4/11/2012
Master’s Thesis | Student’s Name
Table of Contents
Chapter 1 1
Introduction 1
1.1 Introduction 1
1.2 Background 2
1.3 Rationale of the Research 2
1.4 Problem statement 3
1.5 Aim and Objectives 3
1.5.1 Aim of the Study 3
1.5.2 Objectives of the Study 3
1.5 Research Questions 4
1.7 Significance of the Research 5
1.8 Dissertation Structure 5
Chapter II 6
Literature Review 6
2.1 Introduction 6
2.2 Consumers’ decision making and Internet 7
2.3 Consumer Behavior and Fashion trends 7
2.4 Branding and the Internet 9
2.5 Communication and Fashion 10
2.6 Sustainable Fashion and the Internet 12
2.7 Global Followers 12
2.8 Internet in China 13
2.8.1 The Public Containment 14
2.8.2 The Power of Internet in China 14
2.8.3 Internet and Politics in China 15
2.9 The Use of Internet in China 15
2.9.1 Socio-culture of China and the Internet 16
2.10 Fashion and Marketing 16
2.10.1 Consumer Intention 17
2.11 Summary 18
Chapter III 19
Research Methodology 19
3.1 Introduction 19
2.11 3.2 The philosophy of research - Positivism 20
2.12 Strategies for research 21
3.4.2 Sampling Procedures 21
3.4.3 Questionnaire Designing 22
2.13 3.6 Time Horizon 23
3.7.1 Secondary data Collection 23
3.8 Data Analysis Methods 23
CHAPTER IV 25
Data Analysis &Findings 25
4.1 Introduction 25
4.2 Data Analysis and Findings 25
4.2.1 Gender Distribution 26
4.2.2 Age Distribution 27
4.3 Internet and Social Networks usage 29
4.5 Discussion on Research Findings. 41
Chapter V 43
Conclusion and Recommendation 43
6.1 Conclusion 43
6.2 Recommendations 45
5.3 Research implications 47
5.4 Future Research Applications 47
5.5 Personal reflection 47
References 49
Appendix 54
Abstract
This thesis is focused on the evaluation of the factors that affecting change in internet lifestyles and purchase behavior of Chinese youth in fashion brands category. The significance and implications of SNS marketing is tested on fashion products preference of Chinese youth. This chapter is comprised on brief introduction, background, aims and objectives, research questions and hypotheses, and structure of whole dissertation.
The study aims at the evaluation of Chinese internet users’ perceptions of social media and their preference of fashion brands selection from social media. The viability of the social networking sites and blogs for the marketing and advertising of fashion brands will also be determined by discovering the risks and opportunities of this media. This study was conducted as a preliminary requirement of my degree and has undergone a tedious but rewarding experience in doing so. The topic was current and relevant to the area of my interest and was decided with the help of supervisor. From the beginning, the conduct of this research has found to be a challenging task. Searching and collection if relevant research, material from journals and books, deciding research objectives and questions, finalizing the suitable research methodology and conducting field survey through electronic media were major steps in this study. On every step, I had revised and evaluated the weaknesses and issues coming in the process. At the end, analysis of collected data, interpretation, and writing of research report have given me an illuminating experience. This study will play a significant role in understanding the consumer behavior and internet preferences of Chinese youth. The results obtained from the study have contributed in my knowledge base of Chinese youth internet habits and social media activities.
Chapter 1
Introduction
1.1 Introduction
Rapid advancements of internet and social networks around the globe have created opportunities and challenges to the global brands in attracting and retaining consumers. The high growth rates of developing economies like China has forced international expansion of Mega brands to Chinese consumer markets. Economic prosperity, changes in life styles, and increasing usage of internet in Chinese youth has made these brands to focus on this segment of Chinese market. Companies are striving to remain competitive and achieve growth effective advertising and marketing through local and global social networks in China.
This thesis is focused on the evaluation of the factors that affecting change in internet lifestyles and purchase behavior of Chinese youth in fashion brands category. The significance and implications of SNS marketing is tested on fashion products preference of Chinese youth. This chapter is comprised on brief introduction, background, aims and objectives, research questions and hypotheses, and structure of whole dissertation.
1.2 Background
The understanding of consumer behavior patterns are always the major focus of marketing and brand mangers of organizations. Study of individuals’ preferences, perceptions, lifestyles, and use of various communication channels help researchers to understand the thinking and decision making patterns in individuals and groups (Kotler 2009). The impact of social, culture, and personal factors also have considerable impact on consumer behavior and attitudes. According to Safko and Brake (2009: 9), the definition of social media is “the set of practices and activities by people using online community groups as a communication media”. In China, the scenario of social media is slightly different as global networks like Facebook, twitter, MySpace are not present and local social media like Qzone, Sina Weibo, RenRen and others are capitalizing the marketing potential of huge Chinese consumers’ market. VanBoskirk (2009) asserted that social media marketing is gaining momentum through social network sites, blogs, and other consumer generated content based portals Hunt (2009) also expressed the attraction of social media to the internet savvy customers in all cultures.
1.3 Rationale of the Research
Social Networking media have rapidly become most visited web places for a huge number of internet users providing an opportunity for the marketers to leverage on their popularity and market their products or services. These websites play an important role in shaping public opinion on virtually every aspect of commerce. This research focuses on whether social networking sites prove to be useful for marketers or not and how marketers can have a better understanding of the consumers and gain insight about their behavior and attitude enabling them to interact and communicate directly with the consumers and improve their marketing efforts to enhance their business profile. Increasing popularity of these sites is also taken into consideration to see its impact in future.
1.4 Problem statement
The topic of the current research is
“The impact social media advertising in increasing fashion brands awareness in Chinese consumers’ market”.
1.5 Aim and Objectives
1.5.1 Aim of the Study
The study aims at the evaluation of Chinese internet users’ perceptions of social media and their preference of fashion brands selection from social media. The viability of the social networking sites and blogs for the marketing and advertising of fashion brands will also be determined by discovering the risks and opportunities of this media.
1.5.2 Objectives of the Study
The study has the following objectives to achieve:
• To provide the critical review of related literature of internet and social networks penetration in youth.
• To assess impact of social media on the fashions brands selection in the Chinese consumers.
• To identify the opportunities and challenges of social media marketing to fashion brands in China.
1.5 Research Questions
Research questions for the proposed research are as follows:
Q1: How does the internet contribute to shaping the idea of fashion among the young people in the context of consumer culture?
Q 2: What are the major influences the internet has brought to Chinese youth fashion brands selection behaviour?
Q3: What is the impact of consumers’ social network lifestyle on brand awareness of fashion brands?
