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21 – 30 of over 30000
Article
Publication date: 3 July 2009

Cindy M.Y. Chung and Qianyi Tsai

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effects of tie strength on word‐of‐mouth (WOM) amount and how regulatory focus moderates these effects.

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effects of tie strength on word‐of‐mouth (WOM) amount and how regulatory focus moderates these effects.

Design/methodology/approach

Two studies were conducted with undergraduates of a top Asian university with sample sizes of 106 and 100 using experimental setups.

Findings

Replicating findings from existing research, a greater amount of WOM was shared between strong ties compared to weak ties. However, the main finding was that this tie strength effect only held for a prevention‐focused WOM giver but not for a promotion‐focused WOM giver. The latter was found instead giving a similar amount of WOM to strong and weak ties.

Research limitations/implications

The two experiments required subjects to write out their WOM. This may be a limitation since WOM is usually spoken instead of written. Future research can compare spoken and written WOM to evaluate the robustness of the current findings.

Practical implications

Findings from this paper can help companies solicit more WOM through priming the appropriate regulatory focus when consumers communicate with others that are of different social ties.

Originality/value

The current paper contributes to existing WOM literature by investigating the moderating effect of regulatory focus on the relationship between tie strength and WOM amount.

Details

Asia Pacific Journal of Marketing and Logistics, vol. 21 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1355-5855

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 30 October 2007

Laila Naif Marouf

The purpose of this paper is to determine the association between the strength of different types of ties with the sharing of different kinds of knowledge.

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to determine the association between the strength of different types of ties with the sharing of different kinds of knowledge.

Design/methodology/approach

In this paper the association of ties with the sharing of different types of knowledge was measured by a specifically created and developed web survey that was made available to 22 units in the subject organization. Multiple Regression Quadratic Assignment Procedure (MRQAP) was used to examine the resulting data in order to address the following questions: first, is there a significant association between strength of business ties and the sharing of public knowledge? Second, is there a significant association between strength of social ties and the sharing of private knowledge?

Findings

Findings in this paper show that the strength of business relationships rather than the strength of social relationships contributed most significantly to the sharing of public and private knowledge in this organization. Specifically, the frequency of business interactions predicted the sharing of public non‐codified knowledge, while the closeness of business relationships predicted the sharing of private non‐codified knowledge and the sharing of public codified knowledge. Unexpectedly, neither business nor social ties predicted the sharing of private codified knowledge.

Research limitations/implications

The paper shows that one organization belonging to a certain type of business was studied, and these results might be more relevant in the setting of similar business organizations that have similarities in their contexts and profiles with this organization.

Practical implications

The results in this paper may assist organizations in rethinking the ways of approaching certain types of knowledge sharing in their strategic and infrastructural decisions and their application. Organizations might invest in promoting inter‐unit exchanges and in creating meaningful social nets for more innovative products and better performance.

Originality/value

This paper makes a distinct contribution to the available body of research on how social networks in organizations operate in sharing knowledge. The paper provides answers to a number of research questions that have not been addressed thus far in the literature; this study also provides fresh insights into the investigation of patterns of association and prediction.

Details

Journal of Knowledge Management, vol. 11 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1367-3270

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 May 2002

Jochen Wirtz and Patricia Chew

Although more than 30 years of research has established the power of word‐of‐mouth (WOM), little work has focused on how it could be managed more effectively. This study examines…

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Abstract

Although more than 30 years of research has established the power of word‐of‐mouth (WOM), little work has focused on how it could be managed more effectively. This study examines how incentives would work to actively encourage WOM, and how incentives would potentially interact with other variables that have been shown to drive WOM. In particular, a 3 × 3 × 2 experiment was conducted to examine the impact of incentives, tiestrength, and satisfaction on WOM behavior. Consumer deal proneness was investigated using a quasi‐experimental design. Suggests from the findings that satisfaction does not necessarily increase the likelihood of WOM being generated. Shows incentives to be an effective catalyst to increase the likelihood of WOM being generated by satisfied consumers and tie strength to be an important variable in explaining WOM behavior. Suggests from the findings that deal prone consumers generate more WOM, independent of incentives. The findings have important implications, and suggest that satisfied customers are a necessary but not sufficient condition for getting positive WOM, and that incentives may be an effective way to get satisfied customers to recommend a firm. Furthermore, incentive programs targeted at strong ties are likely to be more effective than those targeted at weak ties, provided customers are genuinely happy with the service provided.

Details

International Journal of Service Industry Management, vol. 13 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0956-4233

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 8 July 2014

Lars Groeger and Francis Buttle

– The paper aims to provide a theoretically informed critique of current measurement practices for word-of-mouth marketing (WOMM) campaigns.

