Type of the article: Research ArticleAbstractThe rapid adoption of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in advertising raises questions about consumer trust and behavioral responses, particularly in emerging collectivistic markets. This study aims to examine whether AI disclosure in advertising affects purchase intention through trust and whether collectivistic orientation moderates the effect of AI disclosure on trust among Gen Z consumers in Vietnam. Using a between-subjects online experiment and survey, data were collected in Da Nang, Vietnam, from May 1 to May 20, 2025, with 400 Gen Z social media users randomly assigned to an AI disclosure condition or a non-disclosure condition. Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) was applied to test direct, mediated, and moderated effects while controlling for ad authenticity. The results indicate that AI disclosure increases trust (β = 0.469, p < 0.001), and trust positively predicts purchase intention (β = 0.279, p < 0.001). The indirect effect of AI disclosure on purchase intention through trust is significant (β = 0.131, p = 0.001), whereas the direct effect on purchase intention is not significant (β = -0.091, p = 0.093). Collectivistic orientation weakens the AI disclosure-trust relationship (β = -0.068, p = 0.018). Ad authenticity remains a strong predictor of purchase intention (β = 0.646, p < 0.001). These findings suggest that transparency can build trust, but its effectiveness depends on cultural orientation, implying that managers should combine AI disclosure with authenticity cues in collectivistic settings.

Type of the article: Research ArticleAbstractThis paper examines how marketing capability and product advantage influence market performance in creative culinary SMEs operating in North Sumatra, Indonesia. Recognizing that internal strategic resources must align with consumer perceptions to drive success, the study positions perceptual product congruity as a psychological mediator linking organizational capabilities to market outcomes. Using Partial Least Squares-Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) with data from 334 culinary businesses, the analysis reveals three key direct effects: marketing capability on perceptual product congruity (β = 0.413; f² = 0.218), product advantage on perceptual product congruity (β = 0.369; f² = 0.146), and perceptual product congruity on market performance (β = 0.456; f² = 0.239). Importantly, perceptual product congruity also mediates the relationships between marketing capability and performance (β = 0.144, p = 0.001) and between product advantage and performance (β = 0.162, p < 0.001). These findings demonstrate that psychological alignment between products and consumer identity drives performance, particularly for culturally meaningful offerings like traditional culinary products. The research extends self-image congruity theory to resource-constrained SMEs in emerging markets while offering practical guidance for perception-based marketing strategies that leverage cultural narratives and identity alignment.

Type of the article: Research ArticleAbstractIn the context of Vietnam’s rapidly expanding digital ecosystem, understanding how psychological differences shape brand cognition among Generation Z has become increasingly important. This study aims to examine the influence of the Big Five personality traits on brand awareness across major digital touchpoints, addressing the limited empirical evidence from emerging markets. A quantitative survey was conducted in January 2025 with 898 Gen Z consumers residing in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. Using Cronbach’s Alpha, Exploratory Factor Analysis, and multiple regression, the study assessed the reliability of measurement scales and the effects of personality traits on brand awareness indicators derived from Aaker’s (1991) framework. The findings show that four personality traits – openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, and neuroticism – positively and significantly predict brand awareness on digital platforms (β = 0.171–0.250; p < 0.001). Conscientiousness exhibits the strongest impact (β = 0.250), followed by neuroticism (β = 0.240), extraversion (β = 0.224), and openness (β = 0.171). Agreeableness does not demonstrate adequate construct validity and is excluded from the final model. Additional analyses using ANOVA reveal significant differences in brand awareness across regions but not across genders. These results illustrate that personality-driven tendencies, such as exploratory behavior, systematic information processing, social interaction, and risk-avoidance, play a substantial role in determining how frequently and effectively young consumers encode brand cues in digital environments. The study concludes that integrating personality insights into digital brand communication strategies can enhance relevance, memorability, and consumer-brand alignment, especially within dynamic Gen Z segments.Acknowledgment(s)The researchers express sincere gratitude to all the participants who generously participated in this study.

Type of the article: Research ArticleAbstractThe COVID-19 boosted the adoption of mobile wallets, which resulted in heightened competition among the digital payment providers, and customer loyalty became a decisive factor to remain in use. This paper examines customer loyalty determinants to mobile wallet applications in Jordan by applying the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) to determine trust, information quality, perceived security, customer engagement, and moderating effect of engagement. Online survey of the users of mobile wallets in Amman, Jordan, from January to April 2025, was used to collect the data that consisted of 365 valid responses. The proposed model was tested using the Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). The findings have shown significant positive impact of customer loyalty on perceived usefulness (β = 0.24, p = 0.001), perceived ease of use (β = 0.21, p = 0.001), information quality (β = 0.18, p = 0.003), trust (β = 0.27, p = 0.001), perceived security (β = 0.22, p = 0.001), and customer engagement (β = 0.20, p = 0.00). The customer engagement has a moderate moderating effect on the relationships between the perceived usefulness and loyalty (β = 0.130, p = 0.006) and between the trust and the loyalty (β = 0.150, p = 0.001), but other paths do not have significant moderating effect. The model describes 64% in customer loyalty. The results show the significance of functional value, trust, and customer engagement in maintaining mobile wallets use in emerging economies and empirically support the idea of extending TAM to digital financial services setting.