Q4: What are the affective social network marketing strategies for promotion of fashion brands to Chinese youth consumers?
1.5.1 Research Hypotheses:
Following hypotheses are proposed for this study on the basis of above research questions. H0 = H1: Social Networks are an effective tool for marketing of Fashion brands to Chinese Youth.
H2 = Social Networking Sites have changed the brands’ selection behavior in Chinese Youth.
1.7 Significance of the Research
The importance of this research shows by the selection of a current and interesting research topic and its importance for business organizations. The findings of this study can be utilized by international fashion brands to reach and attract Chinese youth consumers. The trends, preferences and use of internet and choice of social networks are identified by this research. Also, the results of this will be useful for academia, students, and policy makers of the fashion industry in China.
1.8 Dissertation Structure
The structure of this thesis is described below:
Chapter 1: Introduction
It is the introduction chapter of whole thesis which is comprised on the description of research background, significance, questions, aims and objectives, hypotheses, and dissertation structure.
Chapter 2: Literature Review
This chapter is comprised of the brief critical review of the scholarly literature available on internet, social networking, and lifestyle of Chinese consumers. The used sources are latest articles from academic journals, current books, internet magazines, market analysis reports, and online databases.
Chapter 3: Research Methodology
Research methodology is an important aspect as it describes the roadmap for the conduct of this study. Descriptive research methodology is followed with the help of quantitative techniques of data collection and analysis. The whole research design and methods used are discussed in this chapter.
Chapter 4: Data analysis
This chapter is based on the analysis of primary data for the current study. Descriptive statistics and percentage comparison techniques are used in this chapter to analyze and interpret the data. Chapter 5: Conclusion
This chapter is the conclusion of whole thesis and presents a brief conclusion, recommendations and implications for future research. The limitations of study are also identified and discussed with the personal reflection of the researcher.
Chapter II
Literature Review
2.1 Introduction
The perception of fashion has been greatly influenced by the availability of the internet and has completely changed during the past years. This has been taking place in almost all parts of the world as new trends are being created on a regular basis which is then promoted via the internet. Thus, it can be said that internet is shaping the concept of fashion in various parts of the world as it is continuously developing over the time spectrum. This literature review tends to bring forth such concepts regarding fashion and internet in the lime light. Furthermore, the literature review also focuses on presenting the Chinese internet and its various sub-propositions.
2.2 Consumers’ decision making and Internet
The concept of fashion and internet is so overwhelmingly important to the field that the whole concept is completely rejuvenated by the system. There are five basic stages under which a consumer acts during his life cycle starting with observation where the child observes the surrounding and the decisions that are being made in his surroundings. The individual tries to understand what the world around him exists for and the purpose behind their perception. In the next stage when the child grows up to some extent, he starts making requests which is the second stage in the whole process. The third stage talks about making the selections regarding the outfit or décor which the individual feels comfortable in. The fourth stage then starts showing up under which the individual starts making purchases with a bit of assistance with the influential people in his surrounding including his friends and family. Lastly, Solomon (2004) suggests that the individual matures to a stage where he starts making individual purchases without the assistance of others. The role of internet here starts appearing at almost all stages. As it allows the person to observe with a new insight and a higher sense of learning, it shapes the overall consent of the individual where he starts making decisions on the basis of what he has observed via the internet.
2.3 Consumer Behavior and Fashion trends
Consumer behavior is greatly influenced by fashion as it is one of the major elements which shape up the concept of consumer buying behavior. NehaUpreti (2010) suggests that the element itself is so crucial that various theories have been proposed to make judgments regarding the consumer behavior. There are numerous facts which support the claim that fashion trends with their increasing application and their short lived eras are continuously evolving and thus in addition to the basic concepts of cost and financial analysis, the individual also starts considering the fashion element and the perception of others. Kim (2007) suggests that the consumer thus relies on external information of the general audience and the influential people in their surroundings to shape up their fashion sense as this tends to create their entire image in front of the whole world. Hence, analyzing the market condition relies heavily on the element of fashion as it allows a marketer to be more informed about the insights that influence the overall existence of the person and his overall image.
One element regarding consumer behavior, fashion and emerging markets such as China is the element of pricing which has been playing a bit of a role in such countries in shaping the overall perception. Giele (2009) while talking about Chinese consumer behavior suggests that the consumer has always been deeply immersed in the concept of buying a product while making sure that the element of price is also kept in view (Giele, 2009). However, in emerging countries such as China and India, people are moving towards the concept of buying due to the concept of fashion rather than the concept of price. This phenomenon is not observed keenly in many areas and has been opposed by various renowned authors, however on a psychological plane of existence, the individuals who tend to go out for shopping at times lose the concept of pricing as per the cost of the product and create the perception of the price being based on the fashion. Hence, a simple example in this regard would be of a new trend in t-shirts that recently got into fashion. The individuals who were intending to opt for the t-shirts positioned the element of price as per the whole concept of fashion rather than the actual cost that would have been incurred on the t-shirt. Kincade (2005) suggests that though the concept comes under the sub-category of attributes and features of the product, the inclination is more towards the trend rather than the elements that lie in the sub-category of the domain of attributes and features of the product that is currently under observation. Hence, the overall conception has changed greatly as focus is being turned away from pricing due to cost and is being targeted towards pricing as per the steaming concept of fashion.
The consumer behavior in terms of a product between the two categories of internet and fashion is still in its development phase and is subject to continuous change. Dejan (2010) suggests that the various factors that affect the consumer perception regarding online fashion are quite intact. These include the eternal aspect of security concerns. When talking in terms of shopping online to fulfil fashion needs, the consumers are still quite reluctant in this aspect as they are of the opinion that their transactions are still subject to ample amount of unwanted risk which can be avoided when dealing physically rather than on a virtual plane. Hence, this is also shaping their perception regarding fashion as the level of trust in the brands and thus the overall conception is being influenced on a very high level and could have numerous repercussions in terms of its servitude and unlimited aspect of continuously changing environment.
2.4 Branding and the Internet
The development of the concept of a brand in the fashion industry has also played a vital role in the whole cognitive process of fashion development among various parts of the world. One Google report of the year 2011 suggests that these brands that were previously restricted to a rather smaller interval of geography are now reaching new horizons due to the presence of internet. They are now influencing more parts of the world that they previously were involved in during their initial existence. They have easily found a margin to tap into newer emerging markets such as India and China. These emerging markets are thus being influenced by their existence both physically and on a viral scale as the viral marketing campaigns that have been developed for these brands have shown quite a significant sense of existence and pertain towards inviting more individuals to the brand. Furthermore, Smith (2009) suggests that due to the presence of such luxurious brands, the overall perception changes by a huge fraction and the local developers also tend to show inclination towards such trends that are developed by these major players (Smith, 2009). Hence, OIkonkwo (2007) summarizes this fact by suggesting that it is a continuous process which changes the overall fashion perception of the individuals who are residing in such emerging countries as they look towards developed civilizations for constant guidance in the field, especially in the fashion perspective (Okonkwo, 2007).
