Designing a Social Media Marketing–Based Customer Behavior Model in the Apparel Industry Using an Interpretive Structural Modeling Approach

Abstract

This study aimed to design and explain a hierarchical model of the factors influencing social media marketing–based customer behavior in the apparel industry using interpretive structural modeling. This applied study employed a mixed qualitative–structural design. The study population consisted of academic and executive experts in marketing, consumer behavior, brand management, electronic commerce, and the apparel industry in Tehran. Eighteen participants were selected through purposive and snowball sampling. In the first stage, data were collected through semi-structured interviews and analyzed through coding and conceptual categorization. In the second stage, pairwise relationships among the identified factors were determined using an interpretive structural modeling questionnaire. The structural self-interaction matrix and the initial and final reachability matrices were then developed, and transitivity was applied. Factors were hierarchically partitioned using reachability and antecedent sets. Their driving power and dependence were also examined through MICMAC analysis. The analysis identified 12 main factors and produced a seven-level structural model. Content quality and relevance and influencer credibility were located at the most foundational level and had the highest driving power. Electronic word of mouth and brand interaction and responsiveness were placed at the sixth level, while visual attractiveness and customer trust were positioned at the fifth level. Perceived value, perceived risk reduction, and customer engagement were located at the fourth level. Purchase intention, repeat purchase, and brand loyalty and advocacy were positioned at the third, second, and first levels, respectively. MICMAC analysis indicated that content quality, visual attractiveness, influencer credibility, electronic word of mouth, and brand interaction were independent factors. Customer trust was identified as a linkage factor, whereas perceptual and behavioral outcomes were classified as dependent factors. Customer behavior in social media–based apparel marketing follows a multilevel and sequential process that begins with communication and content-related drivers and proceeds through trust, perceived value, risk reduction, and engagement toward purchase intention, repeat purchase, and brand loyalty; therefore, apparel brands should manage the model’s foundational factors in an integrated manner to achieve sustainable customer loyalty.