Online Brand Communities Research Articles

Drivers and outcomes of online customer engagement – evidence from Balkan countries

PurposeDue to the worldwide internet usage and online presence of businesses, digital marketing is an integrated part of the overall marketing strategy. One of the main investments in this field is the investment on more creative content that engages more potential customers. Online brand communities (OBCs) are used by businesses as a tool to have higher rates of engagement. Many researchers have developed customer engagement (CE) models to better understand it, but the transition economies like the countries of the Balkan are somehow left aside. Due to this identified gap in the literature, this paper aims to provide a model explaining the drivers and outcomes of CE, specifically on OBCs.Design/methodology/approachThe research is based on primary data collected with an online questionnaire. Sample consisted of 764 respondents from four Balkan countries (Kosovo, North Macedonia, Albania and Montenegro). Data were analyzed using SPSS Statistics and IBM AMOS 26. To test the research model and hypotheses, confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling were used.FindingsFirst, the study found a positive impact of entertainment and customer satisfaction, and celebrities’ endorsement in CE. Furthermore, the results revealed a positive impact of CE on customer purchase intention and customer loyalty.Practical implicationsThe research findings aim to help businesses of Balkan countries to better understand the importance and operation of CE in OBC.Originality/valueThis paper enriches the existing digital marketing literature of transition economies with a model of online CE.

Do “Likes” in a Brand Community Always Make You Buy More?

Online brand communities often use social plug-in features, such as the Like button, to facilitate social interactions and engage users with the brands. However, whether and how such a community feature affects users’ purchases remain open questions. Analysis of user behavior following the adoption of the Like feature indicates a surprising downturn in purchases, with a 4.1% decrease in orders and a 25.0% reduction in expenditure. Notably, online purchases dip by 3.4% in order numbers and 21.1% in expenditure, with a slighter offline decrease. The treatment effect of the adoption is not always negative but varies over time and across users. First, the Like feature adoption has a positive effect on users’ purchases in the first two months (primarily through enhancing their community participation), and the treatment effect turns negative in subsequent months, leading to the overall negative treatment effect on purchases. Second, the negative treatment effect likely stems from unflattering social comparison and can become weaker or even positive when users accrue more Likes. However, only a small proportion of users receive sufficient Likes to be motivated to purchase more. Our results caution against potential downsides of the Like feature in online communities and provide valuable managerial implications.

AI-driven sustainability brand activism for family businesses: a future-proofing perspective article

PurposeArtificial intelligence (AI) and sustainable business represent the irrefutable future of all forward looking businesses in the world today. In this perspective article, the authors explore the confluence of these important topics by highlighting the role of family businesses in advancing sustainable brand activism aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs), like SDG 1, which emphasises poverty eradication. The authors fall on the transformative potential of artificial intelligence (AI) and online brand communities in family businesses as an anchor for promoting sustainability practices that align with UNSDGs.Design/methodology/approachUsing literature review, the authors fall on the transformative potential of AI and online brand communities in family businesses as an anchor for promoting sustainability practices that align with UNSDGs.FindingsScholarly research on AI-driven sustainability brand activism in family businesses is either limited or nonexistent. Family businesses have a unique opportunity to use AI for eco-friendly operations, personalised brand engagement, eco-friendly product development, global collaborations and education and advocacy in support of the UNSDGs. Future research could look at how family businesses align their values, their long-term effects, how they work across generations, how resilient and flexible they are and how they compare to non-family businesses when it comes to using AI and brand activism as long-term strategies for sustainability and survival.Originality/valueThe authors call for family businesses, governments and stakeholders to take theoretical and practical actions in promoting AI-driven sustainability brand activism aligned with the UNSDGs. It underscores the distinctive role of family businesses in driving sustainability and fostering brand activism through AI in a digital age.

Understanding the formation process of negative customer engagement behaviours: a quantitative and qualitative interpretation

The development of mobile internet has made it easier for negative emotions, cognitions and behaviours expressed by customers to be spread, and the damage caused by negative customer engagement behaviours (NCEBs) to the company's brand value and reputation has gradually been amplified. Therefore, this study aims to explore the formation process of NCEBs in online brand community by combining qualitative method with quantitative method. Xiaomi Community was selected as the data source platform, using Python programming language to crawl users’ comments in ‘11Ultra circle’ and machine learning methods to obtain negative emotional polarity comments. The text coding and classification of negative emotion polarity comments are mainly based on manual coding and supplemented by machine learning. Perform binary logistic regression on the classified data to obtain the impact of various factors on NCEBs. The results showed that there were differences in the impact of different factors on NCEBs. This article obtains a different result from existing literature, that is, cognition and emotion are no longer necessary factors for the generation of NCEBs. Company managers should start with pricing, users’ cognition mining, and identifying and solving key issues reported by users to suppress the occurrence of NCEBs.