Type of the article: Research ArticleAbstractOrganizational agility and service innovation have become critical strategies for strengthening customer-based brand equity in highly competitive hospitality markets. However, how customers perceive firms’ dynamic capabilities and how such perceptions translate into brand-related outcomes remains insufficiently understood. Drawing on perception-based extensions of dynamic capabilities theory, this study examines the direct and indirect effects of customer-perceived dynamic capabilities on customer-based brand equity, with customer-perceived service innovation as a mediating mechanism, in the Indonesian hotel industry. Data were collected from 340 customers who stayed at three- to five-star hotels in Indonesia between June and August 2024 using a structured questionnaire. Two-stage Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) approach was employed to test the proposed relationships. The results indicate that customer-perceived dynamic capabilities have a significant positive effect on customer-based brand equity (β = 0.389, p < 0.001) and on customer-perceived service innovation (β = 0.768, p < 0.001). Customer-perceived service innovation positively influences customer-based brand equity (β = 0.309, p < 0.001) and partially mediates the relationship between dynamic capabilities and brand equity. Existing brand strength positively moderates the relationship between customer-perceived dynamic capabilities and perceived service innovation (β = 0.109, p < 0.001), while no moderating effect is observed between service innovation and brand equity. The model explains 77.78% of the variance in customer-based brand equity and 68.10% of the variance in customer-perceived service innovation. These findings demonstrate that dynamic capabilities contribute to brand equity not only through innovation outcomes but also as customer-recognized signals of organizational adaptability in service-intensive contexts.AcknowledgmentThe authors declare that there is no conflict of interest. The study received no external funding. All authors contributed equally to the conceptualization, analysis, and writing of this paper. 

Type of the article: Research ArticleAbstractThe growing competitiveness of India’s FMCG personal care sector has increased the strategic importance of strengthening Consumer-Based Brand Equity (CBBE), particularly in categories with high product similarity and low switching costs. Under-standing the determinants of brand equity is therefore essential for guiding brand differentiation and long-term consumer loyalty. This study aims to identify and examine the determinants of consumer-based brand equity in the FMCG personal care sector using PLS-SEM. Primary data were collected from 1,137 consumers across five major Indian regions between October 2024 and March 2025 using purposive sampling and structured questionnaire. Eight constructs and sixteen hypotheses were tested using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling. The results show strong and statistically significant effects across all hypothesized paths (p < 0.001). Brand association demonstrated the strongest influence on brand preference (β = 0.400, t = 12.633), while brand awareness had its highest effect on brand trust (β = 0.333, t = 9.912). Perceived quality showed the strongest influence on brand experience (β = 0.261, t = 7.970). The mediating constructs — brand experience, preference, trust, and loyalty — significantly predicted overall brand equity, with brand trust exerting the greatest influence (β = 0.242, t = 6.034). The model demonstrated substantial explanatory power, with R² values ranging from 0.425 to 0.491, and acceptable model fit (SRMR = 0.054; NFI = 0.765). The results establish that cognitive and experiential brand drivers jointly shape CBBE, offering actionable insights for marketers aiming to strengthen loyalty and competitive positioning in the Indian FMCG personal care market.

Type of the article: Research ArticleAbstractVietnam’s rapid transition toward cashless payments offers a pertinent context for examining post-adoption behavior in digital finance. This study investigates the determinants of customer satisfaction and loyalty among MoMo e-wallet users, with particular attention to the mediating role of satisfaction and the moderating influence of the Urban-Rural Digital Divide. A cross-sectional survey of 1,015 active users across Vietnam’s North, Central, and South regions was conducted from September 2023 to September 2024 using both online and offline methods. Integrating TAM, UTAUT2, SERVQUAL, and Expectation-Confirmation Theory, the model includes perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, trust, service quality, social influence, hedonic motivation, and regulatory awareness as antecedents of satisfaction and loyalty. Covariance-based structural equation modeling and multi-group analysis were employed to test the hypothesized relationships.The findings confirm the central mediating role of satisfaction: service quality, trust, perceived usefulness, hedonic motiva-tion, and regulatory awareness significantly enhance satisfaction, which in turn strongly predicts loyalty. Loyalty is additionally shaped by service quality, trust, social influence, and perceived ease of use. Perceived ease of use and social influence do not significantly influence satisfaction, indicating that these factors diminish in importance as users gain experience. The Urban-Rural Digital Divide moderates several relationships, with rural users placing greater emphasis on trust and hedonic motivation, whereas urban users prioritize perceived usefulness and regulatory awareness. The study contributes to post-adoption FinTech research and provides context-specific implications for improving service performance, regulatory communication, and digital financial inclusion in Vietnam.AcknowledgmentThis study would not have been possible without the support and guidance of several individuals and organizations. We extend our sincere gratitude to Thuyloi University; International school- Vietnam National University, Hanoi, and Banking Academy of Vietnam for providing the academic environment and financial support that made this research possible.Furthermore, we would like to express our gratitude to our family and friends for their unwavering support and encourage-ment throughout this research journey.

