Enhancing loyalty and e-WOM in virtual brand communities
A multi-country study
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 12420907 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Nedra Bahri-Ammari (0000-0001-9307-9843, Institut des Hautes Études Commerciales de Carthage, Université de Carthage Department of Marketing, corresponding author), Arul Mishra (0000-0001-9634-5545, Indian Institute of Management Indore Department of Marketing), Anish Yousaf (0000-0002-5234-7474, Nottingham Trent University Department of Marketing, Nottingham Business School, , , UK), Anil Bilgihan (0000-0003-2770-9637, Florida Atlantic University Department of Marketing) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Pages | 1-21 |
| Publication date | 2025-12-03 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Internet Research (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1066-2243 • E-ISSN: 2054-5657 |
| Publisher | Emerald Publishing Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1108/intr-10-2024-1553 |
| OpenAlex | W4416934781 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 80 |
Purpose Extant works on virtual brand community (VBC) engagement are limited to engagement with the community or the brand, without comprehensively investigating the antecedents and consequences of both. Additionally, most works have remained restricted to one country in their investigation, despite VBCs’ global reach. To fill these gaps, the work investigates the relationships amongst self-congruence with the brand (SCB), VBC satisfaction, affective brand engagement (ABE), VBC Engagement (VBCE), brand loyalty and electronic word-of-mouth (e-WOM). Design/methodology/approach About 600 respondents, 150 each from the US, the UK, India and Tunisia, provided the necessary data, which was analysed using covariance-based structural equation modelling (CB-SEM) in SmartPLS4 to test the proposed hypotheses. Findings SCB was a critical factor influencing VBC satisfaction and ABE. The study validated the effect of ABE on VBCE and the positive impact of VBCE and ABE on brand loyalty and e-WOM. The model remained robust across the countries as well. Practical implications The findings of the work guide brand managers on leveraging the congruence between the brand that owns the VBC and the consumer as the “building block” to create satisfaction and engagement with the VBC. Originality/value The work adds value by evoking a unique mechanism through which SCB and resultant engagement can drive loyalty and e-WOM. A primary novelty of the work is the bifurcation of the affective and social dimensions of consumer-brand engagement to propose two separate constructs in the VBC context, referred to as ABE and VBCE
Brand Engagement · Brand Loyalty · Brand relationship · Loyalty · Novelty · Structural equation modeling · Work (physics · Work engagement · Digital Marketing and Social Media · Open Source Software Innovations · Service and Product Innovation
What We Know and Don't Know about Online Word-of-Mouth
Estimating Nonresponse Bias in Mail Surveys
Developing and validating a multidimensional consumer-based brand equity scale
Contribution Behavior in Virtual Communities
Culture and Organizations
Customer Engagement
Minimum sample size estimation in PLS‐SEM
Structural Equation Modeling in Marketing
Customer engagement
PLS-Sem
CB-SEM vs PLS-SEM methods for research in social sciences and technology forecasting
Virtual communities
Destination Image, Self-Congruity, and Travel Behavior
Structural equation modeling in practice
Exploring oppositional loyalty and satisfaction in firm-hosted communities in China
Consumer engagement in online brand communities
Understanding relationships among customer experience, engagement, and word-of-mouth intention on online brand communities
The effect of social commerce attributes on customer engagement
The drivers of intimacy toward social media-based brand communities
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |