فصلنامه مدیریت بازرگانی
سال سیزدهم شماره 49 (پاییز 1400)

Social marketing is regarded as an applicable concepts in the field of philanthropy and non-profit organizations that uses mixed marketing principles to influence the audience’s behavior. It can also lead to the acceptance of a social idea. The ultimate goal of social marketing is to change society and achieve the public good in a long-term approach. In addition to charitable foundations and the development of their activities, increasing public participation in charitable affairs is also considered an under-developed area of social marketing. Therefore, it should be explained based on an empirical approach given the growing number and variety of charities. Today, there is a need for charitable organizations to implement marketing concepts to attract clients for more help. It is also necessary to increase public participation in charitable work. The main purpose of this research is to examine the application of social marketing in the development of charitable activities.

This cross-sectional research is applied in terms of purpose and descriptive in nature. Library and field methods have been used to collect data. Given that this research focuses on social marketing and charity, a systematic literature review was used to study the past literature. Moreover, the content analysis method was implemented to extract and propose related dimensions and components. In order to prioritize the components, the significance-performance matrix was used, where a questionnaire was employed to collect the experts’ opinions. Then, effective measures for implementation of a social marketing program and attracting public participation were determined as a result of a workshop with the management board of an active charity.

The extracted dimensions and components of social marketing in the field of charity include: goal setting (behavioral goals and cognitive goals), situational analysis (analysis of social marketing program environment, subjective norms to charity, social norms to charity), segmentation (demography dimensions, psychological dimensions, benefits for the target audience), social marketing mix (behavioral suggestion, participation cost, accessibility, social communication, people and participation, program funding), as well as program monitoring and evaluation of its impact (output evaluation, impact assessment). These components can lead to persuasion and persistence in good deeds and generosity behavior (increasing the donation of individual resources to charity, reducing/preventing the donation of individual resources other than charity, influencing macro-policy).

We could identify the following four measures that are proved effective in developing the activities of charitable foundations: holding events, the use of social networks, personal communication and word of mouth advertisement, as well as the use of reference groups and influential people.

The multitude of clothing manufacturers has led to a fully competitive market. Therefore, respective stakeholders are always seeking to increase the attraction and retain committed and loyal customers to their brand in this competitive market. Many clothing manufacturers from other countries are attempting to enhance the attraction and retain loyal Iranian customers through their sales representatives in Iran and understanding how to build constructive communications with their Iranian customers. This study examines the factors affecting the brand attraction and loyalty of Iranian customers to a foreign clothing manufacturer. In fact, the present study aims to investigate the drivers of attraction to the brand and loyalty to a foreign clothing brand, despite the diversity and differences between the two countries, including cultural and social differences. In addition, this research helps local marketers and stakeholders in clothing to attract loyal and committed customers in other countries by identifying the factors affecting loyalty and interest in the brand. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to enrich the brand management literature as well as to investigate the effect of social identity, communication and, product classification on brand interest and brand loyalty.

The present applied research is quantitative and descriptive in terms of data collection (research design). The statistical population of this study includes customers of Benton clothing brand in Tehran and the required data were collected using a questionnaire. Structural equation modeling and SmartPLS3 software (professional version) were used to analyze the data. Accordingly, the model fit is examined in three modes: the measurement model (the reliability of the factor loading of the indicators, the reliability that includes Cronbach's alpha and the combined reliability, and the validity that includes convergent as well as divergent validity), the structural model (determinant coefficient), and the general model (goodness-of-fit index). Structural equation modeling and partial least squares approaches were also implemented to investigate the research hypotheses.

The results have shown that brand loyalty includes three feelings of passion, kindness, and communication. On the other hand, brand loyalty is related to the quality of communication, and any increase in the communication with consumers can lead to improved loyalty and enhanced financial performance. Moreover, the effect of self-expression on brand interest was confirmed in the present study. Self-expression of an activity is related to emotions, which affects brand loyalty by creating dependence and interest in the brand.

Conclusion

According to the findings, social identity indicates the sense of belonging to certain social groups with an individual aspect. Thus, the social identity of social groups is achieved when the person considers himself/herself as a member of a particular group. The results of this study showed that social identity has a positive effect on self-expression. Besides, customers who have experienced brand interest are more likely to participate in a constructive partnership within a brand community. In addition, the results revealed that self-expression is potentially influential in increasing brand interest and encouraging desirable post-purchase behaviors.

