Social Media Marketing Strategies for Increasing Customer Engagement
Section 1: Foundation of the Study
Social media allows people to freely interact with customers and
offers multiple ways for marketers to reach and engage with consumers
thereby improving customer engagement and providing opportunities to
increase company profit irrespective of their location (Mayank & Zillur,
2018). Social media is used by billions of people around the world and has
fast become one of the defining technologies of the time. Facebook, for
example, reported having 2.38 billion monthly active users as of March 31,
2019 (Facebook, 2019).
Social media is culturally significant since it has become, for many,
the primary domain in which they receive vast amounts of information about
the world around them. More recently, the value of advertising on social
media continues to be explored, for example (Gordon et al., 2019), as well as
how it interacts with other forms of media such a television and affects new
product adoption through diffusion of information mechanisms (Appel et al.,
2020). Given the high rate of business failure, social media marketing may
serve as a valuable tool for business leaders to increase customer
engagement thereby improving profitability.
Background of the Problem
Oyza and Agwu (2016) found that 50% of marketers reported that social
media use had not helped them improve customer engagement to increase their
sales or customer engagement. Social media provides a two-way
communication channel between companies and their customers, transforming
the way businesses market their goods and services to their consumers. While
various literature relating to the social media marketing strategies exists, little is
known of the successful social media strategies used by business leaders to
increase profitability (Bandyopadhyay, 2016; Morales et al., 2017). Given the
contributions of social media to the U.S. economy (U.S. Department of
Commerce, 2018), identifying strategies that contribute to improved customer
engagement and increased profitability is essential to assure the continuing
vibrancy of the U.S. economy. As a cost-effective marketing tool, social media
may be used successfully to define a company’s goals and objectives (Chen &
DiVall, 2018). Therefore, learning from the success of business leaders that
have used social media marketing to increase customer engagement and
increase profitability can provide meaningful insights that could be beneficial
to the continued growth of local economies (Chen & DiVall, 2018).
Problem Statement
Social media offers marketers an opportunity to engage directly with
customers, improving customer engagement, and providing opportunities to
increase company profits irrespective of their location (Mayank, & Zillur,
2018). Oyza and Agwu (2016) found that 50% of marketers reported that
social media use had not helped them improve customer engagement to
increase their sales or customer engagement. The general business problem
is that business leaders are not using social media to improve customer
engagement resulting in a potential loss of profit. The specific business
problem is that some business leaders lack social media marketing strategies
to increase customer engagement.
Purpose Statement
The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore the
social media marketing strategies used by business leaders to increase
customer engagement. The targeted population comprised of business
leaders from three corporations located in the northeast region of the United
States who implemented successful strategies to improve customer
engagement. The business leaders selected for this study have experienced a
high return on investment (ROI) of 20% or more in their social media
marketing campaigns. The results of this study may contribute to social
change by the opportunity for additional business leaders to acquire new
strategies for using social media to engage their customers, which could
result in job creation and improved economies in local communities.
Nature of the Study
The three research methods are qualitative, quantitative, and mixed
(Saunders et al., 2015). Qualitative methodology was appropriate for this
study because using qualitative methodology facilitates the exploration of
specific expressions of the participants' business experiences. Researchers
use qualitative methods to solicit responses to open-ended questions and to
capture accurate data enabling the discovery of new thoughts and individual
views (Yin, 2018). Quantitative methodology was not appropriate for this
study because quantitative researchers examine, present, and describe
relationships and trends within data using computational techniques such as
tables, graphs, and statistics (see Saunders et al., 2015). Mixed method is not
appropriate for this study because mixed method’s researchers use both a
qualitative element and quantitative element (Saunders et al., 2015) that
include hypotheses testing, which is part of the quantitative or mixed method
research (Saunders et al., 2015). Since this study did not involve examining
causal relationships and trends within data; therefore, neither a quantitative
nor mixed method approach was appropriate.
I considered four qualitative research designs for exploring the social
media marketing strategies used by business leaders: (a) miniethnography,
(b) narrative, (c) phenomenology (d) and case study (see Saunders et al.,
2015). Miniethnography involves a researcher studying a specific or narrow
field of research (Hammersley, 2017). Miniethnography research design was
not used for this study because miniethnography research is more effective
in understanding the detailed nature and complexity of human behavior and
perceptions about products, purchasing decisions, and use of products.
Narrative research is a study of the way humans experience the world and
provides researchers with insights into the specific personal-related
phenomenon of study (Clandinin & Connelly, 1990). The narrative design
approach was not used because narratives tend to focus on personal
interpretations of experiences and may ignore broader structural influences.
Furthermore, participant narratives capture only a limited number of
experiences and may be inconsistent across study participants. This makes
its use not very reliable.
Phenomenological research design was not appropriate for the study
because researchers that use phenomenological designs focus primarily on
interviews to explore the personal meanings of the lived experiences of
participants. Phenomenological studies are more relevant for studies where
the participants describe their personal experiences with phenomena
(Saunders et al., 2015). Therefore miniethnography, narrative, and
phenomenology design were not appropriate for this study.
A case study design was used in this study. Case study design is used
for in-depth, multi-faceted explorations of complex issues in their real-life
settings (Yin, 2018). Case study design was chosen for this study to develop
a comprehensive, multifaceted understanding of social media marketing for
customer engagement. Case studies are particularly useful to employ when
there is a need to obtain an in-depth appreciation of an issue, event, or
phenomenon of interest within its real-life setting (Yin, 2018).
A case study can be a single or multiple case study (citation). The
single case study design is not appropriate for this research because single
case studies are used for certain conditions where the case represents a
critical test of an existing theory, an extreme or unusual circumstance, a
common case or where the case serves a revolutionary or longitudinal
purpose (Yin, 2018). Multiple case studies allow for wider exploration of
research questions and theoretical evolution. Evidence created from a
multiple case study is strong and reliable and is appropriate for this research
because it can be used to understand the similarities and differences between
cases. Analytic conclusions independently arising from two cases are more
powerful than those coming from a single case (Yin, 2018). The analytical
benefits from having two (or more) cases makes this design method more
appropriate for this research study.
Research Question
One research question guided this study:
What social media marketing strategies do business leaders use to
increase customer engagement?
Interview Questions
1. Typically, how do you use social media as part of your marketing
strategy to engage customers?
2. How do you measure the success of social media marketing strategy
implementation?
3. How did your customers respond to your use of different social media
marketing strategies?
4. What did you accomplish through your use of social media marketing
strategies?
5. What were some key challenges you experienced when you used
social media marketing strategies to engage your customers?
6. What did you do to overcome the key challenges experienced when
you used social media marketing strategies to engage your customers?
7. What additional information would you like to share about your use of
social media marketing strategies to increase customer engagement?
Conceptual Framework
The networking, representation, engagement, listening-in (N-REL)
conceptual framework was used as the basis for my research study. The N-
REL conceptual framework originated as a set of comprehensive social
media marketing strategic actions by Anandaa et al. (2016) to identify and
classify the strategic actions of social media marketing firms. Slater and
Olson (2001) defined a marketing strategy as a set of integrated decisions
and actions by which a company expects to achieve its marketing objectives
and meet the value requirements of its customers. As indicated by Slater and
Olson, marketing actions can be used as a tool by business leaders to
improve customer loyalty and satisfaction. Mergel (2016) also noted that
marketing action classification could explain social media adoption tactics
by institutions and organizations.
The N-REL framework was appropriate for this study because it may
be used to explore the social media marketing strategies used by business
leaders to increase customer engagement. An organization leader who
adopts the N-REL framework can use the feedback from intelligence actions
through social media to make the necessary adjustments to strategic
decisions (Anandaa et al., 2016). Strategic decisions are required because the
market segmentation, positioning, and marketing techniques must drive the
various social media marketing actions to fulfill the marketing goals of a
company (Anandaa et al., 2016). The N-Rel framework provides a means to
categorize social media marketing actions into three main categories:
representation, engagement, and listening in. Representation covers social
media activities focusing on company profile and information about
products. Engagement, or value-added proposition, covers the interaction
with customers. Listening-in aims at monitoring the voices of customers or
audiences. The N-REL framework provides a framework that may be used
in my study to identify and classify the social media marketing strategic
actions used by study participants. Social media marketing strategies used by
business leaders to increase customer engagement was explored in this
study.
Operational Definitions
The following specialized terms are used in this study:
Digital marketing: Digital marketing represents the process of
reaching and converting qualified consumers by creating and pursuing
organic tactics in online settings
(Opreana & Vinerean, 2015).
Social exchange: Social exchange refers to a multidimensional
relationship originating with an exchange of social ideas in a transaction-
oriented style with a certain level of perceived support, affective
commitment, trust, and exchange quality (Surma, 2016).
Social media: Social media comprises of Internet-based applications and
websites that facilitate the sharing of user-generated content and relationship
building between users from diverse backgrounds, resulting in a rich social
structure (Kapoor et al., 2018).
Social media marketing: Social media marketing are the marketing
activities that incorporate the use of social media to promote the sharing of
user-generated content, communication, and participation. This marketing
approach is a two-way communication exchange process and differs
somewhat from digital marketing that follows more of a traditional
marketing platform of one-way exchanges (Han, 2018).
Social media marketing strategy: Social media marketing strategy is
the integrated means and set of actions by which a company or organization
expects to achieve its marketing objectives and meet the requirements of its
target market using social media tools (Anandaa et al., 2016).
Assumptions, Limitations, and Delimitations
Assumptions
Research assumptions are the aspects included in a study that the
researcher takes for granted or assumes to be true (Yin, 2018). I made three
assumptions in this study. The first assumption was that the participants
answered the interview questions truthfully without personal agendas. The
second assumption was the participants were well versed in the use of effective
social media marketing strategies. The third assumption was that the
participants have implemented successful social marketing strategies to
improve customer engagement.
Limitations
Research limitations are the factors that limit the implications of the
study findings (Yin, 2018). There were three limitations in this study. The
first limitation is that one method of research (qualitative) was used.
Additional research using a quantitative or mixed method of research could
perhaps result in providing a broader understanding of the phenomenon. The
second limitation was transferability is limited due to sample size and
location. The third limitation was although I introduced the importance of
understanding how social media might increase customer engagement and
profitability, my study focused only on answers to the use of social media to
increase customer engagement.
Delimitations
There were two delimitations in this study. The first delimitation was
only business leaders of three corporations who have experienced a high
ROI of 20% or more in their social media marketing campaigns were
included in this study. The second delimitation was only business leaders
from businesses located in the northeast region of the United States were
included in this study.
Significance of the Study
Contribution to Business Practice
The increased social media marketing adoption by organizational leaders has
posed challenges due to a constantly changing marketing landscape (Ogbuji &
Papazafeiropoulou, 2016). As a cost-effective marketing tool, social media
may be used successfully to define a company’s goals and objectives
(Ogbuji & Papazafeiropoulou, 2016). The findings from this study may be of
significance to businesses practice not only because they could provide an
in-depth understanding the topic allowing for increased application, but also
because business leaders may use the results to apply social media marketing
strategies to help improve their businesses’ success rates. Also, the findings
from this study may contribute to effective business practice by indicating
which social media marketing tools are most effective for businesses.
Business leaders could use the results to set achievable goals for their social
media marketing campaigns. Learning from the success of business leaders
who have used social media marketing effectively to increase customer
engagement, can provide meaningful insights that could improve business
practice and be beneficial to the continued growth of local economies
(Ezeife, 2017).
Implementing effective social media marketing strategies is essential
for business leaders and could be significant to business practice as
companies may review and adapt strategies identified in this study to
develop long-term survival plans to increase their viability. Business leaders
in a different organization may use the findings of the study to set business
goals and measurable objectives that may increase awareness and branding,
promote brand content, increase exposure to generate traffic, leads, and
sales, thereby reducing marketing costs and improving profitability.
Implications for Social Change
Business leaders whose goal is to effect positive social change in their
communities may find the findings of this study useful since it provides insight
into the successful marketing strategies used by business leaders. The results of
this study may help business leaders to define their social media marketing
strategies, guidelines, and goals to provide more insight into the successful
marketing strategies used by business leaders. Addressing the business problem
in corporations may provide business leaders with a way to make informed
evidence supported, business decisions that may drive social change using
behavioral data and insight, mapped against traditionally available data sets.
Zahra and Wright (2015) found that corporations contribute to the
larger society in terms of creating financial, environmental, and social
wealth. Increased viability of business leaders through effective social media
marketing strategy incorporation, may lead to social change through
employment generation, reduction in local poverty, improved local
economy, and improved quality of life for citizens. Additionally, increased
tax revenues for local communities may contribute to positive social change
through improvements in social institutions and programs such as schools,
libraries, public safety organizations, hospitals, and low-cost healthcare
programs (Zahra & Wright, 2015). The results of this study may provide
business leaders with the strategies to develop long-term survival plans to
increase their viability thus providing a positive social change in their
communities.
A Review of the Professional and Academic Literature
The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore the
social media marketing strategies used by business leaders to improve
customer engagement. A literature review is a method for researchers to
provide critical analysis of the critical literature that relates to a research
question, existing scholarly work, its limitations, and how their research fits
into a broader context (Saunders et al., 2015). This systematic review uses a
comprehensive preplanned strategy for locating, critically appraising,
analyzing, and synthesizing existing research that is pertinent to my research
question on social media strategies used by business leaders to increase
profitability. The review also includes a critical analysis and synthesis of
existing theoretical and research literature relevant to the conceptual
framework on marketing management and general corporate business
strategy within the context of social media marketing. I completed an
exhaustive review of peer-reviewed journal articles, government reports, and
seminal books.
The search process included the following keywords: social media
marketing, social media, marketing strategies used by business leaders, cost-
effective marketing strategies, business marketing, business social media
marketing, business online marketing, business failure rate, and business
success rate. Roughly 99% of the 137 articles used were published between
2015 and 2019, and 97% were from peer-reviewed journals. I used the
following databases to conduct this exhaustive review: Business Source
Complete, Science Direct Journals, Sage Journals, Indiana Academy of the
Social Sciences
Journals, Academic Search Complete, Direct, Data, and Digital Marketing
Practice, ISI Web of Science, Scopus, and Google Scholar.
The literature review is organized as follows. First, I provide a brief
overview of social media marketing strategies, its effect on the consumer
buying behavior and the NREL (networking, representation, engagement,
and listening-in), which is the conceptual framework of this study. Next, I
describe the adoption and use of social media marketing strategies (SMMS)
by companies and the N-REL theory is described. Then, I address the
theoretical components of N-REL theory. such as representation,
engagement, and listening-in activities. Next, I apply the conceptual
framework to social media marketing through an in-depth exploration of
factors such as relationship, content, value creation, innovation, complexity,
and influence of social media on consumer behavior. This is followed by a
review of the literature on the impact of SMM on sales and financial
performance and the importance of small businesses to economic
development, and the significance and utilization of small business
marketing strategies. The literature review is concluded with a focus on
social media marketing strategies used by business leaders.
