The social media transformation process: curating content into strategy

2015 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 326-343 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Kilgour ◽  
Sheila L. Sasser ◽  
Roy Larke

Purpose – Social media is an engaging area of research that is rapidly evolving. The purpose of this paper is to focus on how corporations should effectively utilize this new media as a marketing channel. The key to any successful communication strategy is matching the message to the target audience and achieving customer engagement. Two important target audience variables were identified as crucial when determining an organization’s social media communications strategy: the level of brand relationship, and the level of category involvement. Design/methodology/approach – Depth interviews were initially employed, followed by questionnaires, and then computer assisted content analysis was performed on 723 online media articles relating to social media marketing to identify semantic and conceptual relationships. Findings – Research from both a customer and corporate perspective led to insights into how organizations can develop their social media strategies in order to transform their brand message from being perceived as a commercial source of information to a social source – the social media transformation process. Research limitations/implications – This research suggests a finer level of segmentation of social media users that will lead to content strategies adapted to fit the current levels of brand and category involvement. This could be used by organization to develop a model of best practice to achieve their social media objectives. Practical implications – It is crucial for organizations to understand how different groups of users influence, receive, curate, and interact via social media. The greater the depth of this knowledge, the greater the effectiveness of content marketing strategies developed by the corporation. Organizations that utilize social media marketing must carefully analyse the large amount of consumer information available to them, listen to consumer conversations, and determine the needs and segments that will be most receptive to different approaches. They must also accept that in a social media environment user generated content and interactive communication processes should be at the heart of successful strategy. Originality/value – To date, there has been limited analysis of how relationship and involvement factors drive social media content (Cho et al., 2014; Malthouse et al., 2013). More research is needed to understand how key user characteristics lead to content that fully utilizes the social interaction and message diffusion potential of this media. This paper introduces a hierarchy of content marketing based upon the type of relationship between the user and the organization, as well as their level of product category involvement.

2019 ◽  
Vol 38 (4) ◽  
pp. 509-522 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kaustav Mukherjee

Purpose The modern-day digital marketers use social media as a tool for brand awareness and customer engagement. However, whether social media marketing can actually impact deeper into the users’ emotional level and instigate purchase intention is a popular moot point. The purpose of this paper is to investigate as to whether social media marketing is effective in inciting a sense of arousal or passion for the advertised brands and finally generate a purchase intention in the minds of the social media users. Design/methodology/approach A convenient sampling procedure was followed to collect relevant data using a structured questionnaire. The technique of structural equation modelling was used for model building using the software, AMOS 18. Findings The study reveals that efficient use of social media for marketing communications can generate a passion for the advertised brands in the social media users’ minds, as well as instigate a brand purchase intention. Research limitations/implications The study has been restricted to Indian smartphone customers who also spend a substantial amount of time on social media. Practical implications The use of social media for online customer engagement is a smart strategy that can be employed by digital marketers in order to emotionally connect the advertised brand with the users of social media. Originality/value This study is probably the first to investigate the direct impact of social media marketing on users’ brand passion.


Author(s):  
Daniella Mushka ◽  
Yeva Erfan

This scientific article considers all aspects, modern importance and growing role of the social media marketing and advertisement in the general spectrum of marketing activity for developed and developing brands. Investigational actuality and basic directions of application of all spectrum of instruments of social networks for the sake of advancement of product and the processes of forming perception of trade mark and forming the image of brand are analyzed by the authors of the article. The given scientific article highlights the most popular trends and patterns of goods and trademarks’ promotion in the world in the context of updating the concept of advertising on social networks. The bigger and more engaged your target audience is on social media networks (Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube etc), the easier it will be for you to achieve every other marketing or business goal. The importance of social media marketing’s assistance in attracting new potential clients and customers to the company is also considered in the given article. Besides that, the authors of the article list and analyse wide spectrum of basic trends considering promotion and advertising in 2019 among the well-known brands. In addition to this all, the list of the most successful publicity advertisement campaigns of this year and brands which were promoted with their assistance are listed and analysed. In the context of the study, it shows up that advertising campaigns play a significant role not only in reaching sales but also in generating overall customer loyalty to the brand. This makes it possible to argue that the most reputable brands should have an important social goal that will be positively accepted by society and target audience in addition to the high quality and usability of the products or services. Social networking is the easiest way to see the social response to your promotion and lead to an instant purchase. Therefore, relying on the experience of the already well-known multinational and transnational corporations, social media marketing should take a significant share of the overall promotion of the company. The connection between the brand and potential customer should be built on the emotions that accompany consumers when viewing ads and using products. This scientific article eventually declares conclusions and prognoses in relation to subsequent development of these instruments and platforms for advancement and branding of small and large enterprises in future. It states that emotional connection between person and brand is much more effective for the company than an expensive ad.


