Social media marketing management: an application to small restaurants in the US

2019 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 321-345 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elzbieta Lepkowska-White ◽  
Amy Parsons ◽  
William Berg
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Small Businesses ◽  
Qualitative Interviews ◽  
Restaurant Industry ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Media Management ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Strategic Orientations ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Social Media Management

Purpose This study aims to use a social media management framework and strategic orientation framework to explore how small restaurants manage social media. Design/methodology/approach The authors content-analyzed social media activity and interviews with 14 managers of social media in small independent restaurants in the northeast region of the USA that employed fewer than 20 employees. Findings The results of the study show that most small restaurants can be classified as anarchic, hierarchical and conservative defenders, and that they mainly focus on promotional activities on social media. The majority use social media also to drive traffic to a restaurant and, thus, act as calculative pragmatists. Very few use social media strategically or creatively in any of the social media management stages, and very few monitor or use social media information to improve their operations. Research limitations/implications This study shows that the adopted theoretical framework in this study for social media management helps analyze social media operations in small restaurants, points to the strategic orientations applied in small restaurants, shows the intricacies of each stage and helps show what small restaurants do well and how they can improve. Future research may use larger samples, investigate frameworks particularly relevant to small restaurants, such as the resource-based view (RBV) framework, and may focus on creative and diverse strategic approaches toward social media management for small establishments. Practical implications As customers continue shifting to social media and review sites, more restaurants may want to invest in developing more creative approaches toward social media and do it in more structured, integrated and continuous ways. The study describes a process they may want to follow and specific tactics that could be implemented to use social media more strategically in all stages of social media management. Social implications Not only are small business establishments the backbone of the restaurant industry, but they also appeal to customers more than large chains. This study shows how these small businesses can utilize social media to attract more customers, engage them, learn about them and their competitive environment to market and improve their operations. Originality/value The authors focus on the supplier side of social media for restaurants, a perspective lacking in the literature, and specifically small restaurants that receive less attention in prior research. Few studies exist that explore how social media is incorporated in all stages of social media management. The study points to the unique challenges that small restaurants experience in the process of using social media for marketing, monitoring and using social media to improve their operations. The study uses a relatively large sample of qualitative interviews conducted with managers of small restaurants and a content analysis of their actual social media activity.

An exploratory study of wine business philanthropy in the USA

2018 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 201-217 ◽  
Author(s):  
Armand Gilinsky Jr ◽  
Sharon Lee Forbes ◽  
Rosana Fuentes-Fernández
Keyword(s):  
Small Businesses ◽  
Charitable Giving ◽  
Corporate Philanthropy ◽  
Corporate Citizenship ◽  
Wine Industry ◽  
Altruistic Behavior ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Model Sets ◽  
The Usa

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate philanthropic practices in the US wine industry, as prior research on charitable giving by wine industry participants is limited. Earlier studies on corporate philanthropy are inconclusive about the direction and the degree of community philanthropy on organizational effectiveness. There are also notable research gaps, including the lack of research into philanthropy in small businesses and the dominance of US studies. Design/methodology/approach This paper reviews the literature on corporate social responsibility and philanthropy, presents a series of propositions and a theoretical model, sets forth a research schema to investigate to what extent philanthropic activities are motivated by altruistic as well as strategic considerations across the global wine industry and reports preliminary findings from a sample of 100 US wine producers. Findings In brief, 99 per cent of the wine businesses surveyed significantly engaged in altruistic behavior in their local communities, primarily helped local charities, donated at the median 150 cases each year, and those activities represented about 1 per cent of pre-tax profits, comparable to or above giving by other participants in other industries. Research limitations/implications As survey data were self-reported, empirical proof has yet to be obtained to support or refute the findings of this investigation. Comparisons to philanthropic practices in other wine regions of the world are not yet completed. Practical implications Wine producers pursue community stewardship and maintain good corporate citizenship to create direct benefits apart from economic growth or jobs, but future research is needed to ascertain whether motivations are primarily altruistic or strategic. Social implications Communities embrace the presence of wine businesses to foster job creation and economic activity, but remain uncertain about the other community benefits. Originality/value This exploratory paper fills a major gap in understanding with respect to examining motives for giving and expected outcomes by wine industry participants.

