Virtual communities in banking: An empirical study

Virtual communities (VCs) represent a promising area of Electronic Commerce. Members of a VC have the opportunity to access products and services information and exchange experiences and ideas, without being constrained by physical interaction or geography. Companies may also use VCs to build customer loyalty by cultivating on-line human relationships between peer members, industry experts, or early adopters of a service or technology. This paper reports on a survey of 61 members of VCs, investigating VCs features that can potentially improve customer services in the banking sector. The findings of this study are useful for designing a VC as well as for developing new electronic marketing approaches.