2019 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 477-491 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kaustav Mukherjee ◽  
Neelotpaul Banerjee

Purpose The study aims to demonstrate the impact of social media users’ positive attitude towards the social networking sites (SNS) on the generation of a positive attitude towards social networking advertisements (SNA). A favourable attitude towards the SNA thus generated can positively influence brand attitude and purchase intention. Design/methodology/approach An online survey was conducted to collect relevant data using a structured questionnaire. Structural equation modelling was conducted using the statistical software AMOS 18. Findings Empirical analysis revealed the importance of brand advertisements on the social networks in inciting a positive attitude as well as a purchase intention for the brand in the SNS users’ minds. Research limitations/implications The study has been conducted in the Indian context using Facebook as a model social networking site. Practical implications Social media being one of the most popular and user-friendly platforms for regular communications, marketers are suggested to allocate a sizeable share of the advertising budget for social media advertisements and customer engagement so as to help build a positive attitude towards the advertised brand in the SNS users’ minds. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, the impact of users’ positive evaluation of SNS as an effective communication medium, on the generation of a positive attitude towards the SNA, has been dealt for the first time here.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Muhammad Waqas ◽  
Zalfa Laili Hamzah ◽  
Noor Akma Mohd Salleh

PurposeSocial media platforms are important channels to create a favourable customer experience. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the types of experiences customers can have with the branded content on social media.Design/methodology/approachData were collected from 20 participants using semi-structured interviews. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the qualitative data.FindingsThe results identify seven types of branded content experience which are evoked when customers interact with branded content on social media. The results also suggest that branded content experience acts as a driver of consumer engagement with branded content which eventually leads to customers' sense of virtual community.Research limitations/implicationsThe findings provide theoretical implications for content creators. Further research should aim at comparing the branded content experience on different social media platforms and across different product categories.Originality/valueThis study contributes to customer engagement and experience literature in social media content by enhancing the understanding of branded content experience concept and its conceptual relationship with customer engagement in the social media context.Peer reviewThe peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/OIR-10-2019-0333


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sriparna Guha ◽  
Anirban Mandal ◽  
Fedric Kujur

Purpose First, this study aims to focus on the promotional part of the Indian handicraft products through various social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube. Second, the study measures the effectiveness of social media marketing activities (SMMA) relating to handicraft products on brand awareness, brand image and brand equity. Third, this study also measures the impact of brand awareness and brand image on brand equity and consumers’ purchase intention and further brand equity on consumers’ purchase intention of handicraft products. Design/methodology/approach This study used an offline questionnaire to conduct empirical research and collected and analyzed data of 609 samples by using the structural equation modeling approach. Findings The findings of this study showed that SMMA relating to handicraft products had a very strong impact on creating both brand awareness and brand image in the social media environment. Additionally, this study also exhibited a positive and significant impact of brand awareness and brand image on brand equity and consumers’ purchase intention and further brand equity on consumers’ purchase intention of handicraft products in the social media environment. Practical implications The outcome of this research will definitely motivate the handicraft industry to have a strong social media presence on various platforms for promoting their products across India and outside. Further, the promotional activities in various social media platforms will help in creating awareness about the handicraft products and give brand recognition among other industrial competitive brands which will consequently lead to an increase in the demand for these products. Originality/value The novelty of this study is that it has made an initial attempt to study the marketability of handicraft products using various social media platforms and also has measured the probable impact of SMMA relating to handicraft products on brand awareness and brand image and their impact on brand equity and purchase intention.