The contribution of social media to project management

2019 ◽  
Vol 69 (4) ◽  
pp. 834-872
Author(s):  
Muralitheran V. Kanagarajoo ◽  
Richard Fulford ◽  
Craig Standing
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Project Management ◽  
Virtual Teams ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Delphi Study ◽  
Qualitative Interviews ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Body Of Knowledge ◽  
Policies And Procedures

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to determine the social media (SM) tools that are the most prevalent for project management activities, ascertain the areas of project management that are most benefited by SM, elucidate enablers and inhibitors to adoption of SM and identify the implications for virtual teams. Design/methodology/approach A Delphi study was used to explore why and how SM is being utilized in projects. In total, 32 participants contributed to three rounds of Delphi study, comprising two rounds of questionnaire followed by confirmatory interviews. The vulnerabilities and difficulties associated with the use of SM were examined by qualitative interviews. Findings Information sharing SM tools, such as YouTube, Dropbox, SlideShare, flickr, CrowdStorm and Instagram, are the most advantageous to project management. However, the tools utilized differ at different stages of the project lifecycle. The major benefit of SM is that it enables project teams to communicate efficiently and positively affects virtual team dynamics. Adoption can be inhibited by the absence of infrastructure in rural areas and differing preferences for SM tools in global regions. There is also a perceived lack of maturity of policies and procedures to govern SM adoption and use. Research limitations/implications The research was conducted based on the Project Management Body of Knowledge version 5 project management processes. Practical implications The findings will enable practitioners to select SM tools that are suitable for project activities and forewarn about potential shortfalls. The findings also facilitate a qualitative analysis of SM attributes and their effect on project management. Social implications Project practitioners can use the findings to adopt SM for their project management. Originality/value This study extends the literature concerning the use of SM for project management, provides a foundation for future research and may present as a useful guide for the adoption of relevant SM tools.

Social value, content value, and brand equity in social media brand communities

2018 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
pp. 18-41 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yongbing Jiao ◽  
Myriam Ertz ◽  
Myung-Soo Jo ◽  
Emine Sarigollu
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Brand Equity ◽  
Customer Value ◽  
Sem Analysis ◽  
Social Value ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Chinese Consumers ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Intrinsic Orientation

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effects of culture, personality, and motivation on social and content value, which in turn affect brand equity in social media brand community (SMBC) setting. Design/methodology/approach Online surveys were conducted with 595 SMBC participants in China and the USA. AMOS is used in SEM analysis. Findings Consumers with collectivistic, extroverted, and extrinsic orientation experience social value through social media participation. In contrast, consumers with individualistic and intrinsic orientation demonstrate content value. Furthermore, Chinese consumers show more social value and the US consumers more content value. Accordingly, the effect of social value (content value) on brand equity is stronger for Chinese (US) consumers. Research limitations/implications Culture was assessed only by individualism/collectivism, personality by extroversion/introversion and motivation by extrinsic/intrinsic. Future research should verify external generalizability beyond China and the USA. Practical implications Enhanced social and content value through consumers’ social media participation can increase brand equity. Thus, companies should motivate consumers to experience more value via social media participation, and, cultivate a multicultural climate and facilitate the exchange of culture. Originality/value First, this research redefines customer value into two components: social and content value. Second, this paper is the first to investigate the antecedents (i.e. culture, personality, and motivation) and the consequence (i.e. brand equity) of customer value in social media community settings. Third, this study illustrates differences in social media customer value experiences of Chinese vs US consumers.

scholarly journals You are a brand: social media managers’ personal branding and “the future audience”

2020 ◽  
Vol 29 (6) ◽  
pp. 715-727 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jenna Jacobson
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Media Management ◽  
Job Market ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Digital Platforms ◽  
The Future ◽  
Personal Branding ◽  
Employee Groups ◽  
Social Media Management

Purpose Social media management is an emerging profession that is growing as companies increasingly adopt social media. The purpose of this paper is to analyze social media managers’ personal branding. Design/methodology/approach In-depth qualitative data is drawn from 20 semi-structured interviews with social media managers and supported by three years of orienting fieldwork in Toronto, Canada. Findings Social media managers are responsible for managing and executing organizations’ brands and presence on social media and digital platforms. As lead users of social media, social media managers provide critical insight into the emerging practices of personal branding on social media. “The future audience” is introduced to describe how individuals project a curated brand for all future unknown and unanticipated audiences, which emphasizes a professional identity. Due to workplace uncertainty, social media managers embody the mentality of being “always-on-the-job-market”, which is a driver for personal branding in their attempt to gain or maintain employment. Originality/value While personal branding is largely discussed by industry professionals, there is a need for empirical research on personal branding that examines how various employee groups experience personal branding. This research fills this gap by analyzing how people working in social media brand their identity and how their personal branding is used to market themselves to gain and maintain employment. The development of “the future audience” and “always-on-the-job-market” can be used to understand other professions and experiences of personal branding.

