Understanding digital moms : motivations to interact with brands on social networking sites

Purpose: This paper aims to explore the motivations of digital moms to develop relationships with brands in the online environment. Design/methodology/approach: Following a qualitative, interpretative approach, this paper uses several data collection methods such as netnography, focus groups and in-depth interviews to fully understand the motivations of digital moms. Findings: The results suggest that eight motivations influence consumers to engage with and follow brands on their social networking sites: information, entertainment, knowledge-seeking, social influence, social interaction, brand-relationship maintenance, communication and self-expression. A proposed framework that categorizes these motivations based on the level of engagement, and the type of user is discussed along with the new functions that brands fulfill in the online environment. Research limitations/implications: These findings have practical implications for managers seeking to design and implement improved branding strategies to develop stronger, more meaningful relationships with their customers. The location of participants of this study can be considered as a limitation, as the different life situations or contexts of other Internet users may alter the results. Originality/value: This study recognizes important changes in consumer behavior elicited by online technologies. Several qualitative data collection methods are used to identify and provide a more comprehensive understanding of the motivations of digital moms to interact with brands online. A major contribution of this research is the establishment of a link between consumer-brand relationship theory and uses and gratifications theory.