2014 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 346-369 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jing Pan ◽  
Mihaela Vorvoreanu ◽  
Zheng Zhou

Purpose – This research aims to investigate the current patterns of social media adoption for marketing in the restoration industry and analyse the strategies used by those restoration companies that have adopted social media. Social media marketing has been proven as a cost-effective way to engage new customers, and especially useful for small businesses. The disaster “restoration industry” is the special sector of general contracting that serves both commercial and residential property owners in terms of restoring their disaster-affected property. The restoration industry is characterised by small-business domination and constant need of new customers to survive in the market. Many restoration contractors have started adopting social media for marketing. However, goals and social media marketing strategies have not yet been clearly articulated. Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected through a systematic content analysis (CA) of sample restoration companies’ Facebook and Twitter posts over a 30-day study period. After a preliminary investigation of the industry, the researchers selected the Restoration Industry Association (RIA) member companies, as the research population. Sixty companies were randomly selected from the 1,165 RIA member companies, which equals to 5 per cent of the population. Reliability was tested statistically using Cohen’s Kappa. Findings – Three levels of adoption were derived from the data: active users, non-active users and non-adopters. More than half of the sample companies were found to have adopted at least one social media channel for marketing. However, only 26 out of the 60 sample companies were active on the social media that they have adopted. Active adopters showed, on average, relatively frequent usage patterns, with 10 Facebook posts and 37 tweets in a 30-day period. Sampled restoration companies which were active social media users posted mostly announcements and educational information of Facebook and used Twitter for news and direct interaction with customers. The observed companies revealed a mix of business-relevant content and personalised content including personal greetings, sharing of photos about holidays and fun events. Research limitations/implications – Three levels of adoption were derived from the data: active users, non-active users and non-adopters. More than half of the sample companies were found to have adopted at least one social media channel for marketing. However, only 26 out of the 60 sample companies were active on the social media that they have adopted. Active adopters showed, on average, relatively frequent usage patterns, with 10 Facebook posts and 37 tweets in a 30-day period. Sampled restoration companies that were active social media users posted mostly announcements and educational information of Facebook and used Twitter for news and direct interaction with customers. The observed companies revealed a mix of business-relevant content and personalised content including personal greetings, sharing of photos about holidays and fun events. Practical implications – The results showed that social media adoption has not yet penetrated the restoration industry – the adoption rate of 65 per cent is significantly lower than the 77 per cent of companies in all industries. In-depth CA of active social media users revealed patterns of engagement on Facebook and Twitter. This paper built on those patterns to emphasise strategies restoration companies can use to build interpersonal relationships and trust, which can lead to increased word-of-mouth recommendations; facilitate customer contact through a cross-linking strategy; and engage in simple methods for search engine optimisation. These strategic recommendations are grounded in existing practices and, therefore, are feasible and accessible for disaster restoration companies. Originality/value – The research results showed how the construction industry, especially small businesses, has adopted social media for marketing. A snapshot of the industry’s level of social media adoption for marketing strategy can provide a useful reference point about the industry’s practices and potential future directions. This paper provides suggestions about effective social media marketing strategies. The paper also illustrates the use of CA as a promising method for research in construction management.


2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 2-17 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pui Yuen Lee ◽  
Kung Wong Lau

PurposeThe rise of social media marketing has brought significant implications for advertising industry and its organizations. The traditional role of advertising professionals had been changing from a clear identity to an unclear one. However, previous research has studied relatively little about advertising professionals’ roles and identities or how they may be changing in the social media marketing era. The paper aims to discuss these issues.Design/methodology/approachA qualitative, interpretive approach was taken in this study. It involved 32 in-depth interviews with advertising professionals in advertising organizations differing in size, digital focus and ownership in different multinational full-service advertising organizations and digital organizations.FindingsThe findings indicated that the role of advertising professionals is innovating from a traditional “idea generator” to a “solution facilitator” in response to the social media marketing.Originality/valueThis study identified the key experiences of advertising professionals that they were found to have divergent role identities linked to their identification with traditional and digital organizations.


