Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports 2014 Fashion Meets Twitter: Does the Source Matter? Perceived Message Credibility, Interactivity and Purchase Intention Yijia Wang West Virginia University Follow this and additional works at: https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/etd Recommended Citation Wang, Yijia, "Fashion Meets Twitter: Does the Source Matter? Perceived Message Credibility, Interactivity and Purchase Intention" (2014). Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports. 335. https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/etd/335 This Thesis is protected by copyright and/or related rights. It has been brought to you by the The Research Repository @ WVU with permission from the rights-holder(s). You are free to use this Thesis in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you must obtain permission from the rights-holder(s) directly, unless additional rights are indicated by a Creative Commons license in the record and/ or on the work itself. This Thesis has been accepted for inclusion in WVU Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports collection by an authorized administrator of The Research Repository @ WVU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Fashion Meets Twitter: Does the Source Matter? Perceived Message Credibility, Interactivity and Purchase Intention Yijia Wang Thesis submitted to the Reed College of Media at West Virginia University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Journalism Geah Pressgrove, Ph.D., Chair Elizabeth Oppe, Ph.D. James Ebel, MBA. Elizabeth Cohen, Ph.D. Department of Journalism Morgantown, West Virginia 2014 Keywords: source credibility; interactivity; purchase intention; fashion industry; Twitter Copyright 2014 Yijia Wang ABSTRACT Fashion Meets Twitter: Does the Source Matter? Perceived Message Credibility, Interactivity and Purchase Intention Yijia Wang Through an online survey, this study explored the perceived source credibility of fashion industry Twitter messages with varying message sources (the brand itself, celebrity endorser, friend/acquaintance). Online interactivity and purchase intention of potential customers were also assessed to examine if a particular message source and its credibility increase the likelihood of online engagement with the message and customers’ intention to purchase. Findings indicate that of all source types, brands were perceived as most credible overall, as well as on dimensions of expertise, character, and attractiveness. Furthermore, there was a higher probability of respondents searching for additional information based on a tweet from a brand. In terms of purchase based on Twitter messages, respondents were most motivated based on the affordability, value and the ability of the fashion item to compliment their personal style. Conversely, celebrity endorsers scored lowest in every variable, including credibility, interactivity and purchase intention, which might provide some insight into social media celebrity endorsement for fashion brands and designers. These findings highlight the value of source selection in Twitter messaging for the fashion industry, as well as the content of the messages posted in this forum. Optimization and leveraging of messages based on these findings should lead to better return on investment as measured by online engagement and purchase intention. Table of Contents Abstract ......................................................................................................................................... II Table of Contents ........................................................................................................................ III List of Tables ............................................................................................................................... IV Chapter 1: Introduction ................................................................................................................1 1.1 The World Wide Web, New Media and Twitter ............................................................................ 1 1.2 The Fashion Industry ....................................................................................................................... 1 1.3 Technology, Communication & Fashion ........................................................................................ 2 Chapter 2: Literature Review .......................................................................................................5 2.1 Social Media & Marketing ............................................................................................................... 5 2.2 Twitter Source Type: Opinion Leaders .......................................................................................... 7 2.3 Source Credibility ........................................................................................................................... 12 2.4 Interactivity & Online Message Engagement ............................................................................... 16 2.5 Purchase Intention .......................................................................................................................... 18 Chapter 3: Methodology ..............................................................................................................22 3.1 Survey............................................................................................................................................... 22 3.2 Measures .......................................................................................................................................... 23 3.3 Sample .............................................................................................................................................. 26 3.4 Analysis Process .............................................................................................................................. 26 Chapter 4: Results ........................................................................................................................29 Chapter 5: Discussion ..................................................................................................................37 5.1 Findings and Implications .............................................................................................................. 37 5.2 Limitations ....................................................................................................................................... 40 5.3 Future Researches ........................................................................................................................... 41 Chapter 6: Conclusion .................................................................................................................43 References .....................................................................................................................................45 Appendices ....................................................................................................................................58 Appendix A: IRB Cover Letter ........................................................................................................... 58 Appendix B: IRB Approval Letter ...................................................................................................... 59 Appendix C: Informed Consent Statement ........................................................................................ 60 Appendix D: Survey Instrument ......................................................................................................... 61 iii List of Tables Figure 1 Research Questions, Hypotheses and Associated Statistics Tests ............................28 Table 1 Means, Standard Deviations and Reliability Coefficients for Credibility by Source Type ...............................................................................................................................................32 Table 2 Mean Scores for Interactivity by Source Type ............................................................34 Table 3 Mean Scores for Purchase Intention by Source Type .................................................36 iv Chapter 1: Introduction 1.1 The World Wide Web, New Media and Twitter In the last decade, the World Wide Web has emerged as a medium for users to not only learn about the day’s news, share information, connect with friends and learn from opinion leaders; it has also become a platform for consumer brands to market their wares. Up to 84 percent of all Americans now expect the Internet to provide them information that they need on different issues (Rainie, & Duggan, 2014). In particular, since the creation of Facebook in 2004, launch of YouTube in 2005 and birth of Twitter in 2006, social networks have become an important part of the corporate marketing mix. The explosion of content creation and sharing however, has led to challenges for brand marketers and communicators. One such industry struggling with how to effectively integrate the fast-paced social communication possibilities in its marketing campaigns is fashion. While the ability to rapidly connect with stakeholders and potential consumers provides many opportunities, brands and designers wishing to engage on these platforms are challenged with knowing the appropriate spokesperson for disseminating their message, how to engage consumers and if these messages are stimulating