Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore consumers’ motivations for engaging in Facebook brand communities, and what outcomes brands can gain from online engagement.

Design/methodology/approach

An online consumer panel was used to collect data through convenience sampling; 497 useable questionnaires were collected.

Findings

The results of the structural equation modelling show that hedonic motivations are more prevalent in Facebook brand communities than utilitarian motivations. When considering the outcomes of online engagement, loyalty towards the brand community is the strongest outcome, followed by word-of-mouth and purchase intention.

Research limitations/implications

This research indicates that marketers should focus on creating content on Facebook brand communities that appeals to the hedonic needs of consumers, such as brand likeability, entertainment and interpersonal utility. This type of content will motivate members of these brand communities to engage online. When consumers engage online, it creates benefits for the brand such as loyalty, word-of-mouth and purchase intention.

Originality/value

This study presents a framework for investigating consumers’ motivation to engage online, based on a theoretical underpinning of both sense of community theory and uses and gratification theory. It also identifies three outcomes for brands that explain why it is worthwhile for firms to invest in engaging with consumers in Facebook brand communities while including a wide range of brand communities.

中文翻译：

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为什么消费者会参与在线品牌社区——品牌为什么要关心？

目的

本文的目的是探索消费者参与 Facebook 品牌社区的动机，以及品牌可以从在线参与中获得哪些成果。

设计/方法/方法

使用在线消费者面板通过便利抽样收集数据；收集到 497 份可用问卷。

发现

结构方程模型的结果表明，享乐动机在 Facebook 品牌社区中比功利动机更普遍。在考虑在线参与的结果时，对品牌社区的忠诚度是最强的结果，其次是口碑和购买意愿。

研究限制/影响

这项研究表明，营销人员应该专注于在 Facebook 品牌社区上创建吸引消费者享乐需求的内容，例如品牌喜爱度、娱乐性和人际关系效用。此类内容将激励这些品牌社区的成员在线参与。当消费者在线参与时，它为品牌创造了好处，例如忠诚度、口碑和购买意愿。

原创性/价值

本研究基于社区感理论和使用与满足理论的理论基础，提出了一个调查消费者在线参与动机的框架。它还确定了品牌的三个结果，解释了为什么公司值得投资于在 Facebook 品牌社区中与消费者互动，同时包括广泛的品牌社区。