Improving consumers’ willingness to pay using social media activities

2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (7) ◽  
pp. 880-896 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pedro Torres ◽  
Mário Augusto ◽  
Elaine Wallace

Purpose This study examines the impact of social media activities on consumers’ willingness to pay a premium price (WTPp) in the banking industry, and investigates the role of consumer-brand identification (CBI) on this relationship. For the first time, the effect of electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) is considered separately from other social media marketing efforts (SMME). Design/methodology/approach Data from a sample of 145 banking customers that follow bank social networks was analysed using structural equation modelling and fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) to test a proposed structural model. Findings Findings indicate that the effect of eWOM and SMME on WTPp is fully mediated by CBI. The results uncover a viable path to achieve WTPp in the banking industry, which includes the joint presence of SMME, eWOM and CBI. Research/limitations implications The study was conducted on the banking sector of Portugal. It is advocated that further research would investigate the results in other service sectors, across different countries. Practical implications Findings highlight the importance of social media marketing in banking. Results reveal opportunities for managers in the banking sector to enhance CBI and ultimately WTPp, through SMME and eWOM. Originality/value The study is the first to consider the influence of SMME and eWOM as separate antecedents of WTPp. The findings indicate that the effect of eWOM and SMME on WTPp is fully mediated by CBI. In particular, the results of the fsQCA indicate that the combined presence of SMME, eWOM and CBI, is sufficient to obtain WTPp.

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Durgesh Agnihotri ◽  
Kushagra Kulshreshtha ◽  
Vikas Tripathi

Purpose Banking industry has no option but to remain observant and redraft the contagion playbook as per the situation evolves owing to COVID-19. Therefore, this study aims to develop a model to examine empirically how effectively complaints are handled to control customer retaliation and negative e-word of mouth (eWOM) in such a pandemic situation, where banking institutions are using social media as a key platform. Design/methodology/approach A self-administered questionnaire was distributed among 309 participants who had encountered service failure and experienced complaint handling on Facebook. This study draws upon prevailing literature to test a series of hypotheses through structural equation modeling. Findings The findings show that effective complaint handling has a negative influence on customer retaliation in the social media environment. As a result, customer retaliation was found to have a positive association with negative eWOM. Therefore, this study has revealed that effective complaint handling will lead to decrease in customer retaliation and negative eWOM. Practical implications This study carries an understanding of effective complaint handling efforts by leading banks in the social media environment during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study recommends that customized and effective efforts by the banks can influence customer retaliation and negative e-WOM. Originality/value The study is conducted during COVID-19 pandemic considering the impact of COVID-19 on banking sector, which is a new phenomenon. This study has highlighted how banks have modified their working methodology during pandemic situation by using Facebook as a prominent platform to redress customers’ issues and complaints.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Bekir Bora Dedeoğlu ◽  
Anil Bilgihan ◽  
Ben Haobin Ye ◽  
Yajun Wang ◽  
Fevzi Okumus

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of social media sharing on tourists’ willingness to pay more (WPM) at destinations. The moderating effects of tourists’ preferred route in decision-making or obtaining information (i.e. central or peripheral routes) were also examined. Design/methodology/approach A theoretical model was developed and tested using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). Moderating effects of central and peripheral routes were tested using PLS multi-group analysis. Data were collected from 478 tourists in Antalya, Turkey, a sea, sun and sand tourist destination. Findings Findings indicate that importance attached to participant sharing (IPS) and importance attached to non-participant sharing (INPS) are significant antecedents of tourists’ WPM intentions. Moderating effects of tourists’ preferred route in decision-making reveal that the effect of IPS on WPM intention is more influential for those with high central route preferences than those with low central route preferences. While the effects of INPS and IPS on WPM intention is more determinative for those with higher peripheral route preferences. Practical implications Although it is known by the practitioners that consumer-generated contents are important, this research suggests and supports that these contents trigger tourists to pay higher prices. Originality/value How WPM is motivated by others’ social media sharing was not very clear in the literature. Therefore, this research gap was addressed in part by examining the social media sharing structure in terms of whether others posted on organization-related sites or on personal sites.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Md. Hafez

