Multichannel management gets “social”

Abstract

Purpose – This paper aims to investigate customers’ motivations and the decision-making process when choosing a channel in a “social” multichannel environment that includes social media channels, and the complementary and competitive effects compared to traditional channels within the multichannel strategy of a major European telecoms provider. A conceptual framework of multichannel customer behaviour in a “social” multichannel environment is proposed. Design/methodology/approach – The study adopts an exploratory approach through 74 semi-structured interviews with customers of a major European telecoms provider who have also used social media channels to contact the company (customer-initiated contact, CIC). Findings – Users of distinct social media channels are driven by different motivations. For instance, the social motivation for using social media is evident for Facebook users, while Twitter users are mainly driven by utilitarian considerations. Although users of different social media channels represent distinct segments in terms of behaviours and motivations, complementary effects among channels (new and traditional) are generally detected in the sense that a better customer experience is driven by the presence of multiple channels. Research limitations/implications – Data collection was performed for only one company in one industry and should be extended to other industries, although our results were confirmed by discussions with social media managers of other companies. Practical implications – The research offers suggestions to develop multichannel strategies in a “social” multichannel environment. Originality/value – This study advances knowledge in the multichannel management field by investigating why and how customers utilize channels in a multichannel environment that includes social media channels. The authors develop a conceptual framework of multichannel customer behaviour for CIC in a “social” multichannel environment.

Customer complaint behaviour (CCB) in the retail sector: why do customers voice their complaints on Facebook?

“…Johannessen et al (2010) point out that in contrary to the analysis of quantitative data, it is important that those who collect the data also analyse and interpret them, which is the case in this study. Theories, hypotheses and understanding are important starting points for the analysis work, which is extremely important as qualitative data must be interpreted (Patton, 2015). The interpretation also depends on the skills of the researchers.…”

“…The sample was selected in multiple phases. The qualitative nature of the study indicates that generalisability was not relevant as it rather sought to find as much varied information as possible (Mehmetoglu, 2004;Patton, 2015). Firstly, the researchers aimed to include customers' unfavourable experiences with various types of retailers and products, ranging from electronics, cosmetics and food.…”

Analysis of Factors that Influence Customers’ Willingness to Leave Big Data Digital Footprints on Social Media: A Systematic Review of Literature

“…It is a social aspect of exchange to share information with others (Ali, 2011;Crocker and Canevello, 2008) and also a major social value for social media users from other community members that use and interact with social media (Obst and Stafurik, 2010). As such, it can be summarised from the above findings that social factors (social interaction, social ties and social support) enhance the use of social media (Dalla Pozza, 2014;Foster et al, 2011;Gironda and Korgaonkar, 2014;Hsiao et al, 2010;Hsu and Wu, 2011).…”

Popularity in social media and company growth: evidence for local banks

“…Taking additionally into account that the number of social media users is consistently growing and is expected to exceed 3 billion users by 2021 (eMarketer, 2017), it is not surprising that social media shift to the center of interests of not only entrepreneurs but also researchers. Current empirical evidence related to the impact of social media on economic life concerns mostly: (a) the strengthening of a customer-company relationship and engagement (Mangold & Faulds, 2009;Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010;Bolton, 2011;Tsimonis & Dimitriadis, 2014;Laroche, Habibi, Richard, & Sankaranarayanan, 2012;Lipsman, Mudd, Rich, & Bruich, 2012;Durkin, McGowan, & Murray, 2014), (b) improved efficiency of marketing (Edelman, 2010;Gallaugher & Ransbotham, 2010;Pozza, 2014;Cawsey & Rowley, 2016), or (c) stimulation of brand awareness and loyalty (Silver & Vegholm, 2009;Farshid, Plangger, & Nel, 2011;Laroche, Habibi, & Richard, 2013;Larsson & Vitaoja, 2017). Contributions related to financial aspects of social media adoption are relatively scarce, and concern mostly non-financial companies and links between social media investment and firm value or performance (Plangger, 2012;Paniagua & Sapena, 2014;Kim, Koh, Cha, & Lee 2015a;Kim, Lim, & Brymer, 2015b;Hsu & Lawrance, 2016).…”

“…Within the first abovementioned literature strand, the authors prove that social media strengthen long-term relationships with clients (Mangold & Faulds, 2009;Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010;Laroche et al, 2012;Lipsman et al, 2012;Durkin et al, 2014), improve efficiency of marketing efforts (Edelman, 2010;Gallaugher & Ransbotham, 2010;Pozza, 2014;Cawsey & Rowley, 2016), generally increase consumer engagement (Bolton, 2011;Tsimonis & Dimitriadis, 2014), and stimulate brand awareness, loyalty, and trust (Silver & Vegholm, 2009;Farshid et al, 2011;Laroche et al, 2013;Larsson & Vitaoja, 2017). As far as the content type of social media activity is concerned, it is shown that the characteristics of Facebook posts such as post type, category, and posting day influence users' interaction in terms of the number of comments and likes, as well as its duration (Cvijikj & Michahelles, 2011).…”