Abstract
Brand microblogs (BMs) have been increasingly utilized by companies to facilitate communication and foster deeper relationships with their customers. In addition to attracting new followers, retaining existing followers is equally, if not more, important to the success of BM operators. Drawing upon the migration theory, this study develops a push-pull-mooring (PPM) model of BM unfollowing motivations to enhance our understanding of the factors that influence BM users’ unfollowing intention. The study empirically examines the three categories of antecedents of the BM unfollowing intention: push (dissatisfaction with information quality, dissatisfaction with service quality, and expectation disconfirmation), pull (alternative medium attractiveness and interest shift), and mooring (perceived unfollowing costs and person brand unfit) effects. The results suggest that the three categories of unfollowing motivations display varying degrees of influence on BM users’ unfollowing intention. Theoretical and managerial implications of the findings of this study are also discussed.
Recommended Citation
Chen, Leida and Tang, Zhenya, "Understanding Brand Microblog Users' Unfollowing Motivations from the Perspective of Push-Pull-Mooring Model" (2019). AMCIS 2019 Proceedings. 9.
https://aisel.aisnet.org/amcis2019/ebusiness/ebusiness/9
Understanding Brand Microblog Users' Unfollowing Motivations from the Perspective of Push-Pull-Mooring Model
Brand microblogs (BMs) have been increasingly utilized by companies to facilitate communication and foster deeper relationships with their customers. In addition to attracting new followers, retaining existing followers is equally, if not more, important to the success of BM operators. Drawing upon the migration theory, this study develops a push-pull-mooring (PPM) model of BM unfollowing motivations to enhance our understanding of the factors that influence BM users’ unfollowing intention. The study empirically examines the three categories of antecedents of the BM unfollowing intention: push (dissatisfaction with information quality, dissatisfaction with service quality, and expectation disconfirmation), pull (alternative medium attractiveness and interest shift), and mooring (perceived unfollowing costs and person brand unfit) effects. The results suggest that the three categories of unfollowing motivations display varying degrees of influence on BM users’ unfollowing intention. Theoretical and managerial implications of the findings of this study are also discussed.