PurposeThis research aims to explore the impact of social media marketing (SMM) activities on brand equity (BE) in the banking sector in Bangladesh. Moreover, brand love and brand trust are examined as a mediator of SMM activities and BE.Design/methodology/approachData were collected from a total of 289 banking customers in Bangladesh through a structured questionnaire and the hypotheses were examined using structural equation modeling (SEM).FindingsThe results validated that SMM activities have no significant influence on BE directly. Furthermore, brand love fully mediates the linkage between SMM activities and BE. Likewise, brand trust was found to have a partial mediation effect on SMM activities and BE.Research limitations/implicationsThis study was based on a specific sector in a particular geographic area. Hence, cross-cultural studies on different sectors need to be conducted to generalize the findings of the current research.Practical implicationsThe study offers useful insights for bank marketers to successfully manage SMM activities that can generate consumer interest toward a bank's brand and prevent switching behavior. Furthermore, the proliferation of authentic brand-related information over a firms' social media pages can build strong brand trust, which in turn contributes to BE for the banks.Originality/valueThe study further extended the current knowledge by showing that how SMM activities influence BE in the banking sector in Bangladesh. Also, this study empirically corroborates the mediation influence of brand love and brand trust on SMM activities and BE in the banking sector in Bangladesh, which was rarely tested in prior studies. Hence, the findings will add value to the nascent literature of BE from an SMM perspective.


Kybernetes ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 46 (10) ◽  
pp. 1801-1819 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raed Salah Algharabat

Purpose This research aims to investigate the link between social media marketing (SMM) activities and brand love. It further investigates the mediating impact of self-expressive brands (inner and social) between the relationships of SMM activities and brand love, which in turn impact brand loyalty. Using the context provided by Facebook, the author contributes in three ways to the nascent marketing literature: by linking SMM activates with brand love, by investigating the mediating impact of self-expressive brands between SMM activities and brand love and by investigating the impact of brand love on brand loyalty. Design/methodology/approach Using a sample of 400 followers of Facebook pages, data were collected and analyzed using structural equation modeling. Findings The findings reveal that SMM activities positively affect self-expressive brands (inner and social), which in turn impact brand love. The author also finds that brand love positively affects brand loyalty. The author further finds that self-expressive brand (inner) fully mediates the relationship between SMM activities and brand love, whereas self-expressive brand (social) partially mediates this relationship. Originality/value Previous researchers neither have the chance to link SMM activities with brand love nor to explain its role as an antecedent to self-expressive brand. Therefore, the author contributes to nascent literature by linking and investigating the mediating impact of self-expressive brands between the relationships of SMM activities and brand love which in turn impact brand loyalty.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Joe Hazzam*

Purpose In the context of fashion brands on Instagram platform, this study aims to investigate the impact of age on the relationships between informative, interactive and trendy social media marketing (SMM) activities, customer brand engagement (CBE) and brand loyalty. Design/methodology/approach A quantitative method was used to collect and analyses the data and to test the conceptual model. In total, 241 usable questionnaires were collected and analyzed using structural equation modeling and multi-group moderation analysis. Findings The results of this study demonstrate that informativeness of SMM activities relates positively and significantly to CBE in all age groups. However, the strength and the significance of interactive and trendy social media activities differ between age groups. Research limitations/implications This study used only two age groups of college students to answer the research questions. Despite that tech-savvy millennials and generation Z are highly engaged in social media environment, the results may not be representative of the entire population and the findings may be cautiously generalized to other platform types or product categories. Originality/value By offering a new understanding of perceived SMM in different age groups on Instagram platform, this study contributes to the literature by identifying the types of social media activities that engage different age groups on social media networks.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ibrahim Abiodun Oladapo ◽  
Manal Mohammed Hamoudah ◽  
Md. Mahmudul Alam ◽  
Olawale Rafiu Olaopa ◽  
Ruhaini Muda

Purpose This paper aims to compare perceptions of Islamic bank customers concerning FinTech services in Malaysia and Saudi Arabia. It also investigates the level to which customers are willing to adapt FinTech services. Design/methodology/approach Primary data was collected from May to September 2019 using a questionnaire to survey 102 Islamic bank customers in Malaysia and 147 in Saudi Arabia. The data are analyzed based on Structural Equation Modelling using the partial least squares approach. Findings The findings show that knowledge, attitude and subjective norms are the highly significant determining factors that influence customers’ opinions on adapting to new technology, but awareness demonstrates only a moderately positive effect. Moreover, the impact of these factors on the intention to adopt FinTech services significantly differs between Malaysian and Saudi Arabian customers. Originality/value This is an original study based on primary data on customers of Islamic banking in Malaysia and Saudi Arabia. It provides some novel insights into how the banking industry can boost customers’ confidence and enhance their patronage by adopting FinTech in their business operation model. These findings should be of value to senior management, policymakers and regulators in the banking industry in both Muslim and non-Muslim countries.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (7) ◽  
pp. 3832
Author(s):  
Gao Wei ◽  
Wang Lin ◽  
Wu Yanxiong ◽  
Yan Jingdong ◽  
Sadik Yusuf Musse

