Mario Cassar, Albert Caruana and Joseph Vella
This paper aims to investigate the extent to which wine tour-operating companies are successfully using their websites to communicate persuasive and meaningful differences to…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to investigate the extent to which wine tour-operating companies are successfully using their websites to communicate persuasive and meaningful differences to customers in their quest to clearly position their product offering.
Design/methodology/approach
Text data are collected from 250 websites that promote wine tourism in five different countries’ winescapes. Lexical, regression and hierarchical clustering analyses are used.
Findings
Lexical analysis using DICTION can distinguish among websites from different countries’ winescapes, and French wines obtain the best mean review scores from customers, while US, Napa Valley, websites obtain the lowest scores. DICTION dimensions allow for meaningful clusters and can also predict TripAdvisor’s mean review scores.
Practical implications
There is a need to pay better attention in the development of website content and the critical role that both syntax and semantics can play in facilitating the use of a firm’s website, specifically in terms of clear positioning.
Originality/value
The study uses lexical analyses of website narratives to understand the current positioning of firms.
Details
Keywords
Sussie C. Morrish, Leyland Pitt, Joseph Vella and Elsamari Botha
The purpose of this paper is to illustrate how brand personality and its dimensions can be applied to wine tourism, and how a content analysis of the text taken from a wine…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to illustrate how brand personality and its dimensions can be applied to wine tourism, and how a content analysis of the text taken from a wine estate’s website can be used to derive a snapshot of how brand personality is communicated.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper uses the text analysis software DICTION to identify the extent to which each estate’s website communicates the brand personality dimensions of excitement, competence, ruggedness, sincerity and sophistication, and then agglomerates the scores of individual estates within a region to overall scores for the country or wine region in which they are located.
Findings
Major findings are that the southern hemisphere producers, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, communicate all five brand personality dimensions to a greater extent than do the northern hemisphere regions of Bordeaux and Napa. Furthermore, while the levels of brand personality communication may differ, all countries and regions seem to follow the same pattern, or stated differently, emphasize the same brand personalities as their international counterparts. Excitement is the main dimension communicated, and then sincerity. Ruggedness and competence are communicated to a lesser extent and sophistication is hardly communicated at all.
Research limitations/implications
The countries/regions selected for the study are among the most popular tourist destination wineries within five of the world’s prominent wine producing countries and regions. However, this selection is arbitrary and were also carefully chosen merely by the simplicity and convenience afforded by a Google search. The results are also an aggregation of the wineries within a region and does not give any indication of the brand personality of a single website for a winery with in a region, which might be very different from the aggregation.
Practical implications
Wine tourism is a big business for many wine estates as well as regional and national economies, generating huge potential for economic growth and job creation above and beyond the production and sale of wine. The paper offers a practical insight for wineries that want to portray themselves to the world and especially to their target customers. At a general level, the approach illustrated here provides a way for those who manage wine tourism at the national, regional and estate levels to gauge whether the personality of their brand is being communicated online as they intend it to be.
Social implications
Wine tourism is very social in nature, and the findings in this study offers a unique understanding of how customers could perceive their destination especially where they are looking to experience the wine estate among similar minded people. A wine estate marketer might wish to be conveying a personality of sophistication and competence, and then be informed by a study like this that the brand is instead being communicated as exciting and sincere.
Originality/value
The paper illustrates the use of powerful content analysis software, DICTION, to determine the extent to which this text specifically communicates dimensions of brand personality, and in broader terms gives a feel for the tone of text. Regular use of the technique helps wine marketing decision makers to track their own brand’s personality as well those of competitors over time.
Details
Keywords
Albert Caruana and Joseph Vella
The study explores the dynamics among communal-brand connections, corporate reputation, customer satisfaction and their collective influence on service loyalty within the retail…
Abstract
Purpose
The study explores the dynamics among communal-brand connections, corporate reputation, customer satisfaction and their collective influence on service loyalty within the retail customer segment of commercial banks.
Design/methodology/approach
Hypotheses are proposed for a parallel and serial-mediated model, in which corporate reputation and customer satisfaction mediate the influence of communal-brand connections on service loyalty. Data are collected from a sample of retail customers of commercial banks in a European country.
Findings
Findings indicate that individuals who perceive a strong affiliation with a brand that emphasises community engagement are more likely to demonstrate loyalty to that brand. Results highlight the need for managers allocate resources to cultivate community initiatives that foster communal-brand connection in their drive to improve service loyalty.