The bellwether of community: The influence of lead users' characteristics on ordinary users' participation in online brand communities

AbstractThe traditional lead user theory proposes that lead users are an important source of innovation. However, little is known about how lead users influence other users in online brand communities. Based on the uses and gratifications theory, we introduce ordinary user‐perceived benefits—including cognitive benefits, social integrative benefits, personal integrative benefits, and hedonic benefits—as mediators to explain the relationship between lead users' characteristics and ordinary users' participation in an online brand community. Furthermore, we introduce the hosting type of the brand community (consumer‐run vs. company‐managed brand community) and explain its moderating effect on the relationship between lead users' characteristics and ordinary users' participation. The finding reveals that lead users' characteristics have a significant positive effect on ordinary users' participation, and that the effect is partially mediated by cognitive benefits, social integrative benefits, and personal integrative benefits. Besides, the relationship between lead users' characteristics and ordinary users' participation is stronger for consumer‐run brand communities than for company‐managed brand communities.

Building Lasting Connections: Cultivating Brand loyalty through Relationship and Commitment

Because of the cutthroat rivalry that exists in the fashion sector, customers are faced with a bewildering selection of options, which makes it extremely difficult to win and keep their allegiance. Using the literature on relationship marketing as a jumping off point, this study investigates the dynamic link that exists between "brand trust," "customer satisfaction," "brand evaluation," "brand commitment," "brand relationship," and "brand loyalty" in the context of Pakistan's fashion sector. This study conducts an in-depth analysis of 460 answers from important fashion brand customers in the South Punjab province of Pakistan. The data utilised in this investigation was gathered by means of structured surveys that were carried out using the mall intercept methodology. The use of the Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) technique allows for a comprehensive investigation into the ways in which the variables are related to one another on the basis of well-established theoretical premises. The conclusions of this research have important repercussions for marketing executives and brand managers, since they provide such individuals with useful techniques to strengthen client loyalty. These tactics place a strong emphasis on the management of online brand communities and make use of new technology to strengthen market orientation. They are widely regarded as being essential for the cultivation of "brand loyalty" in the fashion industry.

Consumer response journey following a product‐harm crisis: The role of online brand communities

AbstractOnline brand communities can serve as a crucial information source about a product‐harm crisis and allow consumers to seek information from others and share their opinions in a social dynamic environment. The role of an online brand community in shaping consumer responses following such a crisis nevertheless remains under‐researched. Drawing from attribution theory, this research explores the dynamic and holistic consumer journey in online brand communities following a product‐harm crisis, specifically examining consumer attribution as the key mechanism and consumers' decision to forgive the brand as the outcome response. This research includes two studies. First, a netnographic pilot study is conducted to provide real‐world evidence for the research phenomenon and to explore consumer responses within the natural setting of an online brand community. Second, the main study uses an interpretivist epistemological approach to track the unfolding process and capture the evolution of consumer attribution and forgiveness. The results show the social nature of attribution as members engage with others in online brand communities, seeking and verifying information, sensemaking and forming opinions. The findings make theoretical contributions to the literature on attribution and product‐harm crisis. The findings from the research also help brands make informed decisions on crisis management strategies.

The social side of innovation: peer influence in online brand communities

PurposeOnline brand communities (OBCs) are important platforms to obtain consumers' ideas. The purpose of this study is to examine how peer influence and consumer contribution behavior simulate innovative behaviors in OBCs to increase idea quality.Design/methodology/approachUsing a firm-hosted popular online brand community – Xiaomi Community (MIUI), the authors collected a set of data from 6567 consumers and then used structural equation modeling (SEM) and fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) to empirically test the impact of peer influence and consumer contribution behaviors on idea quality in OBCs.FindingsThe results of this study show that both peer influence breadth and depth have a positive effect on idea adoption and peer recognition, wherein proactive contribution behavior positively mediates these relationships, and responsive contribution behavior negatively mediates the impact of peer influence breadth and peer influence depth on peer recognition. A more detailed analysis using the fsQCA method further identifies four types of antecedent configurations for better idea quality.Originality/valueBased on the attention-based view and the theory of learning by feedback, this study explores the factors that affect idea quality in the context of social networks and extends the research of peer influence in the digital age. The paper helps improve our understanding of how to promote customer idea quality in OBCs.

