. Leveraging the symbolic interaction perspective, we report that customers’ interpretation towards the symbolic meaning of WeChat varies across personal and business communication contexts, and subsequently affects customers’ usage behaviour of WeChat. Drawing on in-depth interviews with 12 selected followers of the hotel’s WeChat account, as well as company executives at this hotel, we identify the key findings and discuss the theoretical implications and practical recommendations

How to Retain Consumers: A Trust-Commitment Model

Although studies on the determinants of consumers’ continuance intention in e-marketplaces have grown in recent years, the research is predominantly related to unidimensional trust and commitment. In this research, the authors focus on the distinct roles of different types of consumer trust and commitment on consumers’ continuance intention. Drawing upon organizational commitment and trust theories, we develop a continuance intention model that includes two types of trust and two types of commitments. We collected a sample of 287 online consumers to validate the theoretical model. Our data suggest that consumers’ trust and commitment positively affect their continuance intention. Our study also indicates that the psychological states underlying the commitments are different. Key findings and implications are discussed

The Role of Swift Relationship and Institutional Structures in Uncertainty Reduction

Uncertainty has been regarded as the most prominent barrier in ecommerce. However, how communication between buyers and seller contributes to a reduction in uncertainty is under-investigated. Integrating uncertainty reduction theory and relational contract theory, we develop a model that explain how various communication strategies will reduce uncertainty in transactions so as to encourage purchase behavior. In addition, we also explore the role of swift relationships and institutional structures during the uncertainty reduction process, surveying real buyers as data subjects. The study advances our understanding of communication strategies by specifying the e-commerce context to explore how communication can facilitate purchase behavior through uncertainty reduction. We propose that the communication process between individual buyers and sellers may be moderated by both formal and relational contracts. Also, we add to the existing literature by investigating whether formal contracts will affect a relational contract’s impact in the online shopping context

Does IT matter for work meaningfulness?: Exploring the mediating role of job crafting

Purpose: This study aims to investigate how technology characteristics facilitate employees' work meaningfulness through job crafting. Design/methodology/approach: This study applies the survey method and collects data from 357 Chinese participants with the experience of using information technology (IT) at work. Findings: Technology characteristics (i.e. technology reconfigurability and technology customization) enable employees to craft their jobs, contributing to work meaningfulness. Research limitations/implications: It remains to be seen whether the findings can be generalized to other cultural contexts. This study justifies the positive effects of IT but does not take into consideration the IT factors that might thwart job crafting. Practical implications: IT is not merely a work tool. It is a contextual component strongly conducive to cultivating work meaningfulness. However, IT itself cannot directly lead to work meaningfulness. Instead, its contribution to job crafting matters. Originality/value: The literature on the downstream impact of IT has yet to consider the value of IT for job crafting and work meaningfulness. This study verifies that job crafting is the linking mechanism between IT and work meaningfulness

Does IT matter for work meaningfulness?: Exploring the mediating role of job crafting

Purpose: This study aims to investigate how technology characteristics facilitate employees' work meaningfulness through job crafting. Design/methodology/approach: This study applies the survey method and collects data from 357 Chinese participants with the experience of using information technology (IT) at work. Findings: Technology characteristics (i.e. technology reconfigurability and technology customization) enable employees to craft their jobs, contributing to work meaningfulness. Research limitations/implications: It remains to be seen whether the findings can be generalized to other cultural contexts. This study justifies the positive effects of IT but does not take into consideration the IT factors that might thwart job crafting. Practical implications: IT is not merely a work tool. It is a contextual component strongly conducive to cultivating work meaningfulness. However, IT itself cannot directly lead to work meaningfulness. Instead, its contribution to job crafting matters. Originality/value: The literature on the downstream impact of IT has yet to consider the value of IT for job crafting and work meaningfulness. This study verifies that job crafting is the linking mechanism between IT and work meaningfulness

Media or message, which is the king in social commerce?: An empirical study of participants' intention to repost marketing messages on social media

Grounded on the stimulus-organism-response (S-O-R) framework, we develop a research model by proposing participants' perceived utilitarian and hedonic value as the two key mediating mechanisms to transmit the effects of marketing stimuli and social media stimuli on participants' intention to repost a marketing message on social media. The survey data of 402 participants largely support the proposed research model. Interestingly, our data also suggest that marketing stimuli has more salient effects in predicting participants' reposting intention when compared to social media stimuli. We discuss the implications of these results in the context of social commerce