The purpose of this paper is to study corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting activity in the Western Balkans (WB) banking industry. The first aim of the study is to measure the level of CSR ...reporting activity of banks within Western Balkan Countries (WBC), and the second is to compare the results within WBC and with other countries and regions in the world. We apply the method of content analysis to measure the CSR reporting activity of all licensed banks in WB actively operating until May 2019. Findings indicate that almost half of the banks from WB do not disclose any social responsibility information on their websites. Only a small number of banks prepare independent CSR report, while almost half of the banks who have CSR disclosure, report their CSR initiatives through a web link/heading. One-quarter of the banks report their CSR activities within their financial or annual report. External disclosures are most frequently reported. The category of community involvement is the most frequently reported, while the second most reported CSR activity is under the category of environment. The regression analysis revealed that the size of the banks represented in terms of total assets is a modest predictor of the level of CSR reporting. The paper contributes to the scarce literature of CSR reporting in the banking industry from WB. The results from this study can help academic researchers, business practitioners and policymakers to better understand the phenomenon of CSR communication in the banking industry in the region of WB.
This study explores the evolution of customer engagement in the digital era for businesses, a crucial concept in today's interconnected marketplace facilitated by a variety of digital platforms. The ...study identifies a gap in the comprehensive understanding and conceptualisation of digital customer engagement across various social media platforms and mediums. By using a bibliometric analysis approach, this study reviews 547 articles published between 2010 and 2021, offering a holistic view of the existing research landscape. The analysis uncovers four distinct bibliometric clusters representing unique facets of customer engagement: brand engagement, behavioural insights, loyalty dynamics, and relationship dynamics. These clusters provide insights into the multifaceted nature of customer relationships and engagements facilitated by digital platforms. The study concludes by proposing seven future research directions, aiming to guide scholars in exploring uncharted territories in digital customer engagement and its implications for businesses in the digital age.
•Communication plays an important role in the m-banking value creation.•Perceived entertainment of m-banking positively affects clients’ perceived value.•Perceived value enhances users’ intention to ...continue using m-banking services.•Perceived value mediates communication and intention to continue using m-banking.•Central and peripheral routes concurrently enhance m-banking perceived value.
During the last decade, the constant innovation in the banking industry has prompted an evolution in providing these services, converting mobile banking into the channel that would distinguish banking entities’ competence. With the goal to determine the path towards customers’ retention, a survey with 252 mobile banking users was performed. Founded on the premises of the Elaboration Likelihood Model, the results of this study indicate how cognitive and affective aspects of the mobile banking experience foster clients’ perceived value and their future intentions towards these services’ usage. This research contributes with precise recommendations regarding the vital communication with customers identified in value perception. Besides, valuable insights on the simultaneous effect of the central and peripheral route of processing are evidenced by integrating entertainment elements. All of this finally assist in arranging a practical and pleasant experience that ensures customer maintenance.
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to model the perceived value and customers’ intention to continue using m-banking services, assuming the existence of multiple consumption values. Specifically, ...it is proposed that entertainment (hedonic value), ubiquity (utilitarian value) and novelty seeking (epistemic value) impact m-banking overall perceived value, which in turn influences customers’ reuse intentions.
Design/methodology/approach
A survey with 260 Macedonian current users of m-banking services was carried out, using questionnaires as a method of data collection. Five-point Likert scales adapted from the relevant literature to the context of m-banking services were used to measure the variables. PLS-SEM approach was employed to estimate the proposed model.
Findings
The findings indicate that bank entities can increase customers’ intention to reuse m-banking, by providing an enriched perceived value of m-banking services, precisely putting emphasis on perceived value drivers related to utilitarian value (ubiquity) and epistemic value (novelty seeking). Hedonic value (perceived entertainment) does not show a significant influence on the perception of m-banking value.
Originality/value
This study provides a different perspective of the perceived value observation, by contemplating not only the well-established hedonic and utilitarian aspects of value, but also the epistemic component, considered as a vital element in contexts of mobile technologies adoption. Moreover, this is the first study to explore the m-banking perceived value in a developing country in the Balkans.
For small, low-to-middle-income countries such as North Macedonia, the prospect of young, educated people leaving their place of residence (i.e. emigrating) can have significant negative ...societal-level effects. Understanding the complexity of the brain-drain phenomenon and its antecedents is critical to developing multi-level (i.e. global, societal and individual) strategic solutions. A qualitative analysis of several focus-group interviews was used to understand young, educated residents’ reasons either for emigrating or for remaining in North Macedonia. Two overarching themes served to organise the participant-identified drivers for emigration and those opposed to it. Three sub-themes emerged describing the factors for emigration: 1) a lack of professional opportunities, 2) institutional systems, and 3) cultural tightness. Likewise, three sub-themes emerged describing the factors for staying: 1) community, 2) culture and 3) social responsibility. Insights serve to contextualise some of the experiences of young, educated people in small, low-to-middle-income, countries which impact on their emigration decisions.
