Antecedents of consumer attitudes’ toward corporate blogs

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine the antecedents of consumers’ attitude toward corporate blogs. The antecedents include credibility, involvement and attitude toward the corporation. Blog is one marketing communications tool that has seen considerable growth in the past few years. Understanding the antecedents of attitudes toward corporate blogs may benefit practitioners responsible for communications strategies.Design/methodology/approachA pilot study was conducted to address any issues with the survey or stimuli. The main study involved 219 participants that viewed a corporate blog in a lab and then completed a survey. The data were analyzed using moderated regression.FindingsThe results show blogging involvement, blog credibility and attitude toward the corporation are related to attitude toward the corporate blog. Corporate image consistency did not moderate the relationship between attitude toward the corporation are attitude toward the corporate blog.Research limitations/implicationsThis study used a convenience sample thus reducing the generalizability of the findings. The stimulus was limited to a well-known electronics firm. The findings may differ for other product categories and organizations.Practical implicationsMarketing communications strategies are becoming more dependent on social media to reach target audiences. When using social media, organizations should focus on building credibility of their blogs. Social media strategies should consider target markets that are more involved with the specific social media.Originality/valueThis study examines the importance of involvement, credibility and attitude toward the corporation in the context of corporate blogging.