POST GRADUATE PROGRAMME IN MANAGAMENT (PGPM 2019-21)

MANAGEMENT DEVELOPMENT INSTITUTE, GURGAON

COURSE: RESEARCH METHODS IN BUSINESS

Submitted By:
Group 1, Section C

Abhinav Goyal 19P121

Akshata Masoor 19P125
Bhaveek Ostwal 19P132
Naman Jain 19P143
Saimi Arora 19P165
Vaibhav Agrawal 19P176
Role of Social Media Marketing Activities (SMMAs) in Apparel Brands Customer
Response
Abhinav Goyal, Akshata Masoor, Bhaveek Ostwal, Naman Jain, Saimi Arora, Vaibhav
Agrawal
Management Development Institute, Gurgaon, India

KEYWORDS 1. ABSTRACT

 Social Media This research paper aims to analyse the effects that SMMA by
Marketing Apparel brands have over customer response in the Indian
Activities market. The authors have identified 4 key metrics of customer
(SMMAs) response, i.e. Brand Equity, Brand Awareness, Price Premium
willingness and Customer Loyalty. It has been analysed as to
 Brand Equity
how SMMAs affect these key metrics. A survey of 40
 Customer customers, age group 20-40 was analysed through
Response Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA). From previous research
papers and CFA, we came to a conclusion that apparel brand
equity (brand awareness, brand image) significantly mediates
the relationship between Social Media Marketing Activities &
customer response (price premium willingness, customer
loyalty).

2. INTRODUCTION
These days, the meaning of social media isn't just restricted to individuals interfacing,
imparting, and communicating with one another through texting, yet in addition gives a stage
to buyers to find out about brands and establish a relation with brands. The introduction of
internet-based life has opened up a plethora of new courses for companies and brands to draw
in and establish a connect with their clients successfully. The advancing advertising highlight
of internet-based life can be an integral asset for brand prominence and business
manageability. The uses of online networking are expanding step by step; around 67% of all
Internet clients are dynamic web-based life clients. India is the 2nd biggest Internet client on
the planet, with 560 million clients; there has been a quick development in the use of web-
based social networking.

Web based life widely caught the consideration of scientists and advertisers for brand the
board and advancement exercises—yet in spite of the fame and academic intrigue, it despite
everything has faced difficulties. The essential concern is the trouble in estimating the impact
of Social Media Marketing Activities on key brand customer responses. The past research of
Social Media Marketing Activities with regards to various brands promoting was generally
exploratory, where the exact examination did little to address all the difficulties of the
momentum advertising patterns. This examination means to concentrate on how Social Media
Marketing Activities influence client reaction (client dedication and value premium ability) in
Indian clothing brand advertisement. The past research explored the effect of Social Media
Marketing Activities (i.e., cooperation, informal (WoM), popularity, diversion, and
customization) on brand value, esteem value, relationship value, client value, client
inclination, devotion, value premium, and buy goal in various enterprises (e.g., extravagance
brands and the aircraft business). The idea of brand value and its viability is halfway
concentrated with regards to (SMMA) in the writing. The past research underpins the limited
time exercises of web-based life channels for extravagance brands and the aircraft business.
The creators in established that brand value, i.e., brand picture and brand mindfulness,
assumes an interceding job among SMMAs and client reaction. The province of Social Media
Marketing in India has grown exponentially. A large portion of the ventures embraced web-
based life as a promoting device to draw in their clients. An organization ought not
legitimately bounce to the online life channel for advancements; rather, they ought to create
vital Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube advertising exercises previously.

Due to the immense popularity of social media amongst the upcoming generations, it has
become an increasingly important avenue for advertising and attracting newer customers.
Various researches have estimated that Social media marketing has been growing by
approximately 30% in India, annually. This is owing to the fact that by 2021, approximately
31% of the country will be comprised off active social media users, up from 24% in 2018.
Therefore, Social Media Marketing Activities have been tapping this incredible potential in
the Indian Market. The upside growth potential is really high because, when compared to
developed nations like the USA, where approximately 79% of the adults are active social
media users, the percentage in India is relatively low and is only expected to grow
exponentially because of the increase in internet accessibility that the country has seen in the
last few years.