Table 1
Literature Review Matrix
Number Percentage
(%)
References 140 –
Peer reviewed 137 97
Published within the last 5 years 139 99
Social Media Marketing Strategies Overview
In this section, the existing literature on social media marketing
strategies is critically analyzed and synthesized. The topic is organized into
four sections.
•Definition of social media marketing strategy and its importance.
•effect of social media marketing on a company's brand and image.
•Presentation of literature regarding attempts to measure the success of
social media marketing.
•Presentation of a summary of what scholars currently know about
business leaders approach to marketing, including the extent of their
use of various marketing strategies.
Definition of social media marketing strategy and its importance
It is essential to understand what social media marketing is and how it
differs from traditional marketing to provide a better understanding of its
effects on customer engagement. Social media marketing has disrupted the
current marketing landscape changing the relationship between marketers and
consumers (Mohammad, 2018). The main differences between social media
marketing and traditional marketing are that communication is two way in
social media marketing as opposed to one way in conventional marketing
(Duffett, 2017). Social media communication represents personalized and
participatory media in which customers become contributors to content and
creators of marketing communication, rather than just passive targets (Adnan
& Ahmad, 2017). Social media marketing strategy is defined as the integrated
means and set of actions by which a company or organization expects to
achieve its marketing objectives and meet the requirements of its target market
using social media tools (Anandaa et al., 2016).
In their quantitative study, Adnan and Ahmad (2017) explored the
rationale and theory behind the role of social media advertising on consumer
buying behavior. Adnan and Ahmad proposed two hypotheses: (a) there are
meaningful relations between social media advertising and consumer buying
behavior and (b) there are differences in the way that social media
advertising affects consumer buying behavior. Consumers living in
Istanbul-Turkey were sent electronic questionnaires. Adnan and Ahmad’s
study concluded that social media advertising has an impact on consumer
buying behavior.
Adnan and Ahmad’s (2017) research is useful for marketing managers
in the retail industry trying to build their brand. However, since the research
was specific to one geographical location -Istanbul, more research needs to
be done with a larger population. Given the significant impact of social
media marketing on the consumer buying behavior and decision making, it
is essential that the various types of social media marketing strategies
employed by companies are explored in more details to provide an
understanding of its effect on customer engagement and company
profitability. Social media marketing strategies are classified in several
ways. Previous researchers such as De Vries et al., (2017) have devoted
considerable attention to understand social media marketing strategy better.
De Vries et al. examined the relative effectiveness of traditional advertising
and digital marketing (using social media platforms such as Facebook and
Twitter) on brand-building and customer acquisition. The quantitative study
by De Vries et al. applied vector autoregressive modeling to a European
telecoms company. De Vries et al. 's study is useful for marketing managers
trying to understand the influences social media marketing has on brand
building and acquisition. In their research study, De Vries et al. classified
social media marketing strategies based on content, engagement, and word
of mouth as follows:
•User-generated content - UGC
•Customer engagement – CE,
•Firm generated content – FGC
•Firm-initiated marketing communication in its official social
media pages
•Online word-of-mouth - eWOM
•Online brand communities (Schivinski et al., 2016).
Exploring these classifications may provide further insight into understanding the
strategies that can be used to build their brand, influence consumer behavior, and
stimulate sales.
Creating a social media strategy includes setting marketing goals,
choosing the right networks to use, and measuring desired results. Having a
well-thought-out strategy might have a positive impact on business by
improving customer engagement and increase profitability (Floreddu &
Cabiddu, 2016). The primary goals of social media marketing are creating
awareness, enhancing brand image, acquiring new customers, cultivating
relationships, and increasing awareness (Ismail, 2017). Practitioners and
consultants also share this view by arguing that social media is most useful for
B2B companies in obtaining new customers (Quinton & Wilson, 2016). Add
summary and synthesis throughout the paragraph.
In order to provide more insight into my study's central research
question, it is essential to understand how online brand communities create
value for companies and customers. Loureiro and Kaufmann's (2018) used a
quantitative research approach to examine how online engagement
influences positive versus negative consumption. In their study, data were
collected from six online brand communities and grouped in pairs with each
pair belonging to a different brand and comprising both valences
respectively: positive (love or fan) online brand community and negative
(hate or antibrand) community. Six hundred participants filled out the online
questionnaire. Loureiro and Kaufmann's study concluded that affection
(passion/aversion) is the primary motivational factor that leads community
members to be active reviewers and commentators of brands (Loureiro &
Kaufmann, 2018). Hsieh and Wei (2017) conducted similar studies. In their
2017 study, Hsieh and Wei found that companies are increasingly using
online brandcommunities (OBCs) to cocreate value for themselves and their
consumers. Creating value for themselves is also evidence of the
effectiveness of OBCs as a marketing tool remains mostly anecdotal aimed
at increasing competitiveness. Hsieh and Wei developed a framework for
examining how the co-creation of value in OBCs can extend and improve
brand relationships between corporations and consumers through
combination with the integration of online and offline relationships. Hsieh
and Wei’s research provides strong evidence that building online brand
identities is essential and may lead to increased profits in competitive
markets. Hsieh and Wei stated that company leaders are increasingly using
OBC to co-create value for themselves and their consumers; however,
evidence of the effectiveness of OBCs as a marketing tool remains mostly
anecdotal. Add summary and synthesis throughout the paragraph to balance
out the use of information from the literature with your own analysis to
connect back to your study.
Online communities create stronger relationships between consumers
and business owners (citation). It is therefore vital that relationship
marketing concepts and their advantages are fully explored. Relationship
marketing is defined as activities directed toward establishing, developing,
and maintaining fruitful relational exchanges involves establishing,
developing, and maintaining a network of relationships among suppliers,
service personnel, customers, and other stakeholders, which includes
problems with partnerships, alliances, intergrowth, and internal marketing
(Jones, et al., 2018). The relationship marketing concept has provided a
breakthrough for studies on economics and marketing. In relationship
marketing, the economic and marketing behaviors of supplyand-demand
organizations and stakeholders no longer involve only absolute competition
but also useful and diverse competition.
The relationship-marketing model is ideal for describing the complex,
continual, and diverse market relationship structures. Moreover, the
literature on social psychology and communication assumes that a consumer
can be considered an agent that fulfills individual needs (McQuail, 2017).
Thus, that consumer-platform interactions resemble member-to-member and
consumer-to-consumer (C2C) relationship interactions (Yrjölä, et al., 2017).
The units that constitute a community, regardless of whether they are
grouped or individual, must be considered participants to understand their
interactions. Irrespective of the online or offline brand community (BC),
loyalty is a critical outcome variable (Hsieh & Wei, 2017) and commitment
is a vital criterion in its development.
The focus of marketers when using digital marketing is on online
promotions, campaigns, and advertisements. Carvalho and Fernandes (2018)
concluded that most marketers believe that online marketing is the only way to
go, and that social media campaigns, email, newsletters, and websites adverts
produce the best effect. Traditional marketing has leverage in the marketing
world because not everyone is online all the time and observed people still
watch television, listen to the radio, or read newspapers (Carvalho & Fernandes,
2018). The product is directly linked to the success rate of marketing
campaigns. It is important to remember that some products give better results if
marketed online, while others produce better results if sold offline (Buchanan,
2015). Given these research findings, it is safe to say that marketing strategy
varies on a case-by-case basis. Using both social media and traditional
marketing strategies generated the best effect of marketing campaigns (citation).
Add summary and synthesis to connect back to your study.
Social media marketing has introduced many different strategies and
tactics in the world of marketing. Aside from being much faster and more
efficient than traditional marketing, effective digital marketing can lead to
more customers, more traffic, and more engagement (Floreddu & Cabiddu,
2016). As social media marketing is becoming increasingly crucial to an
organization’s survival, companies are constantly confronted with a variety
of possibilities to promote and advertise their brands, products, and services
(Alalwan, et al., 2017). With the internet providing consumers with more
communication choices to gather, communicate, collaborate, and share
content, a power shift has occurred from organizations to customers over
time (Nakano & Kondo, 2018).
Information sharing on the internet allow consumers to express an
opinion, which in turn has led people to trust peers more than organizations
(Nakano & Kondo, 2018). This change has created several challenges for
marketers with businesses now acknowledging the need to listen to their
customers more, engage them in conversation, be transparent, and
communicate with them openly (Alalwan et al., 2017). The changing
business landscape has made defining a social media marketing strategy an
essential piece of most leading organization's business marketing strategy
(Alalwan et al., 2017). It is crucial to understand social media marketing
effect on a company's brand and image because social media marketing may
have a massive impact on a company's bottom line,
Effect of social media marketing on a company’s brand and image
Understanding the effect of social media marketing on branding requires
us to understand the various branding techniques. According to Mohammad
(2018), branding is the way a company or business enterprise is personalized
in the consumers’ minds. Functional branding enables a company to
differentiate itself by positively reinforcing the value of its brand through
design. Intentional branding includes the branding decisions that are made
when developing the look and feel of a company to make it create the best
identity that reflects its target market. Prior research suggested that social
media marketing may be inclined more towards functional branding than
intentional branding. The social media marketing strategies, functional
branding, and intentional branding phenomenon were studied by Mohammad
(2018), and the results are analyzed further in the next paragraph.
Mohammad (2018) examined the relationship between social media
marketing strategies, intentional branding, and functional branding to
determine whether social media marketing strategies are more strongly
inclined towards intentional than functional branding. Quantitative data was
collected from 133 participants from Jordan marketing departments using
questionnaires and analyzed using SPSS. The results of the study confirmed
the relationship between social media marketing strategies. However, results
showed that social media marketing strategies are more strongly inclined
towards intentional branding than functional branding, suggesting that social
media marketing strategies are oriented towards deliberate branding.
Mohammad recommended examining the idea of deliberate branding and its
role in controlling the image of the brand among customers. Given the
strong link between social media marketing and a company’s brand, the
possible effect of social media marketing on financial performance can be
further explored. Mihai et al., (2018) suggested that social media use
emerged from technological and internal organizational resources rather than
from external pressure. Ebusiness use contributed positively to a firm’s
performance through corporate innovation. Also, through cost reduction,
they can reach a more extensive market share (Mihai et al., 2018). Company
leaders need to adjust their business strategies to face the challenges of the
rapid growth of social media. Businesses should focus on setting competitive
and reasonable prices to build their reputation and secure customer trust
(Mihai et al., 2018). Competitive and fair pricing can be achieved by
comparing their prices with competitors on social media, in the local market,
or with e-commerce websites to offer rates that are more appealing (Mihai et
al., 2018). However, given that the effect of the price advantage on trust is
sensitive to the habit of buying on the platform, firms may focus more on the
other characteristics such as reputation, language and hedonic efforts that
foster trust and consequently their intent to shop (Ben Yahia et al., 2017).
Understanding these price effects may be of value to businesses because
business leaders could use the results to improve their social media
marketing strategies. Add summary and synthesis to connect back to your
study.
Social media marketing can be examined from different perspectives
ranging from a brand equity and management perspective (Ashley & Tuten,
2015; Lovett & Staelin, 2016; Pham & Gammoh, 2015;) to customer
relationships (Wang & Kim, 2017) and employee attraction (Phillips-Wren
et al., 2016). For more than a decade, marketing academic and practitioners
focus was on the intersection between consumer behavior and interactive
marketing, offering a wide range of conceptual and empirical research
studies, as well as online marketing case studies (Simona, 2017). For
branding, social media has the vital role of strategic importance for
reminding, informing, and entertaining consumers (Lovett & Staelin, 2016).
Concerning a brand, Lovett and Staelin (2016) appreciated that 54% of
consumer’s decision processes (and eventually purchases) are affected by
social media communications. As a result, social media is a crucial part of
the marketing strategy in online settings. Gauging the success of a social
media marketing campaign is difficult. Add summary and synthesis
throughout the paragraph to connect back to your study.
Presentation of literature regarding attempts to measure the success of
social media marketing
In this section, the attributes that are used to measure the success of
social media marketing campaigns are explored. Gauging the success of a
social media marketing campaign is difficult as several factors determine
success. Brand equity is one of the longer-term intangible effects of social
media marketing and is challenging to measure. During the infancy of social
media marketing, companies viewed marketing strategy success just as the
number of users socially connected to the brand (Schivinski et al., 2016).
Firms aggressively acquired fans and followers on platforms, such as
Facebook to generate a high volume of user likes, by investing heavily on
advertisements (Schivinski et al., 2016). With early audits suggesting that
only about 1% of an average firm's Facebook fans show any engagement
with the brand by liking, sharing or commenting, attention shifted from
acquisition of followers to the design of content that achieves better reach
and engagement amongst social media followers (Knoblich et al., 2017).
Merely getting a count of the number of followers and user likes is not
enough to determine if a social media campaign was effective. Companies
must do more in-depth analysis and analyze usergenerated content to
determine if a marketing strategy is working or not. Gauging the success of a
social media marketing campaign is not an easy task that requires companies
to understand how digital marketing is classified. The various digital
marketing classification is explored in the next paragraph.
Digital marketing can be classified into three categories: paid content
(pay-per-click advertisements), owned content (e.g., social media pages and
company web site) and earned content (user reviews and media coverage).
Earned content is the most difficult to attain and is a vital aspect of how an
organization’s image is perceived (Thornhill et al., 2017). Voorveld et al.,
(2018) suggested that the challenge for all brands is to develop social media
marketing strategies based on engagement opportunities that keep customers
connected throughout the day. Adopting this marketing strategy pushes owned
content out to customers, who in turn, engage in the earned material so eagerly
sought by businesses. However, developing branded social content that
accomplishes these objectives can be challenging. Ashley and Tuten (2015)
found in their study that while social media participants seek entertainment
and informativeness, entertainment is a stronger motivator for engagement.
Developing content that is informative and entertaining provides the most
bang for a company's money, given the high success rate of customer
engagement. It is therefore essential that organizations ensure the continuous
delivery of valuable news and information to customers.
Researchers have made several attempts to measure the marketing
success of social media marketing strategies. Over 250 different measures
have been developed by researchers and theorist (Brooks & Simkin, 2017).
According to Brooks and Simkin (2017), only a few of those measures have a
solid scientific basis. Brooks and Simkin's framework provided a deeper
understanding of the available measures. They separated the measures them
into four categories: financial measures (e.g., ROI), quantitative measures
(e.g., market share), qualitative measures (e.g., brand awareness), and hybrid
measures (e.g., brand equity). These types of measures have been used in most
traditional and social media marketing studies (Brooks & Simkin, 2017).
Utilizing these marketing success metrics could help business owners define
their marketing practices and guidelines, thereby addressing the findings of
Michopoulou and Moisa (2019) and others related to the importance of
strategic marketing.