The implementation of strategies is regarded as a significant factors for organizational success. Various corporate strategies of the organizations may never be implemented or fail while implementation. Lack of comprehensive knowledge of strategy, insufficient understanding of employees at the organization level, and the lack of a clear and accepted concept of strategic implementation in the organization might lead to failure in implementation of organizational strategies. Since execution has been translated and studied from different perspectives in the strategic management literature in Iran, and sometimes there is no clear concept of execution or implementation, this research aims to explain the differences between strategic execution and strategy implementation. The purpose of this study is to develop a new concept and nature of strategic implementation and design a process model of effective components for the implementation of strategies in Iranian organizations. This will be conducted from the perspective of senior managers and the strategy of the Iranian automotive industry. 

This research has employed a qualitative approach, which is conducted based on a relativistic ontological approach and a subjective epistemological position. Since the purpose of this study is to create a theory that explains the concept and nature of "strategic execution", the basic theory is preferred and has been conducted using Charms' constructivist approach. Participants were selected based on purposeful and chain sampling. After conducting 16 in-depth and semi-structured interviews, theoretical saturation was achieved using the theoretical sampling strategy. 

The results indicated that the nature of strategic implementation includes individual, organizational-structural, and operational dimensions. This phenomenon is made up of productive/fertile, directing, effective, and motivating/moving levers, each has been constructed by other concepts. Disruptive forces from inside and outside the organization are also effective in constructing the dimensions of the nature of strategic implementation. The manifestation of this phenomenon can be observed both inside and outside the organization. 

Strategic implementation is one of the strategy implementation stages in the organization, which refers to the changing of the upstream strategy into a downstream strategy. A common understanding of strategy should be developed at the organizational level. For this purpose, employees and managers of the organization must recognize and prioritize the four levers affected by the dimensions of the nature of strategic implementation. The nature and dimensions of strategic implementation are made up of the shared interactions among these four levers. Based on the obtained data in this study, we could not discover the specific precedence of these four levers; besides, we were not able to observe any significant one-way relationships between them. Nonetheless, it is necessary to be aware of the disruptive environmental and organizational forces in order to neutralize them.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of various factors of corporate brand identity on corporate brand identity dimensions in the banking industry. The present study also seeks localization and highlights the factors affecting corporate brand identity in the banking environment based on the identification of influential factors and the extent of the impact of each factor in order to invest for improvement. As a result of classifying the actions and identifying their effectiveness, banks can progress steps step by step by prioritizing these measures and building capacity to create an effective platform to help improve their brand identity. In general, the research questions include: “What are the relationships between the dimensions and components of organizational brand identity in the corporate banking environment in Iran?”, “What are the factors affecting organizational brand identity in the corporate banking environment?”, and “How significant is each factor in shaping and influencing the organizational brand identity according to the Iranian banking environment?”.

This quantitative study is an explanatory research in terms of purpose and developmental-applied in terms of the results. The research strategy is based on survey. The statistical population of this study included managers, experts, corporate banking account managers who are in contact with corporate banking clients, heads of private bank branches, and legal clients of private banks. Structural equation analysis has been used to evaluate the impact of five dimensions of organizational brand identity; moreover, path analysis was implemented to determine the impact of factors affecting organizational brand identity. The data were collected by a questionnaire from the subjects.

The present study could identify different dimensions of organizational brand identity and the importance of these factors, explore the factors affecting organizational brand identity, determine the weight of each factor in shaping and influencing organizational brand identity according to the Iranian banking environment, and create a comprehensive view on brand identity. Based on the outputs of factor analysis, the most significant factors were "brand reputation", "brand identity", "brand communication", "estimated value", and "visual identity", respectively. Therefore, brand reputation and identity were recognized as the most important dimensions of organizational brand identity. In addition, organizational strategy and competencies had the greatest impact on different dimensions of organizational brand identity.

Prior to creating a brand identity in new business environments, managers are required to identify the dimensions of the brand identity construct. Thus, the results of this study can be regarded as an instrument for the managers to audit the status of their corporate brand concerning corporate banking environment. If implemented over time, the effectiveness of brand identity measures can be evaluated and revised measures could be defined and implemented in necessary. Organizational strategy and competencies are considered as the most influential factors affecting organizational brand identity; hence, particular attention should be devoted to these factors in order to create organizational brand identity.