2020 ◽  
Vol 35 (4) ◽  
pp. 721-740
Author(s):  
Jing Zhang ◽  
Mingfei Du

Purpose This study aims to investigate how business-to-business (B2B) companies use message strategies on social media platform and how these strategies are effective in improving customer perceived value and encouraging customer engagement, as well as how B2B companies differ from business-to-customer (B2C) counterparts in terms of utilization and effectiveness of social media message strategy. Design/methodology/approach Based on content analysis of Sina Weibo brand pages and survey of website visitors, this paper examines the differences of social media message strategies and their impacts upon customer perceived value and customer engagement between B2B and B2C companies. Findings B2B companies use more rational appeals and less emotional appeals, have lower degree of informativeness and perform better in interactivity and variety than B2C companies. These five dimensions of message strategy have different roles in engaging customers via perceived value across B2B and B2C settings. Originality/value The research makes significant contributions to B2B social media marketing literature by answering two interrelated questions, namely, “What companies are doing?” and “What companies should do?” on social media websites. Besides, it provides insightful implications for B2B companies on how to implement appropriate message strategies in their social media marketing efforts by conducting Importance-Performance Analysis.


2016 ◽  
Vol 34 (6) ◽  
pp. 754-776 ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy Cawsey ◽  
Jennifer Rowley

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide a unique overview of business-to-business (B2B) companies engagement with and strategic approach to use of social media in brand building. This research complements the much more extensive knowledge base regarding social media use in business-to-consumer (B2C) contexts. Design/methodology/approach Since social media marketing is a relatively new activity for B2B companies an interpretivist stance that is inductive in nature is adopted. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with marketing professionals involved in managing social media programmes in France, Ireland, the UK and the USA. Findings The study found that the level of enagement with social media marketing varied, as summarised in the B2B Social Media Engagement Taxonomy. Enhancing brand image, extending brand awareness and facilitating customer engagement were the most common social media objectives. There was no evidence to suggest that companies saw social media as heralding a paradigm shift in brand management and control of the kind discussed and experienced in B2C social media contexts. The B2B social media strategy framework is proposed; this identifies the following six components of a social media strategy: monitoring and listening, empowering and enagaging employees, creating compelling content, stimulating electronic word of mouth, evaluating and selecting channels, and enhacning brand presence through integrating social media. Originality/value The research contributes to the knowledge base associated with social media marketing by offering insights into and a framework summarising B2B social media strategy.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rima Raidah Rachmah ◽  
Lidia Mayangsari

Instagram is one of the most popular social media among young people. Indeed, Instagram not only used as social media but also a marketing tool for local fashion brands. There are various phenomena of Instagram marketing, yet there is still a lack of explanation of why the phenomena happened. Therefore, to propose an active social media marketing in Instagram for local fashion brands, identification of consumer engagement in social media is necessary. The objective of this research is to identify the forms of communication in which consumers most enthusiastically interact with local fashion brands on Instagram and explore the correlation between Instagram contents of fashion brands with the engagement of the consumers. The researcher surveyed through an online questionnaire as a tool to collect the data with Instagram active users as the requirement for respondents. The researcher found out that the content type of post characteristics influences boosting customer engagement. In this research, the content type classified into entertainment, informative, and remuneration posts. Each content type has different results in controlling customer engagement. Among the three classifications of content types, entertainment content type has the most substantial influence on customer engagement. Therefore, local fashion brands are recommended to utilize their marketing strategy by creating more entertainment content type, among other types on Instagram. Keywords: Instagram, social media marketing, content type, customer engagement.


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