Bridging organizational identity and reputation messages online: a conceptual model

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to propose a conceptual model that can be used to bridge organizational identity and reputation messages. The proposed model may help organizations more-effectively build and maintain both their desired identity as well as reputation. Design/methodology/approach – The qualitative and exploratory procedure was used to develop a model for simultaneously managing and measuring both identity and reputation messages. The process of conceptualizing an exploratory, qualitative value model begins with identifying relevant concepts and measures. A qualitative review of reputation and identity scholarship was examined for recurring themes and concepts. These themes were then used to formulate the identity and reputation functions and value measures. Findings – The proposed conceptual model presents characteristics and attributes that scholars and practitioners may need to consider when managing an organization’s identity and reputation messages online. The paper also presents potential applications of the model. Practical implications – The proposed qualitative value model, if further tested and quantified, has three potential applications: integrating identity and reputation messages across multiple platforms; telling stories reflective of both identity and reputation messages; and determining the value of attribution across contingencies. Originality/value – Considering the interrelated nature of identity and reputation messages, it is necessary to formulate a model delineating how the two may be bridged with one another. By proposing the conceptual model for how organizations may be able to align their identity messages with reputation messages, this paper hopes to establish a more conscious connection between the identity and reputation scholarship.

A Systematic Literature Review on Professional Identity Construction in Social Media

“…Scholars agree that social media opens new opportunities for individuals to introduce themselves and their professions, but also raises challenges. Huang-Horowitz and Freberg (2016) proposed a conceptual model of professional identity message function. Professional identity messages were named as internal, and social media messages were identified as external.…”

“…From the perspective of professional identity and its construction in social media, it could be hypothetically predicted how the individual represents her or his professional identity: The sending of a personal message reflects the professional activities in an organization through organizational commitment and values, monitoring and evaluating the whole professional community. Sincere and transparent personal messages of employees, their compliance with obligations, consistency, and commitments in continuous personal social media messages have direct links with engagement in organizational activities and direct the employee's professional identity construction (Huang-Horowitz & Freberg, 2016).…”

Claiming a family brand identity: The role of website storytelling

“…Firms showcase their unique family characteristics and attributes in ways that influence an audience's perceptions of the companies. Moreover, Huang‐Horowitz and Freberg () find that the Internet is increasingly the place where organizational brand identities are formed, justifying the study's analysis of website content as a data source.…”

Cross-cultural impact on financial companies’ online brand personality

“…Online branding has unprecedentedly reformulated corporate communication and received increasing attention from researchers (Simões et al , 2015; Valos et al , 2016). It is found that corporate website has become “an effective platform for communicating corporate brand features, including personality and values” (Simões et al , 2015, p. 59), but how to manage online branding or how to convey corporate messages online have yet to achieve consensus (Huang-horowitz and Freberg, 2016).…”