Given the recession and crises such as the Covid-19 Pandemic, tourism destinations and related businesses are attempting to continue to expose their tourism destinations and capacities to potential tourists. They also aim to encourage them by providing extra facilities to visit these tourism destinations once the crisis is over. Virtual reality technology seems to be an effective instrument for this purpose, which highlights the significance of using this technology in the present situation. Virtual reality is regarded as an ICT-enabled technology with the potential to provide a highly interactive experience for potential tourists and inspire them to visit these destinations in the future. This study aims to investigate the impacts of virtual reality technology on tourists’ behavioral intentions and the image of the tourism destination. 

The present study is descriptive-applied in nature. The required data will be collected using online questionnaire and available sampling method. The statistical population of the study includes all the tourists who usually use various mobile applications for their travels. For this purpose, a 360-degree virtual video from three popular tourism destinations in Khuzestan province were selected. The sample of this research includes 267 visitors. The reliability and validity of the research constructs were confirmed using Cronbach's alpha coefficient and mean extraction variance. Besides, research hypotheses were also tested using Smart-PLS3 software. 

The results illustrate that “sense of presence” and “aesthetic experience” are the two the variables with a significantly positive impact on satisfaction with virtual reality. Moreover, satisfaction with virtual reality has a positive and significant effect on behavioral conflict and behavioral conflict has a significantly positive effect on the intention to visit the destination, verbal recommendation, and the destination image. 

Based on the results of this study, virtual reality technology has a positive effect on tourist behavior and destination image. Accordingly, if virtual reality applications and programs can provide their users with a sense of presence in the scene, a more realistic experience, a more unique instances of aesthetic effects and principles, these users will experience greater satisfaction with the virtual travel experience. While attracting and motivating the users, this can lead to more engagement and interaction with the tourism experience. In addition, the higher the users are engaged with the experience and the more time and energy they spend interacting and participating in the virtual experience, the greater the likelihood of observing behavioral reactions. Therefore, higher engagement with the experience of visiting a destination virtually can help increase their intention to actually visit that destination in the future. Moreover, users who have had a more rewarding experience based on their engagement with the destination, will be more likely to share their experiences with others and recommend them. In addition, such a unique experience of interaction and engagement with the tourism destination and its attractions can creates a more desirable feeling toward the destination and increase the credibility and desirability of the destination. Eventually, it can also help improve the brand image of that tourism destination.

According to the symbolic interaction theory, humans are the only creatures who can interpret and recognize different phenomena through interaction with their mind in the context of society. Brand love is a subjective concept based on behavioral theories and cognitive theories. There is still unresolved challenges concerning the explanation of any phenomenon, including brand love, solely based on subjective criteria or sociocognitive theory and symbolic interaction theory. It is also believed that other factors or elements, such as the environment and individual characteristics are also effective in conceptualizing each phenomenon. The present syudy aims to explain the conceptual nature of brand love by separating the essential elements (intrinsic) from the transverse (superficial) elements. It also attempts to explain the nature of the brand love for durable commodities in consumer markets based on symbolic interaction theory. 

This qualitative research is fundamental with regard to its purpose, whici is conducted based on step-by-step in-depth interviews. Data analysis is based on the grounded theory approach using content analysis. The statistical population includes people involved in the decision-making process of purchasing product brands in 18 metropolises with the population of more than 500,000 people. Seven participants were selected for this study based on snowball sampling with theoretical adequacy. 

Based on the findings, a conceptual model was developed using the threefold framework including individual, mind, and society. Then, the essence and breadth of the model were determined. Fifty concepts were identified, which were categorized into 19 themes. However, only five elements are related to the essence of brand love. Moreover, six concepts are considered among the underlying factors forming the concept of brand love. In addition, at least two dimensions have been identified for each theme, which will be used to distinguish the essence elements from the brand love. The majority of the identified concepts were related to the themes of “perfectionism” and “overcoming separation”.

Conclusion

Brand love is a cognitive-instinctive concept that can be distinguished from the similar concepts such as friendship, lust, connection, and brand addiction based on these five elements: individual complexity, respect, symbolism, overcoming separation, and uniqueness. In addition, the underlying factors of social classes, social groups, historical background, and patriarchy-matriarchy are influential in the formation of the concept of brand love.

