Dynamics Between Social Tie Strength, Customer Involvement and E-Commerce Value Co-Creation

Abstract

The advantage to conceptualize value together with the firm’s customers has been documented to be one that differentiates the future of any enterprise. This challenges companies to engage their customers to participate in the value co-creation process. In consonance with the service-dominant logic, human interactions play a critical role in defining and concretizing the future of an enterprise. Strong ties need to be present for value co-creation to work. The concept of social tie strength, which was originally postulated by Granovetter (1973), encapsulates observed behaviors that define the intensity of social ties that exist between the company and its customers. Through Structural Equation Modelling, the researchers examined the dynamics of the relationship that exists between social tie strength and value co-creation. It further analyzes the role of customer involvement as a mediator to these two main concepts. The research tries to understand if customer involvement amplifies the effect of social tie strength in the value co-creation process. As traditional commerce migrates online, the tendency of companies is to automate things which predominantly were human touchpoints. The researchers emphatically believes that there are certain touchpoints that should not be left automated as this will eradicate the company’s opportunities to work with their customers. Even if AI tools such as chatbots are becoming more efficient, the human aspect in any business transaction cannot be undermined. This claim was validated by the research findings that social tie strength relates to value co-creation and this relationship is positively mediated by customer involvement.