International Journal of Costume and Fashion

The Korean Society of Costume (한국복식학회)
권호 표지

Musical Identity Online: A "Netnographic" Perspective of Online Communities

  • Strubel, Jessica (College of Merchandising, Hospitality, & Tourism, University of North Texas) ;
  • Pookulangara, Sanjukta (College of Merchandising, Hospitality, & Tourism, University of North Texas) ;
  • Murray, Amber (College of Merchandising, Hospitality, & Tourism, University of North Texas)
  • Received : 2013.08.14
  • Accepted : 2013.12.09
  • Published : 2013.12.31
Download PDF
⟨ Previous Next ⟩

Abstract

Today's technology enables consumers to trade millions of dollars, conduct online banking, access entertainment, and do countless other activities at the click of a button. Online social networks (OSN) have become a cultural phenomenon that allows for individualistic consumerism. Consumers are increasingly utilizing OSN to share ideas, build communities, and contact fellow consumers who are similar to themselves. The relevance of online communities to the music is immense especially because musicians are now using social media to build global audiences. Not only is information about music and performance disseminated online, but musical commodities are sold and traded online. Online music communities allow consumers to elect and create new identities online through the purchase of subcultural commodities. Given the growing economic importance of online music communities it is important to get a holistic view of subcultural communities online. This study utilized content analysis of online music community websites using the Netnography methodology as developed by Kozinet for data collection to analyze consumers' purchasing and consumption behavior of subcultural commodities online as related to the formation of subcultural identities. Findings showed that subcultural items are predominantly purchased online, especially digital music, and there is a need for more custom craft items. The authors presented a new conceptual taxonomy of online subcultural consumer classifications based on online behavior patterns.

Keywords

References

  1. 2013 Digital Influence Report. (2013). Technorati Media. Retrieved from http://technoratimedia.com/wp-co ntent/uploads/2013/02/tm2013DIR.pdf
  2. Baumbach W., & Belz F. (2010). Netnography as a method of lead user identification. Creativity and Innovation Management, 19(3), 304-313. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8691.2010.00571.x
  3. Blackman, S. (2005). Youth subcultural theory: A critical engagement with the concept, its origins and politics, from the Chicago School to postmodernism. Journal of Youth Studies, 8 (1), 1-20. https://doi.org/10.1080/13676260500063629
  4. Bowler, G. (2010). Netnography: A method specifically designed to study cultures and communities online. The Qualitative Report, 15(5), 1270-1275.
  5. Brooker, P. (2002). A glossary of cultural theory. Oxford University Press, New York.
  6. Corbin, J. & Strauss, A. (1990). Grounded theory research: procedures, canons, and evaluative criteria. Qualitative Sociology, 13(1), 3-21. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00988593
  7. eMarketer. Apparel drives U.S retail ecommerce sales growth. Retrieved from http://www.emarketer. com/newsroom/ index.php/apparel-drives-retail ecommerce-sales-growth/
  8. Hebdige, D. (1979). Subculture: The meaning of style. Routledge, London, UK
  9. Hennig-Thurau, T., Malthouse, E. C., Friege, C., Gensler, S., Lobschat, L., Rangaswamy, A., & Skiera, B. (2010). The impact of new media on customer relationships. Journal of Service Research, 13(3), 311-330. https://doi.org/10.1177/1094670510375460
  10. Hodkinson, P. (2002). Goth: Identity, style, and subculture. Oxford, England: Berg.
  11. Hodkinson, P. (2004). Translocal connections in the Goth scene. In A. Bennett and R. Peterson (Eds.), Music scenes: Local, translocal, and virtual (pp. 131-148). Vanderbilt University Press, Nashville, Tennesee.
  12. How much is the music industry real worth? (2011), Retrieved from http://www.digitalmusicnew.com.
  13. King, A. (2008). Finding online subculture in shared meanings. Social Science Computer Review, 26(2), 137-151. https://doi.org/10.1177/0894439307303177
  14. Kozinets, R. (2002). The field behind the screen: Using netnography for marketing research in online communities. Journal of Marketing Research, 39, 67-72.
  15. Kucuk, S. U., & Krishnamurthy, S. (2007). An analysis of consumer power on the internet. Technovation, 27(1/2), 47-56. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.technovation.2006.05.002
  16. Lohr, K. (2012). From shoes to M&M's, custom-made products take off online. NPR. Retrieved from http://www.npr.org.
  17. Lull, J. (1992). Popular music and communication: An introduction. In J. Hull (Ed.). Popular music and communication (pp. 1-32). Sage Publications, California.
  18. Miller, J. (2011). Fashion and Music. New York, NY: Berg.
  19. Misra, R., Mukherjee, A., & Peterson, R. (2008). Value creation in virtual communities: the case of a healthcare web site. International Journal of Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Marketing, 2(4), 321-337. https://doi.org/10.1108/17506120810922358
  20. Muggleton, D. (2000). Inside Subculture: The Postmodern Meaning of Style. Berg, Oxford, England.
  21. Pfanner, E. (2013). The move online is hurting Europe's music retailers. The New York Times Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/
  22. Pookulangara, S., & Koestler, K. (2011). Cultural influence on consumers' usage of social networks and it's impact on online purchase intentions. The Journal of Retailing and Services Sciences, 18(4), 348-354.
  23. Rueter, T. (2013). E-Retail spending to increase 62% by 2016. Internet Retailer. Retrieved from www.internetretailer.com
  24. Strubel, J. (in press), Victorian gear heads and locomotive zealots: Vicarious nostalgia and retro-futurism of the Steampunk and the Dieselpunk 'subcultures'. Fashion, Style, & Popular Culture.
  25. Thomasson, S. (2012). Apparel market: Landscape of change. Textile World, 162(4), 20-23.
  26. Thornton, S. (1997). The social logic of subcultural capital. In K. Gelder and S. Thornton (Eds.), The Subcultures Reader (pp. 202-209). Routledge, London, UK.
  27. Xun, J., & Reynolds, J. (2010). Applying netnography to market research: The case of the online forum. Journal of Targeting, Measurement and Analysis for Marketing, 18(1), 17-31. https://doi.org/10.1057/jt.2009.29