Past research in social media marketing often focused on digital
content, interactivity in marketing communications, the degree to which
two-way communication is facilitated, and the changing role of buyer and
seller in terms of content creation. Stephen (2016) reviewed the role of
digital and social media marketing in consumer behavior. Five themes were
identified: consumer digital culture, responses to digital advertising, the
effects of digital environments on consumer behavior, mobile environments,
and online word of mouth (WOM). Collectively these articles shed light
from many different angles on how consumers experience, influence, and
are influenced by the digital environments in which they are situated as part
of their daily lives (Stephen, 2016). The role of social media in marketing
strategies has been the focus of previous research studies. A study by
Schivinski et al. (2016) investigated the effect of brand communication on
brand equity through social media comparing it with traditional media and
found that both conventional and social media communications significantly
affect brand equity. Traditional media was found to be stronger in terms of
brand awareness, whereas social media communications were discovered to
impact brand image strongly. Braojos-Gomez et al., (2015) found that
information technology infrastructure capability, social competitor pressure,
marketing management, and innovation management are the critical means
for firms to learn how to develop social media competence. The emergence
of social media has urged marketers to shift their marketing expenditure and
instead of investing in traditional channels, has shifted the emphasis to
networks that can reach consumers online. Thus, firms need social media
marketing competencies on an organizational level that should be deployed
to add to firms' competitive advantage.
Presentation of a summary of what scholars currently know about
business leaders’ approach to marketing, including the extent of their use
of various marketing strategies
To summarize, building a social media marketing plan is essential to
achieve success in a challenging business environment where customers are
offered continuously new and innovative communication channels to gather,
communicate, collaborate, and share content. Between the years 2010 and
2019, researchers have used various measures to measure the success of
social media marketing campaigns. Using financial measures such as return
on investment, quantitative measures such as market share, qualitative
measures such as brand awareness and a composite measure such as brand
equity could help business owners define their marketing practices and
guidelines. Financial measures are a great way to determine a company’s
most successful social media marketing techniques, as well as decide which
strategies are not successful. Social media has a significant impact on
consumer behavior. To summarize, this section critically analyzed and
synthesized the existing literature on social media marketing strategies. It
provided a definition of social media marketing strategies, categorized them,
and explored its effect on branding and customer engagement. The
purchasing behavior of consumers determine the sales and profit of a firm. It
is therefore essential to use the next section to provide an in-depth analysis
of the impact of social media marketing on brand awareness and consumer
behavior.
Influence of Social Media Marketing on Brand Awareness
Social media has changed how businesses respond to consumer needs
and want. It is, therefore, essential that we understand the influence of social
media marketing on brand awareness. In this section, the existing literature on
social media marketing and its effect on brand awareness is critically analyzed
and synthesized. Brand pages on social media platforms such as Facebook are
an effective platform for customer interaction and brand communication.
(Tafesse, 2015). The brand content created by organizations allows brands to
connect with their customers on social media platforms (Ashley & Tuten,
2015).
Tafesse's (2015) study was based on the fact that the content which is
shared can produce favorable consumer responses. Tafesse indicated that brand
posting had a significant positive effect on brand post shares. Other researchers
such as Elaydi (2018) investigated the impact of social media marketing
activities on brand awareness with a focus on the moderating effect of
demographics, namely, age and gender. Elaydi’s research showed that social
media marketing firms about six dimensions as an instrument for their
marketing activities: Online Communities, Interaction, Sharing of Content,
Accessibility, and credibility. The study is critical because managers may use
the results to improve their marketing activities related to social networks,
enhancing communication and interaction with their customers and increase
their brand awareness circle. Four hundred and two customers participated in
the study. Elaydi tested the hypothesis using the correlation analysis,
regression analysis using SPSS, and structural equation model using AMOS.
Elaydi provides evidence of the relationship between social media marketing
activities on
Facebook and brand awareness of mobile service providers in Egypt.
Benefits of this research involve an increase of brand Facebook page likes,
which builds an online presence and adds to their circle of influence. Other
benefits include obtaining high brand reach, enabling individuals to join in
brand discussions and increases traffic or number of followers and the
feedback that they deliver. Elaydi demonstrated that companies should
engage with customers by increasing individuals to like brand posts, which
drive content sharing and interaction.
Understanding the effects and challenges of social media marketing
on brand awareness can help provide more insight into successful social
media strategies that affect a company’s bottom line. Hirsch (2017) and
Mohammad (2018) studied the effects and challenges of social media
marketing on brand awareness. Mohammad (2018) examined the suggestion
that social media marketing might be inclined more towards functional
branding than intentional branding. Their study empirically examined the
relationship between social media marketing strategies, intentional branding,
and effective branding to determine where social media marketing strategies
are more strongly inclined towards intentional than functional branding.
Hirsch, (2017) also examined the extraordinary reputational challenge for
brands in social media in an era of heightened political and cultural
polarization. In a time when the tension between liberal and conservative
consumers have grown significantly, brands are being threatened with
boycotts from both the left and right. The author identified some core
approaches for brands facing this dilemma. The Hirsch’s strategy was to
review the experience of various brands which have been the victims of
consumer boycotts motivated by political considerations. Brand awareness
is important because it enables customers recall or recognize a brand. The
research by Hirsch (2017) and Mohammad (2018) is significant to my
research study because it provides measures for understanding the effect of
social media marketing on customer engagement and company profitability.
Lepkowska-White (2017) also explored the adoption, challenges, and
current uses of social media in small restaurants. The study identified a
variety of goals that social media plays in fostering interactions,
engagement, relationships, and building communities online. Lepkowska-
White’s study suggested ways in which social media could be embraced by
small restaurants to help them address the challenges they face, so they can
go beyond using social media as merely an advertising tool. Other
researchers such as Sahika and Irem (2016) examined the effect of social
media marketing on brand trust and brand loyalty for hotels. The main aim
of their quantitative study was to identify the effect of social media
marketing efforts on brand loyalty and brand trust for hotels, especially
websites owned by hotels. The effect of social media marketing efforts was
tested using a structural equations model. The results showed the positive
effects of social media marketing on brand trust and the effect of brand trust
on brand loyalty. Their study is significant because it enables marketing
managers of hotels to make strategic business decisions and craft right
online strategies to compete with other hotel brands.
Influence of Social Media Marketing on Consumer Engagement
In this section, the existing literature on social media marketing and its
effect on consumer engagement is critically analyzed and synthesized. The
inability to predict consistent purchase behavior, as well as the tendency of
customers to change their mind at any time, offers a unique field of study
(Kaveh et al., 2016). Online shopping exchanges are evolving from a
transactional exchange to a more relational based exchange. Sellers are
increasingly looking to build long term relationships with their consumers
through online communities. To facilitate long term relations, online
shopping communities offer means to reinsert the shopping experience and
personal communication into the current retail purchasing process; when
missing, such element often represents the most significant concern
consumers express about online retailing (Kaveh et al., 2016). Sellers
believe that doing so increased their customer base and improved their
profitability in the long term.
Kostyra et al. (2016) used a mixed method approach to study the
effect of credible reviews on Brand Image. They saw choosing the right
product (including services) online as an exhausting process. The wide
variety of products on retailer websites is often overwhelming. To handle
such wide-ranging assortments, online customer reviews (OCRs) have
emerged as a vital information source for customers to evaluate products
before purchase. Understanding the impact of OCRs on customers' decisions
is an essential challenge for academics and practitioners. Kostyra et al.
applied a choice-based conjoint experiment that combined all relevant levels
of the OCR dimensions (valence, volume, and variance) and that estimated
the effect of OCRs on choice. The experimental setting allowed the
researchers to determine the direct impact but also the interaction effects of
the OCR dimensions, which have been largely neglected in previous
research. Kostyra et al.'s study is significant because consumers use online
reviews to share their brand-related experiences in various online social
media platforms. Their research enables marketers to understand the effects
of online reviews on a brand’s image. Other researchers like Voorveld et al.
(2018) examined how consumer engagement with social media platforms
drives engagement with advertising.
Voorveld et al. (2018) research findings showed that engagement is
highly context specific. Their quantitative study showed that engagement
with social media advertising is the key to explaining how social media
engagement is related to advertising evaluations. Calder et al. (2016)
provided more insight into engagement and the consequences for advertising
embedded in social media platforms by adopting the engagement experience
framework. The engagement experience framework suggested that digital
engagement is developed from digital experiences. Their flexible approach
measured engagement based on context-specific experiences that varies
across brands and products. Calder et al. study also examined engagement on
various platforms providing evidence that a flexible approach to measuring
engagement can help to predict consumer behavior and customer
engagement.
The advent of social media has created a new landscape which lays
out a new grid of personal connections. Businesses see enormous
opportunities and are eager to tap into the trend, whereas consumers are put
back to the center in the business world. Consumer buying behavior is the
process by which individuals search for, select, purchase, use, and dispose of
goods and services to satisfy their required needs (Ertemel & Ammoura,
2017). Researchers have used models to understand consumer buying
behavior. The 5 stages of the consumer buying process are: recognition of
needs and want, information search, evaluation of choices, purchase, and
post-purchase evaluation (Ertemel & Ammoura, 2017). Social media
provides marketers with a new set of tools to interact with consumers and to
integrate them into the brands through innovative ways.
It is essential that marketers understand how social media influences
consumer buying behavior and its effect on the five steps need recognitions
model. Social media plays a vital role in marketing and creating
relationships with customers. Buyer behavior as part of consumer
psychology is about understanding why and how individuals and groups
engage in consumer activities, as well as how they are affected by them. A
quantitative research finding by Ertemel and Ammoura (2017) showed a
moderate to the strong relationship between paid social media advertising,
and the whole 5 step needs model. The 3rd step - evaluate the alternatives,
had the strongest relationship with social media advertising compared to
other steps. In contracts, the second step - information search had no
relationship at all with social media advertising. Ertemel and Ammoura
concluded that social media advertising impacts consumer buying behavior.
They recommend that marketing managers design their social media
advertising as a comparative advertising tool and avoid providing
information about the product itself since consumers do not rely on social
media advertising as a source of their information search. This distinction is
crucial as it helps organizations design their social media marketing
strategies appropriately.
To summarize, understanding the effect of social media marketing on
consumer buying behavior is essential in determining the social media
marketing strategies that improve customer engagement and an
organization’s profitability. As a marketing tool, social media has the
advantage of low advertising costs, thus providing the benefit of costless
business marketing (Rugova & Prenaj, 2016). According to Rugova and
Prenaj (2016), small business investment is enough to get a social media
strategy started, and the returns can be incredible. In the next section, I
provide an in-depth analysis of social media marketing theories and how
these theories can be used to predict consumer decision making when new
specific research data might be unavailable.
The N-REL Framework
The N-REL (Networking, Representation, Engagement, and Listening-
In) framework is the conceptual framework for this study. It is a widely
accepted framework and approach to business practices in various sectors that
may prove beneficial in developing strategies for customer satisfaction,
customer loyalty, and thus barriers to competition. Anandaa et al. (2016)
defined a comprehensive framework named N-REL framework in which they
identified and classified social media marketing strategic actions. Subsequent
researchers have used the conceptual model to study the acceptance of
technologies of all types (Valos et al., 2017). Across disciplines, the N-REL
framework has gained recognition as a decision-making tool that may help
marketers overcome decisionmaking uncertainty regarding the choice and
implementation of social media marketing strategies (Valos et al., 2017). The
purpose of employing N-REL framework is to allow business owners to use a
strategic process to develop and maintain customer engagement. Strengthening
ties with consumers and elements of the brand community can enhance
relationships and increase contacts between the brand and the customers that
influence the brand.
Researchers such as Duffett,( 2017), Voorveld et al., (2018) and
Schivinski et al. (2016) presented alternative theories and frameworks to
improve the understanding of social media and consumer behavior. Due to the
different scholarly approaches to the study of social media marketing, it is
essential to consider the research focus and prospective analysis, for example,
consumer-focused perspective, organizational-focused perspective (Duffett,
2017). There are three main categories of studies on social media marketing
from a business perspective: (a) consumer attitudes and behavior toward social
media marketing, (b) adoption and use of social media by companies, and (c)
impact of social media marketing on sales and financial performance
(Voorveld et al., 2018). Schivinski et al. (2016) measured consumer attitudes
and behavior toward social media marketing. Other researchers studied the
adoption and use of social media marketing by companies (e.g., Braojos-
Gomez et al., 2015; Siamagka et al., 2015). Social media marketing theories
may be formulated in several ways and may have a managerial, executive, or
decision-making perspectives.
This group of studies pivots around managerial, executive or decision-
making perspectives, as well as perceptions of firms, use of social media
marketing in their organizations. This category includes studies about the
drivers or motivations of firms to implement social media marketing. One
prominent example of this kind of study is Rugova and Prenaj (2016) study on
social media as a marketing tool for small business enterprise. Rugova and
Prenaj stated that social media is a phenomenon that has transformed the
interaction and communication of individuals throughout the world. They also
explained that social media tools are not only used for amusement, but it is also
an essential part of marketing strategies in business life. Social media tools are
often used as a source of information and knowledge spreading, changing
people's views and opinions. They belong among critical business marketing
tactics, and help to create new business opportunities, develop a stronger
market position or modify consumer's behavior. The third group of researchers
has studied the impact of social media marketing on sales and financial
performance (Kumar et al., 2016). Increased online interactions lead to higher
brand loyalty and may result in a dramatic improvement in economic
performance.
Companies may enhance relationships with customers, supply chain, or
business partners by capitalizing on the potential benefits of social media and
their distinctive capabilities. One drawback with social media marketing is the
possibility that organizations may fail to react appropriately to consumer or
user responses. The inability to respond to consumer complaints may lead to
adverse reactions in social media communities. A reallife example is a
response by Verizon to a message that an unsatisfied T-Mobile consumer
posted on Twitter illustrates, the intervention strategies that firms employ on
social media to improve customer relationships. In this example, the T-Mobile
customer did not directly address Verizon. However, by actively monitoring
customer messages that mention competitors, Verizon was able to proactively
intervene in an attempt to convince the customer to switch phone providers
(Demmers et al., 2018). The use of the careful design of strategic actions,
firms may benefit from boundary spanning social media activities such as
activities contributing to industrial or purchasing processes. Companies could
also integrate other social media activities into customer value processes such
as CRM, SCM, or product innovation – via collaboration with the online brand
community.
Researchers and practitioners are using a social media engagement
strategy to systematically address various factors related to the social media
adoption process (Cawsey & Rowley, 2016; Lacoste, 2016). Cawsey and
Rowley (2016) proposed a framework with six components of a social media
strategy: monitoring and listening, empowering and engaging employees,
creating compelling content, stimulating electronic word of mouth, evaluating
and selecting channels, and enhancing brand presence through integrating
social media. Previous research has proposed various frameworks, dimensions,
or evaluation practices that seem to be linked to the engagement states and
processes. For instance, Marcos-Cuevas, Nätti, Palo, and Baumann (2016)
presented value co-creation practices divided into 3 overarching categories.
Linking (i.e., methods related to mobilizing social connections and networks
such as co-ideation, co-valuation, and co-diagnosing), materializing (i.e.
operational practices associated with the production of a value cocreating
offering such as co-testing, co-design, and co-launching), and institutionalizing
(i.e., organizational practices related to the design of institutions and structures
to capture and retain value created such as embedding).
