Paper by Dr. Linghui Tang and Vincent Aprile ’21 Accepted for Publication in American Journal of Business
The School of Business at The College of New Jersey is proud to announce that a research paper co-authored by Dr. Linghui (Lynn) Tang, Professor of International Business and Economics, and Vincent Aprile, a 2021 Economics graduate, has been accepted for publication in the American Journal of Business.
Their paper, titled “A Two-Step Model for Organic Social Media Marketing in the Casino Industry,” originated from Aprile’s senior thesis project and has been refined over the past three years through continued collaboration between student and professor.
“This achievement feels especially rewarding after years of revision and development,” said Dr. Tang. “It’s wonderful to see research that began as a student project reach publication in a respected academic journal.”
About the Study
The paper investigates the long-term effects of organic social media marketing (OSM) on both online and brick-and-mortar casinos. The authors propose a two-step framework in which casinos first use organic social media content to build engagement and trust, followed by transaction-based promotions to strengthen customer relationships.
Using data from Atlantic City casinos, the study models OSM as a latent construct and evaluates its influence through a three-stage structural equation model. The findings reveal that:
- OSM generates sustained positive impacts on revenues for both online and physical casinos.
- For traditional casinos, OSM also enhances the effectiveness of promotional spending.
- Integrating OSM into an omnichannel marketing system can yield strategic advantages while highlighting the need for ethical and regulatory awareness in the gambling industry.
About the Authors
Dr. Linghui (Lynn) Tang
Professor of International Business and Economics
The College of New Jersey
tang@tcnj.edu | ☎️ 609-771-2240
Vincent Aprile ’21
2021 Economics Graduate, The College of New Jersey
aprilev1@tcnj.edu