How Perceptions of Dialogic Communication and Authenticity of CSR Communication Lead to Trust and Brand Loyalty Through Online Brand Community Engagement Intention

ABSTRACT This study investigates the relationship between the perceived quality of dialogic CSR communication and perceived trust and brand loyalty. It explores the potential mediation of online brand community engagement (OBCE) intention and the perceived authenticity of CSR communication in this relationship. A survey was conducted using a representative sample of US adult consumers (N = 1,022). All hypotheses were supported by demonstrating (1) the direct linkage between perceived quality of dialogic communication and perceived authenticity, as well as OBCE intention; (2) the direct connection of OBCE intention to trust and brand loyalty; (3) the indirect linkage between perceived quality of dialogic communication and brand loyalty, which were mediated through OBCE intention and trust. The results affirmed that trust operates as a mediator in the relationship between perceived dialogic communication and brand loyalty. Furthermore, the findings suggest that OBCE intention acts as a catalyst that enhances trust in the company and brand loyalty by heightening the perceived authenticity of dialogic communication.

Role of community trust in driving brand loyalty in large online B2B communities

Purpose Online customer communities have become a strategic tool for business-to-business (B2B) firms to drive collaboration among customers around the company’s products and services. This paper aims to argue that the three social capital dimensions, that is, structural, relational and cognitive, themselves driven by brand community trust, can affect brand loyalty for the organization. Design/methodology/approach The authors use a survey to collect data and structural equation modeling to test the conceptual framework by collecting data from 214 participants across three online B2B communities operated by three technology firms in India. Findings Brand community trust is found to have a strong association with social network ties, identification and norm of reciprocity and shared vision. These three have concomitant effects on the quality of customer-to-customer (C2C) interactions. Such communication generates functional, emotional and social benefits, which, in turn, curate brand loyalty. Practical implications The authors’ findings guide community managers in leveraging such conversations in shaping customer loyalty for the corporate brand. Originality/value This work provides an integrated framework to explain the important role of C2C interactions in B2B online brand communities.

Brand posts and brand co-creation in higher education communities: a social communication process theory

ABSTRACT Creating brand posts that stimulate customer interaction in online communities is both vital and challenging to marketing managers. Using social communication process theoretical framework (i.e. SMCR), the current study examines the impact of brand posts in online brand communities on students’ responses in ways that potentially co-create value for universities and illustrate the moderating role of community types. Results show that source credibility and argument quality of online posts are positively associated with both cognitive and affective response, thus motivating brand co-creation activities, while information quantity has insignificant effect on affective response. Additionally, members of communities managed by different parties (student-created vs university-created communities) exhibit a different tendency to develop community and contribute to brand value. Thus, different digital strategies depending on the type of community host are suggested to capture the highest possible co-creation value from these communities.

Following too much on Facebook brand page: A concept of brand overload and its validation

As consumers increasingly engage in online brand communities, the demand of brand-related activities (e.g., finding relevant product information and sharing product information) also increases. Consumers may feel overwhelmed by these brand-related activities. To provide an understanding of this phenomenon, we conceptualize it as brand overload and then empirically examine its antecedents and consequences based upon the Stimulus-Organism-Response (SOR) framework in the context of online brand community. Using two rounds of surveys to collect data from 409 American consumers, our results show that consumer-generated content and social interaction quality are the primary drivers of information and social overload. Consumer-generated content quality has a quadratic effect on information overload following an inverted U shape. Social interaction quality also significantly affects social overload following an inverted U-shaped relationship. Information and social overload are both positively related to brand overload, which in turn leads to brand disloyalty as the negative consequence. In addition, to supplement the quantitative study, a qualitative study was used to test and substantiate the proposed research model. With its mixed-method design, our study contributes to the literature by proposing the concept of brand overload and empirically investigating its antecedents and consequences from the SOR perspective. Practically, our study delivers insights for companies on how to use online brand communities strategically and efficiently to avoid negative impacts.

Link Prediction Based on Heterogeneous Social Intimacy and Its Application in Social Influencer Integrated Marketing

The social influencer integrated marketing strategy, which builds social influencers through potential users, has gained widespread attention in the industry. Traditional Scoring Link Prediction Algorithms (SLPA) mainly rely on homogeneous network indicators to predict friend relationships, which cannot provide accurate link prediction results in cold-start situations. To overcome these limitations, the Closeness Heterogeneous Link Prediction Algorithm (CHLPA) is proposed, which uses node closeness centrality to describe the social intimacy of nodes and provides a heterogeneous measure of a network based on this. Three types of heterogeneous indicators of social intimacy were proposed based on the principle of three-degree influence. Due to scarce overlapping node sample data, CHLPA uses gradient boosting trees to select the most suitable index, the second most suitable index, and the third most suitable index from Social Intimacy Heterogeneous Indexes (SIHIs) and SLPAs. Then, these indicators are weighted and combined to predict the likelihood of other node users in the two product circles in an online brand community becoming friends with overlapping node users. Finally, a hill-climbing algorithm is designed based on this to build integrated marketing social influencers, and the effectiveness and robustness of the algorithm are validated.

