Hinchcliffe (2013) predicts that social networking features will be noticeably added to traditional
branded apps to allow for enhanced collaboration and sharing. Extensive studies have been conducted
on the relationship between social interactions and users’ online shopping behaviors.
Christodoulides and Michaelidou (2011) showed that social interactions positively impact e-satisfaction and e-loyalty
and represent a critical variable in e-commerce.
Olbrich and Holsing (2011) demonstrated the posi-tive impact of social functionalities on shopping behavior.
Shin and Shin (2011) showed that social presence is a key element of buying on websites, reinforcing security and confidence.
Additionally, Wang, Yu, and Wei (2012) investigated consump-tion-related peer communications through social
media and its impacts on users’ product attitudesand purchase intentions.