Type of the article: Research ArticleAbstractNowadays, shopping on e-commerce platforms has become a prevailing consumption trend among young consumers, particularly Generation Z (Gen Z), due to rapid digitalization and changes in consumption behavior. This study aims to examine the effects of online shopping convenience, trust in retailers, and sales promotion on Gen Z’s online repurchase intention, while specifically investigating the mediating role of customer satisfaction in the relationship between online shopping convenience and repurchase intention. Data from 282 Gen Z respondents, who are regular online shoppers in Vietnam, were analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) to examine the underlying relationships. The results reveal that online shopping convenience has a strong positive effect on customer satisfaction (β = 0.530, p < 0.01), while satisfaction significantly enhances Gen Z’s repurchase intention (β = 0.232, p < 0.05). The indirect effect of convenience on repurchase intention through satisfaction is statistically significant (β = 0.123, p < 0.05), confirming the mediating role of satisfaction. Besides, trust in retailers positively influences repurchase intention (β = 0.158, p < 0.05), whereas sales promotion does not show a significant effect (β = 0.021, ns). These findings highlight the central role of customer satisfaction and trust in shaping Gen Z’s online repurchase intention, indicating that experience-driven value creation exerts a stronger influence than short-term promotional incentives in sustaining consumer loyalty within emerging e-commerce markets. This study offers practical managerial implications for optimizing digital marketing strategies in an increasingly competitive online environment.AcknowledgmentThe authors express a sincere gratitude to all the participants who generously took part in this research study.

Type of the article: Research ArticleAbstractThe rapid growth of Muslim-friendly tourism has intensified competition among halal destinations, making effective digital communication and trust-building mechanisms increasingly important. User-Generated Content (UGC) and religiosity are considered important factors influencing Muslim tourists’ decision-making processes; however, empirical evidence on their combined effects remains limited. This study aims to examine the influence of UGC on travel decisions to Muslim-friendly tourism destinations, with tourists’ expectations as a mediating variable and religiosity as a moderating variable. This study employed a quantitative approach, utilizing primary data collected in between June and August 2025 through structured questionnaires administered to 400 Muslim tourists visiting Muslim-friendly destinations in East Java, Indonesia. The data were analyzed using Partial Least Squares–Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) to test direct, mediation, and moderation relationships. The results indicate that UGC has a positive and significant influence on tourists’ expectations and visit decisions. Tourist expectations also showed a significant positive influence on visit decisions and acted as a partial mediator in the relationship between UGC and visit decisions, confirming its central role in shaping travel behavior. Conversely, religiosity was found not to strengthen the relationship between tourist expectations and visit decisions, suggesting that highly religious tourists rely less on experiential expectations when making travel choices. These findings imply that halal destination managers should prioritize credible and emotionally engaging UGC strategies while considering varying levels of tourist religiosity. This study provides new empirical evidence by highlighting the moderating role of religiosity in Muslim-friendly tourism decision-making.AcknowledgmentsThe authors would like to express their sincere gratitude to all parties who have supported this research, notably the Fundamental Research Grant Scheme funded by the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, and Technology; Universitas Brawijaya and Technology and the Centre for Higher Education Funding and Assessment (PPAPT) of the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, and Technology and the Indonesia Endowment Fund for Education Agency (LPDP).

Type of the article: Research ArticleAbstractThe Indonesian cocoa sector faces a significant gap between traditional sustainability practices and the necessity of digital transformation. This study aims to analyze the extent to which multidimensional sustainable marketing practices catalyze digital entrepreneurial intentions among small-scale cocoa producers in Indonesia through the mediating role of perceived usefulness. Utilizing a quantitative cross-sectional design, empirical data were collected between January and August 2025 from a purposive sample of 420 small-scale cocoa producers in the central production of West Sulawesi, Indonesia. This sample was selected because these individuals are direct targets of national sustainability programs and have basic digital literacy. Through Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) using SmartPLS 4, the analysis substantiates that sustainable marketing significantly influences perceived usefulness 0.582 and digital entrepreneurial intention 0.253. Furthermore, perceived usefulness was found to be a robust mediator 0.274. The model explains 51.2% of the variance in digital entrepreneurial intention R² = 0.512. Practically, these results demonstrate that sustainability programs serve as a strategic catalyst that reframes digital technology as a useful tool for economic gain, rather than just an ethical obligation. Consequently, fostering digital transformation in agriculture requires holistic interventions that combine socioeconomic empowerment with targeted digital literacy.