Judgementalists, bias situators, sugar-coaters, rationalisers: Understanding millennials’ behaviour in online brand communities

Genevieve Silk

Millennial customers in online brand communities (OBCs) can be divided into four groups, according to a qualitative study in the UK.

Millennials who take part in online brand communities (OBCs) – that is, virtual forums that allow for conversations about a given brand, such as on social media platforms – can be divided into judgementalists, bias situators, sugar-coaters and rationalisers. 

These four groups are each defined by the types of discussions their members engage in, their perceptions of these conversations, and how these interactions impact their final brand decisions.

Such findings were drawn from a qualitative study into OBCs within the fashion industry, entitled Determinants of online brand communities’ and millennials’ characteristics: A social influence perspective,which was published...

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