Social media marketing activities have helped apparel brands immensely. Social media
websites like Facebook are an immensely popular place among marketers, because they are
occupying an increasing amount of time of a prospective customer, and thus, provide the best
avenue to grab a customer’s attention. It is possible to retarget customers through social
media websites, wherein even if initially the advertisement was ignored by a customer, the
product can after some point of time be pushed again by showing a discount on the product.
This has helped increase conversion rates by about 300%. Thereby, this research paper aims
at quantifying and finding what are the reasons for such customer behaviour and responses
and in what way do social media marketing activities impact these responses towards apparel
brands in particular.

The online nearness of style brands (e.g. Apparel/attire) via web-based networking media
gives a stage to clients to connect with brands. There is furious challenge among various
attire marks in India to catch the market. Accordingly, the main problem is the level of
control that brands have in the effects that Social Media Marketing activities have on
customers. This investigation adds to the past research by proposing an exhaustive structure
that shows how Social Media Marketing Activities influence brand value and buyer conduct
toward attire/garments marks in India. This paper has THREE wide goals. To start with, this
examination intends to survey the immediate impact of Social Media Marketing Activities
(likes/supporters/endorsers) on clothing brands' value. The subsequent goal is to explore the
impact of Social Media Marketing Activities on client reaction (i.e., client faithfulness and
value premium ability) toward Indian clothing brands. The third target is to examine the
mediating impact of brand value (i.e., brand picture and brand mindfulness) on the
connection among Social Media Marketing Activities and client response.

This examination investigates these connections by breaking down spearheading attire

marks in India. The chosen websites for Social Media Marketing Activities appraisal in India
were Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter. At last, the examination introduces the accompanying
inquiries. 1. Do Social Media Marketing Activities via web-based networking media
influence attire brands' value? 2. Do Social Media Marketing Activities via web-based
networking media influence clothing brands' clients' reaction? 3. Does the clothing brand's
value mediate the connection among Social Media Marketing Activities and client reaction?
To address these inquiries, this investigation led a quantitative study of Indian clothing
brands' clients and tried it through the contingent PROCESS large scale in SPSS. Mediation
analysis has been used in order to know which variable mediates the relation between social
media marketing activities and customer response to apparel brands. Chronbach alpha has
been calculated for each and every construct that has been used in the questionnaire to check
the validity of the constructs and questionnaire.

3. LITERATURE MODEL
Social media marketing activities (SMMAs)

Social media refers to a media platform that enables people to interact with each other, share
content with each other and stay updated with events online. [Harrigan et.al. (2017), Popp
& Woratschek (2016)]. Social media can act as a marketing platform by companies as it can
be used to capture the attention on potential consumers. It can enable engagement with
customers through posts and videos and their reactions can be gauged to check the acceptance
level by consumers. Naser et.al. (2012). In order to advertise or market products or services,
if social media apps/ platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, etc are used, then it is
termed as Social Media Marketing Activities. Data analysis is possible when Social media
marketing activities are used because these tools are made available by the social media
platforms. Social media marketing activities are also those that increase traffic and number of
clicks on the marketer’s products listed on social media. SMMAs also help in raising brand
awareness about the product and help create brand association among the prospective
customers.
Brand equity
It is the perception of the brand in the eyes of a consumer and the value that it adds to the
customers. It can also be defined as the approximate monetary value that a brand derives
based on the perception of the brand name by the customer. This perception may or may not
be related to the level of service or quality of product delivered or the worth derived from the
product/service. It can also mean that a brand that is well known may derive more revenue
than products of lesser known brands, simply because the value derived from a product is
directly equated by the customer with how well-known the brand is. Brand Equity has 3 main
components: Brand value, Brand awareness and Brand image.
Brand value is the perceived benefits that customers feel is derived from the brand. Godey
et.al. (2016). As per Keller (2013) Brand value is something that is embedded deep in the
customers’ memory due to something that differentiates it from its competitors. It is
something that is very closely associated to that brand. In monetary terms, it can be said that
brand value is the amount that a customer is willing to pay for a branded product over and
above an unbranded product even when the specifications and quality of the products are
identical. This value can be associated with the perception that a brand can deliver the same
value more consistently over a period of time and is less susceptible to defects. Customer
value can thus be defined as the premium attached to the products of a brand because of its
brand name and its perception in the minds of the customers.
Brand awareness is a metric to gauge whether the customers remember the brand or are
aware about the brand. If a customer remembers a brand, it will increase the possibility of
him buying from the brand. Keller (2013). It also refers to the imprint that a brand has left in
the minds of the customers due to its marketing activities, about the qualities of the product
or quality of the brand. Brand awareness also means that the brand or the product is able to
clear the clutter and distinguish itself from competing brands and products. There is a direct
correlation between brand awareness and revenue generation, i.e. a brand with high
awareness is more likely to generate higher revenue than a brand with lower awareness. Also,
given a choice and little knowledge about specifications, a customer will most likely choose a
product with a brand name rather than an unbranded product, simply because of the
perception that the branded product is more reliable, and he is more aware about the branded
product.
Keller (2013) expressed that brand image was the perception of the brand in the minds of
the customers because of the updates that he gathers from various resources. It is a
manifestation of his feelings when he reminisces his experience with the brand, the impact
that it has had and its usefulness to him. Brand image is generally developed over a period of
time after continuous usage or know-how. It is built because of how the existing customers
perceive the brand and associate with it or how the potential customers view the brand in
general. The success of attempts of a company to form a certain brand image in the minds of
consumers can be gauged by comparing the intended brand image of a company and the
brand image actually formed in the mind of the consumers. Brand image can also be termed
as a manifestation of the personality of the brand, as if it were a person, in the mind of the
consumer. Brand image is a significant parameter with regards to performance. On the off
chance that the brand image is certain, the item would rise which would bring about more
deals. Negative brand image will prompt inverse outcomes. Each organization should attempt
to be practical while recognizing the brand identity of the item. This identity ought to be
reasonable, goal and keen. In the event that it is too aggressive it might prompt clients not
shaping a similar brand image in their psyche. A positive brand image is assembled when
clients can review the brand and its uniqueness regarding the offered incentive, identify with
the association's method for business and its key qualities. Thus, the Brand Image is
significant in light of the fact that it is shaped totally all alone in client's psyche and can't be
estimated quantitatively. Brand image can be affected through a decent brand identity which
an organization can control.
Consumer response
It is the reaction given by the customer in response to how he perceives a brand or how has
his experience been with the brand. Customer response help brands to gauge whether they are
headed in the right direction and whether the product quality is meeting the expectations of
the consumers. Customer responses enable a brand to gather useful information for product
improvement and incorporate feasible expectations of the customers into the product. It also
helps the customers as it may help to bring about a change in the product that the customers
want, thereby increasing the utility of the product for them. There are 2 components in
Customer response, i.e. Price Premium Willingness and Customer Loyalty, which have been
explained in detail below.