Social media marketing and communications strategies for school superintendents

2014 ◽  
Vol 52 (6) ◽  
pp. 850-868 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel D. Cox ◽  
Scott McLeod
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Professional Growth ◽  
Media Use ◽  
School Administrators ◽  
Qualitative Interviews ◽  
School Superintendents ◽  
Social Media Use ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Social Media Tools

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe, analyze, and interpret the experiences of school superintendents who use multiple social media tools with stakeholders as part of their comprehensive communications practices. Additionally, it examined why superintendents have chosen to communicate with their stakeholders through social media. Design/methodology/approach – Qualitative interviews were conducted with a total of 12 school superintendents; three each from the northeast, south, midwest, and west regions of the USA and Canada. Findings – Six themes emerged from the 12 qualitative interviews with the superintendents and from the internet data regarding their social media use. The six emergent themes included: (1) more immediate and more frequent interactions between school superintendents and their stakeholders; (2) greater transparency regarding decision-making and budgeting processes; (3) impact on a school superintendent's personal and professional growth; (4) stronger connections to local stakeholders, to fellow educators, and to the world; (5) use is an expectation: it is no longer optional; and (6) accessing information from the superintendent in a multi-modal way. Research limitations/implications – This study was limited to the perceptions of superintendents who currently use two or more forms of social media to communicate with their stakeholders. The study did not include the thoughts and perceptions of superintendents who are only experimenting with social media use, those who have not been able to engage their stakeholders in two-way conversations, or those who have not yet implemented social media as part of a comprehensive communications approach. Practical implications – Implications are provided for school administrators, boards of education, and educational leadership programs. Originality/value – A unique study into the experiences of school superintendents who use multiple social media tools as part of their communications practices with stakeholders.

A spatial approach to social media

2017 ◽  
Vol 40 (6) ◽  
pp. 671-683
Author(s):  
Christofer Laurell
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Building Blocks ◽  
Physical World ◽  
Media Management ◽  
Conceptual Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Spatial Features ◽  
Spatial Approach ◽  
Social Media Management ◽  
Media Applications

PurposeThe aim of this paper is to conceptually explore how spatial features of social media can be explained. Design/methodology/approachBased on a conceptual approach, specific spatial features of social media are reviewed in terms of location, locale and sense of place within the wider frame of the social media landscape. FindingsIn the literature stream of social media management and marketing, central conceptualisations relate implicitly to the notions of space and place. By drawing from the field of human geography, this implicit spatiality of social media is made explicit by approaching social media applications as the building blocks of digital space in which digital places are created, maintained and integrated with each other over time as a result of interactions and relationships forming between users that inhabit digital places. Originality/valueThe present paper contributes to extant literature by providing a spatial approach to social media that depicts the character of social media, its interrelation with the physical world, as well as how it currently transforms and evolves. Furthermore, it also addresses how social media places represent settings in which social meaning of commercial relevance is created that affects the way consumption activities take place beyond the physical realm of human co-existence.

They did not start the fire: reviewing and resolving the issue of physician stress and burnout

2017 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 410-417 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julie Christine Babyar
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Intervention Studies ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Organizational Strategies ◽  
Physician Burnout ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Current State ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Research Accountability ◽  
Physician Stress

Purpose Physician stress and burnout is a serious and common concern in healthcare, with over half of physicians in the USA meeting at least one criterion for burnout. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach A review on current state of physician stress and burnout research, from 2008 to 2016, was undertaken. A subsequent perspective paper was shaped around these reviews. Findings Findings reveal research strength in prevalence and incidence with opportunities for stronger intervention studies. While descriptive studies on causes and consequences of physician burnout are available, studies on interventions and prevention of physician burnout are lacking. Future research on physician stress and burnout should incorporate intervention studies and take care to avoid limitations found in current research. Accountability and prevention of physician burnout is the responsibility of the healthcare industry as a whole, and organizational strategies must be emphasized in future research. Originality/value The value of this research comes in the original comprehensive review, international inclusion and succinct summary of physician burnout research and strategies.

