Aim and Objectives
The aim of this research is to identify the ways company’s and people’s messages communicated through social networks affect consumer behaviour in London in terms of brand loyalty, brand advocacy, and purchase intentions.
The objectives of the study:
- To examine the impact of companies’ messages on consumer behaviour;
- To explore the influence of people’s messages on consumer behaviour;
- To compare the influence of Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
Rationale
The reason to implement this study is the investigator’s desire to understand whether companies’ messages are instrumental in shaping consumer behaviour or luxury brands can simply use social networks as the source of data concerning consumer behaviour, people’s preferences, and the associated data.
Background and Literature Review
The influence of social media on consumer behaviour in different segments have been researched for several years. Facebook tends to receive the most attention of researchers although such popular platforms as Twitter and Instagram become more and more popular these days (Alalwan et al. 2017; Loureiro, Maximiano, & Panchapakesan 2018). Hutter et al. (2013) investigate the impact of Facebook on consumers’ brand awareness, brand loyalty, and purchase intention.
The researchers emphasise that the messages communicated through the social network positively correlated with the variables mentioned above. Schivinski and Dabrowski (2014) report the positive effects user-generated communication has on brand attitude and brand equity while company-generated messages had an effect on brand equity only. Godey et al. (2016) state that social media have a positive effect on brand image and brand awareness. Parrott, Danbury, and Kanthavanich (2015) also note that such consumer behaviour as advocacy is also affected by social media.
Research Questions and Methodology
The research questions guiding this study are as follows:
- Which social network (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter) has the most impact?
- What impact does company-generated communication have on consumer behaviour in terms of brand loyalty, brand advocacy, and purchase intentions?
- What impact does consumer-generated communication have on consumer behaviour in terms of brand loyalty, brand advocacy, and purchase intentions?
The qualitative research design will be used to address the research questions mentioned. This approach is relevant as it enables the researcher to explore people’s attitudes and views (Creswell 2014). The interpretive paradigm will be used as the focus is on meanings that will be interpreted and explained. The interpretive approach is based on the assumption that reality is socially constructed and is relative (Sanghvi, 2014). It is people who decide whether to buy or not and whether to follow their peers’ online recommendations, so consumers’ perspectives will be central to this investigation.
Data Collection
Convenience sampling will be used to collect the data for the analysis. This method is relevant as it ensures the participation of knowledgeable people who can provide relevant data and are often willing to share such information (Baig et al. 2013). The followers of some luxury brands (Louis Vuitton, Gucci, and Prada) will be reached through private messages. The users will receive invitations to participate in the research, and the recruitment process will last until the required number of people is reached.
Twenty people will take part in the study irrespective of such aspects as gender, age, ethnicity. The major inclusion criteria will be English mastery and their residence in London. The samples will participate in semi-structured interviews with the help of computer-based technologies (such as Skype). Open-ended questions will address such areas as brand loyalty, purchase intention, brand loyalty, brand advocacy, social networks preferences.
Accessibility, Reliability, Validity, and Ethics
The analysis of the participants’ profiles and posts on social networks under analysis will be implemented in order to ensure the validity of the results. Content analysis will be implemented manually and with the help of the corresponding software to ensure reliability (Fields 2014). The participants will sign written consent forms that will include the major details concerning the project. The participants’ confidentiality will be ensured through their names, coding and proper management of data.
Reference List
Alalwan, AA, Rana, NP, Dwivedi, YK, & Algharabat, R 2017, ‘Social media in marketing: a review and analysis of the existing literature’, Telematics and Informatics, vol. 34, no. 7, pp. 1177-1190.
Baig, E, Tahir, H, Shahzadi, I, Azar, F 2013, Contemporary ideas and research in marketing, Lulu.com, London.
Creswell, JW 2014, Research design: qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches, SAGE, London.
Fields, Z 2014, ‘Innovative research methodology’, in A Takhar-Lail & Ghorbani (eds), Market research methodologies: multi-method and qualitative approaches: multi-method and qualitative approaches, SAGE Publishing, Hershey, PA, pp. 1-19.
Godey, B, Manthiou, A, Pederzoli, D, Rokka, J, Aiello, G, Donvito, R, & Singh, R 2016, ‘Social media marketing efforts of luxury brands: influence on brand equity and consumer behavior’, Journal of Business Research, vol. 69, no. 12, pp. 5833-5841.
Hutter, K, Hautz, J, Dennhardt, S, & Füller, J 2013, ‘The impact of user interactions in social media on brand awareness and purchase intention: the case of MINI on Facebook,’ Journal of Product & Brand Management, vol. 22, no. 5/6, pp. 342-351.
Loureiro, SMC, Maximiano, M, & Panchapakesan, P 2018, ‘Engaging fashion consumers in social media: the case of luxury brands,’ International Journal of Fashion Design, Technology and Education, vol. 11, no. 3, pp. 310-321.
Parrott, G, Danbury, A, & Kanthavanich, P 2015, ‘Online behaviour of luxury fashion brand advocates’, Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management: An International Journal, vol. 19, no. 4, pp. 360-383.
Sanghvi, M 2014, ‘Author / Authority’, in A Takhar-Lail & Ghorbani (eds), Market research methodologies: multi-method and qualitative approaches: multi-method and qualitative approaches, SAGE Publishing, Hershey, PA, pp. 1-19.
Schivinski, B & Dabrowski, D 2014, ‘The effect of social media communication on consumer perceptions of brands,’ Journal of Marketing Communications, vol. 22, no. 2, pp. 189-214.