User Engagement with Brand and Value Co-creation in Media Platforms

Research into customer engagement with the brand is on the rise, but so far little empirical work has been done on user engagement with the brand on media platforms. Since the competition among Iranian media platforms to attract and retain users is increasing and because the platforms are trying to increase the number of their users, identifying and explaining the components affecting user engagement are of high importance. The present study was done to investigate user engagement with the brand in the domestically created and launched Iranian media platform named “Rubika”.

The statistical population of the study included 419 users of Rubika. The required data was gathered via the distribution of online questionnaires. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was utilized for designing a model and Smart PLS3 software was used to analyze the collected data.

The achieved results showed that user engagement, user participation, and brand self-expression have a positive effect on the various dimensions of consumer engagement with the brand i.e. cognitive, emotional processing, and activation. Also, the dimensions of consumer engagement with the brand were proved to have a positive effect on brand loyalty and value creation in the Rubica platform. Value co-creation is a process in which the consumer and the brand are closely involved in the production of value, which makes brands able to use the positive experiences and ideas of their consumers and users to improve and develop new products.

This study is a continuation of a research piece carried out by Algharabat et al. (2019) that proposed testing and validation of the Consumer Brand Engagement Scale (CBE) by Middle-Eastern media, for future studies. The findings of the current research introduce user engagement as the key to promoting brand loyalty and value co-creation in the Rubica media platform. Co-creating value in media platforms to engage users with the brand can prevent them from Switching Behavior i.e. shifting to similar media platforms. Therefore, user engagement can improve the benefits and values ​​perceived by the user, lead to greater satisfaction with service relationships and increase customer value creation behaviors. Accordingly, Rubika can engage users with its service creation process (such as knowledge generation, discussion, and information exchange) to develop positive values ​​that benefit both Rubika and its users.