Price Premium Willingness: It means how much extra is a customer willing to pay for a
particular brand over and above its competitors because of the brand’s image or perceived
benefits Netemeyer et al. (1996), The study of Kim & Ko (2012) shows how social media
has influenced what premium the customers attach to a particular brand. Leung et.al. (2015)
found that this premium attached is directly related to Facebook and Twitter activity of the
Brand. Price premium willingness is an indicator of the brand image in the eyes of the
customer. If the price premium willingness is high, it means that the brand has a very positive
image in the eyes of the customer, and it is perceived as a premium quality brand as
compared to its competitors. It is also an indicator of the quality perception of the products of
the brand. Higher the price premium willingness, better is the quality perception in the eyes
of the customers. The perceived benefits could be in the form of better-quality perception,
better after sales customer service, better availability in the market, endorsed by well-known
celebrities with whom majority customers can relate, etc. A customer will more likely pay a
premium for a particular brand if the brand has over a period of time done things that sets it
apart from the competition.
Customer loyalty means how likely is a customer to repeat buy from a particular brand and
not chose a rival brand over it. Gamboa & Gonçalves (2014) showed that social media
positively influences this loyalty behaviour by customers. Christou (2015) demonstrated that
these activities influence the trust that customers have on a brand, thereby also influencing
loyalty. Customer loyalty is the aftereffect of reliably positive enthusiastic experience,
physical characteristic-based fulfilment and saw estimation of an encounter, which
incorporates the item or administrations. To construct loyalty, customer experience the
executives mixes the physical, enthusiastic and esteem components of an encounter into one
firm understanding. Holding customers is more affordable than gaining new ones, and
customer experience the executives is the most financially savvy approach to drive customer
fulfilment, customer maintenance and customer loyalty. Not exclusively do loyal customers
guarantee deals, yet they are likewise bound to buy auxiliary, high-edge supplemental items
and administrations. Loyal customers decrease costs related with purchaser instruction and
advertising, particularly when they become Net Promoters for your association. Given the
profoundly disturbed serious scene today, customer experience programs are the best method
to separate your association from the opposition. Such separation adequately drives loyalty
when customers are locked in on a passionate, scholarly, or even otherworldly level, and
when a customer esteems an item or administration previously, during and after its
utilization. As far as customer loyalty, customer experience the executives substantiates itself
as a maintainable upper hand.
4. HYPOTHESIS DEVELOPMENT

Figure 4.1

Above is a model constructed in order to show the effect of SMMA on Apparel Brand
customer response and also establish the mediating effect of Brand Equity between above 2
stated concepts.

