In the chemical industry, a new generation of decision-makers is emerging in the next 5 to 10 years with a higher affinity for the use of videos to find information and to connect with other individuals. Through the digital transformation, an “on-demand” culture has become usual. As individuals want to access information at any time, B2B companies need to transform to video-based infrastructures enabling them to build effective relationships through connecting their employees with the new decision-makers of the industry. The speciality chemicals business is characterized by a high level of innovations which is seen as an excellent source to create video content aiming to connect individuals and to change social communication patterns. The current academic literature indicates the advantages of using YouTube in B2B, but a specific framework describing how to embed YouTube in the customer journey to improve B2B social communication and to achieve better social connections between B2B individuals is missing. Using an adopted content analysis, this paper developed a framework for YouTube-based activities combining the four major elements, Content, Touchpoint, Usage and Stimulus, in an interrelated setup.

The application of digital customer communities has been observed over the past years but primarily in the business-to-consumer sector. The COVID-19 crisis has affected positively the usage of digital tools in business-to-business, including customer communities. A digital customer community aims to connect individuals and share information between them. It has therewith a positive effect on the trust, loyalty and behavior of customers. The present study reviewed scholarly databases in an attempt to ascertain the current knowledge on the use and relevance of digital customer communities. Several studies have discussed the advantages of using digital customer communities in e-commerce, brand management or business cooperation, but a framework supporting the application of digital customer communities is lacking. The present study used content analysis to examine the existing academic knowledge. It recommends answering the three questions “What does the digital transformation change?”, “Why use customer communities?” and “What drives the customer experience?” when starting to consider using digital customer communities in business-to-consumer.

Kurzfassung Customer Relationship Management (CRM) hat sich bereits als ein erfolgreicher Ansatz im Bereich Kundenbindung etabliert. Mit dem so genannten Electronic-Customer Relationship Management zeichnet sich eine aktuelle Tendenz innerhalb des klassischen CRM ab. Dies ist laut Forrester Research ein Web-zentrischer Ansatz, der Kundenkontakte über alle Kommunikationskanäle und Geschäftsfunktionen hinweg intensivieren soll. Dieser Ansatz geht davon aus, dass das Internet eine wichtige Schnittstelle zum Kunden darstellt, die in den nächsten Jahren erheblich an Bedeutung gewinnen wird.

In higher education, new teaching and learning behaviors have been observed over the past few years, mainly driven by digital transformation. The COVID-19 crisis has accelerated this process, with higher education institutions as well as students often having to change their behavior virtually from one day to the next. Digital media is a widely used term in the academic literature. It can refer to components such as social media, smartphones or tablets, videos, wikis, and search engines. Online-based technologies and the consumption of digital media content became more prevalent during the COVID-19 crisis. The present study reviewed scholarly databases in an attempt to ascertain current knowledge of the use and relevance of digital media in higher education. Several studies have discussed the advantages of using digital media in higher education institutions, but a framework supporting the application of digital media components is lacking. The present study used content analysis to examine these studies. It recommends that examination preparation, instructional content assistance, and student self-study enhancement would benefit most from the use of digital media.

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