From Korea to the world: women’s role as peer-leaders in K-pop transnational online brand communities

ABSTRACT Focusing on online brand communities (OBCs) centred around K-pop music consumption, this study explores the influential role of women as peer-leaders. By analysing data from Twitter using social network analysis (SNA) and sentiment analysis techniques, we observe that (1) OBCs naturally form transnational consumer segments, (2) where peer leadership emerges organically, and (3) women often occupy these leadership positions due to their social capital and engagement in relevant conversation topics. This study contributes to demonstrating the increasing empowerment of women in a realm that has long been criticized for its portrayal of gender-related issues.

Layers of love – exploring the interactive layers of brand love in the social media setting

PurposeThis study aims to add to the understanding of the interactive nature of brand love by using a multilayer perspective that incorporates individual, group and societal contexts.Design/methodology/approachThe qualitative empirical study uses abductive reasoning. Its theories and conclusions are grounded in naturally occurring data from an online brand community. The approach revealed new interactive processes of brand love.FindingsThis study extends our understanding of the interactive nature of brand love by adopting a layered perspective incorporating micro- (individual), meso- (in-group), macro- (in-group vs out-group) and mega-layer (societal) social dynamics that complements the predominant focus on individual psychological processes. It challenges the linear, monodirectional trajectory approach to brand love, suggesting that brand love is in constant flux as individuals move across the layers in their identification with the brand.Research limitations/implicationsThis study provides data from one destination brand in Finland. Future studies could consider other types of brands and contexts in other countries and cultures.Practical implicationsThis study shows brand managers that brand lovers can be divided into subgroups with distinct drivers of their love to which brand managers should attend.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first attempt to describe the interactive nature of brand love through interactions between and within four layers of brand love. Furthermore, this study enhances our understanding of the contradictory aspects of brand love.

Is Digital Social Communication Effective for Social Relationship? A Study of Online Brand Communities

The rise of the Internet has enabled the consumers to share their brand related emotion in social media brand communities. Members of brand communities frequently use the company’s intellectual and cultural assets, which further foster the forming of close bonds. It improves community members’ social ties and reciprocity standards. As a result, the brand community members become more cooperative. The stimulus-organism-response paradigm has been followed as theoretical framework to determine consumers’ social participation as stimuli which affect their social capital—bridging and bonding (organism) that ultimately improves their brand commitment (response). Select Facebook brand communities provided the data for this investigation. Also, structural equation modeling, which uses different fit indices to test the theoretical framework, has been done. Innovative aspect of this study is how online social interactions between consumer brand communities influence consumers’ social capital, which in turn influences consumers’ brand attitude. Additionally, by creating brand communities for their brands, brand managers can capitalize on the satisfactions of the members. Based on the uses and gratification theory, the study that highlights members’ desire to participate in brand communities’ events can be used by brand managers to advance their businesses.

Modelling the Effects of Social Media–based Brand Communities on Brand Trust, Brand Equity and Consumer Response

Social media platforms help brands connect with their customers online, and a social media -based brand community (SMBBC) enable brand attachments to particular brands. These brand communities enhance consumer relationships, increase customer advocacy, discover customer problems, and generate unique product and marketing ideas. In the context of Social Identity Theory and SOR framework (stimulus-organism-response), the present study explored the influence of customer-centric elements (the four relationships) on an online brand community that affect and provoke members’ conscious brains to get into action. The study further examines the impact of SMMBC on brand trust and brand equity variables (brand awareness, perceived quality, brand association and brand loyalty) and, consequently, on customer response (purchase intention, response to brand extension and willingness to pay a premium). A self-administered online survey was conducted to collect data on all selected brands. The brands were selected using a stratified sampling method, and the stratum used was the number of fans following the brands. The top three brands with the highest fan following from 15 sectors were picked. The study selected 384 final responses after the data screening procedure. SPSS version 26 and AMOS graphics were used for testing hypothesised relationship. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was conducted to ensure that the selected scale items were appropriately loaded, followed by measurement model’s reliability and validity testing using Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The findings of SEM analysis conclude that customer-centric elements are significant determinants of the online brand community. The results also confirmed that strengthening SMBBC leads to higher brand trust and positively influences all brand equity dimensions. In addition, the research study found that positive brand equity results in favourable consumer responses. This study contributes theoretically to past studies on brand community and customer response, mainly in social media. The findings are helpful for managers to design and manage their online brand communities effectively and to elicit more positive responses.