Personality is another tool which is being exploited by marketers in shaping the perception regarding fashion in the newer industries. It can be said that the overall extravaganza that has been brought in light by such individuals and organizations that are performing under the flag of fashion are using the tool to exploit the individuals. Bohdanwicz (1994) talks about the fact that the reason why this is being called exploitation is that marketers tend to position their fashion brands in such a way that they consciously represent a personality that many individuals desire, especially in third world countries. Thus, they are using this tool to influence them into moving towards products that are otherwise unimportant to their basic culture in many ways. The Chinese for example believe in their traditional dresses; however the concept of fashion in terms of personality is allowing them to look different yet elegant, and is overall destroying their own cultural existence in the world for which they are already quite renowned. Furthermore, the personality barrier is allowing them to look beyond their current market and to tap into newer mindsets by influencing their psychological attachment to their cultural realities and other such features.
2.5 Communication and Fashion
Communications has changed the field of fashion and its sub-domains by a great radical. These can be observed when one is keeping the whole perception of influencing fashion databases. Bernanrd (2002) talks about this aspect and suggests that one such aspect is visible from the recent trend of Facebook based clothing companies that have established out of nowhere and are offering various products at different price levels. These fashion products range from replicas of the traditional brand products to novel ideas which are seemingly interesting. This whole new dimension in marketing activities of brands is shaping the spectrum of such activities that are increasing the overall potential. Frings (2002) in one of his books talks over the topic and suggests that these new developments are changing perceptions regarding traditional conceptions of buying patterns in consumers and are enforcing the schedule of a new spirit in terms of collecting an overall framework regarding the concept of fashion. Thus, in a nut-shell it can be suggested that improved communications are playing a vital role changing perceptions and developing new ideas in the field.
2.6 Sustainable Fashion and the Internet
Sustainable fashion, a term which describes the relatively smaller sub-category of the field of fashion is coming in action in a rather recent platform where the internet has been given a control over various aspects while considering the environmental factors as per Davis. The ideology behind fashion being a politicized or in many cases a depoliticized activity in the internet spectrum has led to the overall concept of creating a similar image in terms of the entire audience. Hence, the subcategory of sustainable fashion is also influenced by the ideology that runs behind fashion as a whole statement in itself. Furthermore, the behavior which thus results from such an action is a result of the shape that has been provided to the concept of fashion in such countries where it has a different outlook. For instance, a country where a politicized network of fashion exists, the individuals that reside the economy seem to act in a similar pattern which has been laid down as per the ground principles of the country. However, on the other hand, the countries that are depoliticized show a rather dissimilar course of action in terms of setting their outlook. Thus, the concept of politicization plays a vital role in developing the overall perception and viewpoint of the consumers that exist in the locality as they tend to abide by the norms that exist in their surroundings. The Chinese for instance think in a chronological pattern which can thus be predicted if given ample amount of consideration towards the entire subject matter.
2.7 Global Followers
Global followers are such individuals who tend to adhere to the brand even though they are not entitled to be a part due to financial barriers towards the brand. These individuals have been targeted by various companies and have been completely admired due to their ability to get over attached by the brand. These individuals are more concerned with the price factor and the companies that target them are aware of the fact that though small in profitability on an individual plane, such consumers tend to make a huge proportion of the entire global market that the company or brand targets. The concept of internet has played a vital role in the development of this conception as this element is the bridge which fulfills the gap between the brand and such companies. Kumar (2009) suggests that due to the presence of internet in various third world countries of the world, the companies can target such individuals easily without much attention towards negative consequences as these are almost negligible in this context.
2.8 Internet in China
The internet in China has seen its ups and downs. Though the presence of internet and its rapid growth has been supported by the government on a large scale, yet it has been blocked to a great extent by the same organization. Thus, on one hand they are promoting growth, yet on the other they are trying to control the whole virtual scenario. There are numerous authors who agree to the fact that the Chinese government is continuously influencing the whole scenario on a very large scale as they are controlling the overall flow of data. Various social networking websites have been blocked in China as they consider them inappropriate. However, on the other hand, they are promoting their own talent by employing and allowing their own closed social networking websites. Tai (2006) brings light towards the idea that the main influence of blocking external social networking websites as per our topic in consideration is that this restriction overall stops the individuals residing in the country to be overly influenced by the external environment, especially in the field of fashion as the link of promotion is being cut-off. However, this has not addressed the whole issue of changing perceptions as the individuals who are residing in the country still tend to research upon newer trends in the market due to other existing elements such as Media which is aiding the whole concept of fashion trends.
2.8.1 The Public Containment
The public has been contained in a spherical form by the government of China. Despite the rapid growth and the numerous improvements in the infrastructure and the technological aspect of the country, the internet and its facilities have been kept to a limited outcome. Youngkang (2012) in a news article talks about the recent activity which blocked the website which was writing against political parties which is an example of the above facts. The Chinese firewall is even more extensively superior in terms of security than the Great Wall of China. This is the reason why the country has been progressing quite well despite the limited number of connections.
There are certain levels of outcomes that have been consistently associated with the whole scheme of Chinese government being involved in the field of technology. These include the fact that they are quite concerned about the whole perception of international influence as they desire to become the next world power and an influence from the external world can reduce the possibility of achieving their innate dream and goal. However, some authors consider that unlocking this conception of limited outcome would allow the Chinese empire to rule even quicker in terms of being the world power as this unlocking activity would allow them to expand rapidly with minimal barriers and numerous opportunities for growth as for instance, the social networking plane, if unlocked can allow the Chinese individuals and entrepreneurs to expand into other countries as they already have the relative experience and cost advantage which others, especially the international economy is continuously looking forward as they are looking towards a new era where such unlocks would expand new horizons.
2.8.2 The Power of Internet in China
The power of the internet in the Chinese world is quite extensive due to its implications. Due to this marvellous form of communication a number of positive elements have surfaced. For example, the Chinese are decreasing their cost even more via this spectrum. Moreover, Yang (2001) describes that they are continuously shifting their point of concern from an internal environment to a more citizen oriented environment and this is the major reason why despite a closed internet spectrum, the country is developing rapidly with a rather small fraction of hurdles in their path. Furthermore, the country seems to be establishing its dreams even with a deadlock on their communication activities and thus for the country, this seems to be a very positive element.