Research limitations/implications
A non-representative sample was collected, with a focus on a limited set of variables and employing a unidimensional measure of service loyalty. Additionally, the significance of communal-brand connection may vary across brands, warranting replication studies among smaller banks.
Practical implications
Recognition of communal-brand connection as an important driver of customer loyalty suggests that customers are motivated by intrinsic positioning factors related to the community. As part of their positioning, commercial banks can leverage their marketing and communication efforts to foster community development, thereby enhancing customer identification, connection and narratives that foster belongingness among customers.
Originality/value
The model of direct and mediated model of communal-brand connection on service loyalty has not been previously explored. Moreover, the research is conducted among retail bank customers that representing a context seldom considered in the domain of brand communities.
Details
Keywords
Hoda Diba, Joseph M. Vella and Russell Abratt
This study aims to explore if and how business-to-business (B2B) companies can use social media to influence the buying process.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to explore if and how business-to-business (B2B) companies can use social media to influence the buying process.
Design/methodology/approach
The study uses an exploratory approach into the existing literature related to the B2B buying process and its relationship with social media.
Findings
The study shows that companies in a B2B context can use social media as a means of influencing the stages of the buying process by means of using one or more of the seven functional blocks of social media.
Research limitations/implications
The findings demonstrate the relation that exists between each stage of the buyer process in a B2B organization and the functional blocks of social media. This study opens the door for further research into the influence of each of these blocks on the buying process stages and the roles involved.
Practical implications
This study identifies how social media’s blocks influence the different stages and how organizations can use that to their benefit.
Originality/value
Few studies have investigated the use of social media in a B2B context. However, not many have looked into the influence of social media in the B2B buying process and buying center. This study looks into the relationship between the buying process stages and social media’s functional blocks as related to the different roles of the buying center.
Details
Keywords
Karen Lucas and Julia Markovich
Purpose — This chapter reviews the key findings of the reported research in this volume using the wider international literatures on transport and social exclusion as its…
Abstract
Purpose — This chapter reviews the key findings of the reported research in this volume using the wider international literatures on transport and social exclusion as its conceptual framework. It begins by briefly summarising the research and policy context in which the study is set. It then provides an overview of major conceptual, theoretical and methodological advancements relevant to this area over the last 10 years in order to evaluate the study’s contribution to research, policy and practice internationally.
Methodology — The conceptual framework for this chapter is based on a comprehensive review of the international literatures on transport and social exclusion. After a brief introduction to these, it outlines key conceptual, theoretical and methodological advancements as they pertain to transport-related social exclusion. In addition, it evaluates the scope and implications of the methodological approach with particular reference to contemporary scholarly debates in this area. The chapter subsequently explores the applicability of the research in policy and practice, both inside and outside the Australian context.
Findings — The chapter concludes that the research has made a significant contribution to conceptual, theoretical and methodological developments within the area of transport-related exclusion, and has helped move forward related debates within policy circles. Opportunities for further research are also identified.
Beate E. Stiehler, Albert Caruana and Joseph Vella
This paper aims to classify and investigate customer attitudes toward luxury wine brands in the USA (a developed market) and South Africa (a developing market) by using an…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to classify and investigate customer attitudes toward luxury wine brands in the USA (a developed market) and South Africa (a developing market) by using an aesthetic and ontological framework.
Design/methodology/approach
Using recognized scales, consumers’ ontological and aesthetic orientation and attitudes toward luxury wine brands as part of a product category are measured. Data for the USA sample were collected using Amazon’s Mechanical Turk platform, whereas the South African sample data were collected from a sample of Generation Y consumers. Using the two orientation scores, it was possible to create a 2 × 2 matrix with low and high scores for the two countries investigated. To determine the relationship between the resultant groups and attitude toward wine, ANOVA was performed. Differences among the groups were identified via a comparison of means.
Findings
The results suggest that the use of aesthetics and ontological orientations enables the identification of different luxury wine consumer modes in the two countries studied. In addition, these demonstrate significantly different attitudes toward luxury wine brands as part of a product category.
Research limitations/implications
The samples for both countries were collected using a non-probability sampling method, and any generalization to the greater populations must be undertaken with caution.
Practical implications
The findings demonstrate a unique approach that provides an alternative form of segmentation for luxury wine brands. Recommendations to target the different identified modes and how these impact attitudes toward luxury wine brands as a product category in the two countries are made.
