Abstracts Category : Other

A study of brand experiences on Hong Kong customers repurchase intention and word-of-mouth referrals for online group buying

by Wai King Leung

Research Doctorate - Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) Owing to the rapid development and gradual maturing of online group buying (OGB) in Hong Kong, retaining customers is of vital importance to OGB vendors in their bid to survive in the long run. In light of the limited literature in the field, this research study looks at the impact of brand experience and its relationship with repurchase intention and word-of-mouth (WOM) referrals of OGB customers in Hong Kong, including the moderating roles of product involvement and gender. A total of 231 respondents participated in this study. Respondent profiles suggest most OGB users in Hong Kong are 1830-year-old, white-collar females, who are degree holders and earn a monthly income of HK$20,000 or above. By employing simple regression analysis, two analyses were performed to test the main hypotheses that brand experience has positive effect on customer repurchase intention (H1) and WOM referrals (H2). This study confirms that a customers experiences with an OGB brand positively predict repurchase intention and WOM referralsa finding that not only has theoretical implications for researchers, but also provides an up-to-date insight for OGB practitioners in Hong Kong in devising effective strategies to retain customers and promote their brand. This study also conduct four subsequent regression analyses to test the moderating effects of product involvement and gender on the relationships between brand experience and repurchase intention as well as brand experience and WOM referrals. The results did not find a moderating role for product involvement on the impact of brand experience on both repurchase intention and WOM referrals. Besides, the data did not present a moderating role of gender in the relationships between brand experiences and repurchase intention. However, the findings suggest that gender moderates the effect of brand experience on WOM referralsthe positive relationship between brand experience and WOM referrals in the OGB in Hong Kong is stronger for females than for males. This result suggests that OGB vendors in Hong Kong should consider female-focused marketing strategies and recruiting female brand ambassadors.Advisors/Committee Members: University of Newcastle. Faculty of Business & Law, School of Business.