| Abstract |
Social network services based on openness, connectedness, and mass participation are reshaping many aspects of how companies conduct business and create value for their customers. For instance, Facebook and Twitter are expected to play a pivotal role as a new communication channel through which companies -forge close relationships with their customers for co-creation of value for mutual benefits. Given the potential of social network services, it is not surprising that many companies have strategically invested in social network services to reach out to customers. Despite the growing interest in social network services as a platform to connect companies and their customers, few guidelines exist about how managers can effectively utilize social network services in forging relationships with their customers. As such, scholars should pay greater attention to how firms can successfully develop relationships with their customers on social network services. In particular, this study employs the S-O-R (stimulus-organism-response) framework as a theoretical lens to develop a research model that explains customers??participation in the value co-creation platform that companies opened on Twitter. According to the S-O-R framework, certain types of individuals??behaviors can be best understood based on a causal link from environmental stimulus to organism, and response. We apply the S-O-R framework to understand how ubiquitous connectivity (stimuli) can influence customers??experience (organism) with companies on Twitter, which in turn influence their participation behavior (response). Two steps have been undertaken to empirically test the research model. First, we conducted a content analysis of tweets written by customers who follow companies on Twitter. As a result, we found event/promotion participation, company support, and giving feedback as three specific types of customer participation behavior. Second, we conducted a web-based survey to test research hypotheses in the research model. Participations in the survey were solicited to customers who followed companies on Twitter. As a result, a total of 115 respondents have completed the survey. Data were analyzed using the partial least square (PLS) technique. The results of data analysis suggest that ubiquitous connectivity (stimuli) had strong positive effects on perceive usefulness, perceived enjoyment, and perceived intimacy (organism). Perceived intimacy showed positive effects on customer participation behavior (response), such as event participation, company support, and giving feedback. Perceived enjoyment was found to have strong positive effects on company support and giving feedback. On the other hand, perceived usefulness did not have significant impacts on the three types of customer participation behavior.
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