Brand equity has been used as a mediator to show a relationship between SMMAs and
Customer response in Seo and Park [4]. Also, the influence of SMMAs on customer loyalty
has been empirically tested in paper by Kim and Ko [5] (also discussed in the literature).
These empirical results mapped a relationship that shows SMMAs impact on both the
customers intention to purchase and the customer response considering value equity and
brand equity as mediator. Considering these, we have drawn following hypothesis:

H1: Social media marketing activities has a direct relation with brand awareness and
impact it positively.

Seo & Park [4] indicates that Social media marketing activities have a positive effect on
brand awareness. It also testifies that Social media marketing activities have a positive effect
on brand image. Kim and Ko [5] argues that Do social media marketing activities enhance
customer equity? An empirical study of luxury fashion brand founded that perceived SSM
activities of luxury fashion brands which are entertainment, interaction, trendiness,
customization, and word of mouth have significantly positive effects on value equity,
relation- ship equity, and brand equity. He et.al [8] showed that Strong brand identity relates
to brand value positively. It also showed that Strong brand identity relates to customer
satisfaction positively. Further shows that Strong brand identity relates to brand trust
positively. It then developed that Strong brand identity has an indirect effect on brand loyalty
via brand value, customer satisfaction, and brand trust. In light of these we have drawn
following hypothesis:

H2: Social media marketing activities has a direct relation with brand image and impact
it positively.

Chen & Lin [1] shows that Social media marketing activities (SMMAs) is positively related
to social identification. Also, it shows that Social media marketing activities (SMMAs) are
positively related to perceived value. Seo and Park [4] investigated the relative importance of
SMMAs and found that each marketing activity significantly affects customer loyalty and
price premium willingness. Kim and Ko [5] showed that Value equity relates positively to
purchase intention. It developed Relationship equity relates positively to purchase intention.
It also showed that Brand equity & Customer Equity relates positively to purchase intention.
In Simonian et.al. [32], The results show that product brand image influences consumers’
online purchase intentions both directly and indirectly by reducing various risk perceptions.
Online store image impacts purchase intentions indirectly by decreasing risk perceptions. In
light of these we have drawn following hypothesis:

H3. Brand awareness has a direct relation with price premium willingness and impact it
positively.

Chen & Lin [1] investigated that Social identification is positively related to satisfaction. It
also showed that Perceived value is positively related to satisfaction. It also developed a
relation between Satisfaction is positively related to continuance intention. It also showed
that Satisfaction is positively related to participation intention. It also conveyed that
Satisfaction is positively related to purchase intention. Kim and Ko [5] investigated that
Perceived social media marketing activities have positive effect on value equity. It also
showed that Perceived social media marketing activities have positive effect on relationship
equity. It also showed that Perceived social media marketing activities have positive effect on
brand equity. In Eun-Ju Seo & Jin-Woo Park [15], trendiness was the most important SMMA
component, and airline smmas had significant effects on brand awareness and brand image.In
light of these, we have drawn following hypothesis:

H4. Brand awareness has a direct relation with customer loyalty and impact it positively.

Chen & Lin [1] shows that Social media marketing activities (SMMAs) is positively related
to social identification. Also, it shows that Social media marketing activities (SMMAs) are
positively related to perceived value. Seo and Park [4] investigated the relative importance of
SMMAs and found that each marketing activity significantly affects customer loyalty and
price premium willingness. Kim and Ko [5] showed that Value equity relates positively to
purchase intention. It developed Relationship equity relates positively to purchase intention.
It also showed that Brand equity & Customer Equity relates positively to purchase intention.
In light of these we have drawn following hypothesis:

H5. Brand image has a direct relation with price premium willingness and impact it
positively.