Hult (2011) suggested the notion of a marketing organization from a
crossfunctional activity-based perspective rather than conceptualizing a
marketing organization as a distinct functional entity. Anandaa et al. (2016)
proposed the N-REL framework using
Hult’s proposal as a starting point. The N-REL conceptual framework covers
activities that support both transactional and relationship marketing. Anandaa et
al.’s research also positions social media marketing strategy and strategic
actions in the context of the marketing organization theory and discusses the
impact of the incorporation of social media on the concept of the marketing
organization. The study offers valuable theoretical insight into social media
marketing actions and the deployment of social media marketing strategies in
companies. Anandaa et al.’s study is significant because it provides hints about
how to maximize the benefits from social media marketing for customer-
oriented, marketdriven organizations.
Although research has confirmed Anandaa et al.’s (2016) theory, the N-
REL framework is not without detractors. For example, some researchers have
suggested that it does not cover B2B marketing and it does not elaborate the
tactical operationalization of strategic decisions in social media only
describing the actions instead (Alalwan et al., 2017). The N-REL framework
also has some limitations. For instance, it covers only social media marketing
strategic actions initiated by the company. Even the classification of social
media actions does not include social media boundary-spanning activities that
involve other actors in the social network (Alalwan et al., 2017). It is essential
that companies anticipate the impact of boundary-spanning activities such as
B2B marketing on their marketing goals.
Despite the limitations mentioned above, the N-REL framework is
appropriate for exploring the social media marketing strategies used by
business leaders to improve customer engagement and profitability because
it provides theoretical insight on social media marketing actions and
deployment in organizations. The two-way interaction of social media
allows organizations to create and expand a customer base enhancing their
ability to succeed. An organization leader who adopts the N-REL framework
can use the feedback from intelligence actions through social media to make
the necessary adjustments to strategic decisions (Anandaa et al., 2016).
Strategic choices are required because the market segmentation, positioning,
and marketing techniques must drive the various social media marketing
actions to fulfill the marketing goals of a company
(Anandaa et al., 2016). Anandaa et al.’s (2016) study also provided hints
about how to maximize the benefits of social media marketing for customer-
oriented, market-driven organizations. Using the N-REL framework for my
research on social media marketing techniques used by business leaders
might provide knowledge about the requirements for successful social media
marketing strategy implementation.
N-REL Framework and Social Media Marketing
Researchers and marketers studying social media strategies and tactics
have always been fascinated with the one unifying objective – engagement.
The meaning and operationalization of engagement remain a work in
progress with researchers studying the phenomenon from a variety of
perspectives. In their 2018 study, Syrdal and Briggs (2018) approached the
question of what constitutes engagement using a qualitative method. Their
studies suggest that engagement is not an outcome of social media marketing
stimuli and target response (e.g., brand awareness, for instance); instead,
they found that it is a psychological state of mind. Their study finds that
engagement operates independently from target response behaviors such as
post-interaction and sharing (i.e., pass-along). More importantly, Syrdal and
Briggs proposed a formal definition of engagement, which could be
instrumental in focusing on future engagement research.
Carvalho and Fernandes (2018) also approached the issue of engagement in
their study.
They proposed and tested a comprehensive model of drivers, outcomes, and
moderators of customer brand engagement (CBE) in the context of social
media-based brand communities.
Brand communities can be categorized in the zone of a social
community using the zones of social media marketing Framework (Tuten &
Solomon, 2018). Social community describes channels of social media
focused on relationships and the everyday activities people participate in
with others who share the same interest or identification. Thus, social
communities feature two-way and multi-way communication, conversation,
collaboration, and the sharing of experiences and resources (Carvalho &
Fernandes,
2018). Carvalho and Fernandes’s (2018) model incorporated precursors such
as involvement, engagement process constructs (including interactivity and
flow), and sequence effects (including community satisfaction), trust,
propensity to engage and community commitment. Social media
engagement is a vital part of any social media marketing strategy. It
increases loyalty and generates word of mouth referrals. It is essential that
business leaders have the right tools to measure the impact of social media
engagement.
Social media engagement is not the only social media marketing
action that is used by organizations. Business leaders deploy and implement
their social media marketing strategies to achieve a specific marketing
objective. Internal or external motivations often drive the products of their
actions (Anandaa et al., 2016). According to Anandaa et al. (2016), there are
3 main categories of SMM actions: representation, engagement, and
listening in representation. These are social media activities focusing on the
delivery of marketing communications related to the company profile and
information about products (Anandaa et al., 2016). These activities are as
follows: (a) engagement: This is a value-added proposition that covers
marketing activities focusing on interaction with customers, (b) adding value
for them and generating benefits for the company: customer-relationship
management, one-to-one marketing, customer empowerment, customer
support, personalization of information, product customization, or customer
loyalty programs (Anandaa et al., 2016). In the case of B2B, the firms’
engagement includes relations along the whole supply-chain – supplier
retailers, and business partners (Anandaa et al., 2016); the activities are
defined below:
•listening-in activities enable a passive way of social media
engagement that aims at market research and intelligence, such as
analytics of social media contents and conversations (Anandaa et
al., 2016).
•share of voice, sentiment, gaps, trends, opportunities, etc. – as well
as the identification of relevant actors and influencers (Anandaa et
al., 2016). These activities are important communications
mechanisms between companies and consumers.
Social media listening helps companies identify opportunities to
engage in conversations about their brand. Engagement could be anything
from someone saying how much they love a company's product to a
customer service request. A good example is Purdue University. On its
annual Purdue Day of Giving, the University uses social listening to identify
donors. They then respond personally to everyone who mentions on social
media that they donated (Purdue University, 2016). Appropriate responses
create donor engagement and excitement, increasing the odds that people
will give the next year again. It also helps the university keep the momentum
going on this critically important fundraising day.
The study and the proposal of the N-REL framework is a significant
contribution to the field of social media marketing, regarding advances in
the use of social media for strategic business decisions. Anandaa et al.’s
(2016) research suggested that SMM activities encompass and interact with
the different components of a marketing organization. SMM activities cover
a firm's internal and external customer-value business processes. The
marketing activities also contribute to the creation of networks whose goal is
to fulfill the needs and wants of stakeholders, networks, and stakeholders'
roles (Anandaa et al., 2016). The N-REL serves as a guide for companies to
assess their marketing strategies by identifying and leveraging their
distinctive capabilities. The deployment of social media for marketing
purposes is currently a decision that relies more on intuition and trial and
error than on strategic thinking. The N-REL framework may facilitate the
effective deployment of SMM by helping to understand how companies
implement SMMS into activities or actions. The N-REL Framework has
applicability in adopting marketing strategy innovation as well as material
innovations. Using the framework to understand the adoption of social
media marketing strategies used by business leaders may provide valuable
insight to businesses leaders looking to increase sales, productivity, and
market performance.
Alternative Theories and Frameworks – Social Media Management
Marketing framework, Adoption and Social Exchange Theories
There are several alternative social media marketing frameworks and
theories that outline the actions required to implement each aspect of social
media marketing. One such framework is the social media management
marketing framework proposed by Parsons and Lepkowska-White, (2018) to
assist managers in developing and using social media as a marketing tool.
This framework may be used by businesses with different strategic
orientations. The framework consists of four dimensions that sum up the
action’s managers perform when implementing and engaging with
consumers on social media. These actions can be grouped into four
categories: messaging/projecting, monitoring, assessing, and responding.
each dimension of the framework may be applied to a different extent based
on the firm’s strategic focus. A firm’s messaging/projecting, monitoring, and
assessment strategies may change over time based on how they respond in
social media (Parsons, & Lepkowska-White, 2018).
Other alternative theories to the N-REL framework are the adoption
and social exchange theories. The adoption theory is used by researchers to
focus on how the adoption process and subsequent utilization of social
media marketing tools business leaders occurred (Setiowati et al., 2015).
Social exchange theory is a theoretical lens used to explore the
multidimensional relationship originating with an exchange of social ideas in
a transaction-oriented style with the expectation of an economic goal and a
mutually reciprocal relationship and includes consideration of the impact of
larger environmental factors as well as the complexity of exchanges (Duane,
Domegan et al., 2016). Social exchange theory emerged within family
sciences in the latter part of the twentieth century, first being considered in a
meaningful way in the early 1960s (Thibaut & Kelley, 1959).
According to Thibaut and Kelley (1959), people engage in behavioral
sequence or a series of actions designed to achieve their goal. When people
engage in these behavioral sequences, they are dependent to some extent on
their relational partner. Fate control is the ability to affect a partner's
outcomes. Behavior control is the power to cause another's behavior to
change by changing one's own behavior (Thibaut & Kelley,1959),
Mergel (2016) used the adoption theory as their base theory in their
ethnographic study to explore social media adoption in U.S. government
agencies. Mergel’s study concluded that social media is often developed and
hosted by third parties, leaving government organizations a limited role in
aligning social media utilization with their existing routines. The social
exchange theory has been criticized for focusing too much on the
individual’s perspective and ignoring social aspects of the relationship, such
as how partners communicate and interest in shared events (Duck & Sants,
1983). To summarize even though the adoption and social exchange theory
have been used by prior researchers to study social media engagement
strategies, the N-REL framework is more appropriate because it provides
tools and parameters for measuring customer engagement and feedback. In
the next section, I discuss the effect of social media marketing on sales and
financial performance.
Effect of Social Media Marketing (SMM) on Sales and Financial
Performance
Companies may capitalize on the potential benefits of social media
and their distinctive capabilities to enhance relationships with customers,
supply chain, or business partners. Social media marketing influences how
social network actors or users interact with each other (Duffett, 2017). There
is always the possibility to fail to react appropriately to consumer or user
responses. Consumers are spending more time online, and their involvement
in social media is also growing. Furthermore, consumers truly trust the
information they find online. It is expected that positive social media
mentions of a given brand will influence a consumer’s awareness, attitudes,
affection, etc. towards that brand. The brand value chain model suggests that
such a change in consumer mindset should translate into improved
marketplace performance and, ultimately, better firm financial performance
(Duffett, 2017). Digital technologies, such as social media, are
acknowledged as an effective and efficient means to connect consumers to a
product or service (Kennedy, 2016). Raudeliuniene’s et al. (2018) research
study shows that companies that use lead generation social media strategies
achieve better results by building brand awareness and generating
conversions, making better sales productivity, producing higher revenue
growth, and creating a sense of community for advocates and followers
provided (Raudeliuniene et al., 2018). Advertising campaigns on social
media networks develop prerequisites for organizations to not only inform
users more effectively but also understand their changing informational and
knowledge needs, receive feedback, observe users’ interest and involvement
into activities carried out by organization and products (services) provided
(Raudeliuniene et al., 2018).
Social media marketing is an effective and efficient means to connect
consumers to a product or service. Blerta and Burim (2016), provided a case
study of social media marketing benefits and challenges for SME (Small
Medium Enterprises) and defined the different types of social media
channels and their role. Blerta and Burim identified the main benefits as
increased brand exposure, and reputation management increased targeted
traffic and search engine optimization, word-of-mouth and leads generation,
market insights, related to the target audience and competition. Blerta and
Burim’s research findings indicate that social media is relatively cost-
effective depending on which type of social media channel is used as SME
can begin with free options like opening a Facebook page or creating a page
on Twitter or other sites. The central research question of the study was:
How do SME's view the World through the customer's eyes and
continuously seek ways to create more value via social media for the
customer satisfaction and produce fewer complaints? A qualitative–
exploratory approach was chosen to uncover how companies utilize social
media to gain practical insights into the perception of social media as a
useful marketing tool. As a part of the case study, Blerta and Burim
randomly chose four companies according to their operation areas in the
United States and Turkey to make a comparison with their social media
activities. This research is significant and provides a better understanding of
the social media marketing strategies that may increase customer engage and
improve a company’s bottom line.
Interpersonal relationships are a vital factor to understand social
media marketing strategies that directly affect customer engagement. Blerta
and Burim (2016) followed research carried out by other researchers who
have identified the role of play in supporting cognition and interpersonal
relationships. This case study is relevant to the current conversation
surrounding the emerging trend of social media popularity.
However, Blerta and Burim acknowledged that the investigation had its
limitations. The Target population used in the study was mostly from
Turkey, which is a developing nation. Social media presence is still far from
the level of SMEs from developed countries. Also, only two social media
channels (Facebook and Twitter were used). Blerta and Burim research
study is significant because it can be used by SMEs to find out what types of
social network marketing endeavors enhance a firms’ performance. It also
aids companies in designing their social media activities for different social
media followers' clusters to increase the effectiveness of reaching marketing.
Finally, researching the impact of social network marketing efforts on the
financial (i.e., ROI) and market (i.e., sales revenue) performances might be
beneficial for SMEs to decide how much they should invest and spend their
time and management efforts.
Hussain (2018) and Karjaluoto et al. (2015) conducted studies on the
effect of social media marketing on the financial performance of companies.
Hussain (2018) used quantitative methods to examine the effectiveness of
social media marketing in Saudi small to medium size enterprises (SMEs’)
ability to promote their goods and services and remain financially
sustainable. Hussain (2018) attempted to explore the effectiveness of
marketing communication through Social Media on Small to Medium Size
Enterprises to fill the gap in social media marketing for SMEs in Saudi
Arabia through in-depth analysis and studies of SMEs social media
marketing strategies. The desired results from this
study are that marketing through social media has a positive and productive
impact on small and medium-sized enterprises in Saudi Arabia. The study
used both primary and secondary qualitative sources of data. The primary
data collection procedures were involved in recording interviews with the
beauty center owners, managers, workers, and customers, visiting and
observing the businesses. Hussain’s 2018 study was based on an
ethnographic approach. Karjaluoto et al. (2015) examined the current state
of digital marketing communications (DMC) in 6 industrial firms. Results
indicate that firms use DMC to improve customer relationship
communications, support sales, and create awareness. Karjialuoto et al.
investigated industrial marketing communication tools and the role of digital
channels. It draws from the literature on industrial marketing
communications to examine its goals and intended utilization in industrial
firms. The research examined three research insights. First, although DMC is
one of the most critical industrial marketing communication tools, firms
have not yet used it to its full potential. Second, firms use DMC to enhance
customer relationship communications, support sales, and create awareness.
Third, firms have not employed social media tools as part of DMC as widely
as traditional digital tools. The growing number of stakeholders and the
fragmentation of the media landscape have led to a rethinking of marketing
communications in industrial firms. Digital marketing communication,
mainly when linked to corporate branding and in support of personal selling,
has begun attracting the interests of both practitioners and academics. Every
company faces the question of how to maximize the potential gains from
digital media channels. As a result, effective marketing communication has
become a strategic management objective for successful firms.
Hongzhi et al. (2018) used a qualitative approach to gain an
understanding of the nature of the marketing communication processes and
how digital channels are intertwined. To better capture the variety of
industrial marketing contexts, the multiple case-study approaches were used.
Although the study is quite recent, it has some limitations. The findings are
based on extensive empirical data, they represent only six industrial
companies, and so the results cannot be generalized to other settings.
Considering these limitations, future studies in the field would be required.
