The exposure of modern individuals on social media (SNS) plays a significant role in forming online relationships and enhancing users' emotional engagement, information experience, and trustworthiness. The development of SNS has become an influential ...
The exposure of modern individuals on social media (SNS) plays a significant role in forming online relationships and enhancing users' emotional engagement, information experience, and trustworthiness. The development of SNS has become an influential medium affecting users' lifestyle patterns and consumption behaviors, significantly impacting corporate management, promotion, and marketing strategies.
In the context of consumer sentiment and marketing positioning, the phenomenon known as FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) has led recent consumers to enjoy open runs and SNS certification shots. There is an analysis suggesting that if one does not follow the latest hot spots and trends, they may feel left behind and isolated. This has led to the term "photo restaurants" being used more frequently than "food restaurants," indicating that SNS-centered certification shots have become a trend and a powerful marketing tool.
This study aims to clarify the relationship between the characteristics of SNS information related to bakery cafes, information satisfaction, word-of-mouth intention, and continuous usage intention. It also analyzes whether the moderating effect of information dependence varies between high and low dependency groups in the relationship between the characteristics of SNS information related to bakery cafes and information satisfaction, as well as word-of-mouth intention.
Based on these results, it is concluded that the characteristics of SNS information encountered by users are crucial factors in their judgment of bakery cafes. Understanding the strategic perspective of how information characteristics influence information satisfaction and word-of-mouth intention in the rapidly changing and trend-sensitive online social network (SNS) is considered important. Furthermore, clear and vivid specific messages that are agreed upon by many users regarding SNS information characteristics are perceived as key attributes when users experience bakery cafes. The analysis of the moderating effect of information dependence is significant for establishing sustainable management strategies for bakery cafes and for building information systems in both online and offline contexts.
This study collected data from 550 respondents residing in Seoul and Gyeonggi Province who have experienced accessing information about bakery cafes online, ultimately using 517 valid samples for empirical analysis. To test the hypotheses, statistical programs SPSS 26.0 and AMOS 26.0 were utilized to conduct frequency analysis, exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, and correlation analysis. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was employed to verify causal relationships between variables, and multiple group analysis was conducted to analyze the moderating effects of information dependence.
The research findings are as follows: First, among the characteristics of SNS information related to bakery cafes, agreement, playfulness, trustworthiness, and interactivity significantly influence information satisfaction, while vividness and timeliness do not have a significant impact. Second, among the characteristics of SNS information related to bakery cafes, vividness, agreement, trustworthiness, and interactivity significantly influence word-of-mouth intention, while timeliness and playfulness do not. Third, information satisfaction was found to influence word-of-mouth intention. Based on the results of this study regarding the current use of SNS, multiple responses showed that sharing information and knowledge was a primary purpose, with 400 respondents indicating this as a high figure. This suggests that experiences of sharing information and knowledge through SNS contribute to information satisfaction, which in turn affects word-of-mouth intention.
Fourth, information satisfaction was found to influence the intention for continuous use. Customer satisfaction with value derived from using bakery cafés via SNS plays a crucial role in increasing the brand trust and satisfaction of the respective businesses. Furthermore, satisfaction with SNS information can serve as a marketing tool that promotes consumer purchasing behavior and continuous use intentions. Fifth, word-of-mouth intention influences continuous usage intention. The factors of information satisfaction and word-of-mouth intention experienced can be confirmed as determinants of re-visitation or re-usage intention.
Sixth, through multiple group analysis, it was found that the relationship between the characteristics of SNS information related to bakery cafes and information satisfaction was partially accepted, indicating that the high dependency group had higher information satisfaction than the low dependency group. This suggests that the way information about bakery cafes is collected and conveyed is important to users. In the relationship between the characteristics of SNS information related to bakery cafes and word-of-mouth intention, the low dependency group had higher word-of-mouth intention than the high dependency group, emphasizing the importance of two-way communication that resonates and shares information.
Based on the research findings, the implications are as follows. First, this study identified the impact of the characteristics of SNS information related to bakery cafes on information satisfaction, word-of-mouth intention, and continuous usage intention. By deriving and analyzing the factors of SNS information characteristics, this paper differentiates itself from existing studies on bakery specialty stores or bakery cafes, providing a theoretical basis for the SNS information characteristics perceived by potential dining consumers. Second, SNS information characteristics are generally becoming an important factor in the marketing and promotion of the food service industry and bakery cafes. This research, which analyzed the relationship between SNS information characteristics, information satisfaction, word-of-mouth intention, continuous usage intention, and the moderating effect of information dependence, is significant as it provides a foundation for future studies related to SNS in bakery cafes, an area that has not been extensively covered in previous research.
Thirdly, in order to enhance user satisfaction with the information of a bakery café utilizing social media, it is necessary to promote more specific, accurate, and useful information about the bakery café on social media. This suggests that strengthening the promotion of the characteristics of social media information and increasing customer satisfaction with bakery café information is essential. Fourthly, this paper empirically analyzes the structural relationships focusing on the moderating effects of information dependence based on the characteristics of social media information, information satisfaction, word-of-mouth intention, and continuous usage intention. It can be said that this study has practical value in that it provides a basis for effective marketing strategies and an increase in continuous visits through social media information about bakery cafés.
Fifth, in this study, the most preferred SNS platform is Instagram. To achieve positive information satisfaction on this image-based SNS, the information provided on the platform needs to be concise and succinct, emphasizing the importance of content delivery and convenience. Additionally, the information provided should possess inherent expertise. It has been confirmed that there is a necessity to accurately convey reliable core content and objective information about businesses based on the information and usage experiences of various users.
Sixth, at a time when the number of customers using bakery cafes through SNS is increasing, this study analyzed the information exchange and satisfaction among users who share and empathize through the characteristics of SNS information. The perception of reliable and beneficial information on SNS highlights the importance of accurate and trustworthy SNS information, which can serve as a marketing strategy for bakery cafes by enhancing the image of the establishment.
In this study, the characteristics of social networking services (SNS) related to users' search for bakery café information were categorized and analyzed. The relationships between these factors and the validation of the research model provide a significant foundation for future studies related to the characteristics of SNS information.