Relationship between peer endorser credibility and customers benefits and brand loyalty a study in online brand communities on fashion in vietnam

i VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY HO CHI MINH CITY HO CHI MINH CITY UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY NGUYỄN LÊ KHÁNH DUY RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PEER ENDORSER CREDIBILITY AND CUSTOMERS' BENEFITS AND BRAND LOYALTY: A STUDY IN ONLINE BRAND COMMUNITIES ON FASHION IN VIETNAM Major Major code : Business Administration : 8340101 MASTER’S THESIS HO CHI MINH CITY, JUNE 2023 i THIS THESIS IS COMPLETED AT HO CHI MINH CITY UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY – VNU-HCM Supervisor: Assoc Prof Nguyễn Mạnh Tuân Examiner 1: PhD Lê Hoành Sử Examiner 2: Assoc Prof Hồ Trung Thành This master’s thesis is defended at HCM City University of Technology, VNU-HCM City on 15th June, 2023 Master’s thesis Committee: Chairman: Assoc Prof Phạm Quốc Trung Secretary: PhD Mai Thị Mỹ Quyên Examiner 1: PhD Lê Hoành Sử Examiner 2: Assoc Prof Hồ Trung Thành Commissioner: Assoc.Prof Nguyễn Mạnh Tuân Approval of the Chair of Master’s Thesis Committee and Dean of Faculty of CHAIRMAN DEAN OF INDUSTRIAL MANAGEMENT ii VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY HO CHI MINH CITY HO CHI MINH CITY UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM Indepence – Liberty – Happiness _ MASTER’S THESIS TASKS Student’s name: Nguyễn Lê Khánh Duy Student ID: 2270046 Date of Birth: 18/01/1997 Place of Birth: Ho Chi Minh Major: Business Administration Major Code: 8340101 I THESIS’S NAME: RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PEER ENDORSER CREDIBILITY AND CUSTOMERS' BENEFITS AND BRAND LOYALTY: A STUDY IN ONLINE BRAND COMMUNITIES ON FASHION IN VIETNAM II MISSIONS AND CONTENTS: - Propose a structural model between Consumer Interest, Endorser Credibility, Impact on Customer Engagement, and consequent customer brand loyalty - Verify the above model in the fashion field in Vietnam Besides, the topic also provides management implications for businesses dealing in fashion products III DATE OF ASSOCIATION: 28/11/2022 IV DATE COMPLETE MISSION: 04/05/2023 V INSTRUCTIONS: Assoc Prof Nguyễn Mạnh Tuân INTRUCTIONS (Name and Signature) TPHCM, 04th May, 2023 HEAD OF DEPARTMENT (Name and Signature) DEAN OF INDUSTRIAL MANAGEMENT (Name and Signature) iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The topic "RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PEER ENDORSER CREDIBILITY AND CUSTOMERS' BENEFITS AND BRAND LOYALTY: A STUDY IN ONLINE BRAND COMMUNITIES ON FASHION IN VIETNAM" is the subject I chose to research and my graduation thesis after two years of studying a master's program majoring in Business Administration at Bach Khoa University To complete the research process and complete this thesis, first of all, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Assoc.Prof.Dr Nguyen Manh Tuan, Faculty of Industrial Management - University of Science and Technology He directly guided and guided me throughout the research process so that I could complete this thesis In addition, I would like to sincerely thank the teachers in the Faculty of Industrial Management for their valuable comments on the thesis On this occasion, I would also like to thank the Faculty of Industrial Management, University of Technology, leaders and colleagues working at the University for creating conditions and time for me during the research process And most especially, I would like to express my deep gratitude to my Family My family is a solid support to help me overcome all difficulties, a great source of encouragement for me throughout the study process Sincerely thank you! iv ABSTRACT The growth of social media has significantly changed the way in which brands and their customers create relationships with one another This study investigates the relationship between the credibility of peer endorsers and the involvement of customers in the product development process In addition to this, it also investigates the effect that customer identification has on the level of customer involvement (N=518) customers joined the online brand communities, and data was gathered from them According to our review, prior research on customer retention in online brand communities included a variety of research procedures and methodologies We conducted a survey and found that community engagement is driven by consumer brand identification The findings indicate that companies need to establish strong online communities for their followers so that they may continue to use their products and express their thoughts This will help differentiate our products in the eyes of consumers who buy competitor brands v THE COMMITMENT OF THE THESIS’ AUTHOR I hereby declare that the content in the thesis "RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PEER ENDORSER CREDIBILITY AND CUSTOMERS' BENEFITS AND BRAND LOYALTY: A STUDY