Hongzhi et al.’s research study found that brand difference is an essential
component of international marketing strategy. Hongzhi et al. identified
global consumer culture positioning, foreign consumer culture positioning,
and local consumer culture positioning as critical positioning strategies to
achieve brand differentiation in the international market. Makhitha (2016)
was able to determine that the use of social media would help craft
producers to overcome some of the challenges they currently face, such as
lack of branding of their business and product. Marketing executives and
other senior marketers in a different organization can use digital marketing
strategies to set business goals and measurable objectives that may increase
awareness and branding, promote brand content, increase exposure to
generate traffic, leads, and sales, thereby reducing marketing costs and
improving profitability.
Figueiredo and Scaraboto’s (2016) research study found that social
media marketing has emerged as a useful marketing tool used by companies
to influence and track consumer behavior providing benefits such as value
and content creation through the adoption of a circulation-centric
perspective. Aspects of social media can be effectively used to improve
customer loyalty and brand culture creation (Lacoste, 2016; Raab et al.,
2016; Schivinski et al., 2016). Social media is a useful tool for consumer
empowerment to complement offline consumer activity (Yuksel et al.,
2016). Although a cooperative effect is present, social media marketing has
the overall positive most significant impact not only on increasing sale
profitability but also positively influenced the purchase of high-margin
products (Kumar et al., 2016). Also, social media's ability to allow
customers a voice, regarding comments and likes, enabled a high level of
effectiveness. Jochims (2016) indicated the importance of social reciprocity
as a small business success factor. To summarize, social media marketing
has transformed the marketing landscape, providing a two-way
communication channel between consumers and companies. When
customers are more engaged, they become brand advocates leading to
increased profits for companies. Understanding and adopting the right social
media strategy has a huge social impact as it can reduce the failure rates of
corporations.
Transition
Section 1 of this study includes the foundation and background for the
study as it relates to (a) the problem and purpose statements, (b) nature of
the study, (c) research question, (d) the conceptual framework, (e) definition
of terms, (f) significance of the study, and (g) academic literature review.
The section's focus was to explore the social media marketing strategies used
by business leaders to increase customer engagement.
The detailed literature review was split into 5 parts. First, I provided a brief
overview of social media marketing strategies, its effect on the consumer
buying behavior and the NREL (networking, representation, engagement,
and listening-in), which is the conceptual framework of this study. Next, I
described the adoption and use of social media marketing strategies (SMM)
by companies and the N-REL theory was described. Then, I addressed the
theoretical components of N-REL theory. such as representation,
engagement, and listening-in activities.
Next, I applied the conceptual framework to social media marketing
through an in-depth exploration of factors such as relationship, content,
value creation, innovation, complexity, and influence of social media on
consumer behavior. This was followed by a review of the literature on the
impact of SMM on sales and financial performance and the importance of
small businesses to economic development, and the significance and
utilization of small business marketing strategies. The literature review was
concluded with a focus on social media marketing strategies used by
business leaders.
In Section 2, I provide more details of the research project, including
the role of the researcher, the participants, the research method and design,
data collection and analysis procedures, ethical considerations, reliability,
and validity. Section 3 includes a detailed presentation of the findings and a
description of the application to professional practice and implications for
change.
Section 2: The Project
Section 2 includes a detailed plan about specific aspects of the
research methodology and design used in this study to explore how business
leaders successfully use social media marketing strategies to ensure business
viability. I describe my role as the researcher and the primary research
instrument, in-depth details of participants, ethical guidelines for
consideration, the research method and design for the study, data analysis,
and the establishment of reliability and validity in the study. Section 3
includes an explanation of the data collection process. This section also
contains the findings, application to professional practice, the implication for
social change, recommendations, ethical, reliability, and validity
considerations.
Purpose Statement
The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore the
social media marketing strategies used by business leaders to increase
customer engagement. The targeted population comprised of business
leaders from three corporations located in the northeast region of the United
States who implemented successful strategies to improve customer
engagement. The business leaders selected for this study had experienced a
high ROI of 20% or more in their social media marketing campaigns. The
results of this study may contribute to social change by the opportunity for
additional business leaders to acquire new strategies for using social media
to engage their customers, which could result in job creation and improved
economies in local communities.
Role of the Researcher
The role of the researcher in the data collection phase of a qualitative
study involves a wide range of procedural tasks, including recruiting
participants, obtaining informed consent, and scheduling baseline and
follow-up interviews (LeCroix et al., 2019). I served as the primary
researcher in this study. My first task as the primary researcher in this study
was to identify participants for this study. The participants were successful
business leaders who have used social media marketing strategies to increase
customer engagement. My primary role was to ensure that the data
collection instruments were valid and accurate.
For this study, I had no relationship with the topic or participants;
therefore, reducing the risk of bias. One way I identified bias was to perform
a test of the degree to which I am open to contrary evidence I also reported
my findings to two or more colleagues so that they can offer alternative
explanations for data collection. Another popular way of seeking
confirmation in qualitative research is through the strategy of triangulation,
which among other aspects, advocates the use of multiple methods to collect
data, analyzing such data with different methods, or even including the
participation of other researchers who study the same phenomenon (Abdalla
et al., 2018). I used triangulation in my research study to ensure that
participant responses are analyzed from various perspectives, devoid of my
personal views.
My central role as the researcher was to minimize bias by remaining
objective and maintaining neutrality, as well as adhering to the ethics
guidelines outlined in the Belmont Report (National Commission for the
Protection of Human Subjects of Biomedical and Behavioral Research,
1979). The Belmont Report guidelines include obtaining consent from
individual participants, ensuring benefits were maximized and risks
minimized and ensuring participant safety and confidentiality throughout the
research process (National Commission for the Protection of Human
Subjects of Biomedical and Behavioral Research, 1979). According to
Vollmer and Howard (2010), the Belmont Report allows for a positive
solution, which at times may be challenging to find, to future subjects who
are not capable of making independent decisions.
I also aimed to follow the ethical principles and guidelines in the
Belmont Report (U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, 2016). The
ethical guidelines included obtaining consent from individual participants,
ensuring benefits were maximized and risks minimized and ensuring
participant safety and confidentiality throughout the research process. To
help me adhere to the ethical principles and guidelines, I completed the
Protecting Human Research Subjects training. Once my study was
completed, I submitted my proposal to the Walden University Institutional
Review Board for approval.
Yin (2018) noted the importance of identifying personal experiences
relevant to the topic and relationships with the participants. I have no
relationship with the topic or study participants. Therefore, potential bias
was mitigated even before the research began. Triangulation is also an
essential component of reducing bias during the data collection phase (Yin,
2018). Given my limited prior experience in social media marketing, my
focus was on mitigating potential bias by conducting a comprehensive
literature review before the data collection phase of my research study.
Member checking also helps to reduce bias by ensuring that the participant
interview data used in the study is what the participant meant to say (Birt et
al., 2016). In this study, I used member checking to minimize bias by having
participants review their responses for accuracy.
My research on social media marketing strategies used by business
leaders to increase customer engagement was guided by the interview
protocol outlined in Appendix A. Interview protocol or guides are useful in
qualitative research for outlining the research topic background, summaries,
and structure of the interview (Abdel Latif, 2019). I adhered to a
semistructured interview protocol by relaying essential bits of information
during the interview such as stating what the purpose of the interview was,
what will happen to the information obtained, allaying any confidentiality
concerns my study participants may have and allowing participants to
review their responses for accuracy.
Participants
Study participants included business leaders in the northeast region of
the United States who have experienced a high ROI of 20% or more in their
social media marketing campaigns. My research participants were identified
in LinkedIn. First, I created a LinkedIn profile that clearly indicated that I
was a researcher using LinkedIn for research purposes and to recruit
members of my targeted companies. I then identified participants on
LinkedIn by searching using the keyword "social media marketing manager"
and specifying country as "United States". I sent out 100 invitations to
managers to join my LinkedIn research network. Accepted requests were
limited to persons in my target population, which was six business leaders
working for three companies located in the northeast region of the United
States. This strategy was to ensure that my study is aligned with current
recommendations for multiple case study (see Rule & John, 2015; Yin,
2018). This method is called targeted snowball sampling where a qualified
participant shares an invitation with other subjects like them who fulfill the
qualifications defined for the targeted population (Dusek et al., 2015).
I sent a letter to owners of those companies that met the criteria for the
research asking them to participate in my research study. I got responses
from more than three companies and retained their names and contact
information in case some participants drop out of the study (see Rule &
John, 2015; Yin, 2018). I was ready to expand my research criteria to the
whole of the United States if I was unable to get enough responses. To
establish working relationships with participants, I built a rapport through
casual conversion with my study participants and introduce myself before
beginning formal interviews.
Research Method and Design
Research Method
I used a qualitative method to explore the social media marketing
strategies used by business leaders to increase customer engagement.
Qualitative methodology was appropriate for this study because using
qualitative methodology facilitated the exploration of specific expressions of
the participants' business experiences. Researchers use qualitative methods
to solicit responses to open-ended questions and to capture accurate data
enabling the discovery of new thoughts and individual views (Yin, 2018).
Quantitative methodology was not appropriate for this study because
quantitative researchers examine, present, and describe relationships and
trends within data using computational techniques such as tables, graphs,
and statistics (Saunders et al., 2015). A mixed methodology was not
appropriate for this study because mixed methods’ researchers use both a
qualitative element and quantitative element that include hypotheses testing,
which is part of the quantitative or mixed method research (Saunders et al.,
2015). Since this study did not involve examining causal relationships and
trends within data; therefore, neither a quantitative nor mixed method
approach was appropriate. A quantitative method would have been
appropriate if the focus were on whether social media marketing is used, or
if the study was dependent on another quantifiable factor. However, the
study's focus was to gain an in-depth understanding of how business leaders
use social media marketing strategies to increase customer engagement.
Therefore, a qualitative method was more appropriate than a quantitative
method for this study (Yin, 2018).
Research Design
For this study, I used a qualitative exploratory multiple case study
design to explore the social media marketing strategies used by business
leaders to increase customer engagement. The rationale for using a
qualitative case study design was to obtain an in-depth understanding of how
business leaders use social media marketing strategies to increase customer
engagement. Researchers use multiple sources of evidence in a case study to
answer their research questions (Gog, 2015). A qualitative exploratory
multiple case study design is most appropriate for this study because various
sources of evidence can be used to understand the business problem better.
Exploratory case studies are adequate when little information is available
(Yin, 2018). Results generated from exploratory case studies may serve as a
basis for subsequent research studies (Yin, 2018).
Methodological triangulation goes a long way towards ensuring data
saturation through multiple data sources. Triangulation ensures that data is
rich in depth and may provide more answers the research question. (Yin,
2018). Data saturation is achieved by the researcher when similar patterns
repeat, and no new information has emerged (Saunders et al., 2018). I
achieved data saturation in my research study through member checking. A
synthesis of my study participant’s responses was provided to ensure their
intended responses are presented. I then continued the member checking
follow-up process until no new information was obtained. Multiple case
studies can result in more analytic conclusions (Tumele, 2015). For this
study, a multiple case study approach is more appropriate to answer the
research question than a single case study.
The phenomenological design methodology was not appropriate for
the study because researchers that use this design approach focus primarily
on interviews to explore the lived experiences of participants (see citation).
Phenomenological studies are more relevant for studies where the
participants describe their experiences (citation). The research study is more
interested in participant opinion and not their experiences. Similarly,
researchers use miniethnographic designs to explore the cultural elements of
a given phenomenon (Hammersley, 2017). The miniethnography research
design was not appropriate for this study. This approach is more effective in
understanding the complicated nature and complexity of human behavior
and perceptions about products, purchasing decisions, and the use of
products (Hammersley, 2017). Narrative research is a study of the ways
humans experience the world and provides researchers with insights into
their phenomenon of study (Clandinin & Connelly, 1990). The narrative
design approach was not used because the research design is more effective
when a study has more than one participant providing a personal account of
a given context.
Population and Sampling
For this qualitative multiple case study, the population comprised of
businesses leaders that had effectively implemented social media marketing
strategies to improve customer engagement. According to Yin (2018),
qualitative researchers using multiple case study approaches, can expect to
obtain rich data from multiple sources, with a sample of three to five
participants. Based on these guidelines, my study participants for this
research included six business leaders of three corporations located in the
northeast region of the United States who experienced a high ROI of 20% or
more in their social media marketing campaigns. In selecting my sample
size, my goal was to estimate the number of participants that were necessary
to reach data saturation. Data saturation is achieved when there is no longer
any new information emerging from the new data collected (Yin, 2018).
My first step was to create a LinkedIn profile clearly indicating that I
am a researcher using LinkedIn for research purposes and to recruit
members of my targeted companies. I then ascertained the qualifications of
the participants to ensure that they met the established criteria of being
business leaders who have used social media marketing strategies
successfully. This was done by identifying the individual members of the
targeted population on LinkedIn by searching using the keyword "social
media marketing manager" and specifying country as "United States". I then
sent out 100 invitations to managers to join my LinkedIn research network. I
also asked participants to recommend other social media marketers.
Accepted requests were limited to persons in my target population, which
was six business leaders working for three companies located in the
northeast region of the United States.
Researchers can use snowball sampling to select the participants who
can provide information relevant to the research purpose (Dusek et al.,
2015). The advantage of snowball sampling is that the method allows the
researcher to build a trusting relationship with their study participants who
might not want to reveal their winning social media marketing strategies for
fear of competition. The process provides a cheap, simple, and cost-efficient
sampling technique and needs little planning and fewer workforce compared
to other sampling techniques (Dusek et al., 2015). In such an approach, a
qualified participant shares an invitation with other subjects like them who
fulfill the qualifications defined for the targeted population (Dusek et al.,
2015).
Historically, snowball sampling has been used by researchers in
qualitative studies to contact qualified subjects and develop a social
relationship (Dusek et al., 2015). This design methodology was more
appropriate because it ensured that I achieve data saturation by allowing me
to capture and analyze rich data from multiple participants. Having various
participants' s data provided more substantial data for comprehensive
analysis and pattern repetition (Tumele, 2015).
Ethical Research
When I received approval from Walden University's Institutional
Review Board, an approval number: 07-31-20-0748063 was generated for
this study. It is essential to include a written consent form and confidentiality
statement so that participants understand that their participation is voluntary
and that they can withdraw from the study at any (Yin, 2018). A written
consent form and confidentiality statement was provided to my research
study participants. A clear outline of the study withdrawal process was
provided to ensure participants' understanding. The first step of the study
withdrawal process was for the participant to call or email me, indicating
that they were no longer interested in participating in the study. Once this
was received, I deleted all information related to the participant.