2.8.3 Internet and Politics in China
The element of politics seems to be surfacing in the Chinese web space as the whole conception of a limited web space is backed upon by a political framework. Hughes (2003) suggests that International relations and various other diplomatic spectrums are being influenced rapidly due to the presence of the political aspect. Numerous articles and newspaper sources cite the seemingly important aspect of elements such as politics, economics and international relations on technology. Thus, technology is gravely affected by such elements.
2.9 The Use of Internet in China
Many authors are still in the state of dilemma regarding internet in China being used as a tool for freedom which is actual purpose or for suppression which is seemingly disrupting the whole state of affairs of the country. Smith (2006) suggests that this limited barrier is creating a sense of oppression in the individuals of the country as they are not being able to completely transfer their ideas and concepts to the rest of the world. Furthermore, their activities are being monitored rapidly which means that they are not at a state of liberty at the moment as their activities are subject to scrutiny and this scrutiny is causing them to deviate from their actual perceptions and views that they can share with the rest of the society and the whole world using the internet channel.
2.9.1 Socio-culture of China and the Internet
The socio-cultural aspect of the China is being shaped by their concept of the internet and its usage. China is continuously becoming the manufacturing hub of the world as many companies have started manufacturing their goods in China due to various reasons including cheap labor and information technology. Ghouri (2008) suggests that under the plane information technology, the Chinese empire tends to create a unique sense of information within their framework which allows them to be different in various conditions. This level of difference has been imbibed in their culture and has thus changed the whole conception of China. The urban youth in the country is continuously moving towards modern trends and are finding numerous implications regarding the internet facilities. Hence, they have made use of all aspects and have then included them in their sub-culture of uniqueness. Liu (2010), talks about the idea that the Asian countries have remarkably developed over the previous years. Statistics show more than a 500% growth pattern in development in various fields including fashion, modernization and of course, internet.
2.10 Fashion and Marketing
A strong and seemingly positive image of fashion depends largely upon the idea of marketing in the field. Lee (2010) explains this fact by explaining the idea that the viral marketing aspect plays an even more important role in the entire struggle towards achieving the concept of relatively higher rate of positivity in terms of the image. It is a known fact that majority of the individuals who are looking forward towards fashion trends rely heavily on internet as not everyone can support the activities of a personal designer, neither is everyone on that level of creativity that they can iterate their own conception.Birtwistle (2010)suggests that these individuals are concerned with internet as their one stop source of unlimited guide towards the subject matter. Furthermore, on the other hand, this is a great opportunity for the brands that tend to promote fashion as they now have the entire globe to search and isolate their target market from and thus the overall conception can be completed without much consideration towards the negative aspect. Lastly, the concept of fashion in the light of the internet is a both quantitative and qualitative aspects regarding interpreting the consumer behavior which can be proved to show a level of significance.
2.10.1 Consumer Intention
The purchase intention of consumers and thus the resulting culture is an important aspect which contains a huge level of relevance in the concept fashion. The consumer culture regarding fashion apparels in particular is different for different localities. Gopal (2010) describes the idea that despite the fact that the various marketing strategies that are developed by companies and brands have very high effectiveness in terms of purchase, the most crucial factor which has changed and altered the consumer purchase intention regarding fashion apparels is the strategy of online marketing as due to this they are easily able to generate hype while being extremely cost-effective. Many authors are considering that the need for physical marketing has diminished overall in the entire world as the concept of viral marketing has taken surface over the previous years.
Wright (2009) states that these activities have decreased the overall demand for fashion shows and other such activities in the field which can prove to become a new changing point while considering the ongoing trends there in. Engaging with the customers has been made possible via using the technological spectrum and thus the internet has vitally played its part in this concept as an overall implication. Furthermore, a press release (2012) suggests that the overall internet market has tremendously increased over the previous years. The trend of online marketing is seemingly new and has been worked upon since 2010. Indvik (2010) suggests that it is now more of an empirical form of marketing in the fashion industry as opposed to the previously extra added benefit for the whole marketing program.
2.11 Summary
Thus, in a nut-shell, the above literature review talks in detail regarding the various aspects in the industry. Firstly, the internet is a major tool in terms of fashion which is being used as on a wide scale all over the world. Secondly, this is continuously changing consumer perceptions regarding fashion, especially in third world countries. Thirdly, the Chinese government still has a tap on the activities that take place on the internet’s virtual spectrum and thus is an issue in the eyes of various authors, however, the results and overall implications show results in the opposite direction as the country has been developing rapidly despite the seeming restriction in the field of information technology. Lastly, the influence of internet on the fashion aspect in China seem to be existing in a comparatively lower level as many sources of promotions of the fashion trends across the world including social media websites are blocked by the government.
Chapter III
Research Methodology
3.1 Introduction
Whenever any research is conducted, the methodology of research is considered as essential step or in other words the foundation is in any discipline. According to Malhotra (2005) the track or parameters that any researcher uses must be according to related techniques and nature. There may be several ways to define the methodology of any research but the study, we are going to discus is one of the commonly used method, called as the research onion approach. The step by step process is explained briefly below.
Source: Saunders et al (2009: 132)
2.11 3.2 The philosophy of research - Positivism
The step one of the process is describing the viewpoint of research. The required objectives of study are shown by the superiority as well as the fitness of philosophy. The philosophy used in this research is Positivism which mainly used in social sciences descriptive research. In 2003, Cooper and Schindler explained that the paradigm called positivist, is one which is focused on testing the planned hypothesis on the basis of recognized theories of targeted field. The deductive approach and objective strategies are helping out in the application of method and actual life situations. The rationale of selecting this methodology is its rational appeal and quantitative strategies can be easily used in this philosophy with the help of suitable approach. Other paradigms like Interpretivism and realism are more suitable for exploratory qualitative researches.
3.3 Research Approach
The two approaches suggested by Saunders et al (2009) as the second step of research are inductive and deductive.
3.3.1 Inductive approach
In this method we may be able to find out an example for a particular theory. So the method is mainly focused on the qualitative approaches in order to fetch the data. Often it is called the ‘bottom up approach’ due to the derivation of out comes by the perspectives from specific to general. This method is not suitable with respect to the nature of present research.
3.3.1 Deductive Approach
The approach is so called as it treats the study from top to bottom and moves from wide-ranging to central point (Schwab 2004). To confirm the facts, found by the specific area of concern, a wide concept must be used. In this study, selecting the deductive approach is due to the application of wide theories on the analysis of impact, the workforce diversity made on the result of work in Starbucks. The character of this particular approach is objective as it can be verified, so the collection of data from the Chinese youth is done by quantitative methods through deductive approach. The hypotheses were drawn on the basis of general theory of internet usage and consumer behavior and they were tested with the help of evidence provided by the analyses of collected data.
