RESEARCH PROPOSAL Subject: Research methodology in economics and business Topic: The impact of affiliate marketing on e-commerce platforms on the purchasing behavior of Generation Z in V
FOREIGN TRADE UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS AND INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS …… ***…… RESEARCH PROPOSAL Subject: Research methodology in economics and business Topic: The impact of affiliate marketing on e-commerce platforms on the purchasing behavior of Generation Z in Vietnam Class : KTEE206.9 Group : 03 Instructor : Dr Nguyen Minh Phuc Hanoi, 2023 GROUP MEMBERS AND EVALUATION No Full Name Student ID Contribution Trần Tiến Dũng 2112530011 12.5% Đỗ Thị Vân Hồng 2113530009 12.5% Phạm Phương Anh 2111530007 12.5% Trần Ngọc Anh 2112530008 12.5% Nguyễn Phương Thảo 2112530049 12.5% Lê Minh Anh 2112530002 12.5% Nguyễn Hải Nam 2112530032 12.5% Nguyễn Duy Nam Thành 2112530048 12.5% i LIST OF TABLES Table 2.1 Summary of prior studies into the relationship between affiliate marketing and Gen Z consumer behaviour Table 4.1 SPIDER Tools 16 Table 7.1 Research Timeframe 23 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 6.1 Grounded Theory Process 20 ii TABLE OF CONTENTS GROUP MEMBERS AND EVALUATION i LIST OF TABLES ii LIST OF FIGURES ii TABLE OF CONTENTS I ABSTRACT II INTRODUCTION III LITERATURE REVIEW Generation Z And Their Purchase Decision - Making Style Affiliate marketing and E-commerce Justifications for research gap and research objectives 15 Research Questions 15 IV RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 17 Research paradigm 17 Research design 17 Research scope 18 Data collection 18 Sample and Sampling Technique 18 5.1 Data Sample 18 5.2 Sampling technique 19 Data analysis techniques 19 Ethical consideration 21 V SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY 22 VI LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY 22 VII TIMEFRAME 23 VIII REFERENCE 25 I ABSTRACT The COVID-19 pandemic has substantially altered the consumption and shopping patterns of individuals Social distancing policies have transformed online shopping into a trend, thereby contributing to the explosive growth of affiliate marketing websites, social networks, and e-commerce platforms This qualitative research study examines the impacts of affiliate marketing on the purchasing behavior of Generation Z (Gen Z) individuals since the 2020 COVID outbreak in Vietnam Using an inductive approach, a mono-method qualitative design, and the grounded theory strategy, the study aims to uncover the experiences, perceptions, and motivations of Gen Z consumers regarding affiliate marketing Data collection involves in-depth one-onone interviews with a theoretical sampling technique, and the analysis follows the traditional grounded theory method The findings of this research will shed light on the key factors affecting Gen Z's purchasing behavior within the context of affiliate marketing and the extent of their influence The insights gained from this study will act as a theoretical foundation for future studies The implications extend to marketers and businesses in e-commerce and digital marketing in Vietnam, potentially informing the development of more effective affiliate marketing strategies Keywords: affiliate marketing, purchasing behavior, Generation Z, Vietnam II INTRODUCTION In recent years, the electronic commerce (e-commerce) sector in Vietnam has witnessed rapid growth In detail, the Vietnam E-commerce Association (2023) in their E-Business Index Report found that the national e-commerce is estimated to grow stably at the rate of 23% and surpass 20 billion USD in size in the next few years Realizing the enormous potential of e-commerce, many large-scale enterprises as well as SMEs have constantly adopted new digital marketing campaigns to reach their consumers One of their most efficient marketing tools is affiliate marketing Affiliate marketing is defined as the practice of rewarding an independent marketer, also known as an affiliate, a commission for each visitor, customer, or sale generated as a consequence of the affiliate's marketing efforts (Chachra et al., 2015; Brown, 2009) In other words, the affiliate offers to pay for its own marketing efforts aimed at generating orders for your products and for every order the affiliate generates it earns a commission (at a rate defined by you) (Duffy, 2005) Not only is this strategy widely used to help drive sales but it also increases brand awareness and expands customer base Besides marketing tools, many businesses are also placing more emphasis on targeting the right segment of customers, especially the Generation Z According to The Center For Generational Kinetics (n.d.), Generation Z was identified as the population who was born between approximately 1996 – 2015 They are commonly known as the first "digital native" generation due to their extensive use and comfort with technology and social media (Kahawandala et al., 2020a) However, in our research, we specifically focus on the purchasing behavior of Generation Z individuals born between 1996 and 2010, as they are now reaching adulthood and could earn their own income and/or make their own buying decision With a population of over 98 million people, Vietnam has a large Gen Z population of over 20 million (1996 - 2010), equal to about 20% of the national population (World Population Review, 2023) While they are still young and most have not reached their full capability, they are already making their impacts on the consumer landscape, not only by their purchasing power but also their influence on the purchase decisions made by their parents (Vietnam Economic Times, 2018) Therefore, it can be said that Gen Z is a key target for many brands and understanding their purchasing behavior is crucial for the success of any marketing strategy However, while there have been studies on the impact of affiliate marketing on consumer behavior in other countries, there