The Mystique of Customers’ Saturation in Online Brand Communities

Abstract

Most research studies in the area of online brand communities have largely studied the positive aspects of online brand communities, ignoring the negative influences, mainly the growing threat from customers' saturation within these communities. Given the lack of understanding on the concept of customer saturation in online brand communities, this study establishes the necessary early understanding on this important concept by combining various streams of marketing and brand literature as well as information system. This study enhances understanding through the development of five propositions focusing on the role of customers' saturation on (1) customers' experience within online brand communities, (2) brand relationship, and (3) the co-creation of value. The discussion and review of the current literature produces five important propositions. The propositions develop the direction that customer saturation in online brand communities is likely to impact three key areas.

An advanced netnographic framework for analyzing brand community overlap conflicts in the phygital brand community (PBC) environment

“…The proliferation of online communities and the convergence of physical and digital consumption across numerous brands have the potential to elicit adverse consequences and exert negative influences. The emergence of this phenomenon has generated an escalating apprehension concerning customer saturation within these communities, presenting a noteworthy concern (Ramadan and Abosag, 2017). Saturation refers to a state of communication overload that is characterized by an excessive influx of information (Jacoby, 1977;Kogan et al, 2020), which can be attributed to both the sheer quantity of information (Allen and Wilson, 2003;Bawden and Robinson, 2020;Schneider, 1987) and the extensive engagement in multiple channels or communities by individuals (Power and Phillips-Wren, 2011;Ramadan and Abosag, 2017).…”

“…The emergence of this phenomenon has generated an escalating apprehension concerning customer saturation within these communities, presenting a noteworthy concern (Ramadan and Abosag, 2017). Saturation refers to a state of communication overload that is characterized by an excessive influx of information (Jacoby, 1977;Kogan et al, 2020), which can be attributed to both the sheer quantity of information (Allen and Wilson, 2003;Bawden and Robinson, 2020;Schneider, 1987) and the extensive engagement in multiple channels or communities by individuals (Power and Phillips-Wren, 2011;Ramadan and Abosag, 2017). Saturation may affect various aspects, including customer experience, brand relationships and the cocreation of value (Ramadan and Abosag, 2017).…”

“…Saturation refers to a state of communication overload that is characterized by an excessive influx of information (Jacoby, 1977;Kogan et al, 2020), which can be attributed to both the sheer quantity of information (Allen and Wilson, 2003;Bawden and Robinson, 2020;Schneider, 1987) and the extensive engagement in multiple channels or communities by individuals (Power and Phillips-Wren, 2011;Ramadan and Abosag, 2017). Saturation may affect various aspects, including customer experience, brand relationships and the cocreation of value (Ramadan and Abosag, 2017). Furthermore, saturation can trigger a decline in engagement, a diminished quality of interactions and a weakened sense of community.…”

“…The proliferation of online communities and the convergence of physical and digital consumption across numerous brands have the potential to elicit adverse consequences and exert negative influences. The emergence of this phenomenon has generated an escalating apprehension concerning customer saturation within these communities, presenting a noteworthy concern (Ramadan and Abosag, 2017). Saturation refers to a state of communication overload that is characterized by an excessive influx of information (Jacoby, 1977; Kogan et al.…”

“…However, simultaneous engagement in multiple networks and phygital communities (Ramadan and Abosag, 2017) can lead to a potential conflict that stems from the overlap among PBCs. This conflict is primarily associated with cross-phygital data sharing, which poses risks related to privacy concerns (Acquisti and Gross, 2006; Hargittai and Marwick, 2016), and the inadvertent exposure of personal opinions to a wider audience spanning across different communities (Bazarova and Choi, 2014).…”