Chen & Lin [1] shows that Social media marketing activities (SMMVs) are positively related
to satisfaction. It further goes on to propose that Social identification is positively related to
perceived value. Seo and Park [4] A study on the effects of social media marketing activities
on brand equity and customer response in the airline industry founded that airline SMMAs
had significant effects on brand awareness and brand image. Eun-ju seo & jin-woo park [15]
showed that Social media marketing activities have a positive effect on brand awareness and
brand image. It also shows that Brand image has a positive effect on e-wom. Further it
developed that Brand awareness has a positive effect on commitment. Erdil [40] showed that
Brand image has a positive effect on store image perception on purchase intention of the
consumers. Mukherjee [55] study reveals that efficient use of social media for marketing
communications can generate a passion for the advertised brands in the social media users’
minds, as well as instigate a brand purchase intention. Considering these, we have drawn
following hypothesis:

H6. Brand image has a direct relation with customer loyalty and impact it positively.

He et.al [8] showed that Strong brand identity relates positively to brand identification
perceived value, customer satisfaction, brand trust. He et.al [8] investigated that Social
identity perspective on brand loyalty founded that companies should invest in brand identity
and customer identification. Instead of merely communicating brands for the purpose of
brand awareness, brand investment should focus on according strong ‘identity’ means to
customer. In Gazquez-Abad et.al.[31], The results show that relational mailings positively
affect customer response, irrespective of when they are sent. In contrast, the effects of
promotional mailings are less clear-cut: although they work well in the short term, their
effects can vary in the longer term. In addition, the study finds that a direct-mailing strategy
should be planned in accordance with the strength of the relationship between the retailer and
the target customers. In Erdil [40], studies supported direct effect of price image, brand
image and perceived risk on purchase intention. In light of these, we have drawn following
hypothesis:

H7. SMMA has a direct relation with price premium willingness and impact it positively.

Seo and Park [4] Brand awareness has a positive effect on e-WOM. It also showed that Brand
image has a positive effect on e-WOM. Further it developed that Brand awareness & Brand
Image has a positive effect on commitment. Kim and Ko [5] showed that Value equity
relates positively to customer equity. It also developed that Relationship equity relates
positively to customer equity. It further goes on to shows that Brand equity relates positively
to customer equity. Mukharjee & Banerjee [53] Empirical analysis revealed the importance
of brand advertisements on the social networks in inciting a positive attitude as well as a
purchase intention for the brand in the SNS users’ minds. Yadav & Rahman [56] First
perceived SMMAs of e-commerce comprise five dimensions, namely, interactivity,
informativeness, word-of-mouth, personalization and trendiness. Second, perceived SMMAs
of e-commerce have significantly and positively influenced all the drivers of customer equity
(CEDs). Third, the CEDs of e-commerce exhibit a significant and positive influence on
customer loyalty toward the e-commerce sites. Considering these, we have drawn following
hypothesis:

H8. SMMA has a direct relation with customer loyalty and impact it positively.

Kodipelli.et.al [43] argued that Forums & Communities, Social media marketing, Ratings&
Reviews, Referrals & Recommendations has an impact on Consumer Loyalty.
Koch & Dikmen [44] showed that Brands to have a higher social media engagement will
have a higher brand value. Bacik.et.al [51] argues that there exists a statistically significant
correlation between the publication of brand content on social media at a particular time and
perceived customer experience. It also showed that there exists a statistically significant
correlation between using a mix of multiple social media brands and perceived customer
experience. Also, it investigated that there exists a statistically significant correlation between
the positive experience of the customer with the brand and with the brand image in the social
media environment. Bacik.et.al [51] argues that there exists a statistically significant
correlation between the regularity of adding brand content to social media and perceived
customer experience. Further it also states that there exists a statistically significant
correlation between the relevance of brand content added to social media and perceived
customer experience. Considering these, we have drawn following hypothesis

H9. Brand image mediates the relationship between SMMA and customer loyalty

Chen & Lin [1] Understanding the effect of social media marketing activities: The mediation
of social identification, perceived value, and satisfaction founded that social media marketing
activities indirectly affect satisfaction through social identification and perceived value. At
the same time, social identification and perceived value directly affect satisfaction that then
influences continuance intention, participation intention and purchase intention In Michel
Laroche et.al. [19], brand trust has a fully mediating role in converting the effects of
enhanced relationships in brand community to brand loyalty. Gazquez-Abad et.al. [31]
showed that Promotional (‘call to action’) direct mail has a short-term positive effect on
purchase behaviour, irrespective of past behaviour, purchase behaviour, irrespective of past
behaviour. It further developed that relational (retailer-image enhancement) direct mail has a
long-term positive effect on purchase behaviour, irrespective of past behaviour. In light of
these, we have drawn following Hypothesis:

H10. Brand awareness mediates the relationship between SMMA and price premium
willingness

5. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
5.1 Questionnaire and Measures
The Questionnaire survey used valid constructs from literature mainly consisting Social
Media Marketing Activities (SMMA), Brand Image, Brand Awareness, Customer Loyalty
and Premium Price Willingness.
The dependent variable is Customer Loyalty & Premium Price Willingness and the
independent variable is SMMA. Brand Equity is divided into two sub-categories: Brand
Image, Brand Awareness. These two are taken as the mediators. All the dimensions
mentioned above were measured with a 5-point Likert scale. Here, “1” is defined as
“Strongly Disagree” to “5” which is defined as “Strongly Agree”.