is a lack of research on this topic in Vietnam, particularly in the context of Gen Z consumers Given that there exists a difference in how each cohort in each nation interprets and responds to affiliate marketing on e-commerce platforms, we believe that this research can contribute to the existing literature on affiliate marketing in Vietnam and provide a better understanding of the purchasing behavior of this important demographic group Document contin Discover more from: phương pháp nghiên cứu khoa học PPH102 Trường Đại học Ngoại thương 549 documents Go to course ĐỀ LIVE 1605 42 ăgjawjguoawghljhaeg phương pháp nghiên cứu khoa học PHƯƠNG PHÁP Nghiên CỨ TẾ XÃ HỘI phương pháp nghiên cứu khoa học ĐỀ XUẤT PPNC CUỐI KỲ 11 tiết đầy đủ, hỗ trợ c phương pháp nghiên cứu khoa học Trắc nghiệm PPNC 28 phương pháp nghiên cứu khoa học Mentor A+ Logic học phương pháp nghiên cứu khoa học Phương Pháp Học Tập N 21 phương pháp nghiên cứu khoa học III LITERATURE REVIEW Generation Z And Their Purchase Decision - Making Style Generation Z is the demographic cohort succeeding Millennials and preceding Generation Alpha and is referred to as iGeneration, Homelanders, or Post-Millenials (Dimock, 2019) Demographers and some researchers place the generation Z between the late 1990s and early 2010s (Cilliers, 2017; Dimock, 2019) Gen Z are the descendants of Baby Boomers, and a fraction of them have Millennials as their parents (Thangavel et al., 2019) Generation Z already accounts for almost a third of the global population and contains potential key customers (Shropshall, 2020), introducing the necessity of conducting more research on these specific consumer traits They show numerous differences in their characteristics, needs, attributes, and work styles from other generations (Kahawandala and Peter, 2020b); thus, their purchasing behavior may differ accordingly Generation Z is viewed as a greater challenge in comparison with other generations for marketers because it is completely different from all previous generations, being the exact opposite in terms of behavior and calling for different approaches (Schlossberg, 2016) Generation Z individuals tend to place emphasis on their friends and families’ recommendations and concurrence (Kahawandala and Peter, 2020b); indeed, they value the opinions from their families and friends as the primary source of references upon product purchasing (Accenture, 2017; Hidvégi and KelemenErdős, 2016) Besides being born into the digital age, they have been exposed to an unprecedented amount of technology during childhood and adolescence Therefore, their decisions may be influenced by social media to some extent Indeed, the Internet is referred to as their primary source of information (Hidvégi and Kelemen-Erdős, 2016) and influences Generation Z more profoundly than the Millennials (Accenture, 2017) Accenture’s survey also suggested three factors based on which Gen Z consumers generally make purchase decisions: the lowest price or best deal, the display of the merchandise, and user reviews Regarding their characteristics, Wood (2013) points to four major trends typical of Generation Z members as consumers: keen interest in the new technologies; ease of product use; need for safety in communication and shopping; need to temporarily escape from everyday reality These characteristics can profoundly shape generation Z’s purchasing decisions and, thus, need further investigation However, some characteristics of generation Z upon purchasing products remain controversial, such as brand loyalty, which received different conclusions from Accenture (2017) and Merriman (2015) Thus, more research on Generation Z’s consumer psychology should be conducted to draw clearer conclusions about them Affiliate marketing and E-commerce Affiliate marketing is a process where publishers earn a commission by using an affiliate link to promote a product or service made by another retailer or advertiser The affiliate partner is rewarded with a payout for providing a specific result to the retailer or advertiser (Hayes, 2023) This marketing strategy relies on establishing a mutually beneficial relationship between advertisers and affiliates, and it is predicted to become the primary marketing strategy for e-commerce in the future (Duffy, 2005) Affiliate marketing has a positive effect on consumer buying interest in Ecommerce (Marquerette and Hamidah ,2023), making it a promising marketing strategy for businesses in many countries, including Vietnam, according to the research "Affiliate marketing and opportunities for using affiliate marketing in Vietnam in the context of the Fourth Industrial Revolution" (Pham et al., 2021) The research found that affiliate marketing is effective in reaching Generation Z consumers, who are a large and growing segment of the Vietnamese population It also indicated that affiliate marketing can be an effective way to increase brand awareness and drive sales Perceived trust, perceived usefulness, and perceived informativeness can be considered to be one of the primary factors influencing consumers’ attitude towards their e-purchase, as concluded from the research "Affiliate Marketing Programs: A Study of Consumer Attitude Toward Affiliate Marketing Programs Among Indian Users" by Haq (2012) and "Impact of Affiliate Marketing on the E-Buying Behavior of Millennials: A TAM-Based Approach with Text Analysis'' by Ghosal et al (2020) The later research also suggested other factors affecting consumers’ attitudes towards online affiliate marketing programs and thus their purchasing decisions, including perceived ease of location, relative advantage, compatibility, and observability However, this research mainly focused on the consumer behavior of Millennials rather than Generation Z Generation Z is emerging as a potential key consumer segment; therefore, there should be more studies relating to their characteristics and purchase decisionmaking style with careful investigations