Prior literature has largely addressed corporate social responsibility (CSR) from outcomes related to organizational themes. However, its importance for achieving consumer-related outcomes is something that has been largely ignored by contemporary researchers. Likewise, how CSR communication through social media can create positive emotions on the part of consumers has to date been under-explored. Hence, the present study aims to fill these gaps by investigating the impact of CSR communication of an organization through social media on consumer loyalty. The study also proposes electronic word of mouth (e-WOM) as a potential mediator between this relationship. The proposed model of the present study was tested in the banking sector of a developing country. The data were collected from a self-administered questionnaire and analyzed through the structural equation modeling technique (SEM). The results of the present study validated that CSR communication of a bank through social media directly and indirectly, through e-WOM, influences consumer loyalty in a positive manner. The results of the present study will be helpful for policymakers to better understand how well-planned CSR communication of an organization on social media can lead towards better consumer-related outcomes such as consumer loyalty and e-WOM.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Vanessa Gaffar ◽  
Benny Tjahjono ◽  
Taufik Abdullah ◽  
Vidi Sukmayadi

Purpose This paper aims to explore the influence of social media marketing on tourists’ intention to visit a botanical garden, which is one of the popular nature-based tourism destinations in Indonesia. Design/methodology/approach This study sent questionnaires to 400 followers of the botanical garden’s Facebook account who responded to the initial calls for participation and declared that they have not visited the garden before. Analyses were conducted on 363 valid responses using the structural equation model. Findings The findings revealed several key determinants influencing the image of the botanical garden and its future value proposition, particularly in supporting the endeavour to shift from a mere recreational destination to a nature-based tourism destination offering educational experiences. Originality/value This paper offers a fresh look into the roles of social media marketing in increasing the intention to visit a tourism destination that is considerably affected by the destination image.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mazzini Muda ◽  
Muhammad Iskandar Hamzah

PurposeIn spite of the increasing organic and interactive marketing activities over social media, a general understanding of the source credibility of voluntary user-generated content (UGC) is still limited. In line with the social identity theory, this paper examines the effects of consumers' perceived source credibility of UGC in YouTube videos on their attitudes and behavioral intentions. Additionally, source homophily theory is included to predict the antecedent of source credibility.Design/methodology/approachThree hundred and seventy two Generation Y respondents were interviewed using snowball sampling. Data were analyzed with component-based structural equation modeling technique of partial least squares-structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM).FindingsFindings confirmed that perceived source credibility indirectly affects purchase intention (PI) and electronic word-of-mouth via attitude toward UGC. Besides, perceived source credibility mediates the effect of perceived source homophily on attitude toward UGC.Practical implicationsSince today's consumers have begun to trust and rely more on UGC than company-generated content on social media when making purchase decisions, companies may reconsider democratizing certain aspects of their branding strategies. Firms may fine-tune their marketing communication budgets – not only just by sponsoring public figures and celebrities but also by nurturing coproductive engagements with independent content creators who are ordinary consumers. Endowed with their imposing credibility, these micro-influencers and prosumers have high potentials to be uplifted to brand ambassadors.Originality/valueWhile consumers' purchase outcome can be measured easily using metrics and analytics, the roles of source homophily in stages leading up to the purchase is still elusive. Drawing on the rich theoretical basis of source homophily may help researchers to understand not only how credibility and attitude are related to PI but also how this nexus generates positive word of mouth among UGC followers within the social media circles.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Luqman Oyekunle Oyewobi ◽  
Olufemi Seth Olorunyomi ◽  
Richard Ajayi Jimoh ◽  
James Olabode Bamidele Rotimi

Purpose Many construction businesses are currently building and keeping social media pages for their enterprises to be visible to the public to improve their social interaction, promote business interest, build trust and relationships with their targeted audience on social media. The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of social mediausage on performance of construction businesses (CBs) in Abuja, Nigeria. Design/methodology/approach This study used a quantitative research approach by identifying constructs that reveal three aspects of organisation’s physiognomies that impact the process of espousing, implementing and using technological innovations in conducting businesses. Well-structured questionnaire was used to obtain data from 113 purposively sampled building materials’ merchant operating in Dei-Dei Market, Abuja, Nigeria. This study used partial least squares structural equation modelling technique to establish the relationship among the constructs. Findings The results of this study indicated that technology has significant relationship with social media adoption, whereas social media adoption has a very strong positive impact on organisation’s performance (P < 0.001) with respect to improved customer relations and services and enhanced information accessibility. Research limitations/implications This study has implications for CBs that wish to adopt social media to promote their businesses by presenting to them the opportunity to understand the impact of technology, environment and organisational potential in improving business performance. This study is cross-sectional in nature, and this calls for caution in interpreting the results. Originality/value This paper developed and tested a conceptual framework presented to understand the interrelationships amongst the constructs, which would be of great significance to business owners in developing their social interaction and promote business interest via social media. The outcome of this research is beneficial to researchers to further study how the different social media tools could help in influencing business decisions.


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