5.2 Sampling Method and Sample Size

People were sought out to know about their view point of the Social Media and for that we
targeted those who on regular basis use Instagram/Facebook for our research. An online
questionnaire (used a Google Form) was shared with them. Most of the respondents which
we targeted were of young age as this generation have used Instagram/Facebook for a longer
time.

We have collected 266 responses. After data cleaning, we were left with 262 responses in our
sample. The demographic details of the respondents are shown in Table 1.

Characteristi Cou Frequency

Scale
cs nt (%)
Under
Age 21 8 3%
  21-25 197 74%
  26-30 54 20%
Above
  30 7 3%
Femal
Gender e 126 47%
  Male 140 53%
Marrige Marrie
Status d 9 3%
  Single 257 97%

Table 5.1: Demography of respondents

5.3 Data Cleaning
The following steps were followed for data cleaning:
 All the survey responses which has more than 10% of unfilled responses were
discarded.
 Those responses which had less than 10% unfilled responses were kept and respective
variable mean was used
 Standard deviation of the respondent’s responses was calculated and all those entries
which had SD >0.5 were discarded
 The variables which had standard deviation less than 0.5 were discarded.
 Mahalanobis distance method was also used to remove the outliers (those have
probability <0.001)
After the data cleaning, we were left with 262 responses.

5.4 Reliability

Reliability tests are done to test the questionnaire and test its consistency. To measure the
same, Chronbach Alpha is used. Value of Chronback Alpha of greater than 0.7 for a
particular concept signifies that the measure is reliable. For our research, we have identified 5
main concepts, i.e. Brand awareness (B)(3 items), Brand Image (BI)(3 items), Price Premium
Willingness (P)(3 items), Customer Loyalty (C)(4 items) and Social Media Marketing
Activities (SMMA)(5 items). The Chronbach Alphas for the same were 0.75, 0.70, 0.73, 0.76
and 0.86 respectively, which suggest that all the above concepts are reliable and that overall,
the questionnaire and concepts are reliable. Thus, further validity tests can be run on the
concepts.
Scale Latent Variables Codes Cronbach Alpha
SMMA SMMA 0.86
 Brand Awareness B 0.75
Brand Image BI 0.70
Customer Loyalty C 0.76
Price Premium Willingness P 0.73
Table 5.2: Reliability value of constructs
5.5 Validity

Validity tests aim to check whether the findings truly represent the relation a research is
trying to measure. It checks the accuracy of a measure. There are 2 types of validity tests,
both of which must be satisfied to go ahead with the research; they are Discriminant Validity
and Convergent Validity.
For convergent validity, 3 values are assessed: composite reliability (CR) should be more
than 0.7, the average variance extracted (AVE) should be more than 0.5 and CR should be
more than AVE for every construct. For discriminant validity, AVE value should be greater
than maximum shared variance (MSV) and average shared variance (ASV) between other
latent variables. The validity test result is compiled in Table below.

Scale Latent Variables Codes AVE CR MSV

SMMA SMMA 0.62 0.89 0.088
Brand Awareness B 0.65 0.84 0.167
Brand Image BI 0.64 0.87 0.132
Customer Loyalty C 0.57 0.80 0.167
Price Premium Willingness P 0.66 0.85 0.049
Table 5.3: Validity test result
6. RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS
6.1 Hypothesis Testing

A structural equation model (SEM) was used to estimate the relationships between social
media marketing activities, brand equity (brand image, brand awareness) and customer
response (price premium willingness, customer loyalty) using the statistical software SPSS 26
selecting the maximum likelihood estimation method.