There are specific frameworks and criteria for activity in the traditional and non-digital fields and also there are appropriate models for organizing the digital media activities and their branding in the majority of countries; nonetheless, the lack of appropriate, accurate, and efficient business models in the field of digital media and online activities in Iran has caused a lot of confusion. Consequently, no specific rights and responsibilities have been set even for those involved and employees in this field. This may facilitate the likelihood of unauthorized activities and prepare the ground for the violation of public rights. The purpose of this research is to design a digital media business model based on creating a distinctive brand in the Digital Media Lab Agency. For this purpose we will examine these two issues: how can the media business model affect value creation in the organization and what tasks (derived from the digital media business model) can become key factors in creating value.

Therefore, "interpretativism" paradigm was used in this research. Since detailed information will be used in this research and a general verdict will be inferred by examining the relationship between the components, and the observations focus on specific events in a sample of the media industry, the findings will be generalized to all members of the industry based on observations of events. "Inductive" research approach will be employed for this qualitative research, because it seeks to create a new theory and expand the knowledge regarding the digital media business model. The present research aims to explore the data collected through semi-structured interviews. Moreover, the data-driven theory method has been used in this research. The statistical population of the present study includes all the people active in the digital agency of the media laboratory. Based on the estimated statistical sample size, fifteen managers, experts, deputies, and members of the board of the Digital Agency of Media Lab were selected for this study.

The results of this qualitative study indicate that the design and implementation of media business model can help increase sales, intra-organizational interactions, and organizational productivity; it can also improve stakeholders’ satisfaction and the use of distinction in business processes. The present study includes the categories of intra-organizational knowledge and technologies in the field of business, sharing ideas, technology development in business, providing and receiving authentications to conduct business activities, and redefining the business model. In addition, digital media business model is categorized based on creating a distinct brand that includes classifying and exploiting the company's internal knowledge, acquiring companies and using their knowledge, as well as creating partnerships with customers and investing in ideas.

The results showed that the present study includes categories related to knowledge and intra-organizational technologies regarding business, sharing ideas, developing technology in business, obtaining permission to conduct business activities, and redefining the business model. Moreover, the following categories were classified: digital media business model based on creating a distinct brand, which includes categorizing and exploiting the company's internal knowledge, acquiring companies and using their knowledge, collaborating with customers, and investing in the idea. According to the findings, designing a media business model can increase external interactions and, consequently, increase sales. In terms of internal interactions, it can help increase company productivity and the satisfaction of those involved in the business processes as well as improve the utilization of distinctive business processes.

ObjectiveDue to the growing uncertain discounts in Iranian businesses, this study seeks to investigate the effect of discount uncertainty on the intention to buy among Iranian customers. Therefore, we initially attempt to compare uncertain discounts (ambiguity in the amount of discount) and certain discounts (a definite amount of discount) focusing on the source of uncertainty. Then, we should examine the effect of the design and introduction of uncertain discounts on the customers' preference. For this purpose, eight uncertain discounts were used, including four odds-based discounts (with probability of winning and different discount rates), three pull-down discounts (with different discount intervals), and one skill-based discount. In the third step, we will examine the effect of product type (utilitarianism and hedonism) on customers' preferences. Consequently, all decisions will be displayed once for a utilitarian product and then for a hedonistic product. MethodologyFor this purpose, an online within-subject full factorial experiment was designed and performed, where 59 people were faced with 72 decisions. In order to design this experiment, JavaScript programming language and jsPsych library 1.6 were used. Moreove, the JATOS platform 3.5.3 was employed in order to load the test and generate the link and run it on the server. Then, participants were asked to choose between one of the two types of discounts based on their preferences. Nine discounts (eight uncertain discounts and one certain discount) were used for two products: a powerbank (utilitarian) and tablecloth (hedonism). All participants were randomly assigned to those decisions. FindingsIranian customers acted based on risk-resisting ideology in choosing between discounts based on chance and skill compared to normal discounts; thus, they preferred certain discounts. However, there is no significant difference between the choice of individuals when facing tensile discounts. In odds-based discounts, people prefer to win less amount of discount compared to the lower chance of winning big discounts. In tensile discounts, the upper margine of the certain discount has a positive effect and the lower margine has a negative effect on the customets’ desire to choose a discount. Therefore, there was no difference between the type of product (hedonistic or utilitarian) in people's decisions. ConclusionIn designing discounts with uncertainty, marketers should consider customers' preferences over certain discounts and attempt to increase the attractiveness of such discounts by addressing other aspects of these discounts, such as creating a fun, exciting, and enjoyable experience. Regarding tensile discounts, marketers should be aware that the upper margine of the discount has a greater impact on customer attraction compared to the lower margine.