Consumer-to-consumer conflicts and brand moderation strategies during COVID-19 service failures: a framework for international marketers

PurposeSince the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, one dark social-media phenomenon in particular has experienced a significant rise: consumer-to-consumer (C2C) conflicts, i.e. consumers who verbally attack each other in response to COVID-19 service failures. The aim of this paper is to uncover the sources of such conflicts and to gain an insight into the corresponding conflict moderation strategies that international brands adopt.Design/methodology/approachThe methodology consists of non-participatory netnographic observations of 13 national, international, and global online brand communities (OBCs) on Facebook. The authors use purposeful sampling to collect relevant data on conflict sources and brand moderation strategies during COVID-19 service failures and a hybrid approach to thematic analysis to derive distinct themes from these data.FindingsThe paper identifies five C2C conflict sources: brand attack, brand dissatisfaction, brand skepticism, brand contention and brand defense; these are then classified as having either an individualistic (self-oriented) or collectivistic (other-oriented) orientation. The authors also uncover several moderation strategies: non-engaging, automated, bolstering, asserting (direct, indirect) and informing (factual, empathetic, apologetic), which are broadly categorized into two levels based on their passive vs active approach and authoritative vs cooperative orientation. The paper further highlights that brands adapt their moderation strategies to specific sources of C2C conflicts, thereby producing a range of OBC outcomes.Practical implicationsThe study's empirically informed framework comprising sources of undesirable conflicts and brand moderation strategies offers a practical tool that can aid marketing managers in nurturing civil C2C engagement and interactive behaviors in their OBCs. By adopting our framework, brand and marketing practitioners can tailor their communication strategies toward different sources of C2C conflict and minimize their adverse consequences, thus, fostering an overall constructive OBC engagement.Originality/valueThe authors offer a novel framework to international marketing research, consisting of C2C conflict sources and corresponding moderation strategies that take place in response to service failures during the COVID-19 pandemic. These insights, in turn, inform international marketers about new ways of transforming the dark side of OBCs into a source of competitive advantage based on real-world brand practice.

The Role of Community Benefits on Brand Loyalty in Automotive Social Media Brand Community

Objective: This study examines the benefits of online brand community interactivity in social media in the Indonesian automotive sector. Design/Methods/Approach: The proposed model was empirically assessed using survey data from 332 Indonesian-based automobile online brand community members on social media. In addition, the link between the constructs in the research model was examined using SEM PLS. Findings: The findings strongly link perceived interactivity and community benefits. In Addition, the results also demonstrate that community members' trust in a brand strongly and positively impacts brand loyalty. Special treatment and a sense of membership increase members' trust in the brand and community satisfaction. However, social influence has negligible effects on community satisfaction. Originality/Value: This study combines value, trust, and satisfaction as the mediating variables in the relationship between interactivity in the online community and loyalty. Practical/Policy implication: Given the results, brands should provide flexibility to access information or content by optimizing the usage of social media features that members can easily access anytime, such as adding links to the Instagram bio or description on Facebook or WhatsApp groups. Enhancing these community benefits can be done by ensuring that the information circulated within the community is accurate and informative.

LGBTQ Consumers’ Engagement and Attitudes Toward Online Brand Communities within the Cosmetics Industry

As the LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer) lifestyle has gained increased acceptance among mainstream consumer groups, companies are recognising the need to tailor their marketing strategies to align with this consumer segment. The purpose of this study is to determine the influence of consumer innovativeness and personal identity on gay consumers’ online engagement and attitude toward cosmetic brands. By means of an empirical analysis, a quantitative method was used, and 494 online surveys were distributed among members of the LGBTQ community in South Africa to gain insight into their online buying behaviour for cosmetic brands. Data analysis was conducted using SPSS 27 and AMOS 27 software for the descriptive and inferential statistics, respectively. The key findings indicated that all five hypotheses were supported. In other words, consumer innovativeness has a significant influence on personal identity, brand attitude and online engagement, while personal identity significantly influences both online engagement and brand attitude. Consumer innovativeness and personal identity are therefore strong predictors of online brand engagement and attitude towards cosmetic brands among LGBTQ consumers. Implications from the research were presented while further research opportunities were explored.