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Abstract

Purpose

The paper aims to provide a theoretically informed critique of current measurement practices for word-of-mouth marketing (WOMM) campaigns.

Design/methodology/approach

An exploratory field study is conducted on a real-life WOMM campaign. Data are collected from two generations of campaign participants using a custom-built Facebook app and subjected to social network analysis (SNA). We compare our theoretically informed measure of campaign reach with industry standard practice.

Findings

Standard metrics for WOMM campaigns assume campaign reach equates to the number of campaign-related conversations. These metrics fail to allow for the possibility that some participants may be exposed multiple times to campaign-related messaging. In this exploratory field study, standard metrics overestimate campaign reach by 57.5 per cent. The campaign is also significantly less efficient in terms of cost-per-conversation. SNA shows that multiple exposures are associated with transitivity and tie strength. Multiple exposures mean that the total number of campaign-related conversations cannot be regarded as equivalent to the number of individuals reached.

Research limitations/implications

SNA provides a sound theoretical foundation for the critique of current WOMM measurement practices. Two social-structural network attributes – transitivity and tie strength – inform our critique. A single WOMM campaign provides the field study context.

Practical implications

The findings have significant implications for the development and deployment of WOMM effectiveness and efficiency metrics and are relevant to WOMM agencies, agency clients and the Word-of-Mouth Marketing Association.

Originality/value

This is the largest field study of its kind having collected data on >5,000 WOMM campaign-related conversations. Participants specified precisely whom they spoke to about the campaign and the strength of that social tie. This is the first SNA-informed critique of standard WOMM campaign measurement practices and first quantification of offline multiple exposures to a WOMM campaign. We demonstrate how standard campaign metrics are based on the false assumption that word-of-mouth flows exclusively along intransitive ties.

Details

European Journal of Marketing, vol. 48 no. 7/8
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0309-0566

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 17 March 2023

Moses Ahomka Yeboah

This study aims to examine how differences in the strength of interpersonal ties affect the social structure of organisational family and non-family relationships and their…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to examine how differences in the strength of interpersonal ties affect the social structure of organisational family and non-family relationships and their implications for work-related interactions.

Design/methodology/approach

This study used a quantitative approach. The hypotheses were tested using multi-group analysis in PLS-SEM as implemented in WarpPLS Version.

Findings

The results show that both family and non-family organisational members are inclined to ask from others whom they previously have given information, implying that reciprocity in work-related interactions in the workplace is present at the dyad level. Furthermore, the existing robust strength of ties among family employees facilitate a three-way relationship where each member is responsible for the quality of work-related interactions between other members. This means that triadic communication is only present within family networks. While, the absence of strong interpersonal ties within non-family network fuels the popularity effect, where non-family employees who are perceived to be knowledgeable tend to be approached by others for work-related information.

Originality/value

This study brings to the fore a nuanced perspective that complements our current understanding of the implications of social relationships within family and non-family employee groups on work-related interactions in the workplace. It provides clues on how family and non-family employees identify with the firm through their informal relational embeddedness towards work-related interactions within the organisation.

Details

Management Research Review, vol. 46 no. 10
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2040-8269

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 8 October 2019

Chanho Song, Tuo Wang, Haakon T. Brown and Michael Y. Hu

The purpose of this paper is to investigate how referral reward programs (RRPs) utilizing scarcity messages influence bank credit holders’ referrals to and adoptions by close or…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate how referral reward programs (RRPs) utilizing scarcity messages influence bank credit holders’ referrals to and adoptions by close or distant friends.

Design/methodology/approach

A 2×2 experiment is implemented with 760 consumers solicited through Amazon’s Mechanical Turk worker panel. Logit transformation and general linear models are used to test the proposed hypotheses.

Findings

Results showed that offering RRPs with limited available referrals (quantity scarcity) increases the overall number of referrals to and adoptions by close and distant friends. The percent of strong ties also increases with RRPs. As quantity scarcity is relaxed, the percentages of referrals to and adoptions by close friends decrease.

Originality/value

The inclusion of tie strength with scarcity framing greatly enhances our understanding of the effectiveness of RRPs for bank credit cards. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first research attempt on this topic.

Details

International Journal of Bank Marketing, vol. 38 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0265-2323

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 25 February 2014

Jiuchang Wei, Bing Bu, Xiumei Guo and Margaret Gollagher

The strength of ties between individuals influences the speed and spread of crisis information dissemination (CID). By constructing networks of strong and weak ties, this paper…

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Abstract

Purpose

The strength of ties between individuals influences the speed and spread of crisis information dissemination (CID). By constructing networks of strong and weak ties, this paper aims to innovatively explore the impacts of strong and weak ties on the CID at the macro level.