No incentive was provided to study participants as I hoped to recruit
from populations who could benefit from the research. According to a 2015
study by Williams and Walter, monetary compensation for a study may exert
an undue influence on those who would otherwise not consent to participate
in it. Wong et al. (2018) discussed the importance of giving participants a
copy of the study findings. I offered a copy of the study findings to all
participants. The company, individual names or personal identifiers were not
included in the study documents, notes from interviews, and social media
content analysis to ensure confidentiality. Instead, I assigned participant case
numbers to all documents to protect the identity of participants. Names of
individuals and organizations were coded using alphanumeric codes to
protect the identities of the owners and businesses. Data containing only
participant numbers were stored in a password protected online file and a
locked computer at my place of residence. I intend to delete all electronic
files after 5 years to ensure the confidentiality of participants and minimize
any potential risk to participants. This includes shredding and disposal of
paper files.
Data Collection Instruments
Yin (2018) noted that in qualitative research studies, the researcher is
the primary data collection instrument. Since my research was a qualitative
multiple case study, I served as the primary data collection instrument. The
data collection for the study included semistructured interviews of six
business leaders of three corporations located in the northeast region of the
United States who implemented successful strategies to improve customer
engagement. I used member checking to ensure reliability and validity by
providing a synthesis of the participants' responses. Member checking
ensured that the synthesis represents the participants' intended responses.
The member checking followup process continued until no new information
was obtained, and I achieved data saturation.
My research data collection took place through in-depth
semistructured qualitative interviews with business leaders that have used
social media marketing strategies to improve customer engagement. I
conducted these interviews over the phone and over email depending on the
availability of the participants. Telephone interviews provided insight from
participants due to the added participant comfort relative to faceto-face
interviews (see Mazar et al., 2015). All interviews were recorded using a
voice recorder with the permission of the participants.
Saunders et al. (2015) stated that the most used method for qualitative
data collection is the participant interview, from which data can be collected
using notes, audio recording, or video recording. I allocated between 60 and
90 minutes for each interview. During the interview I stayed neutral and
showed no emotional or personal feelings (Saunders et al., 2015). The
interviews detailed the marketing professionals’ social media marketing
experiences used to increase customer engagement. Data compilation
involved examining existing data to derive new information (Breidbach &
Maglio, 2016). I organized the compiled data in Microsoft Word and Excel
and then imported the information into NVivo for disassembly.
Data Collection Technique
The intended data collection technique for this research study was
semistructured interviews. Semistructured interviews are a recognized
qualitative data collection technique where a researcher uses preset interview
questions to prompt responses and provide a participant with the opportunity
to elaborate on interview questions and subject matter (Kallio et al., 2016). I
used semistructured interviews of six business leaders of three corporations
located in the northeast region of the United States who implemented
successful strategies to improve customer engagement. Given that this is a
social media marketing study, it was important to understand the level of
online two-way engagement of the participants. For this reason, I made the
first contact with my potential participants through their personal social
media (LinkedIn page). This also had its disadvantages as I might have
potentially missed out on participants that do not respond to their personal
social media requests.
Participants that responded to my personal social media requests were
asked to acknowledge their interest in taking part in my research study. My
research interview began with each participant reading and signing a consent
form. The interview protocol included an introduction of the purpose of the
study and an explanation of the interview process to the participants.
Semistructured interviews have the advantage of giving the researcher the
ability to unearth rich descriptions, learn in-depth strategies, and engage in
detail with each participant (Kallio et al., 2016). The disadvantages of
collecting data through semistructured interviews is that the findings are not
generalizable and are restricted to the participants within the study. Due to
the Corona virus health pandemic, I conducted each interview by phone,
email, or messaging on participant’s personal social media websites. Once
the interview began, I paid close attention to nonverbal cues and asked
follow-up questions ensuring appropriate depth in the participant’s
responses. At the end of the interview, I thanked the participant for their
time in allowing me the opportunity to interview them.
I arranged for appropriate follow-up dates for member checking to
take place to ensure the accuracy, credibility, and validity of the interview
data. I also arranged additional communications as deemed appropriate by
the participants. A copy of the summary composed of their responses, asking
if the summary is accurate, ensuring that all participants are aware of IRB
approval, that interpretations of their responses are accurate, and valid and
that no key information was omitted was shared with participants.
Participants had the opportunity to add additional information to their
semistructured interviews. To ensure confidentiality, each participant was
represented as an unidentifiable label such as: participant 1 (P1), participant
2 (P2), and so on.
I ensured that the data was kept properly and logged correctly. Each
interview was recorded using an electronic audio recording device.
Appropriate extensive notes of each participant interview and a summary of
those notes were maintained. These notes were converted into a
cataloguing/labeling system. The cataloguing/labeling system were used to
keep track of the interview and artifact data. All raw data was stored in a
safe and secure location for a minimum of 5 years. Researchers using a case-
study approach construct validity through data collection and composition
via the utilization of multiple sources of evidence and establishing a chain of
evidence (Yin, 2018). In this study, I collected multiple sources of data to
ensure construct validity. I also achieved credibility through data
triangulation. Researchers incorporate internal validity in the data analysis
phase through proper coding, pattern matching, and explanation building
(Saunders et al.,
2015).
Data Organization Technique
Researchers use thematic analysis to analyze large qualitative data sets
leading to rich descriptions, explanations, and theorizing (Saunders et al.,
2015). I electronically organized data collected from participants into groups
by participants using NVivo, a Computer Assisted Qualitative Data Analysis
Software (CAQDAS) tool. NVivo is used by researchers to code themes
from research study interviews (Zamawe, 2015). Data was then sorted later
into common themes. By completing this analysis, I was able to make sense
of the information and reported the data for my research study. To protect
the identity of study participants, the names of individuals and organization
were coded using an alpha numeric system.
My original notes were kept on file to ensure a backup of information.
All raw data was stored securely for 5 years. I destroyed the data after 5
years and did not provide access to the raw data (with participant identities)
to anyone else. Data saturation is achieved by the researcher when similar
patterns repeat, and no new information has emerged (Saunders et al., 2015).
If used member checking to provide a synthesis of the participant responses
to ensure the synthesis represents the participant’s intended responses and
any additional information necessary. The member checking follow-up
process continued until no new information was obtained. Multiple case
studies can result in more powerful analytic conclusions (Yin, 2018).
Data Analysis
The data analysis phase enables a researcher to discover patterns,
descriptions, and themes to answer the research questions (Stewart et al.,
2017). I used Yin’s (2018) 5step data analysis process for my study. This
enabled me to examine, categorize, and test the evidence. The 5-step process
requires following a series of activities in sequence, which include
compiling, disassembling, reassembling, or arranging, and interpreting the
data and then presenting conclusions (Yin, 2018). The systematic and
rigorous preparation and analysis of qualitative research data is usually time
consuming and labor intensive. To lessen this burden, it is important that
researchers use Computer Assisted Qualitative Data Analysis Software
(CAQDAS) such as ATLAS.ti, MAXqda, NVivo and N6 (Zamawe, 2015) to
analyze their data. I used NVivo for my research study because the tool has
features such as character-based coding, rich text capabilities and
multimedia functions that are crucial for qualitative data management.
Data Triangulation involved the use of multiple and different methods,
researchers, sources, and theories to obtain corroborating evidence (Yin,
2018). Anney (2015) noted the importance of using triangulation to improve
data analysis, reduce bias and cross examine the integrity of participant
responses. Data compilation involves examining existing data to derive new
information (Breidbach & Maglio, 2016). In this study, I collected data from
semistructured interviews. Data was organized and compiled in Microsoft
Word and Excel and then imported into NVivo for disassembly. I collected
multiple sources of data to ensure construct validity. Using data triangulation
in my study may help my study achieve credibility. Researchers incorporate
internal validity in the data analysis phase through thematic coding, pattern
matching, and explanation building (Saunders et al., 2015).
Yin (2018) outlined a post-data collection process of organizing and
coding data, identifying themes, and drawing conclusions. As part of the
interpretation process, I looked for common themes within the coded data in
NVivo. I cross referenced key themes that emerged from the data against
theoretical material outlined in the literature themes (Oliveira et al., 2016). I
then explored the potential existence of common themes first within each
case, and, next, across multiple cases.
Disassembling is the act of separating data into fragments of
information and is the second phase of the data analysis process (Yin, 2018).
After compiling data, a researcher separates the information to look for
hidden clues (Castleberry & Nolen, 2018). Coding involves processing raw
data and then dissembling the data into fragments with the use of codes
(Firmin et al., 2017). Thematic coding allows the researcher to find clues
and cluster related segments together (Stuckey, 2015). When disassembling
data, a researcher should crosscheck collected data with research logs,
observations, audio recordings, and transcripts (Panteli et al., 2019). I
disassembled the data by reviewing all personal notes, recordings, and
interview transcripts, subsequently using NVivo to support the coding
process.
Reassembling and rearranging hidden clues to classify into themes is
the third phase of the data analysis process (Yin, 2018). Identifying themes
is necessary for researchers to answer the research questions (Ganapathy,
2016). Many qualitative researchers use NVivo to detect, classify, and
organize data to develop themes (Oliveira et al., 2016).
The fourth step in Yin’s (2018) 5-step data analysis process is to
interpret the data according to the themes uncovered. Interpretation involves
understanding and making sense of the collected data (Haines et al., 2015). I
interpreted the study findings based on the previously identified themes.
The final step in data analysis is concluding the study (Yin, 2018). In
qualitative studies, researchers connect the themes to answer the research
questions (Nowell et al., 2017). To ensure the appropriate interpretation of
results, I applied the member checking process to support accurate data
interpretation (Stansen & Chambers, 2019). My research developed key
themes and Yin’s (2018) 5-step process was used to ensure appropriate data
analysis and rigor. This led to accurate and reliable research results.
Reliability and Validity
Reliability
Reliability and validity are essential criteria for determining quality in
research projects. They are used to measure how well a method or technique
works. Reliability is about the consistency of a measure, and validity is
about the accuracy of a measure (Saunders et al., 2015). Researchers can
achieve reliability and validity in several ways during each phase of the
research project. During the data collection process, reliability can be
achieved by setting up and following a case-study interview protocol and
organizing data in a database (Yin, 2018). For my research study, I ensured
reliability by creating an interview protocol and database for data collected
to ensure that all data was collected and stored utilizing the same coding and
collection process.
Member checking is a process in which study participants are invited
to check, comment on, or approve the researchers’ data or interpretations
(Iivari, 2018). It is used to ensure that the data is correct or meaningful from
the viewpoint of the study participants. I used member checking in my study
to minimize bias thereby improving the study’s accuracy. Yin (2018) noted
the importance of documenting each step in the research process and data
collection to ensure reliability.
Validity
Validity can be achieved in qualitative research by ensuring data
saturation (Yin, 2018). Researchers using a case-study approach construct
validity through data collection and composition via the utilization of
multiple sources of evidence and establishing a chain of evidence (Yin,
2018). In this study, I collected multiple sources of data to ensure construct
validity. I also achieved credibility through data triangulation. Researchers
incorporate internal validity in the data analysis phase through proper
coding, pattern matching, and explanation building (Saunders et al., 2015).
In this study, my aim was to ensure internal validity by creating a coding
process in Excel to ensure data is accurately coded using a set protocol.
Credibility
In qualitative studies, credibility indicates validity (Yin, 2018).
Credibility is the degree to which research results are believable (Yin, 2018).
Member checking constitutes a check of credibility. Rich descriptions of
business contexts will be included in my final report. Rich description
contributes to credibility (Yin, 2018). Also, participant confidentiality is of
the utmost importance and should not be compromised. I achieved this by
masking participant names and using unique identifiers. Process
documentation is useful for discussing other points of view to show that I
have taken them into account
(Yin, 2018).
Transferability
Transferability enables researchers to apply research results to other
settings. I ensured that my research study showed transferability by clearly
identifying the research study limitations, outlining interview protocol and
adhering to it (Saunders et al., 2015). I also addressed issues of
transferability by clearly detailing the sample, data collection, and coding
process.
Confirmability
Confirmability is a study free from researcher bias (Spiers et al.,
2018). According to Vogt and Johnson, (2016), keeping a reflective journal
provides the researcher an opportunity to audit the study and achieve. In this
study, I maintained an audit trail and reflective journal and ensured the
responses are those of participants and not my personal bias. I used
bracketing throughout data collection and analysis, suspending assumptions
and became aware of any preconceived notions to minimize bias
(Mertens et al., 2017).
Data Saturation
According to Cope (2015), data saturation occurs when the researcher
obtains sufficient information to answer the research questions and no new
themes emerge from additional data collection or sampling. Saldana (2016)
further identified data saturation as the point when no new information,
properties, conditions, dimensions, consequences, or actions emerge during
the coding process. Data saturation strengthens confirmability in a case
study (Yazan, 2015). To achieve data saturation, I conduct face-to-face,
semistructured interviews with follow-up questions as needed. When
respondents began to give the same answers, saturation had occurred and the
interviews ended (Bedwell et al., 2015). To ensure data saturation, I
continued to conduct interviews until no new themes emerge. I achieved
saturation with the business leader participants from 3 corporations located
in the northeast region of the United States; thus, no further sampling was
needed.
Transition and Summary
In this research, I explored the social media marketing strategies to
improve customer engagement. The section describes the detailed data
collection, management, and analysis procedures and addressed the
appropriateness of the research design for this study. Additionally, I discuss
the population and sample, the recruitment and participant protection
procedures. By contributing an understanding of social media marketing
strategies used by business leaders to improve customer service, the results
of the study, may help businesses practitioners and researchers develop
strategies that business leaders can implement to increase market share and
improve profit. In section 3, I present the findings of this research, describe
their application to professional practice, discuss implications for social
change, recommend actions and future research, and reflect on the study.
Section 3: Application to Professional Practice and Implications for Change
Introduction
The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore the
social media marketing strategies used by business leaders to increase
customer engagement. Data collection was from semistructured interviews
with six business leaders working for three corporations located in the
northeast region of the United States who experienced a high ROI of 20% or
more in their social media marketing campaigns. The participants read,
signed, and returned a signed consent form to take part in the research study.
The consent form comprised information about the study, confidentiality,
and the process for voluntarily withdrawing from the study.
Study participants included six business leaders of three corporations
located in the northeast region of the United States who experienced a ROI
of 20% or more in their social media marketing campaigns. The study
participants responded to open-ended interview questions based on the
interview protocol (see Appendix A). Data saturation was achieved after the
fifth participant interview and ensured after the sixth. Member checking was
employed to aid in ensuring proper interpretation of the participant’s
responses and in the data saturation process. With the use of thematic
content analysis and auto coding in NVIVO, four themes emerged: (a) social
media marketing strategies used, (b) platforms used for social media
marketing, (c) measurement of success, and (d) key challenges and
advantages of social media use. I present the findings in this section namely:
social media marketing strategies used by business leaders, type of social
media used, social media content and the advantages and challenges of
social media use. I also discuss its application to professional practice and
implications for social change and how the results of this study are
applicable to business practice. Finally, I offer suggestions for future
research and provide a final reflection of this study and an overall
conclusion.
Presentation of the Findings
The research question for this qualitative study was “What social
media marketing strategies do business leaders use to increase customer
engagement?” The data collection process included conducting interviews
with six business leaders of three corporations located in the northeast region
of the United States who experienced a high ROI of 20% or more in their
social media marketing campaign. Participants were eligible to participate if
they (a) were social media marketing managers, (b) were located in the
northeast region of the United States, and (c) had an ROI of 20% or more in
their social media marketing campaign. I conducted all interviews between
September 01, 2020 and
November 15, 2020.
