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EMAC 2024 Annual


The Influence of Blog Post Content on Consumer Donation: A Comparative Study between Expression-oriented and Market-oriented Blog Content
(A2024-119386)

Published: May 28, 2024

AUTHORS

yu jinjun, south china university of technology; Wang Yijie, Warwick Business School, The University of Warwick

ABSTRACT

Weblogs, or blogs, have become an integral part of the digital landscape, serving as platforms for self-expression and strategic marketing tools for businesses and individuals alike (Ellison, Steinfield & Lampe, 2007; Lee & Watkins, 2016; Mayzlin & Yoganarasimhan, 2012; McCullagh, 2008). The growth of blogging has been exponential, with Statista reporting over 317 million bloggers in the United States in 2020, up from 27.4 million in 2014, and projected to reach 32.6 million by 2022. This surge in popularity is further evidenced by the 60 million new posts published monthly on WordPress alone, as reported by Orbit Media Studios (2020). Blogs have revolutionized communication by providing individuals with a means to shape their online personas (Highfield & Leaver, 2016; Marwick, 2015; Nardi et al., 2004; Marwick & Boyd, 2011). Simultaneously, they have emerged as powerful marketing instruments for businesses and individuals, including celebrities, who use them to build fanbases, shape consumer perceptions, and drive engagement with brands (Jin & Phua, 2014; Thomson, 2006). Businesses, in particular, leverage blogs to showcase their products or services, interact with customers, and enhance brand visibility, ultimately improving customer relationships and loyalty (Hsu & Tsou, 2011; Kozinets, de Valck, Wojnicki, & Wilner, 2010). Given these dual functions, blog content can be categorized as either expression-oriented or market-oriented. While extensive research has been conducted on the influence of these content types, a gap remains in understanding their distinct effects on consumer behavior. The current research aims to address this gap by examining the differential impact of expression-oriented and market-oriented blog content on consumers' engagement in charities endorsed by bloggers. Specifically, we find that browsing expression-oriented (vs. market-oriented) blog posts will enhance the consumers’ engagement in charities endorsed by these bloggers, which is mediated by perceived warmth towards bloggers. The present research makes several contributions. First, it enhances the existing literature on blogs by exploring the differential impacts of two types of blogs. Second, it adds to the extant literature on perceived warmth. Lastly, this paper's findings offer valuable insights for marketers. Bloggers and influencers can use these insights to tailor their content strategy, boosting follower’s engagement in charitable giving.