Design/methodology/approach

To better understand the rules of CID in different kinds of social networks, this paper constructs a CID model based on the strength of ties in social networks and cellular automation, using simulations of CID speed and spread in an entire network, strong tie network and weak tie network generated by MATLAB.

Findings

As the article's major theoretical contribution, the results demonstrate that CID is more efficient in a network of weak ties than in a network of strong ties, and that the spread of CID has a positive correlation with the believability of the information disseminated and the dissemination tendency coefficient. Furthermore, the difference of dissemination speeds between strong and weak tie networks varies regularly with information believability and the dissemination tendency coefficient.

Originality/value

This study provides more effective public mechanisms for rapidly evaluating the believability of crisis information and responding to crises in real time. The findings also have some valuable implications for government agencies to improve the efficiency and effect of CID.

Details

Kybernetes, vol. 43 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0368-492X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 2 December 2021

Huawei Zhu, Xiaoling Duan and Yu Su

As a complex social emotion, awe includes both positive emotion and negative emotion. But few studies have explored the downstream effects and psychological mechanisms of two…

Abstract

Purpose

As a complex social emotion, awe includes both positive emotion and negative emotion. But few studies have explored the downstream effects and psychological mechanisms of two different types of awe. As a self-transcendence emotion, awe will arouse the small self, that is, reduce self-awareness. In the era of the sharing economy, the obstacle to sharing is the strong self-awareness that consumers have built about their belongings. Therefore, this paper aims to explore how two different types of awe can affect consumers' sharing, especially with different relationships.

Design/methodology/approach

This study conducted two experiments to test the effect of awe on consumer sharing of their own products. Study 1 aimed to examine the main effect of different awe on consumer sharing of their product as well as the underlying mechanism. Study 2 aimed to examine the interacting role of tie strength in the effect of awe on consumer product sharing.

Findings

Through two empirical tests, the authors have found that, relative to the control group, the sense of awe arouses the feeling of small self and significantly increases the consumers' willingness of sharing. Also, the authors have found that threat-based awe which leads to self-diminishment is more conducive to promoting the sharing of weak ties; on the contrary, the nonthreat-based awe which leads to a feeling of vastness is more conducive to promoting the sharing of strong ties.

Originality/value

This research expands the literature in the field of sharing. While the mainstream sharing a focus on information sharing, this research extends it to product sharing. What is more important is, this research explores how to encourage sharing to weak ties, which contributes to sharing economy.

Details

Journal of Contemporary Marketing Science, vol. 4 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2516-7480

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 11 June 2018

Luminita Postelnicu and Niels Hermes

Empirical studies on the importance of social capital for poor households show divergent outcomes. This divergence may stem from the lack of a conceptual framework for capturing…

Abstract

Purpose

Empirical studies on the importance of social capital for poor households show divergent outcomes. This divergence may stem from the lack of a conceptual framework for capturing the social capital dimensions that deliver economic value to individuals. The purpose of this paper is to define individual social capital from an economic perspective and propose a measurement based on two dimensions of individual social capital that bring economic value to individuals, i.e. informal risk insurance arrangements and information advantages arising from personal social networks.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors first provide a concrete definition of individual social capital and identifying social capital dimensions that are important from an economic perspective (i.e. dimensions that bring economic value to the individual). Next, the authors develop a new conceptual framework around this definition and propose a social capital measurement. Finally, the authors apply this measurement numerically to demonstrate that differences in the network configurations between individuals lead to asymmetry of social interactions between these individuals.

Findings

The authors show that the exchange of resources between two individuals is affected by their individual network configurations. In particular, the authors show that differing network configurations drive asymmetrical social interaction between individuals.

Originality/value

The approach may be especially relevant for understanding of the persistence of poverty and inequality in developing economies. These economies are characterized by environments in which imperfect information, underdeveloped or non-existent formal institutions and limited contract enforcement abound and where social capital may therefore be important to facilitate economic transactions. In particular, the authors see clear applications of the approach in better understanding and improving the use of microfinance programs.

Details

International Journal of Social Economics, vol. 45 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0306-8293

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 11 November 2009

Monica A. Zimmerman, David Barsky and Keith D. Brouthers

Despite changes in international trade agreements and the introduction of new technologies that facilitate international business, many firms, especially SMEs, still do not…

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Abstract

Despite changes in international trade agreements and the introduction of new technologies that facilitate international business, many firms, especially SMEs, still do not diversify into international markets. In this paper, we suggest that an important factor that can influence the international diversification decision is social networks. We hypothesize that both the strength of the ties to international firms and the size of a SME’s international network influence its decision to diversify internationally. Our analysis suggests that the strength of international network ties significantly influences SME international diversification, but that the size of the international network does not. These results have important implications for researchers, managers, and public policy makers.

Details

Multinational Business Review, vol. 17 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1525-383X

Keywords

21 – 30 of over 30000