Hypothesis Dependent variable independent variable Sig. Beta Outcome

H1 Brand Awareness SMMA 0 0.301 supported
H2 Brand Image SMMA 0 0.255 supported
Price Premium
H3 Willingness Brand Awareness 0 0.367 supported
H4 Customer Loyalty Brand Awareness 0 0.389 supported
Price Premium
H5 Willingness Brand Image 0 0.255 supported
H6 Customer Loyalty Brand Image 0 0.434 supported
Price Premium
H7 Willingness SMMA 0 0.387 supported
H8 Customer Loyalty SMMA 0 0.317 supported

Table 6.1
H1:
In Table 6.1, H1 is the case when Social Media Marketing Activities is the independent
variable and Brand Awareness is the dependent variable. The standard coefficient value is
0.301 with a sig. of 0.000. This shows that null hypothesis is to be rejected and hence, H1 is
supported. Hence, SMMA has a direct relation with Brand Awareness and impacts it
positively.

H2:
In Table 6.1, H2 is the case when Social Media Marketing Activities is the independent
variable and Brand Image is the dependent variable. The standard coefficient value is 0.255
with a sig. of 0.000. This shows that null hypothesis is rejected and hence, H2 is supported.
This shows that SMMA has a direct relation with Brand Image and impacts it positively.

H3:
In Table 6.1, H3 is the case when Brand Awareness is the independent variable and Price
Premium Willingness is the dependent variable. The standard coefficient value is 0.367 with
a sig. of 0.000. This shows that null hypothesis is rejected and hence, H3 is supported. This
shows that Brand Awareness has a direct relation with Price Premium Willingness and
impacts it positively.

H4:
In Table 6.1, H4 is the case when Brand Awareness is the independent variable and Customer
Loyalty is the dependent variable. The standard coefficient value is 0.389 with a sig. of 0.000.
This shows that null hypothesis is rejected and hence, H4 is supported. This shows that
Brand Awareness has a direct relation with Customer Loyalty and impacts it positively.

H5:
In Table 6.1, H5 is the case when Brand Image is the independent variable Price Premium
Willingness is the dependent variable. The standard coefficient value is 0.255 with a sig. of
0.000. This shows that null hypothesis is rejected and hence, H5 is supported. This shows
that Brand Image has a direct relation with Price Premium Willingness and impacts it
positively.

H6:
In Table 6.1, H6 is the case when Brand Image is the independent variable Customer Loyalty
is the dependent variable. The standard coefficient value is 0.434 with a sig. of 0.000. This
shows that null hypothesis is rejected and hence, H6 is supported. This shows that Brand
Image has a direct relation with Customer Loyalty and impacts it positively.

H7:
In Table 6.1, H7 is the case when SMMA is the independent variable Price Premium
Willingness is the dependent variable. The standard coefficient value is 0.387 with a sig. of
0.000. This shows that null hypothesis is rejected and hence, H7 is supported. This shows
that SMMA has a direct relation with Price Premium Willingness and impacts it positively.

H8:
In Table 6.1, H8 is the case when SMMA is the independent variable Customer Loyalty is the
dependent variable. The standard coefficient value is 0.317 with a sig. of 0.000. This shows
that null hypothesis is rejected and hence, H8 is supported. This shows that SMMA has a
direct relation with Customer Loyalty and impacts it positively.
Hypothesis Independent variable Dependent variable Sig. Beta Outcome
SMMA 0 0.291
Brand Awareness Price Premium 0.155 0.086 No
H9 Brand Image Willingness 0 0.246 Mediation
SMMA 0.002 0.173
Brand Awareness 0 0.305 Partial
H10 Brand Image Customer Loyalty 0 0.219 Mediation
Table 6.2
H9:
Table 6.2 shows the measured impact on Price Premium Willingness. The direct effect of
SMMA on Price Premium Willingness is 0.291 (standard coefficient value) which is
significant (sig. = 0.000). The indirect effect of SMMA on Price Premium Willingness with
Brand Awareness as mediator is 0 as significant (sig. > 0.05). But the indirect effect of
SMMA on Price Premium Willingness with Brand Image as mediator is 0.246 which is
significant (sig. = 0.000). Hence, the total indirect effect is 0.246 which is the less that the
direct effect of SMMA. This is a case of no mediation. This implies that Brand Image and
Brand Awareness do not acts as a mediator between SMMA and Price Premium Willingness.
Thus, H9 is not supported.