Fake news has become a serious ploy in marketing and consumers’ behavior, which may harm brands and companies. Although fake news is an old concept, its nature and form have been changing and are spreading online. In some cases, such fake news is accompanied by a video or an image, which is being reproduced at a very large scale with the maximum speed. On the other hand, the general popularity of social networks and online information has made it a critical issue in Iran. Thus, it is essential to address this issue. In general, this study aims to identify and present different types of fake news and respective dimensions in the context of Iran.
 
This study is based on the constructivist-interpretive and postmodern paradigms, and the ontology of the present study is idealistic. In this qualitative and fundamental study, the data were collected through semi-structured in-field interviews. The statistical population included social media users in Iran. The judgmental, non-probability, and snowball sampling methods were used, and theoretical saturation was obtained after conducting 16 interviews. The theoretical thematic analysis was used to examine the data. In addition, data analysis was performed using Atlas.ti 8 software.
 
Five fake news were identified for the first time in Iranian context. However, two of them (pseudoscience and fake political news) have already been mentioned in the political literature. Fake health news, fake denial news, and fake governmental news are presented for the first time in this article. These findings are based on the meaning map extracted from the interviewees and indicate how they relate to the minds of consumers. Moreover, different dimensions of fake news have been discussed, and their definitions and characteristics have been provided.
Marketers should be aware that official sources of information may be detrimental to their brands. Besides, any close relationships with the Iranian government may negatively affect their brand image. Consumers prefer informal information channels. In addition, lack of awareness and illusion of knowledge are two critical issues that should be taken into account in the interpretation of fake news on social networks in the context of Iran. Accepting fake news as the expiating information in the country's consumption context, its typology, and taking appropriate steps to provide information to the consumers can help maintain the reputation and image of the brand and product.

The aim of this study was to explain the impact of media on service quality and diversity based on the integrated marketing communication (IMC) approach. Raising awareness about the influence and role of media in integrated marketing communications highlights the importance of media management in organizations and companies. Moreover, it can prepare the ground for optimal management of intra-organizational media and optimal use of external media. Consequently, this study seeks to find an answer for the following question: “How Sepah Bank can manage the media in accordance with its marketing goals in order to help integrate marketing communications and influence the local audience in line with the bank's ultimate objectives.

The present survey research is descriptive researches in terms of methodology and applied in terms of purpose. Interviews with the focus group was employed to extract the initial model; in addition, the structural equation modeling method and LISREL were implemented to assess the relationship between the components of the model. For this purpose, SPSS software was used. The statistical population of this study included all experts of central offices of Sepah Bank branches. Besides, 450 questionnaires were distributed among the experts of the central offices of Sepah Bank, and finally 410 questionnaires were analyzed. Eventually, qualitative content analysis method was use to investigate qualitative data.

According to the research model, the media can manipulate the diversity and quality of banking products through accessing news and reports about the activities of other local and foreign banks and also reflecting on public reports as well as scientific and educational articles in the field of banking services. Therefore, research hypotheses were approved, indicating the effect of media on the diversity and quality of service through providing information to the public.

Media management in organizations is not confined to advertising purposes to influence customers and increase sales. Instead, management and planning are implemented in order to make optimal use of educational functions, provision of information, and media monitoring functions. It is sought by targeting local audiences based on IMC approach to influence the quality and variety of services. Organizations can employ organizational media (organizational publications, websites, brochures, etc.), mass media (press, radio and television, etc.), and advertising media (environmental advertising, press advertising, radio and television advertising, as well as Internet advertising) to influence audiences both inside and outside the organization. As a result, we should conclude that intra-organizational and external media can have significant impact on the diversity and quality of banking services by means of purposeful reflection on the people’s problems, demands, and opinions concerning banking interactions, reflection on the activities and services of other domestic and foreign banks, reflection on the cybercrime and hacking, as well as reflection on educational and scientific articles in the field of banking services.