The purpose of this study is to analyse the interrelationships among capabilities and brand orientation and their effect on performance of the small and medium-sized businesses. A data set of 181 ...effective responses is collected and Partial Least Squares was used. The main drivers of customer performance are brand orientation and adaptive and brand promotional capabilities, while financial performance is determined by brand promotional and e-marketing capabilities and by customer performance. Brand orientation directly influences adaptive and brand promotional capabilities, while e-marketing capability is positively influenced by brand promotional capability. SMBs operating in the developing economy context need to combine multiple capabilities and brand orientation with focus on building e-marketing capability to improve financial performance. This research study is one of the first in the South-eastern European context to offer evidence-based insights on the structural relations among multiple capabilities, brand orientation and the performance of SMBs.
PurposeThe purpose of this study is to analyze the interrelationships between incentives and social media users’ intentions to like different brand-related social media content. The study is based on ...the uses and gratification (U&G) theory and investigates three types of incentives i.e. communal, self-interest, and reward incentives which act as antecedents of customers’ intentions to like three types of brand-related content (commercial messages, personal opinion messages, and lifestyle messages).Design/methodology/approachA data set of 415 effective responses was collected and structural equation modeling (SEM) was used for analyzing the data.FindingsThe obtained results indicate that communal and reward incentives enhance the intentions to like brand-related commercial, personal opinion, and lifestyle content. Self-interest incentives reduce the intentions to like three types of analyzed brand-related content with the strongest negative influence on intentions to like lifestyle content. Regarding the content type, the main drivers for liking lifestyle content and commercial content are reward incentives, whereas liking personal opinion content is mostly motivated by communal incentives.Originality/valueThis study provides valuable insights about users’ motivation to like brand-related content on social media with a focus on different types of brand-related content. The study has strong theoretical contributions as well as practical implications.
Purpose
Integrating the theory of consumption value into the stimulus-organism-response framework, this study aims to analyse the influence of external and internal factors on the customers’ ...perceptions of utilitarian, hedonic, social and epistemic values as drivers of the overall perceived value and customers’ continuance use of mobile banking (m-banking).
Design/methodology/approach
An online survey was conducted with 252 actual m-banking users, and the partial least squares structural equations modelling was applied to analyse the data.
Findings
The results reveal that ubiquity and gamification positively influence the perceived usefulness and entertainment, that is the utilitarian and hedonic perceived values. Furthermore, users’ self-congruence and innovativeness affect subjective norms and novelty-seeking, representing social and epistemic values. Except for the hedonic value, each value element impacts the overall perceived value, which in turn incites clients’ intention to continue using m-banking services.
Originality/value
By exploring the simultaneous effect of service-related and personal factors (stimuli) on different elements of perceived value (organism), this study contributes to the existing knowledge of consumption reactions (response) in the context of m-banking. The research of the Macedonian m-banking offers a closer insight into Western Balkan mobile commerce.
Objetivo
Integrando la Teoría del Valor de Consumo (TCV) en el marco Estímulo-Organismo-Respuesta (S-O-R), este estudio pretende analizar la influencia de factores externos e internos en las percepciones de valor utilitario, hedónico, social y epistémico de los clientes, como impulsores del valor percibido global y del uso continuado del m-banking por parte de los clientes.
Diseño/metodología/enfoque
Se realizó una encuesta en línea a 252 usuarios reales de banca móvil y se aplicó el modelo de ecuaciones estructurales por mínimos cuadrados parciales (PLS-SEM) para analizar los datos.
Resultados
Los resultados revelan que la ubicuidad y la gamificación influyen positivamente en la utilidad y el entretenimiento percibidos, es decir, en los valores utilitarios y hedónicos percibidos. Además, la autocongruencia y la capacidad de innovación de los usuarios afectan a las normas subjetivas y a la búsqueda de novedades, que representan el valor social y epistémico. A excepción del valor hedónico, cada elemento de valor influye en el valor percibido global, que a su vez incita a los clientes a seguir utilizando los servicios de banca móvil.
Originalidad
Al explorar el efecto simultáneo de factores personales y relacionados con el servicio (estímulos) sobre diferentes elementos del valor percibido (organismo), contribuimos al conocimiento existente sobre las reacciones de consumo (respuesta) en el contexto del m-banking. La investigación del m-banking macedonio ofrece una visión más cercana del comercio móvil de los Balcanes Occidentales.
目的
本研究将消费价值理论（TCV）纳入刺激-组织-反应（S-O-R）框架, 旨在分析外部和内部因素对客户感知功利价值、享乐价值、社会价值和认识价值的影响, 这些因素是客户整体感知价值和持续使用移动银行的驱动因素。
方法
对 252 名实际移动银行用户进行了在线调查, 并采用偏最小二乘法结构方程模型（PLS-SEM）分析数据。
研究结果
结果表明, 普遍性和游戏化对用户的有用性和娱乐性感知, 即功利性和享乐性感知价值有积极影响。此外, 用户的自我一致性和创新性也会影响主观规范和新奇寻求, 这代表了社会价值和认识价值。除享乐价值外, 每个价值要素都会影响整体感知价值, 进而激发客户继续使用移动银行服务的意愿。
独创性
通过探索服务相关因素和个人因素（刺激）对感知价值不同要素（有机体）的同时影响, 我们为现有的有关移动银行背景下消费反应（响应）的知识做出了贡献。通过对马其顿移动银行的研究, 我们可以更深入地了解西巴尔干移动商务。
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