Exploring the relative importance of customers’ perceived relationship benefits and costs in the context of an e-service

This paper explores the customers’ expectations and perceptions of relational benefits and costs, in the context of a non-merchant informational e-service. It further tests the effect of perceived relational benefits and costs on customers’ overall evaluation of the service. Quantitative data were collected with the use of an e-questionnaire from 444 users of the service. Results indicate that all three types of benefits, functional, special treatment and social, have a significant impact on overall evaluation. Regarding costs, only privacy concerns showed a significant but low effect. This work contributes to existing literature by empirically studying relational benefits and relational costs together and examining social benefits in an e-context

Consumer-Brand Relationships in Social Media

The paper focuses on consumer-brand relationships, and attempts to identify what relational benefits and costs consumers-members of social media brand pages perceive. Considering the rapid development of social media and their penetration in business marketing actions, this study is an exploratory step towards the understanding of relational benefits and costs together in the context of social media. A qualitative approach was employed for this study. Data were collected from four focus groups consisting of 32 Greek social media users who are members of popular brand pages on both Facebook and Twitter, providing preliminary evidence about the perceived benefits and costs arising from consumers’ participation in social media brand pages. Results indicate that consumers perceive social benefits, information benefits, time & effort benefits, economic benefits, and personal treatment benefits. Overload, privacy concern, and annoyance are members’ perceived costs from interacting with companies in social media brand pages. The study identifies and proposes several opportunities for company managers, suggesting practices for effective social media handling, towards the enhancement of perceived relational benefits and the reduction of relational costs

Shopping Malls: Just Another Shopping Place? The Case of Physical Environment Quality

A shopping mall is a complex of stores located in a building and it is managed as a single property. This retail format has shown the maximum growth because there, people can find a variety of shopping choices in a friendly and appealing environment, spending their time pleasantly. This issue inspired the implementation of a research paper, whose main objectives are to identify how the physical environment quality affects visitors’ attitude, and whether these feelings influence the visitors’ satisfaction and loyalty. The research frameworks of Ruiz et al. (2004) and Michon et al. (2007) have been applied in order to accomplish the main objectives. Research took place in the city of Larisa, where 229 shopping mall visitors answered a structured questionnaire, forming a representative sample with a response rate of 40%. The findings confirm the hypotheses that visitors’ satisfaction and their emotions are affected by the ambience and design of a shopping mall’s physical environment. Hence, visitors’ loyalty is affected positively by the same reasons. Finally, the managerial implications are discussed, along with the interesting research opportunities arising from this pathfinder work

An Integrative Typology Of Relational Benefits And Costs In Social Media Brand Pages

The paper focuses on consumer-brand relationships in the social media environment, and suggests a typology of the benefits & costs consumers perceive when interacting with social media brand fan pages. Based on a series of focus groups and with the use of an online questionnaire, qualitative and quantitative data were collected from four focus groups and from 1,792 consumers-users of popular brand fan pages on both Facebook and Twitter. Study results indicate that consumers-users of brand fan pages on Facebook and Twitter, perceive social, functional, enjoyment, special treatment, self enhancement, advice, and status benefits. Privacy concern, information overload, and ad irritation are consumers’ perceived costs. As the same seven factors of relational benefits and three factors of relational costs have been confirmed across all Facebook and Twitter brand fan pages, it can be argued that the structure and dimensions of relational benefits and costs are cross-medium and brand invariant, and are perceived in the same way by Facebook and Twitter users. Considering the rapid development of social media and their penetration in business marketing actions, this study contributes to the digital marketing literature by providing a better understanding of relational benefits, relational costs and consumer-brand relationships in a social media context

Do Relationship Building Websites Pay Off? An Investigation Of The Role Of Relational Benefits And Costs Within An FMCG Context

The paper examines whether investments on the development of websites dedicated to broadening the customer-company relationship is a viable strategy. Relational benefits and the, somewhat neglected, relational costs are used as predictors of relational outcomes such as increase at the website loyalty, positive word-of-mouth towards the website, and intentions to increase purchases of company’s products. Results from visitors of a relationship building website developed and sponsored by Procter & Gamble, provide evidence in support of such strategic initiatives for both broadening and strengthening customer-company relationships

The Conceptualisation And Measurement Of Perceived Value In Social Media: The Case Of Facebook Brand Pages

The paper focuses on online consumer-brand relationships and explores how perceived value can be conceptualized and measured in social media brand pages, by identifying the benefits and costs consumers-members of Facebook brand pages perceive. Data were collected from consumers who follow popular brands on Facebook, with the use of a questionnaire that was uploaded on the Facebook fan pages of the two leading companies in Greece. Results indicate that perceived value in social media brand pages can be conceptualized as a second-order construct consisting of seven relational benefits i.e. social, special treatment, self-enhancement, enjoyment, functional and advice benefits, and three relational costs i.e. privacy concern, information overload and ad irritation. Further, this value had a significant impact on fan page relationship quality. The study proposes social media practices towards the enhancement of perceived value, through a balanced delivery of relational benefits and costs