2.12 Strategies for research
The third step of research onion model called as research strategies. Saunders et al (2009) suggested that there can be three strategies that are focused for the quantitative approach of research. They include (1) Survey method (2) experiments and (3) case study method. In this study, the survey method is being used.
3.3.2 Survey method
The survey method is the widely used and considerable method in order to fetch the data i.e. primary from the population, considered. In quantitative study; the sample is selected for survey and to collect large or small amount of samples as per requirement. Through e-mail, telephone and personal interviewing are the key ways to gather the related information in survey method. Closed ended quantitative questionnaires were used to gather the data from Chinese youth about the impact of internet usage on their fashion trends and choices. The survey was personally conducted by the researcher through social networks and emails contacts. Mostly Chinese students studying in UK were accessed through personal references in university.
3.4.2 Sampling Procedures
Sampling frame was the Chinese youth regularly using social networks and internet to do shopping and socialize. Non probability sampling was used by preferring the convenience sampling method. The respondents were contacted through social networks and emails in China to get the questionnaires filled. Sample size was selected as 150 respondents, from which only 100 duly survey forms were returned. Unavailability of respondents, unwillingness, and delays in responding were measure causes of this huge non response.
3.4.3 Questionnaire Designing
Quantitative questionnaire was designed which was based on close ended questions. The questions content was based on the desired information identified in research questions and proposed hypotheses. Multiple choice questions and five point Likert scale based questions were used to form questionnaire. Total number of questions was kept below 20 and only two pages were used to keep the questionnaire short and specific. The language of questionnaire was simple and all possible choices were included in the options. The contents were carefully checked and pretested on five colleagues in university. The changes and recommendations were incorporated before conducting the final survey.
3.5 Research Choices
In order to select the research design, there are many research methods which have their own value. The three choices available in onion method were mono, multi and mixed method. For this quantitative research, mono method is used. In order to evaluate the hypotheses statistically and to carry out this research, quantitative data is required.
2.13 3.6 Time Horizon
In this study, cross sectional design is used and it covers only the events that occur at a specific time and will not going to improve or change in future..
3.7 Data collection Techniques
Appropriate techniques for research in necessary in order to get a better research design. There are two different ways which are used for data gathering and its evaluation.
3.7.1 Secondary data Collection
Any research requires secondary data as an obligation. Literature reviews that are systematic and significant, Newspapers, periodicals, internet data bases, journals, books and magazines etc were the main source for gathering secondary data
3.7.2 Primary Data Collection
In this research, questionnaires are used to gather information from primary sources. Survey was conducted from Chinese youth residing in UK and China. Personal contacts were used to locate the respondents and then emails were used to send and collect the surveys. Social networks were also used to locate the representative sample for the study.
3.8 Data Analysis Methods
The collected data was assured that it should be reliable and valid. Representative sample, relevant contents of questionnaire and suitable data analyses tools were contributed to increase the validity of collected data. As far as reliability or internal consistency is considered, personal involvement of researcher in explaining the research and questions before survey has increased the reliability of responses. Also, the standard, quantitative, and reader friendly formatting of questionnaire has also increased the reliability of study. After collection of data, MS-Excel was used to do the analyses and its representation in bar charts and pie-charts. The obtained findings were properly discussed and then conclusion and recommendations were derived.
3.9 Ethical considerations
Primary research is done because transparency and understanding of respondents is required in this study; therefore special attention is given to the issues related to ethics. To collect primary data, suggestions of target market are necessary. Resources which are used to collect secondary data are authentic. Researchers informed about the main objective and nature of research to the respondents. Respondent’s personal information was not disclosed in this survey. It was assured to get the proper, reliable and positive response from the participants. As well as, the purpose of this research was only for academics, and any of the information of this research will not be used or misconstrue by the researcher.
CHAPTER IV
Data Analysis &Findings
4.1 Introduction
This chapter discussed the data analysis for this study on Chinese internet users. The quantitative data collected from these users is used to analyse the trends of Chinese users especially youth consumers and impact of social networks on their purchasing and brands selection behavior. This chapter is based on the analysis of individual questions and their graphical interpretation. A comprehensive discussion on findings of the research is done at the end of the chapter.
4.2 Data Analysis and Findings
This section examines the responses of the structured questionnaire. Questionnaire was based on three separate areas, first few questions were based on participants’ demographic information, next part addressed their internet and social media the data collected structured questionnaires. The first part discussed the personal details of demographics of the respondents. The next section analyses the buying behaviour and use of social networks by consumers.
Out of 150 distributed questionnaires, 100 were duly filled and returned through emails and social media. Therefore, a good response rate of the survey is obtained which is 66.66%, as normally remote surveys are difficult to handle and collection of filled questionnaire is not very easy. Out of these hundred respondents, 39 or 39% were males and 61 or 61% were females, makes the ratio about 60:40 for females and males. The age group of these consumers was also found mostly in their late teens and early twenties, due to the fact that our main focus was Chinese youth social media users.
In order to achieve best result in this research quantitative data were collected it is necessary to collect data from a set of non-respondents and compare it with that which is freely supplied. It is assumed that late respondents contribute to similarities with non-responders, and if no significant differences exist, the chance is strong that non-response bias does not exist. The survey questionnaire included participants profile in terms of gender and age. Sample of about 100 Internet and Social media users was selected using a Convenience Sampling method as the study focuses on consumer’s perspective about advertising and there is no population frame to enable a random sampling process.
4.2.1 Gender Distribution
The response to the question about gender of respondents was included to check the influence of social media on males and females respectively. The findings of this question shown in the figure 4.2.1, indicates the dominance of females (61%) and minority males as 39% only.
Figure 4.2.1 Gender
Frequency Percentage
a- Male 39 39%
b- Female 61 61%
Total 10 100%
The fig.5.2.1 shows the graphical interpretation of above data findings in following
Fig. 5.2.1 Gender Distribution
4.2.2 Age Distribution
The response of the question related to the age of respondents generated a dominance of youth age group. The major share of the respondents belong to the age group of 21-30 years of age (78%), show an absolute majority of youth respondents in the survey sample, satisfies the main target group of this research. These results are shown in the figure 5.2.2 below:
Figure 5.2.2 Which of the following age groups do you belong to?