H10:
Table 6.2 shows the measured impact on Customer Loyalty. The direct effect of SMMA on
Customer Loyalty is 0.173 (standard coefficient value) which is significant (sig. = 0.002).
The indirect effect of SMMA on Customer Loyalty with Brand Awareness as mediator is
0.305 as significant. Also, the indirect effect of SMMA on Customer Loyalty with Brand
Image as mediator is 0.219 which is significant (sig. = 0.000). Hence, the total indirect effect
is 0.524 which is the greater that the direct effect of SMMA. This is a case of partial
mediation. This implies that Brand Image and Brand Awareness acts as a mediator between
SMMA and Customer Loyalty. Thus, H10 is not supported.

6.2 Result

The current study supported that Brand Equity has a positive mediation effect on Customer’s
Loyalty but not on their willingness to pay more. This result revealed that consistently
maintaining brand image and brand awareness will have a higher impact in maintaining
customer loyalty. The significant causal relationships in the current study show the following
sequence: SMMA→ brand image and brand awareness → Customer Loyalty.
 Figure 6.1

6.3 Implications

This research shows some implications for managing and enhancing business relationships to
have a competitive advantage. Social media marketing activities is of utmost importance in
building brand equity which helps in marketing to gain a customer loyalty which will last
long. In order to appreciate benefits of customer loyalty which includes increased revenues,
reduced costs, positive word-of-mouth, re-patronage intentions; firms should focus on brand
image and brand awareness. Currently in this digital world, firms should focus on building a
brand equity which remains memorable to a customer to a certain extent as many firms start
and end every day without being came to known to its majority of its customers.

This would also help the managers understand that the customer loyalty would be increased,
their reorder and re-purchasing period of the customers will become short due the brand
equity but their willingness to pay more for the product over the similar product of the other
brand may not increase. They should keep that in mind and should not increase their product
prices without a proper market study as customer may shift to another brand if prices are
increased haphazardly.

7. LIMITATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

This study has various limitations that need to be taken care of while using the findings of
this analysis. It leaves a scope for future researchers to overcome these limitations and
provide more comprehensive findings. One of the first gaps is that this study is relevant and
limited to the geography of India. Also, significant gaps that exist are that the buyers'
shopping inspirations as well as their basic inert worth structures ought to be remembered for
future customer segmentations. Likewise, samples may prompt a self-choice bias. In this
way, in future segmentations, hidden value structures of clients can likewise be mulled over.
Likewise, leading these tests on a more extensive and progressively different geology would
introduce an increasingly exact perspective on the above discoveries. Researchers have seen
how social media marketing activities indirectly affect satisfaction through social
identification and perceived value, merely communicating brands for the purpose of brand
awareness, brand investment should not be done but a strong identity should be created. The
effect of SMMA on various income level groups combining with the age, geography and
culture with respect to India is yet to be done. Other possible moderating and mediating
variables, such as brand type, culture, characteristics and facilities of the community on social
media, could be included to produce deeper insights about how these relationships act in
different situations. Measures of behavioural constructs such as motivation, ability,
opportunity and C2C know-how exchange used in the empirical study were limited since
only a portion of the total number of items selected from pretesting were used for estimating
the final model. Therefore, conducting a study that includes a wider geography, more such
studies covering the geography of India and inclusion of various other intangible variables in
order to make the research more realistic and up to the mark would form a part of our
recommendations.

6. QUESTIONNAIRE
SMMA
 Information sharing is possible on the social media channel of XYZ apparel brand
 The expression of opinions is easy on the social media channels of XYZ apparel brand
 XYZ apparel brand popularity is increased by more links to/from other social media
about it.
 Latest information regarding XYZ apparel brand will make me identify XYZ brand
easily.
 More trendy information regarding XYZ apparel brand will make me identify XYZ
brand easily.

Brand Equity

Brand awareness
 Social media helps me to be up to date with XYZ apparel brand
 I am aware of XYZ apparel brand characteristics through its social media
 I am able to recall the logo or symbol of XYZ apparel brand quickly due to its social
media

Brand image
 Social media platform of XYZ apparel brand is customer-oriented
 My impressive memory regarding XYZ apparel brand is due to its social media
 On social media, XYZ brand is a leading apparel brand

Customer Response

Price premium willingness

 For XYZ apparel brand, I am willing to pay more than for other brands
 I would only switch from XYZ apparel brand only if its price increase quite a bit
  For XYZ apparel brand, I am willing to pay ____ more than for other brands. 0%, 5%,
10%, 15%, 20%

Customer loyalty
 On social media, I will suggest XYZ apparel brand to others
 I will visit XYZ apparel brand social media regularly
 My first choice will always be XYZ apparel brand as compared to others
 My every visit with XYZ apparel brand had been satisfactory

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