Examining Relational Benefits and Costs in an online non-transactional context

The file attached to this record is the author's final peer reviewed version. The Publisher's final version can be found by following the DOI link.The paper explores which relational benefits and costs are appropriate for capturing relationship-building efforts within the context of informational, non-transactional, websites and assesses their effect on behavioral outcomes. Firstly, a preliminary study consisting of two focus groups was organized in order to identify what relational benefits and costs users perceive. At the second stage, quantitative data were collected with the use of an e-questionnaire from 444 users/members of a well-known FMCG companys informational website. Results, based on Structured Equation Modeling, indicate that users perceive functional, social and special treatment benefits. Functional benefits have the strongest effect on relational outcomes followed by relational costs and social benefits. Special treatment benefits have no significant effect on behavioral outcomes. From a managerial perspective, findings provide initial evidence on how the development of informational websites can be used as a relationship building tool

Brand Strategies in Social Media

The purpose of this paper is to: first, examine why companies create brand pages in social media, how they use them, what policies and strategies they follow, and what outcomes do they expect; and second – from firms’ point of view – how users are benefited from such pages. A qualitative study approach was employed for this study. Data were collected from personal interviews with 14 marketing managers responsible for the social media activity of their company, providing preliminary evidence about the actions firms take, the motivations that led them to getting involved, and the derived outcomes. The main actions of the firm are making prize competitions, announcing new products/services, interacting with fans, providing advice and useful information, and handling customer service issues. The basic motivations are the increasing popularity of social media, competitors’ presence, headquarters’ strategy, and cost reduction pressure. Interact with customers, create/enhance relationships with customers, brand awareness, customer engagement, promote products/increase of sales, and the more targeted acquisition of new customers, were referred to as the main expected outcomes for companies. Given the qualitative nature of the study and the emerging field of research about social media, findings should be considered as preliminary and exploratory. Interviews with companies from more sectors and also with social media users will provide a more comprehensive view of the topic. The paper identifies several opportunities for company managers, suggesting practices for effective social media handling. Considering the rapid development of social media and their penetration in business marketing actions, this paper is an exploratory step toward the ways firms utilize social media channels

Relational Benefits & Costs in Social Media Brand Pages

Attracted by the rapid penetration of social media into society, firms are increasingly using them to offer interactive services to their customers, and to create or enhance their relationships with them. As the number of consumers who join brand pages on social media platforms raises, it brings to the front a new question: What relational benefits and costs arise from customer interactions with brands in social media? Thus, this study is an attempt to identify what benefits and costs users perceive from their participation in social media brand pages. A qualitative study approach was employed for this study. Data were collected from 4 focus groups consisting of 32 social media users who are members of popular brand pages on Facebook and Twitter, providing preliminary evidence about the perceived benefits and costs arising from customers’ participation in social media brand pages. Results indicate that users perceive social benefits, information benefits, time & effort benefits, economic and personal treatment benefits. Overload, loss of privacy, and annoyance are users’ perceived costs when interact with social media brand pages. Given the qualitative nature of the study and the emerging field of research about social media, findings should be considered as preliminary and exploratory. Focus groups and in-depth interviews with more social media users will provide a more comprehensive view of the topic. The study identifies several opportunities for company managers, suggesting practices for effective social media handling towards the enhancement of perceived relational benefits and the shrinkage of perceived relational costs. Considering the rapid development of social media and their penetration in business marketing actions, this study is an exploratory step towards the understanding of relational benefits and costs together in an e-context

Brand Pages on Social Media. What for? Exploratory evidence from digital marketing managers

Considering the rapid development of social media and their penetration in business marketing actions, the changes brought to the firm-customer interactions, and that social interactions are enhanced by social media, it is reasonable to ask a) what actions companies take, what their motivations are, what policies and strategies they follow, and what outcomes do they expect; and b) what social benefits arise from the use of such social media channels. The present work is a part of a study which is in progress. Interviews with two firms that have popular brand pages on Greek social media, present preliminary evidence about the actions firms take, the motivations that led them getting involved, and the derived outcomes. Making prize competitions, promoting new products/services, asking for feedback, and enforcing customers to give them new ideas, are the main firms’ actions. The basic motivations are to strengthen and enhance their relationships with customers, to gain brand awareness and brand loyalty, and implement marketing actions. Word-of-mouth, brand awareness, brand loyalty, increase of sales, and the acquisition of new customers, were referred as the main benefits for companies. Several future research opportunities are suggested to extend these preliminary findings both on the companies’ and customers’ side