Frequency Percentage
a- Less than 20 years 12 12%
b- 21-30 years 78 78%
c- 31-40 years 8 08%
d- 41-50 years 2 2%
e- Above 50 years 0 0%
Total 105 100%
This proportion of respondents makes the other findings valid as use of social networks is also very high in young population of China. Teens are about 8% of the target population and middle age group constituted only about 2%. The fig.4.2.2 shows the graphical interpretation of above data findings in following
4.3 Internet and Social Networks usage
In this section the second part of the questionnaire is analysed, related to the consumers’ social media preferences and internet spending hours. This section is focused on the latest trends and preferences of Chinese youth in using social networks and internet.
4.3.1 Tool to use internet
The responses of the question related to the mode of accessing internet are an important finding to locate means of accessing internet in Chinese society. These results are shown in the figure 5.2.2 below:
The diagram above shows that 44% population use internet through personal computers, 30%people use internet through laptops and very few (23%) access internet through smart phones and only 3% use with other resources. This finding shows that still the major mean of access to internet is personal computers in Chinese youth; smart phones are rapidly penetrating in the market and soon will take over the share of PCs.
4.3.2 Profile on Social Networking Site
The responses of the question related to the presence of profiles on social networking sites are an important finding to locate means of popularity of social media in Chinese society. These results are shown in the figure 5.2.2 below
The above diagram shows that 44% respondents use their profiles on QQ or Qzone, 19%people have profiles on Sina Weibo, and 16% access internet and have profile on Douban, and only 9% have profile on Ren Ren. This finding shows that still the major and popular SNS in China are QQ, Sina Weibo, RenRen, and Douban. Remaining networks have less than 5% share in popularity. Most of the people connect with friends through internet and Social media and internet and Social media is the most popular site for increasing social network. So many other websites are available now days after internet and Social media youth mostly prefer the customized portals, profiles, and pages because many owners of the organizations post their ads on these sites.
4.3.3 Duration of Using Social media
The responses of the question related to the duration of using the Social Networking Sites are discussed in this section. The duration will determine the share of SNS in internet activity of the respondents in China. The longer the person stays on these sites, the stronger is the impact of these sites activities on the thinking pattern of internet users. These results are shown in the figure 4.3.3 below
The above diagram shows that 25% respondents are using social media since 2-3 years. 19% people have profiles on SNS since 1-2 years duration. The majority respondents 28% have their profiles on social media for more than three years duration. Also, 14% respondents show access to SNS for about 6 month to one year period. This finding indicates that there are very few new users participated in the survey; all of them have considerable experience of social media in China.
4.3.4 Duration of access of Internet per day
The responses of the question related to the consumption of average hours of using internet per day of profiles on social networking sites are an important finding to locate means of popularity of social media in Chinese society. These results are shown in the figure 4.3.4 below
The above diagram shows that 43% respondents are accessing for less than one hour per day. 35% people are using internet for one to three hours duration per day. The next majority of respondents (17%) spend four to six hours per day. Also, rests of respondents have shown access to internet for more than six hours per day. This finding indicates that majority respondents spend more than one hour on internet per day. This trend of Chinese youth shows the penetration of internet in their daily lives.
4.3.5 Preferable time of Access Social Media
The response of the question related to the favourable time of using social networking sites is an important finding to evaluate the most acceptable time of availability of maximum consumers online in China. These results are shown in the figure 4.3.5 below
The above diagram shows that 40% respondents are accessing social media between 6 pm to 12 midnight. 19% people are accessing social media after midnight. The next majority of respondents (18%) spend time on SNS between twelve noon till six pm. Many of the members interact with their relatives, friends and class mates via SNS, so it has become the most effective means of communication all over the world. This distribution of timer indicates the access to SNS throughout the day but especially after office hours at homes. Push factors, such as peer pressure, were identified as being a strong influence upon decisions to join a social network website. Many members special teenager typically join the social network website because a friend invites them to join.
4.3.6 Connections on Social Media
The responses of the question related to the number of connections or friends do respondents have on Social Networks are used to evaluate the size of the friends circle for youth in China. Presence of friends’ network or large connections on social networking sites is an important finding to locate means of popularity of social media in Chinese society. These results are shown in the figure 4.3.6 below.
The above diagram shows that 31% respondents have less than fifty friends circle on social media. 26% respondents have between fifty one to hundred friends circle on social media. The rest of the percentages are nearly equal and show high number of friends in the social networks, or about 43% respondents have a friend’s circle of more than 100 people on social networks. This factor has shown the rapidly increasing social media penetration in social life of Chinese youth. Many of the members interact with their relatives, friends and class mates via SNS, so it has become the most effective means of communication all over the world. This distribution of timer indicates the access to SNS throughout the day but especially after office hours at homes.
4.3.7 Reason of using Internet and social media
The responses of the question related to the use of social networking sites are an important finding to locate means of popularity of social media in Chinese society. These results are shown in the figure 5.2.2 below.
The above diagram shows a mix result as no absolute high percentage appear in all given options of the reasons of using internet and social media. 13% respondents have shown the reasons of entertainment, socializing, and keeping up to date. The other important reasons are sharing videos (10%), find information (9%), and making new friends and for business purposes (8%). The rest of the percentages are nearly equal and show the other reasons of using internet and social media. This research shows the believability or trustworthiness of the medium influences how the consumer views the credibility of the information. Anyone who understands how to use the internet must easily make use of a social networking site meaning that it does not require any specialization or vast technical skills. Users of social networks act as a consumer as well as a supplier.
4.3.8 Effectiveness of Using Blogs
The responses of the question related to the effectiveness of blogs on social media are taken to evaluate the importance of this mode of socializing among friends and public. Chinese youth is found greatly involved in making and commenting on personal andprofessional blogs. These results are shown in the figure 4.3.8 below:
The above diagram shows that 32% respondents found blogs to be an effective mode of social media to socialize and share with community. 29% respondents were found strongly agree that blogs are highly effective to express ideas and to share resources in particular fields of interest. 18% showed neutral attitude as they were not clear about the effectiveness and usage of this relatively new form of social media. Only 21% in all were either strongly or slightly disagreed with the statement. This result indicates the importance of blogs in socializing on internet and creating useful content for the users globally.
4.4 Attitude about Advertising of Fashion Brands
This section was focused at collecting data about the main topic of the research that would Chinese youth are interested in receiving, browsing, or purchasing fashion brands on the basis of information and advertising of these brands on social media. Following are the results interpreted about this section.
