Developing an Interactive Behavior model for Social Media-Based Brand Community Members (A Case Study of Fans of Professional Football Clubs)

The significance of fans in the development of professional sports has a special status. This is while brand communities and unique social media features are well placed for brand fans. The present study aimed to develop a comprehensive model of interactive behavior of fans of football clubs, as members of social media-based brand communities. The research was conducted using a correlational-survey method. The samples were selected from fans of professional football clubs active in the social media. To collect the required data, a researcher-made questionnaire containing 45 items was employed. In order to obtain of the questionnaire validity, content and construct validity indicators were used, and to evaluate its reliability, Cronbach's alpha was used. For data analysis, SEM software was put into service. The research findings indicated that a brand community, as an independent variable, has a positive and significant effect on the variables of interactions among the members, communication maturity and value creation strategies. In addition, the factor of value creation strategies has positive and significant effects on loyalty and communication maturity. The results confirmed the social media-based fan behavior model using SEM.