South African Generation Y students’ behavioral intentions to use university websites

Materialism has been given great attention in the consumer behavior literature. How materialistic tendencies are shaped by advertising has also been documented. Yet, the impact of consumers’ materialism on their perceptions of ads is not clearly understood. The goal of this research is to examine the relationship between an individual’s materialism and his/her perceptions of various kinds of advertising. Using four specific advertising appeals (i.e., interpersonal, prestige/status, achievement, and appearance-related), attitudes toward the ad, and thoughts elicited by the advertisement were measured and compared across high and low materialism groups. Significant differences were found between respondents from the two groups with respect to the evaluation of each type of appeal. When prestige/status, achievement, and appearance-related appeals were used in advertising, they were evaluated more favorably by consumers with high levels of materialism than by consumers with low levels of materialism. In contrast, advertising that used an interpersonal appeal was viewed more favorably by consumers with low levels of materialism. The results of this research provide implications for marketers on three perspectives: the furthering of our conceptualization of the materialism construct, the design of promotional communication for specific target markets, and the public policy dimension of targeting consumers more vulnerable to certain appeals.

In the digital age and technological advancements, short video platforms have become essential tools for online sales and marketing. In addition, shopping through short video marketing has gained significant attention, especially among Generation Z, as it brings unique and novel shopping experiences. The primary goal of this study is to explore the factors of short video marketing that influence the purchase intentions of Generation Z consumers in Vietnam. To conduct this study, a quantitative approach was employed, utilizing a 5-point Likert scale questionnaire administered online through a non-probability sampling method. The sample comprised 350 respondents aged between 16 and 26 from Vietnam, representing Generation Z, who made purchases through short video marketing. The relationships among various variables were analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The study’s results demonstrated a positive, significant, and direct relationship between all factors of short video marketing, including interesting content, perceived usefulness, scenario-based experience, user interaction, perceived enjoyment, and involvement of celebrities and consumer brand attitude. Among these factors, perceived usefulness is the most influential factor on customer brand attitude. In addition, the study revealed that consumer brand attitude, acting as a mediating variable, had a positive and significant impact on consumers’ purchase intentions. Based on the findings, the study suggested strategies for businesses to enhance the quality and content on short video platforms, thereby improving the effectiveness of their marketing strategies.

Acknowledgment
The authors express a sincere gratitude to all the participants who generously took part in this research study.

This paper reviews the literature on energy consumption behavior for both domestic and migrated/displaced population and aims to recommend crucial policy measures for creating awareness on the energy efficiency. Consumers’ adoption to the efficient usage of energy varies depending on demographic, behavioral and situational dynamics in their households and societies. The regional or national strategies to implement efficient technologies for the consumer engagement are crucial to change their behaviors. Migrants affect the energy usage patterns in the host country due to their different usage behaviors. Any type of measures for migrated population should include available, acceptable, accessible and affordable energy efficiency applications to engage them with the domestic population.