4.4.1 Receive information related to favourite Brand
The responses of the question related to the willingness of respondents to receive information related to my favourite brands on Social Networking Sites. The findings of this item will throw light on the importance and use of social media as an advertising medium for fashion brands to Chinese youth. These results are shown in the figure 4.4.1 below
The above diagram shows that 36% respondents found blogs found willing to receive information about fashion brands on social media to find their queries and to generate interest in these brands. 26% respondents were found strongly agree that advertising on special media is highly effective to express ideas and to share information about fashion brands. 26% showed neutral attitude as they were not clear about the receiving of advertisement intentionally on social media. Only 12% in all were either strongly or slightly disagreed with the statement. This result indicates the viability of using social media as an advertising channel to reach Chinese youth for fashion brands on internet and creating useful content for the users globally.
4.4.2 Finalizing a purchase Decision
The responses of the question in this part are related to the purchase a product on the basis of information received through a Social Networking Site. These results are shown in the figure 4.4.2 below
The above diagram shows that 28% respondents found information about fashion brands on social media useful to finalize their purchase decisions. 17% respondents were found neutral and disagree about finalizing the purchase decision about finalizing purchases of fashion brands through internet. 22% showed negative attitude as they do not prefer to make purchase decision on the basis of advertisement intentionally on social media. Only 16% were strongly agreed with the statement. This result indicates the reluctance of Chinese youth in finalizing their purchase decision on the bases of social media advertising; it shows they are still preferred manual buying procedures which suit their culture and traditions.
4.4.3 Receiving Ads of Fashion Brands
The responses of the question related to stay comfortable with receiving ads related to the fashion brands. These results are shown in the figure 4.4.3 below
The above diagram shows a mix result as no absolute high percentage appear in all given options of the attitude about receiving ads on social media. 35% respondents have agreement in receiving ads related to their interests and activities. The other important group stayed neutral (23%) in preference of ads receiving as they were indifferent in their choice. The strongly agreed group comprised of 17% population who preferred to receive ads on their social networks. The rest of the percentages are nearly equal and show the disagreement to the given option. This research shows the believability or trustworthiness of the medium influences how the consumer views the credibility of the information. Many of the participants indicated that advertising on their online social networking sites was acceptable, because it kept the use of the site free of charge. None of the participants indicated that they avoid the ads because of undue clutter of advertising on the sites:
4.4.4 Privacy and Security issues on Social Media
The responses of the question related to the security and privacy issues facing by the social networks users in Chinese society. These results are shown in the figure 4.4.4 below
The above diagram shows 31% respondents stayed neutral about the privacy and security issues faced on social media. Also the same percentage (31%) were agreed positively on facing issues of privacy and security. 14% were strongly agreed about the disturbance caused by the privacy and security issues on their activities on the web. This percentage of disagreement and staying neutral is very high that shows a high level of privacy issues in China. The strong censorship of Chinese government might be the reason of this insecure attitude of Chinese users of internet. This factor is also alarming for companies also which are using this medium for generating sales.
4.5 Discussion on Research Findings.
Findings show that Internet and Social media contains three types of ads categorized as Homepage ads leaving an option for users to engage with a brand by becoming a fan; social impressions including social context like users’ friends who are already fans of the brand; and organic impressions appearing on the homepage of friends of users who have engaged with a brand.
The two hypotheses proposed at the beginning of the research are accepted as enough evidence is created from the above done data analysis. These hypotheses were:
H1: Social Networks are an effective tool for marketing of Fashion brands to Chinese Youth.
If carried out in a proper manner, social marketing can draw a highly targeted segment of Internet users to visit your business or your website. Return on investment is an essential part of any business plan and if a business has lower budgets, it must increase its return on investment to be on the safe side, satisfies the theories presented by Kumar (2009) and Tsai (2006). Social marketing is one of the cheapest ways of marketing currently available. Marketing on social networks only involves costs for actual clicks made; therefore marketers can ensure that they are only paying for advertisements that are successful in attracting customers. With social marketing, one can provide a human touch to attract potential customers and can target only that market of users who would ultimately pay attention to your products. Therefore this hypothesis is accepted.
H2 = Social Networking Sites have changed the brands’ selection behavior in Chinese Youth.
On social networks, the promotion of a brand does not remain limited to the member alone; it gets extended to the member’s friends. Consumer empowerment accruing from these networks has created a new breed of consumers, forcing marketers to consider how they communicate this value proposition to their groups and engage with them as discussed in the study Ghouri (2008) also. Marketers can no longer rely on mass media channels to push their communications to consumers in this new customer-focused environment; they must embrace new strategies if they wish to succeed. Therefore this hypothesis is accepted. Users of social networks act as a consumer as well as a supplier. If a user appreciates your content he would be influential over a large number of other individuals thus enhancing your business’ popularity. Furthermore, the impact of censorship and security also affected the activities on these social sites and people avoid making purchase decisions or free comments on social media as discussed by Youngkang (2012).
Chapter V
Conclusion and Recommendation
6.1 Conclusion
The purpose of this study was to enhance marketers’ knowledge about the preferences and behavior of users of social networks and take advantage of their detailed profiles to promote ads of their interests. Businesses can successfully reach out to their Internet and Social media users by making their profiles on this site and encouraging suggestions and interaction with various individuals to have a better understanding of what people perceive about their products and services. This can be encouraged by giving rise to an engaging dialogue between both the parties and establishing brand pages that are exciting, different and encourage user participation. The process of business advertising is relatively new on these social networks but has great potential for growth. The answers of the questions raised in introduction chapter achieved from the data analysis are as follows:
Q1: How does the internet contribute to shaping the idea of fashion among the young people in the context of consumer culture?
If businesses start a viral campaign on Internet and Social media pages, they can easily involve a number of users can develop a strong relationship with them within a short span of time. Advertising on Internet and Social media is fairly reasonable and when you advertise a particular product or service you pre-screen potential customers. You understand what your prospects like and what they don’t. This can prove to be valuable for you as it would help your brand in receiving a platform where it is available for those who need it. The concept of “One size fits all” is no longer popular. Youth have opted for the favoured attitude in viewing and selecting the advertisements of fashion brands on social media, which shows a high penetrating power and great influence of this media on consumers’ behaviour. On the other hand, final purchase of products is still largely dependent on manual methods, and not much evidence generated about it from the study.
Q 2: What are the major influences the internet has brought to Chinese youth fashion brands selection behaviour?
The study evaluated that Internet and Social media gets more attention from marketers and is one of the fastest growing social networks. Brand reputation can be affected through Internet and Social media to a great extent, both in a positive and negative manner depending on how it has been perceived by the individuals. Once a brand enters the good books of the consumers it is spread like fire. Individuals constantly communicate its popularity among each other resulting in increased profits for the brand thus, enhancing its brand value. Building new business partnerships, increasing online traffic and making use of the social networks by formation of brand pages, has provided an opportunity for marketers to receive immediate feedback and get to know about their consumers’ psyche including their preferences, likes, dislikes and behavior.
