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Online to Offline: The Impact of Social Media on Offline Sales in the Automobile Industry

Author

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  • Yen-Yao Wang

    (Department of Systems and Technology, Harbert College of Business, Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama 36849)

  • Chenhui Guo

    (Department of Accounting and Information Systems, Eli Broad College of Business, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824)

  • Anjana Susarla

    (Department of Accounting and Information Systems, Eli Broad College of Business, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824)

  • Vallabh Sambamurthy

    (Wisconsin School of Business, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin 53706)

Abstract

Given the limited research into the impact of social media on offline sales of durable goods, this study examines the dynamic relationships between firm-generated content (FGC), user-generated content (UGC), traditional media, and offline light vehicle sales. Data were collected from the official Facebook and Twitter pages of 30 U.S. car brands from 2009 to 2015. We utilized a panel vector autoregressive model to investigate the dynamic relationships among multiple time series v ariables while controlling for influential durable goods characteristics. The empirical results suggest that Facebook and Twitter have heterogeneous effects on offline vehicle sales. Moreover, FGC is more effective than UGC for influencing offline light vehicle sales. Viral impressions from Facebook and Twitter are essential, although the effects vary by social media platform (Facebook versus Twitter) and content type (FGC versus UGC). The result of the impulse response function analysis indicates that both the firm’s marketing efforts (FGC and traditional media) and UGC have a long-term effect on offline sales, with the long-term effect of a firm’s marketing efforts outlasting that of UGC. Incorporating FGC and UGC from Facebook and Twitter and traditional media could improve the performance of offline sales prediction. We also documented the within-Twitter synergistic effect between FGC and UGC for offline car sales and cross-channel substitution relationships (FGC on both Facebook and Twitter serves as a substitution to traditional media). Finally, we provide guidance for managers seeking to leverage multichannel marketing to boost the offline sales of durable goods.

Suggested Citation

  • Yen-Yao Wang & Chenhui Guo & Anjana Susarla & Vallabh Sambamurthy, 2021. "Online to Offline: The Impact of Social Media on Offline Sales in the Automobile Industry," Information Systems Research, INFORMS, vol. 32(2), pages 582-604, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:inm:orisre:v:32:y:2021:i:2:p:582-604
    DOI: 10.1287/isre.2020.0984
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    Cited by:

    1. Mingyang Zhang & Heyan Xu & Ning Ma & Xinglin Pan, 2022. "Intelligent Vehicle Sales Prediction Based on Online Public Opinion and Online Search Index," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(16), pages 1-17, August.
    2. Yinan Yu & Liangfei Qiu & Hailiang Chen & Benjamin Yen, 2023. "Movie fit uncertainty and interplay between traditional advertising and social media marketing," Marketing Letters, Springer, vol. 34(3), pages 429-448, September.
    3. Xue, Zhebin & Li, Qing & Zeng, Xianyi, 2023. "Social media user behavior analysis applied to the fashion and apparel industry in the big data era," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 72(C).
    4. Vivek Astvansh & Yen‐Yao Wang & Wei Shi, 2022. "The effects of the news media on a firm's voluntary product recalls," Production and Operations Management, Production and Operations Management Society, vol. 31(11), pages 4223-4244, November.
    5. Qing Ye & Hong Wu, 2023. "Offline to online: The impacts of offline visit experience on online behaviors and service in an Internet hospital," Electronic Markets, Springer;IIM University of St. Gallen, vol. 33(1), pages 1-21, December.
    6. Jingjing Li & Nicole Montgomery & Reza Mousavi, 2022. "How a Brand's Social Activism Impacts Consumers' Brand Evaluations: The Role of Brand Relationship Norms," Papers 2210.10832, arXiv.org, revised Sep 2023.

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