Table 2 provides information about participant’s ROI eligibility. As
part of member checking and to determine social media marketing ROI,
participants were asked about their profit from social media marketing and
their total investment. Fu et al., (2018) defined marketing ROI as the
practice of attributing profit and revenue growth to the impact of marketing
initiatives. The researchers provided a simple formula to calculate marketing
ROI enabling organizations to measure the degree to which marketing
efforts either holistically, or on a campaign-basis, contribute to revenue
growth. Table 2 provides an overview of participants and their social media
marketing ROI percentages.
The table uses the alphanumeric codes of P1 to P6 to ensure confidentiality.
Table 2
Summary of Participant Revenue, Investment and ROI
ROI details in USD per
Requirement annum
P1 P2 P3 P4 P5 P6
Total Revenue from
social media
marketing
campaigns
100,000
40,000
200,000
90,000
60,000
65,000
Total campaign
Investment
1,800
1,200
10,200
5,400
1,500
1,900
ROI Percentage
(%)
(Total Revenue –
Investment) / Total
Investment * 100
5,455% 3,233% 1,860% 1566% 3,900% 3,321%
Note: Total Revenue and Campaign Investment displayed in US dollars.
ROI is a percentage.
I followed the interview protocol outlined in Appendix A. Due to the
ongoing COVID-19 virus pandemic, interviews were conducted using
LinkedIn messenger and email. After I received the responses, I conducted
member checking by drafting a one- to two-page summary of each
interview, along with additional clarifications on questions answered and
emailed those to the participant. I followed up with a phone call to ensure
that I captured all the interview answers accurately. All six participants
replied to my email confirming that I had interpreted the information from
the interviews accurately. I continued the member checking process until
there was no new information received from the participants.
Once the member checking process was completed and all data was
checked for accuracy, I uploaded the data into NVivo, a qualitative analysis
tool. I subsequently analyzed the data using Yin’s (2018) guidelines. These
guidelines included (a) a review of the collected data, (b) data organization,
(c) data coding, and (d) themes development to draw inferences and
conclusions. The analysis of all data sources advanced four main themes: (a)
social media marketing strategies used, (b) platforms used for social media
marketing, (c) measuring social media marketing success, and (d) key
challenges and advantages of social media use. These themes align with the
different marketing actions defined in the N-Rel conceptual framework
which focuses on how the four marketing actions networking,
representation, engagement, and listening-in increase customer engagement
(see Anandaa et al., 2016).
In the following sections, the four themes and 12 subthemes are
explained in more details and linked to previous literature as well as the N-
Rel framework - the conceptual framework of this study. Participant quotes
are used to support claims, and frequency tables are used to represent the
importance of key findings.
Theme 1: Social Media Marketing Strategies Used
The first theme related to the social media marketing strategies used
by participants to increase customer engagement is linked to questions 1, 2,
4 and 7. Before discussing the various social media marketing strategies that
business leaders use, I will introduce the factors that may lead to an increase
in customer engagement. It is essential that business leaders are fully aware
of the needs of their audiences. In this regard, participants highlighted
having knowledge of the right social media marketing strategies to use to
increase customer engagement. Similarly, previous studies have shown the
importance of marketing actions on customer engagement. Social media
marketing strategies comprise of the four-layered abilities to connect,
engage, co-ordinate and collaborate with customers. It rests on marketing
activities to create actions and interactions with customers and businesses
(Drummond et al., 2020). These marketing activities may range from a
simple connection to a customer or the cocreation of a new service or
product using customer feedback and interactions on social media.
Statements made about factors that contributed to increasing customer
engagement regarding social media marketing resulted in the development
of 12 subthemes: (a) providing personalized customer experience, (b)
efficient content marketing, (c) community group creations, (d) measuring
campaign success, (e) use of brand advocates, (f) creation of profiles on
relevant channels, (g) paid advertising, (h) setting social media marketing
budgets, (i) content creation, (j) live streaming, (k) defining target
customers. and (l) face to face marketing. I have provided further description
and explanation for each theme in several succeeding paragraphs.
The social media marketing strategies used, varied by case with
content creation and campaign success measurement being the most popular
strategies used. For example,
Participant 1 relied mostly on creating engaging content and noted “I find
engaging topics to post on my social media platforms that are either trending
or relevant to a subject”. Participant 5 also emphasized the importance of
measuring ROI noting that “Consistent content delivery with clear, concise
direction over the course of a year will bring you to a point where you can
begin to achieve an ROI”. Participant 2 also stated:
The key is to keep the social media engagement friendly and relatable.
Very few people want everything to be all business all the time. It is
important to sound like a real human and relate to the audience on a
personal level. It should be fun and even entertaining at times!
Add summary and synthesis to fully integrate the quote into the paragraph.
Avoid ending paragraphs in a direct quote.
Table C1 provides a list of 12 subthemes associated with social media
marketing strategies from all interviews. I explored these subthemes further
in the following subsections, and support this with direct participant quotes.
Additionally, a thorough explanation is provided regarding how these
subthemes are linked to existing literature and the conceptual framework of
this study.
Theme 1, Subtheme 1: Personalized Customer Experiences
In the first subtheme business leaders in my study highlighted the
importance of providing personalized customer experiences to increase
customer engagement. This is supported by research by Chang et al. (2019),
who suggested that consumers respond more to personalized advertising.
Companies can use warm and competent images combined with appropriate
narrative person to present their brands. In this regard, two participants in
my study, mentioned peer connections and personal relationships frequently.
For example, Participant 3 emphasized this by noting,
The key is to keep the social media engagement friendly and relatable.
Very few people want everything to be all business all the time. It is
important to sound like a real human and relate to the audience on a
personal level. It should be fun and even entertaining at times!
Participant 1 uses Twitter to connect with peers and promote projects
relevant to customers.
All these statements and actions indicated that personalizing customer
experiences could increase customer engagement and gain more customers.
In alignment with this finding, Chang et al. (2019) similarly highlighted that
customer engagement through narrative person and customer-brand
interactions could increase customer likes. This links directly to the
engagement action of the N-REL framework the conceptual framework for
this study.
Theme 1, Subtheme 2: Efficient Content Marketing
In the second subtheme, business leaders in my study highlighted the
importance of using efficient content marketing to increase customer
engagement. Efficient content marketing is about creating relevant content,
meaningful conversations, and the development of long-term relationships.
In this regard, four participants (9.76%) in my study, mentioned powerful
content promotion, call to action, sharing success stories, valuable content
promotion, consistent content delivery and content awareness. For example,
Participant 4 emphasized this by noting “We post health information that
targets our patient population. Remind patients when it’s time for annual
physicals vaccinations and promotional events at the clinic. Patients are able
to reach us via social media and we respond immediately”. Participant 3 also
noted,” Overall, social media is about giving your audience something to
talk about”. Participant 6 emphasized this
stating,
I use social media to create a much-needed awareness for my content.
I would send out fliers on my social media platforms to inform of
impending interviews to be featured on my YouTube channel and any
of my streaming platforms.
Add summary and synthesis to fully conclude the paragraph.
All the statements mentioned above indicated that efficient content
promotion could increase customer engagement and strengthen customer
branding. This study aligns with findings by Ahmad et al. (2016) who
highlighted the importance of social media content marketing towards brand
health. They emphasized that the main point in sharing the information
through the social media is about the content itself to attract more consumers
to engage with their brands. Social media content marketing (SMCM) also
plays an important role in conveying effective information to the consumers
thus attracting them to keep engaging with the brands (Ahmad et al., 2016).
This links directly to the engagement action of the N-REL framework, the
conceptual framework for this study.
Theme 1, Subtheme 3: Community Creation
In the third subtheme, business leaders in my study highlighted the
importance of community creation to increase customer engagement. Social
media brand communities are electronic communities initiated on the
platform of social media. Matthews (2016) emphasised this by indicating
that social media communities can bring about community engagement and
the development of social capital within deprived neighbourhoods. In this
regard, three participants (3.9%) in my study, mentioned groups, cohorts,
special audiences. For example, Participant 1 emphasized this by noting “I
use Facebook groups to create cohorts of professionals to engage in group
learning (low cost or free) so that I can qualify them for higher ticket
classes.”. Participant 2 also noted,” We use Facebook’s Ad Manager, to
create a reach campaign to reach a special audience - parents that live within
3 to 4 miles radius of our Center”. Add summary and synthesis.
All the statements mentioned above indicated that community creation
could increase customer engagement and develop communities. Mathews
(2016) highlighted the importance of social media brand communities
towards the creation of new networks, skill building, and engaging with a
wider range of people. They emphasized that the main point in building
communities through the social media is giving local people a stronger voice
to make the neighbourhood better (Mathews, 2016). This links directly to the
networking and representing actions of the N-REL framework, the
conceptual framework for this study.
Theme 1, Subtheme 4: Measure
In the fourth subtheme, business leaders in my study highlighted the
importance of measuring social media marketing success to increase
customer engagement. To determine if a social media marketing campaign is
successful it is essential to measure the key performance indicators. This
enables business leaders to adjust social media strategies for optimum
customer engagement. Jan-Frederik (2019) emphasised this by their findings
indicating that professionals generally rely on a social media influencer’s
reach and number of interactions as success metrics. In this regard, four
participants in my study mentioned measures, social media audits, sales,
revenue goals, call tracking, calls received, number of customer reviews,
lead conversion, convert leads to sales, customer reach, feedback, RO),
pixels and insight codes, growth or increase of channels, and number of
subscriptions. For example, Participant 1 emphasized this by noting “I
measure social media campaign success through sales to private fireside
chats, social media audits, discovery calls, strategy sessions and speaking
engagements”. Participant 2 also noted,
” When a customer on Facebook encounters our ad and calls the daycare, the
call is tracked. The success of the Ad is measured by the number of calls
received”. Add summary and synthesis.
All the statements mentioned above indicated that measuring
campaign success could increase customer engagement and improve
marketing efficiencies, which aligns with Jan-Frederik’s (2019) findings.
Jan-Frederikemphasized that firms need some way to evaluate the content
quality and to measure the advertising effectiveness of the sponsored content
in the context in which they appear. This links directly to the listeningin
action of the N-REL framework, the conceptual framework for this study.
Theme 1, Subtheme 5: Use of Brand Advocates
In the fifth subtheme, business leaders in my study highlighted the
importance of using brand advocates to increase customer engagement.
Brand advocates have acquired large audiences of thousands or even
millions of followers on social media platforms such as Facebook, YouTube,
or Instagram, and can communicate to and influence many people with their
messages. Jan-Frederik, (2019) emphasised this by their findings indicating
that these large audiences also attract the attention of brand marketers, which
enter into paid collaborations with brand influencers for advertising or
product placement purposes, in a tactic called influencer marketing. In this
regard, one participant (3.41%) in my study, mentioned influencers,
customer mentions and customer reviews. For example, Participant 1
emphasized this by noting “We sometimes get the help of media
professionals/bloggers/influencers looking to pivot and build businesses
where they are paid for content not time”. Add summary/synthesis.
The statements mentioned above indicated that use of brand advocates
could increase customer engagement and improve brand awareness. Jan-
Frederik, (2019) highlighted this by emphasizing that brand influencers are
more likely to adopt a professional communication approach that enables
them to design appealing, appropriate posts that evoke positive responses by
the audience. This links directly to the relationship and engagement action of
the N-REL framework, the conceptual framework for this study. The
responses of my study’s participants aligned with Jan-Frederik.
Theme 1, Subtheme 6: Creation of Profiles on the Relevant Channels
In the sixth subtheme business leaders in my study highlighted the
importance of creating profiles on relevant social media channels. Creating
profiles on the right social media channels is dependent on the product. For
consumer products, Facebook and Instagram may be the better social media
platforms for reaching consumers. Enterprise products require reaching
businesses and professionals so LinkedIn might be the better social media
platform for advertising. Voorveld et al. (2018) emphasised this by their
findings indicating that on social media the context (i.e., the platform), not
the content, of advertising is a key determinant of its effectiveness. In this
regard, three participants in my study, mentioned cross-channel campaigns,
avatars, profiles, and social platforms.
For example, Participant 1 emphasized this by noting,
Our social media use really depends on the platform. We use
primarily Twitter to connect with peers and promote high level
projects. We use the small feature to share resources with peers. On
Instagram, we rely heavily on stories to talk about our day to day
which normally revolves around our work. We also use the sticker
features to ask questions, do question and answer sessions and to get
signups for coaching classes, special events and to alert brands we are
talking about them. We use Facebook groups to create cohorts of
professionals to engage in group learning (low cost or free) so that we
can qualify them for higher ticket classes.
Summary and Synthesis
The statement mentioned above indicated that the use of various social
media platforms could increase customer engagement and improve
marketing efficiencies. In alignment with this finding, Voorveld et al. (2018)
highlighted this by emphasizing that engagement with a social media
platform spills over into how people engage with advertising within the
platform. They demonstrated that digital engagement is highly platform
specific, and engagement comprises of various types of experiences for
every social media platform. This links directly to the engagement and
listening-in action of the
N-REL framework, the conceptual framework for this study.
Theme 1, Subtheme 7: Paid Advertising. In the seventh subtheme
business leaders in my study highlighted the importance of paid advertising
on relevant social media channels. Paid advertising is used to reach those
audiences with digital content and marketing communications. Appel et al.
(2020) emphasised this by their findings indicating that social media has
become highly culturally relevant, a dominant form of communication and
expression, a major media type used by companies for advertising and other
forms of communication, and even has geopolitical ramifications. In this
regard, two participants (4.39%) in my study, mentioned incentives, paid
content, ads, advertising, search engine optimization (SEO), daily outreach,
paid lead gen campaigns.
For example, Participant 3 emphasized this by noting “We have become
very creative with our paid advertising by trying out different campaign
variations. When something is not working, it is important to reevaluate why
the audience is not engaging, and make adjustments based off of that.”.
The statement mentioned above indicated that the use of paid
advertising could increase customer engagement and improve marketing
actions. In alignment with this finding, Appel et al. (2020) highlighted this
by emphasizing that online promotions and advertisements increase
consumer responses and engagement. This links directly to the engagement
and listening-in action of the N-REL framework, the conceptual framework
for this study.
Theme 1, Subtheme 8: Social Media Marketing Budget. In the eight
subtheme business leaders in my study highlighted the importance of setting
the right social media marketing budget. A company’s social media
marketing budget depends on its goals, cash flow, target audience, and
product or service. According to the 2018 CMO Survey, the longest-running
noncommercial survey among top marketers in the field of marketing, social
media spending now accounts for 13.8% of brands’ total marketing budgets
(Voorveld et al., 2018). In this regard, one participant (0.98%) in my study,
mentioned numbers, budget and significant budget. For example, Participant
5 emphasized this by noting “It is difficult to find the perfect combination of
copy length, creative type, video length, image dimensions, color scheme,
design, etc. that works the best for the intended audience. Oftentimes, it
takes weeks of testing and trial and error to conclude. You must have a
significant budget in place”.