Q3: What is the impact of consumers’ social network lifestyle on brand awareness of fashion brands?
The social network life style of Chinese consumers is found more interactive as they spend more than an hour each day on internet and social media. They use this media to interact, socialize, and be more informed. They prefer to see and receive information about brands but most them still prefer manual purchasing methods.
Q4: What are the affective social network marketing strategies for promotion of fashion brands to Chinese youth consumers?
Internet and Social media has established a system of pay per click meaning that the advertiser would pay every time an individual clicks on the advertisement. Individuals are more likely to pay attention to ads that have been recommended by their friends rather than those that are not. The relationship of trust developed by these individuals helps in perceiving ads in a much positive manner giving rise to the purchase intention as compared to the traditional push strategy adapted by marketers. Purchase decision has a different impact in case of social networks as compared to brick-and-mortar world. Individuals who are highly influential over others having a high tend to avoid any purchase online to establish their uniqueness but have a great impact on affecting others’ decision making in purchasing a particular product or service
6.2 Recommendations
On the basis of study results, following recommendations are proposed for fashion brands’ marketing departments in China:
1. To maintain a level of trust and comfort, fashion brands should not force their products or services to the consumers. Chinese youth has become aware of all global brands and use social media very effectively. They find bombardment of mass media advertisements to be highly irritating and have thus reduced the impact on consumers. Therefore, such ads should be avoided and replaced by Social Media Marketing effective campaigns .
2. Marketers need to increase consumer involvement and make the consumers more interactive in terms of building better relations with them. Social Networking Sites thus provide this opportunity enabling marketers to introduce programs that will enhance their interaction with the business and would enable marketers to promote products that are of interest to these individuals. They will have a low cost in terms of product promotion as compared to the traditional marketing methods and would be available to a large consumer base. Providing discounts or promoting contests would help in gaining more ideas and making more fans on the fan pages.
3. The life style of Chinese youth in metropolitan cities become highly professional and they want customized solutions to satisfy their needs. Therefore, fashion brands can make their marketing more interactive and according to the needs of individual consumers. The targeting consumers on their availability on social media and the amount of time they spend would be useful for these brands to, market their products.
4. Launching a new product can also be made easy by creating awareness before it is actually launched. For a small or new business receiving a quick feedback or being recognized becomes very difficult. If these fashion brands develop their pages on Internet and Social media they will immediately be communicated among a large consumer base through word of mouth marketing and would help you understand the psyche of your potential consumers. Negative feedback received through these pages can be acted upon immediately helping businesses to come up on the user’s expectations.
5.3 Research implications
This research will facilitate the decision makers in marketing departments of fashion brands, academia, and research scholars’ new insights. The findings about the internet behavior and use of social media sites by Chinese youth will assist the other researchers doing work in the same area. Also, the changes in cyber consumers purchasing trends and use of social media to select fashion brands will affect their behaviour of purchases in other categories. Findings of this research will also assist the policy makers of fashion retail industry in China to draft new ways to explore potential of social media
5.4 Future Research Applications
This cross sectional study has evaluated the trends in Chinese youth about the participation and using social networks. These results will act as a base for future researches on Chinese youth behaviours related to social media and its influence on brands preference. More researches on fashion brands marketing through social marketing approach can explore new dimensions and impacts. Also, future researches are needed to evaluate the efficiency and tangible impacts of social networking tools in fashion brands marketing in China. Also, increase in sample size and including all cities of China to access the Chinese youth behavior more deeply. Furthermore, the inclusion of other players like government, media control agencies, and spokespersons of local social networks will provide useful insights in the future researches on the same topic.
5.5 Personal reflection
This study was conducted as a preliminary requirement of my degree and has undergone a tedious but rewarding experience in doing so. The topic was current and relevant to the area of my interest and was decided with the help of supervisor. From the beginning, the conduct of this research has found to be a challenging task. Searching and collection if relevant research, material from journals and books, deciding research objectives and questions, finalizing the suitable research methodology and conducting field survey through electronic media were major steps in this study. On every step, I had revised and evaluated the weaknesses and issues coming in the process. At the end, analysis of collected data, interpretation, and writing of research report have given me an illuminating experience. This study will play a significant role in understanding the consumer behavior and internet preferences of Chinese youth. The results obtained from the study have contributed in my knowledge base of Chinese youth internet habits and social media activities.
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Appendix
QUESTIONNAIRE
Dear Respondent:
Please take a few minutes to complete the internet use Questionnaire so that we may gather a bit of information about. The information you provide will be confidential and not be sold or rented to any company above topic.
1. Gender:
Male
Female
2. Age:
less than 20 years
31 – 40 years
more than 50 years
20 – 30 years
41 – 50 years
3. Please state your tool to use internet (you can choose more than 1):
PC
Smart phones
Laptop
Any other, please specify _______
4. Do you have any profile on any of the following Social Networking Sites:
YouTube
Mop.com’
Sina Weibo
Blogger.com
Flicker
QQ Space
Windows Live
LinkedIn
Other, please specify ________
5. For how long have you been using the Social Networking Site(s):
Less than a month
1-6 months
1-2 years
more than 3years
1-6 months
6 months – 1 year
2-3 years
6. Please state your average hours of using internet per day:
less than 1 hour
4 – 6 hours
7 – 10 hours
1 – 3 hours
7 – 10 hours
7. At what time do you use internet?
1:00 A.M – 6:00 A.M
12:01 Noon – 6:00 P.M
After midnight
6:01 A.M – 12:00 Noon
6:01 P.M – 12:00 Midnight
8. How many connections “Friends” do you have on your Social Networks?
Less than 50
101 – 150
more than 200
51 – 100
101 – 150
9. Why do you use Social Networking Site(s)?
Keep up-to-date with social events.
Entertain yourself
Stay up-to-date with friends’ lives.
Share videos/pictures.
For business purposes
Find information about brands, products/services
10. What is your main purpose of using a personal blog?
Blog is like to keep a diary.
Entertain yourself
Share videos/pictures.
For business purposes
Find information about brands, products/services
Get opinions
Socialize
Share your experiences.
Make new friends.
Relationship
Get opinions
Socialize
Share your experiences.
Make new friends.
Relationship
Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree
11. I notice ads and/or offers for clothing products/services on Social Networking Sites
12. I want to receive information related to my favorite fashion brands on Social Networking Sites
13. I have purchased a fashion brands on the basis of information received through a Social Networking Site
14. I’m comfortable with receiving ads related to my interests and activities
15. I notice fashion brands ads that state benefits I am likely to receive
16. I share information related to interesting offerings with my friends and family
Thank you for your time