• Fashion & Textile Research Journal
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• v.17 no.6
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• pp.942-955
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• 2015

Hashtag has emerged and become one of cultural trend. Given that more and more firms in the fashion industry are using hashtag on images based on SNS to provide information of their products and to communicate with their customers. Especially, hashtags through voluntary participation of users provides the perspective of how customers consume their products. Therefore, this study focused on the using motives of hashtag in image based SNS with customer social participation as mediator towards brand equity. The purpose of this study is (1) to investigate the usage motivation of hashtag of image contents based SNS, (2) to expose how each usage motive affects customer social participation and (3) to find out how customer social participation has an effect on brand equity. In order to achieve the objectives of this study, first we conducted an in-depth interview on 8 image based SNS heavy users to understand the using motives of hashtags. Furthermore, we conducted online surveys amongst people aged between 20s and 30s of image contents based SNS users. As a result of this study, followings were figured out. First, four of usage motivation of hashtag were examined through in-depth interview and previous studies; interest sharing, social interaction, ease of use and enjoyment. Second, usage motivation of hashtag has a significant effect on customer social participation. Third, customer-media participation and customer-customer participation impact positively on brand equity. Lastly, level of customer social participation has the moderating effect on the relationship between motivation of hashtag and customer social participation.

• Fashion & Textile Research Journal
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• v.16 no.6
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• pp.908-920
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• 2014

As social networking service (SNS) users' needs and wants have become more diverse, SNS is designed to provide various services and functions. As a result, an image based SNS with the purpose of sharing various interests has emerged. More and more fashion companies are using image based SNS to use it as a medium to better communicate with their customers. This study investigates the effect of usage motivation of image based SNS with the emotion of pleasure as the mediator and its impact towards flow and brand attitude. In order to verify the research model and to test the proposed hypotheses, we conducted a pilot test on 8 image based SNS heavy users, and followed through with 215 questionnaires which were collected via online survey. The results of this study are as follows. Each usage motivation of image based SNS had significant effect on each pleasure. The visual impact had a positive effect on sensory pleasure and the common interest significantly influenced on user's affective preference. Curating, simplicity and interconnecting had a positive effect on cognitive pleasure. Affective and cognitive pleasures except sensory pleasure positively impacted the user on flow. The cognitive pleasure had a positive effect on the brand attitude. Lastly, flow had a positive effect on the brand attitude. This study is the foundation of the image based SNS academically in the new media research. Furthermore, it suggests managerial implications of a company to provide effective marketing strategy to make the best use of image based SNS.