The Affect of Viral Marketing Factors on Impulse Purchasing Behavior within the Scope of International Electronic Commerce Applications

In the new economy process, rapid progress in the field of information technologies adds a new dimension to global competition, and enables businesses to better understand and meet consumer needs using computers and the Internet. Today, one of the electronic marketing tools used in international marketing is viral marketing. Viral is one of the most important ways of spreading the online promotion campaigns and brand to the masses. Viral methods which are applied to create awareness for reasonable costs and especially to increase the ratio of shoppers to total traffic among visitors to the E-commerce site, i.e., conversion rates, are one of the most attractive online marketing practices. Viral marketing is therefore an important part of the strategic planning of international electronic commerce companies in particular. This study was conducted to investigate the impact of viral marketing on the impulse (instant) purchasing behavior of customers of international companies engaged in e-commerce in the electronics industry. The purpose of this study is to examine whether informativeness, entertainment, irritation (annoyance), and source credibility, which are online viral marketing factors, influence impulse consumer purchasing behavior. Within the scope of the study, a quantitative research was conducted on the students of Istanbul Aydin University, and data was collected from 226 students through a structured questionnaire. The variables of the research were analyzed using SPSS statistical analysis program. Firstly, frequency distributions related to demographic data were presented. Then Means and Standard Deviations were found with respect to the variables. And then, the Cronbach's Alpha reliability test, Multicollinearity by utilizing Variance Inflation Factor (VIF), Simple Regression Analysis, and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) were carried out. Pursuant to the findings of the study, the majority of the respondents are Turkish and foreign students with a master's and bachelor's degree. Findings show that there is a positive and meaningful relationship between informativeness and impulse purchasing behavior; between entertainment and impulse purchasing behavior; and between source credibility and impulse purchasing behavior. In addition, current research reveals that there is no positive relationship between irritation and consumer impulse purchasing behavior. According to these results, it is important for electronics companies engaged in electronic commerce on the international platform to send informative, entertaining and non-irritating viral messages to the customer and to gain corporate reputation.

Keywords

Electronic Commerce, Impulse Purchasing Behavior, International E-Commerce, International Marketing, International Trade, Viral Marketing.