IN ONLINE BRAND COMMUNITIES ON FASHION IN VIETNAM" is the result of my personal research under the guidance of Assoc Prof Nguyen Manh Tuan, not copy results from other studies Ho Chi Minh City, April 2023 Thesis’ Author Nguyễn Lê Khánh Duy vi TABLE OF CONTENT CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1.1 PROBLEM STATEMENT 1.2 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES 1.3 RESEARCH SCOPE 1.4 PRACTICAL MEANING 1.5 RESEARCH CONTENT CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW AND PROPOSED RESEARCH MODEL 10 2.1 THEORETICAL CONCEPTS 10 2.1.1 Online Brand Communities 10 2.1.2 Source-Credibility theory 12 2.1.3 Customer Participation 14 2.1.4 Peer-Endorser Credibility on Social Media 16 2.1.5 Consumer Brand Identification 20 2.1.6 Electronic Word-Of-Mouth (eWOM) 21 2.1.7 Brand Loyalty 23 2.2 PREVIOUS RESEARCH 25 2.2.1 Model of customer benefits and participation in product support (Nambisan and Baron 2007) 25 2.2.2 The antecedents and consequences of consumer participation (Woisetchlager 2008) 28 2.2.3 Model of community credibility and advertising effectiveness (Munnuka 2016) 30 2.2.4 Model of brand relationship performance through customer engagement and value creation in brand communities on social media (Carlson 2019) 32 2.3 PROPOSED RESEARCH MODEL: 34 2.3.1 Peer endorser credibility and consumer brand identification 34 vii 2.3.2 Interaction-based customer benefits, customer participation and consumer brand identification 37 2.3.3 Consumer brand identification, customer participation and eWOM 41 2.3.4 Customer participation, eWOM and brand loyalty 44 2.3.5 Electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) and brand loyalty 46 CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY 47 3.1 RESEARCH PROCESS 47 3.1.1 Research Method 47 3.1.2 Research Method Process 48 3.2 MEASUREMENT SCALE 51 3.3 RESEARCH SAMPLE 54 3.3.1 Sample Size 54 3.3.2 Sampling Method 54 3.3.3 Method to approach survey audience: 54 3.4 DATA ANALYSIS METHOD: 55 3.4.1 Descriptive statistics 56 3.4.2 Cronbach’s Alpha Analysis 56 3.4.3 Exploratory factor Analysis 56 3.4.4 Confirmatory factor Analysis 58 3.4.5 Structural Model Analysis: 59 CHAPTER 4: RESEARCH FINDINGS 61 4.1 DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSIS 61 4.1.1 Formal quantitative data sampling process 61 4.1.2 Descriptive Analysis 62 4.2 CRONBACH’S ALPHA: 63 4.3 EXPLORATORY FACTOR ANALYSIS (EFA) 63 4.3.1 EFA 1st time: 63 4.3.2 EFA 2nd time: 64 4.4 CONFIRMATORY FACTOR ANALYSIS: 66 viii 4.4.1 Convergence and composite reliability testing 68 4.4.2 Discriminant value test 71 4.5 STRUCTURAL ANALYSIS (SEM) 73 CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS 78 5.1 Theoretical implications 78 5.2 Managerial implications 82 5.3 Limitations and further research 85 REFERENCE 86 APPENDIX 103 CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1.1 PROBLEM STATEMENT Companies are being pushed to develop novel approaches to marketing and business as a result of the shift toward a knowledge-based economy and the rapid expansion of information and communication technology (ICT) To speak more generally In particular, the growth of next-generation Internet technology, more popularly known as Web 3.0, the current explosion of Metaverse, and new technologies to enhance the customer experience all contribute to the fact that co-branding continues to play a significant role in the engagement of consumers In addition, because of the quick growth of Web 2.0-based community platforms like viral marketing and buzz marketing, which are both types of marketing This is because these users view online communities as important sources of information GlobalData report saying Vietnam’s e-commerce market has doubled over the past five years, with total online spending expanding from USD 3.9 billion in 2015 to USD 9.4 billion in 2019 In this scenario, internet marketers concentrate their efforts on their Direct Brand Communities, which are the classic form of brand communities brought into the modern era via the internet The use of social media, which has become an integral part of modern life, is radically altering the way in which customers connect with brands and businesses The fashion industry in Vietnam has witnessed remarkable growth, particularly in its developed state Research has emerged as a vital tool that drives the success of this dynamic industry, contributing to its sustainability and competitiveness in the global market The importance of research in the fashion industry in Vietnam is multifaceted, encompassing various aspects ranging from consumer preferences, market trends, and sustainable practices to collaborations, reputation building, and economic growth One of the key reasons why research is crucial in the fashion industry in Vietnam is to understand and cater to consumer preferences As the fashion market evolves, consumer demands and preferences change rapidly Conducting research helps fashion businesses