Originality/value
The study contributes to the literature by providing a unique and alternative method of market segmentation and shows how this affect attitudes toward luxury wine brands as a product category.
Details
Keywords
Samby Fready, Prakash Vel and Munyaradzi W. Nyadzayo
The unprecedented changes in the marketplace induced by the COVID-19 pandemic and the resultant accelerated corporate migration to virtual ecosystems have added several unique…
Abstract
Purpose
The unprecedented changes in the marketplace induced by the COVID-19 pandemic and the resultant accelerated corporate migration to virtual ecosystems have added several unique research opportunities and theoretical gaps, especially in business-to-business (B2B) small- and medium-sized enterprises (SME) markets in the service sector. Particularly, customer interactions in B2B services that were once sustained by the “people mix” now demand a huge overhaul in light of the “new normal” restrictions. Hence, the purpose of this study is to explore how B2B service firms can engender firm value through virtual customer interactions during and in the post-COVID-19 era from an SME’s perspective.
Design/methodology/approach
This study adopts an exploratory qualitative inquiry to contribute to this discourse by proposing a conceptual framework based on prior literature and relevant theoretical frameworks, as well as qualitative interviews with SME managers, CEOs and/or owner-managers.
Findings
The qualitative findings reveal organizational preparedness, empathy, digital content and trust as key enablers of effective B2B virtual interaction that enhances cocreated value, thereby augmenting firm value. This study offers a much-needed examination of virtual interaction in B2B contexts and proposes a business customer virtual interaction model.
Research limitations/implications
The exploratory nature of this study is one limitation, and future studies with a bigger representative sample size that uses survey or experimental data drawn from large enterprises might add value to the current findings. Also, while this study is conducted in dynamic markets due to the COVID-19 crisis, future research must examine the customer/firm’s experiences in other forms of crises-led market ecosystems.
Practical implications
B2B service firms must be strongly inclined to continuously take steps to develop and maintain virtual interaction with customers. Proactive efforts to familiarize internal and external stakeholders with virtual interaction platforms are a crucial step for effective customer engagement. The effectiveness of B2B virtual interactions can be strengthened through digital content that elicits trust and exhibits empathy, especially in crises led-markets. Also, the value created for the firm must be redeployed strategically to sustain positive customer engagement behaviors that continue to deliver value to the firm and the customer.
Originality/value
This paper contributes to the increasing B2B customer engagement literature by exploring the ongoing dialogue on how B2B firms can strive and succeed in the post-COVID-19 era or related crises-led market ecosystems through enhanced virtual B2B customer interaction efforts.
Details
Keywords
Albert Caruana and Joseph Vella
Adult Playfulness with advertising can be described as the way individuals derive enjoyment during their interaction process with advertising. It is an area that has received…
Abstract
Adult Playfulness with advertising can be described as the way individuals derive enjoyment during their interaction process with advertising. It is an area that has received little attention in the literature. The study adopts an interactionist approach to playfulness that recognises the role of both trait and state theory. It investigates the correlations among the dimensions of adult playfulness and those on the Viewer Response Profile and considers whether the level of adult playfulness impacts on viewer response to different advertisement execution. Findings indicate that advertisement executions are not equally effective at reaching individuals with higher levels of playfulness. Implications for theory and management are discussed, limitations are noted and directions for future research indicated.
Details
Keywords
Joseph Vella, Albert Caruana and Leyland Pitt
The purpose of this paper is to look at the issue of perceived ease of use of a web‐based customer relationship management system and consider the role of organizational…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to look at the issue of perceived ease of use of a web‐based customer relationship management system and consider the role of organizational commitment as a possible antecedent.
Design/methodology/approach
Data for this study were collected from among managers of a major player in the community banking sector within the EU. A total of 274 valid responses were obtained from 398 managers.
Findings
Results have been mixed and partially conditioned by service providers’ willingness to leverage the possibilities that the technology can provide.
Research limitations/implications
The study was limited to a single organization and consequently the results should be generalized with caution. Replication studies with improved measures, in other countries and contexts are desirable.
Practical implications
The results can be useful for management, since Web‐based customer relationship management systems have been adopted by many service providers in their quest to offer better one‐to‐one marketing possibilities to their customers.
Originality/value
This paper demonstrates the importance of fostering a sense of organizational commitment amongst key service providers, as this in turn seems to enable them to overcome many impediments pertaining to technology use.