Social media and consumer engagement: a review and research agenda

2016 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 268-287 ◽  
Author(s):  
Victor Barger ◽  
James W. Peltier ◽  
Don E. Schultz
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Recent Literature ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Consumer Engagement ◽  
Research Directions ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Future Research Directions ◽  
Antecedents And Consequences ◽  
Area Of Concern ◽  
Definition Of

Purpose In “Social media’s slippery slope: challenges, opportunities and future research directions”, Schultz and Peltier (2013) asked “whether or how social media can be used to leverage consumer engagement into highly profitable relationships for both parties”. The purpose of this article is to continue this discussion by reviewing recent literature on consumer engagement and proposing a framework for future research. Design/methodology/approach The paper reviews the marketing literature on social media, paying particular attention to consumer engagement, which was identified as a primary area of concern in Schultz and Peltier (2013). Findings A significant amount of research has been conducted on consumer engagement since 2010. Lack of consensus on the definition of the construct has led to fragmentation in the discipline, however. As a result, research related to consumer engagement is often not identified as such, making it difficult for academics and practitioners to stay abreast of developments in this area. Originality/value This critical review provides marketing academics and practitioners insights into the antecedents and consequences of consumer engagement and offers a conceptual framework for future research.

Accessible tourism: a bibliometric review (2008–2020)

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Guanghui Qiao ◽  
Liu Ding ◽  
Linlin Zhang ◽  
Huili Yan
Keyword(s):  
English Language ◽  
Research Literature ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Sampling Frame ◽  
Multiple Sources ◽  
Knowledge Maps ◽  
Tourism Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Bibliometric Review

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to reveal the knowledge evolution process, research hotspots and future trends in the accessible tourism research literature from 2008 to 2020. Design/methodology/approach A total of 213 articles on accessible tourism were selected from the core collection database of Web of Science (WoS) and analyzed using CiteSpace. Findings Over the 13-year period between 2008 and 2020, an increasing number of studies have been published concerning accessible tourism, but the overall base is still small. The research content mainly includes six modules. Among institutions, the University of Technology Sydney has published the largest number of papers. Cooperation among countries involves the USA, the United Kingdom, Australia, Portugal and China. Tourism Management is the leading journal for disseminating research on accessible tourism. Definition of “Accessible tourism” and the different scope of this phenomenon are re-discussed. In recent years, “experience” and “participation” have become the “new favorites” in accessible tourism research, which could reveal insights into future research directions. Research limitations/implications The sampling frame was defined in terms of the WoS database and even though this is an important database for global academic information, in the big data era, the authors may have to integrate information from multiple sources to comprehensively reveal and understand knowledge maps. Second, because of the operational constraints of the CiteSpace software, the authors only selected outputs published in peer-reviewed journals, excluding other published works, such as books and conference papers. Finally, because of the language restrictions of the authors, this research is limited to journals published in the English language. Practical implications Practically, the results of this study made a conclusion of accessible tourism research so that the researchers can easily know what has currently been done and what future research can do. Tourism managers can also understand the demands and the constraints of tourism for the people who have barriers to travel. They can supply more specific products for the accessible tourism and further promote the construction of barrier-free travel environments. Originality/value This paper unifies the literature on senior tourism and people with disabilities tourism, and uses CiteSpace to construct data and network visualizations, including a burst and dynamic analysis for the period covered by the sample. Furthermore, this paper proposed a more diversified accessible tourism.

Intellectual capital disclosure on Twitter – empirical evidence from the world’s largest companies

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Łukasz Bryl ◽  
Justyna Fijałkowska ◽  
Dominika Hadro
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Intellectual Capital ◽  
Recent Literature ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Corporate Disclosure ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Management Philosophy ◽  
Business Units ◽  
Structural Capital ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose This study aims to examine intellectual capital disclosure (ICD) on Twitter by 60 of the world’s largest companies and explains the main themes communicated to stakeholders. The second objective is to determine which topics provoke most stakeholders’ reactions. Design/methodology/approach The authors perform content analysis on more than 42,000 tweets to examine ICD practices along with the reactions of stakeholders in the form of retweets and “favorites” toward the information disclosed. Findings Intellectual capital (IC) is an important theme in corporate disclosure practices, as more than one-third of the published tweets refer to IC. The world’s largest companies focus on relational capital information, followed by human and structural capital. The main IC themes disclosed were management philosophy, corporate reputation and business partnering. Tweets related to IC are of greater interest to stakeholders than other tweets and provoke more reactions. There is no complete consistency between the topics most intensively disclosed by companies and those that elicit the most vivid responses from the addressees. Practical implications This study offers an understanding of the world’s largest companies’ practices that refer to ICD via social media and has implications for organizations in the creation and use of communication channels when developing a dialogue with stakeholders on topics regarding IC that may lead to better management of IC performance. Originality/value This paper is a response to the call for studies on ICD via social media, which is strongly highlighted in the recent literature concerning future research on IC and until now was almost absent in the field of business units. This research provides in-depth insights into the use of Twitter to disclose IC elements and indicates which fields and topics of this disclosure provoke stakeholders’ reactions, which is a novelty in ICD studies.

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