Tzu-Yi Kao, Ming-Hsien Yang, Ji-Tsung Ben Wu and Ya-Yun Cheng
This study aims to develop a process model to facilitate enterprises’ co-creating value with consumers through social media.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to develop a process model to facilitate enterprises’ co-creating value with consumers through social media.
Design/methodology/approach
Drawing on the concepts of internet-based co-creation and collective action theory, this study outlines a five-stage model (Interact-Engage-Propose-Act-Realize, IEPAR) of utilizing social media to co-create with consumers, enriches the model through in-depth interviews with industry experts and briefly illustrates how it can be applied in practice using a service firm case.
Findings
This study clarifies the co-creation process in the social media environment. For each of the process’s five stages, the objectives to be accomplished by the social media operator and the means to complete the objectives are illustrated.
Research limitations/implications
This study illustrated the proposed model with a representative service firm. Future study may refine the model by gathering additional data from real implementations to improve its effectiveness in practice.
Practical implications
This study suggests how an enterprise can construct a consumer co-creation platform from a managerial perspective. The proposed model can serve as a reference that enterprises can implement to increase customer value through co-creation using social media.
Originality/value
Enterprises have begun to notice the power of serving as a platform for co-creating value with consumers. However, it is seldom related to literature. The proposed model of the co-creation process in the social media environment can supplement past research.
Details
Keywords
Constanza Bianchi and Lynda Andrews
Given the widespread popularity of social media such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, understanding consumer-brand engagement behavior within social media is fundamental for…
Abstract
Purpose
Given the widespread popularity of social media such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, understanding consumer-brand engagement behavior within social media is fundamental for retail firms. Yet, little is known about how consumers engage with retail brands through social media. The purpose of this paper is to address this gap and extend previous research by examining factors that influence consumers’ attitudes and intentions to engage with retail brands through Facebook, and ultimately purchase products and services.
Design/methodology/approach
This study draws on the theory of reasoned action and the technology acceptance model to develop a model of consumer-brand social media engagement and purchase intentions. Specifically, the model tests the influence of five antecedents of attitude on consumer intentions to engage with retail brands through the brands’ Facebook pages as well as intentions to make purchases through this social media. The hypotheses of the model are tested using structural equation modeling.
Findings
The findings provide an understanding of the main drivers of consumer-brand engagement that can lead to purchase intentions. Results show that consumers’ attitudes toward engaging with retail brands through Facebook are influenced by peer communication, compatibility and credibility, and that attitude has a strong influence on intentions toward this behavior. Furthermore, there is a strong relationship between intentions to engage and the likelihood of purchasing through a retail brand’s Facebook page.
Research limitations/implications
This study is cross-sectional and was conducted at a particular point in time. Thus, results are not purported to make any inferences to causal relationships. Further, the measures of intentions to engage are attitudinal and not objective measures. Future longitudinal studies may help avoid this limitation by testing causal relationships.
Practical implications
The study contributes to the important area of consumer engagement with retail brands through social media in ways that may lead to making purchases. Findings can provide retailers with reference points through which to engage their brands with consumers through their Facebook pages in ways that may lead to more direct returns on their investment in social media sites.
Originality/value
Retailers are noticing the power of social media sites as a platform for engaging with consumers and extending this relationship to purchases. However, scant research has addressed this topic. The proposed model and findings of this study can extend prior research.