Summary and Synthesis
The statement mentioned above indicated that setting the right social
media marketing budget could increase customer engagement and improve
marketing actions. This study, aligns with the findings of Voorveld et al.,
(2018) that highlighted this by emphasizing that setting an appropriate
market budget should be one piece of a larger marketing pie. This links
directly to the listening-in action of the N-REL framework, the conceptual
framework for this study.
Theme 1, Subtheme 9: Content Creation. In the ninth subtheme
business leaders in my study highlighted the importance of content creation.
Content creation on social media is the contribution of information to digital
media for an end-user or audiences in specific platforms. This is highlighted
by a popular saying by Microsoft founder, Bill
Gates that states “Content is King”. This phrase emphasises the future of the
Internet as a marketplace for content. A 2015 study by Huotari et al. found
that Business to Business (B2B) companies can influence content creation in
social media directly by adding new content, participating in discussions and
removing content through corporate user accounts and controlling employee
social media behavior or indirectly by training employees to create desired
content and performing marketing activities that influence other users to
create content that is favorable for the company. In this regard, all six
participants (28.29%) in my study, mentioned talk about, question and
answer sessions, stories, story sharing, keep customers informed, friendly
and relatable content, fun and entertaining content, lighthearted content,
shared content, commented on content, viral social content, business
announcements, voice development, event promotion, success stories, free
content, promotions, promo offers, send out flyers, trending content, and
relevant content. For example, Participant 3 emphasized this by noting “We
want our audience to relate our marketing agency with viral social content.
Sometimes though, we must post strictly business announcements. We try to
keep them as fun and lighthearted as possible, but the difference in
engagement shows. There’s definitely a balance to aim for”.
Summary and Synthesis
The statement mentioned above indicated that creating the right
content on social media could increase customer engagement and improve
branding. The study aligns with the findings of Huotari et al., (2015) who
highlighted this by emphasizing that marketing communications and
branding have emerged as important areas of management in B2B marketing
This links directly to the networking, representation, engagement and
listening-in actions of the N-REL framework, the conceptual framework for
this study. Theme 1, Subtheme 10: Live Streaming. In the tenth subtheme
business leaders in my study highlighted the importance of live streaming.
Chen, and Lin, (2018), defined live streaming as the real-time audio and
video transmission of an event over the Internet.
In this regard, one participant (2.42%) in my study, mentioned Facebook
live. For example, Participant 1 emphasized this by noting “I teach Facebook
live classes on a variety of topics along the line of entrepreneurship,
financial literacy, marketing strategies and overall business acumen. I
repurpose those talks as podcasts or segments within the learning modules in
my private group”.
Summary and Synthesis
The statement mentioned above indicated that live streaming could
increase customer engagement and improve branding. This aligns the
finding of Chen, & Lin, (2018), who highlighted this by emphasizing that
live streaming has a favorable impression on consumers because they made
people happy relieved stress. The researchers also found that people were
attracted by the charm of the streamers with young people tending to like
live streaming because it gave them a sense of flow. This links directly to the
engagement action of the N-REL framework, the conceptual framework for
this study.
Theme 1, Subtheme 11: Target Customer Definition. In the eleventh
subtheme, business leaders in my study highlighted the importance of
defining target customers. Target customer definition involves defining the
common set of consumer characteristics that will be interested in buying a
company’s product. Voorveld et al. (2018) emphasized this by stating that
data can be used to make brand content more relevant for targeted or specific
groups. This phenomenon is known as personalized advertising, defined as
advertising that is tailored to an individual’s characteristics and/or interests
or tastes. In this regard, all six participants (15.46%) in my study, mentioned
specific audiences, customer base, re-target audience, multiple audiences,
target audience. For example,
Participant 3 emphasized this by noting “When something is not working,
it's important to re-evaluate why the audience isn't engaging, and make
adjustments based off of that. Sometimes, it's the targeting of the
demographic, and other times it may just be that the photo we’re advertising
isn’t genuinely engaging. In each different case scenario though, it's
important to be flexible and ready to adapt”.
Summary and Synthesis
The statement mentioned above indicated that defining the target
audience could increase customer engagement. This aligns with the findings
of Voorveld et al. (2018), who highlighted this by emphasizing that knowing
the characterises of the social media platforms would be most suitable or
effective regarding different brands, communication objectives, and target
groups. This links directly to the listening-in action of the N-REL
framework, the conceptual framework for this study.
Theme 1, Subtheme 12: Word of Mouth Marketing. In the twelfth
subtheme, business leaders in my study highlighted the importance of word-
of-mouth marketing. Word-of-mouth marketing, one of the oldest forms of
marketing, is widely regarded as one of the most influential factors affecting
consumer behavior. This is due to the high reliability and credibility
transmitted by family and friends (Huete-Alcocer, 2017). In this regard,
three participants (1.45%) in my study, mentioned word of mouth marketing.
For example, Participant 2 emphasized this by noting “We encourage our
Parents to mention us on Social Media”. Participant 5 also emphasised the
use of word-of-mouth marketing with the statement, "We encourage our
customers to share their success stories. The goal is, that over time, the page
followers/visitors become familiar with my brand and develop a trust, so that
when the time comes for them to need one of my services, it is an easy
decision to make a purchase". Participant 4 laid emphasis on the fact that
social media and word of mouth has been a major factor in their business
development, noting, "Our business has primarily grown through social
media all on its own as well as word-ofmouth. If you think about it, social
media and word-of-mouth are so related anymore. People are seeing content
online and talking about it in-person the next day. And vice versa, people are
talking with their friends in-person, and then sharing their thoughts or
feelings online”.
Summary and Synthesis
The statements mentioned above indicated that word of moth
marketing was important to creating positive customer reviews and trust
building as it related to customer engagement and customer base expansion.
This aligns with the findings of Huete-Alcocer, (2017) who’s study
highlighted this by emphasizing that Electronic word of mouth also provides
companies with an advantage over traditional word of mouth insofar as it
allows them both to try to understand what factors motivate consumers to
post their opinions online and to gauge the impact of those comments on
other people. This links directly to the listening-in actions of the N-REL
framework, the conceptual framework for this study. In the next two sections
I will be discussing how the social media marketing theme links to existing
literature and the link to the N-Rel conceptual framework.
Links to literature. All participants identified personalized customer
experience empowerment, content creation, building communities,
measuring campaign success, defining target customers, efficient content
marketing, paid advertising, use of brand advocates, livestreaming and
setting a social media marketing budget as important contributors to
customer engagement. Ashley and Tuten (2015) found in their study that
while social media participants seek entertainment and informativeness,
entertainment is a stronger motivator for engagement. Developing content
that is informative and entertaining provides the most bang for a company's
money, given the high success rate of customer engagement. It is therefore
essential that organizations ensure the continuous delivery of valuable news
and information to customers. Building online communities also has a
positive effect on customer engagement. This was highlighted in Loureiro
and Kaufmann's, 2018 study which concluded that affection
(passion/aversion) is the primary motivational factor that leads community
members to be active reviewers and commentators of brands. Hsieh and Wei
(2017) conducted similar studies. In their 2017 study, Hsieh and Wei found
that companies are increasingly using online brandcommunities (OBCs) to
co-create value for themselves and their consumers. Creating a social media
strategy includes setting marketing goals, choosing the right networks to use,
and measuring desired results. Having a well-thought-out strategy might
have a positive impact on business by improving customer engagement and
increase profitability
(Floreddu & Cabiddu, 2016).
Links to conceptual framework. The conceptual framework for this
study supported the information provided by participants. The N-Rel
framework focuses on how the 4 marketing actions networking,
representation, engagement, and listening-in increase customer engagement
(Anandaa et al., 2016). Applying the N-Rel framework to customer
engagement supports the notion that social media marketing actions
increases customer engagement. Applying all 4 elements of networking,
representation, engagement, and listening-in supports the understanding of
customer satisfaction and therefore customer engagement within
organizations (Anandaa et al., 2016). Networking and mingling, marketing
actions aim at keeping a measured voice and listening to customers.
Representation is a tactic related with the representation of the marketing
agencies on social media channels. It resembles a more traditional approach
of “push” strategies. Engagement, a marketing action that aims at the
interaction between the audiences and the organization, reflecting “pull”
strategies. Listening-in, implies the use of social media applications as a
source of customer voice and market information. All twelve social media
marketing strategy sub-themes identified in my study had a link to each of
these marketing actions.
Table C2 in Appendix C displays the social media marketing
subthemes and their link to the N-Rel conceptual framework marketing
actions.
Theme 2: Platforms Used for Social Media Marketing
The business leaders in my research study used various platforms for
their social media marketing. The types of social media platforms used
included Facebook, Twitter, Google, WhatsApp, YouTube, a company
website, and Instagram. However, the extent to which each social media
platform was used varied by case. Each social media platform satisfied a
particular purpose. For example, participant 1 noted, “I primarily use Twitter
to connect with peers and promote high level projects. I use the small feature
to share resources with peers. On Instagram, I rely heavily on stories to talk
about my day to day which normally revolves around my work. I use the
sticker features to ask questions, do question and answer sessions and to get
signups for coaching classes, special events and to alert brands I am talking
about them. I use Facebook groups to create cohorts of professionals to
engage in group learning (low cost or free) so that I can qualify them for
higher ticket classes. I also teach Facebook live classes on a variety of topics
along the line of entrepreneurship, financial literacy, marketing strategies
and overall business acumen. I repurpose those talks as podcasts or segments
within the learning modules in my private group”. Table 3 illustrates results
that revealed that five out of the six participants used Facebook to do their
social media marketing.
Table 3
References to Social Media Platforms Used
Participant Google
Ads
Facebook Websit
e
Twitter Instagram YouTube WhatsApp
Participant
1
X X X
Participant
2
X
Participant
3
X
X
Participant
4
X X X X
Participant
5
X
Participant
6
X
X
X
*X indicates use
Participant 2 also emphasised their use of the Facebook Ad manager
to define target audiences as noted in the comment, “We use Facebook Ad
Manager, to create a Reach Campaign to reach a special audience - Parents
that live within 3 to 4 miles radius of our Center”. The least used platforms
for social media marketing were Google Ads and Company Websites. As
noted by participant 4, “We use Google Ad word campaign, Facebook,
Twitter postings and Search Engine Optimization (SEO). We post health
information that targets our patient population. Remind patients when its
time for annual physicals vaccinations and promotional events at the clinic.
Patients can reach us via social media, and we respond immediately”. Social
media allows people to freely interact with others and offers multiple ways
for marketers to reach and engage with consumers (Appel et al., 2020).
Choosing the right social media platform might have have a positive impact
on business by improving customer engagement and increase profitability
(Floreddu & Cabiddu, 2016).
Links to literature. All participants identified Facebook, Twitter,
Google ads, YouTube, Website, and Instagram as important platforms for
their social media marketing needs. Gordon et al. (2019) found that the value
of advertising on social media and its interactions with other forms of media
such a television, affects new product adoption through diffusion of
information mechanisms (Appel, et.al., 2020). Buchanan’s (2015) research
study found that the product and marketing platform are directly linked to
the success rate of marketing campaigns. Given these research findings, it is
safe to say that marketing strategy varies on a case-by-case basis. Using a
variety of social media marketing platforms will generate the best effect on
marketing campaigns. Given the high rate of business failure, social media
marketing may serve as a valuable tool for business leaders to increase
customer engagement thereby improving profitability.
Links to conceptual framework. Slater and Olson (2001) defined a
marketing strategy as a set of integrated decisions and actions by which a
company expects to achieve its marketing objectives and meet the value
requirements of its customers. As indicated by Slater and Olson (2001),
marketing actions can be used as a tool by business leaders to improve
customer loyalty and satisfaction. Mergel (2016) also noted that marketing
action classification could explain social media adoption tactics by
institutions and organizations. The N-REL framework may be used to
explore the social media marketing strategies used by business leaders to
increase customer engagement. An organization leader who adopts the N-
REL framework can use the feedback from intelligence actions through
social media to make the necessary adjustments to strategic decisions
(Anandaa et al., 2016). Strategic decisions are required because the market
segmentation, positioning, and marketing techniques must drive the various
social media marketing actions to fulfill the marketing goals of a company
(Anandaa et al., 2016).
Theme 3: Measuring Social Media Marketing Success
The theme of measuring social media marketing success links to the
body of literature and the conceptual framework. In order to determine
social media marketing success, business leaders must set clear objective
and achievable goals. Brooks and Simkin (2016) developed a framework
that provided a deeper understanding of the available measures. They
separated the measures into four categories: financial measures (e.g., ROI),
quantitative measures (e.g., market share), qualitative measures (e.g., brand
awareness), and hybrid measures (e.g., brand equity). All six participants in
my study acknowledged the need for measuring social media strategy
success. They all measured success in various ways. Participant 2 and 3 used
a quantitative measure by keeping track of the number of leads converted
and calls received based on social media advertising. As noted by participant
3, “We measure success by keeping track of the leads to sales conversion
and the total reach of our ad campaigns.”. Participant 2 also noted “We
create a Reach Campaign to reach a special audience. The Reach Campaign
is setup to call the daycare. When a customer on Facebook encounters our ad
and calls the daycare, the call is tracked. The success of the Ad is measured
by the number of calls received”. Other participants used qualitative
measures to improve brand awareness. For example, Participant 6 noted
that” We are content creators and measure success by brand awareness and
the growth of subscribers of our social media channels”. Participant 3 also
noted that “Overall, social media is about giving your audience something to
talk about. So, if they continue to talk about it and remember your message
or call to action, I will say it is a success”.
Participant 5 used financial measures, ROI to measure success. The
participant noted, "Typically, ROI is the best measure. However, in the early
stages, one should not expect an immediate return. Building a social media
presence with a solid following takes time. Consistent content delivery with
clear, concise direction over the course of a year will bring you to a point where
you can begin to achieve an ROI”.
Given these research findings, it is safe to say that measuring
marketing strategy success varies on a case-by-case basis. As demonstrated
by my participants, the success of a social media campaign involves setting
overall goals such as brand awareness and product adoption, community
growth and engagement, reputation building and lead generation and
revenue growth. It is essential to measure the success of the marketing
campaign to ensure that all goals are met. The next section describes the
measuring of success link to literature and the conceptual framework of this
study.
Links to literature. All participants acknowledged that measuring the
success of a social media’s marketing campaign is essential. Brand equity is
one of the longer-term intangible effects of social media marketing and is
challenging to measure. During the infancy of social media marketing,
companies viewed marketing strategy success just as the number of users
socially connected to the brand (Schivinski et al., 2016). With early audits
suggesting that only about 1% of an average firm's Facebook fans show any
engagement with the brand by liking, sharing, or commenting, attention
shifted from acquisition of followers to the design of content that achieves
better reach and engagement amongst social media followers (Knoblich et al.,
2017). Merely getting a count of the number of followers and user likes is not
enough to determine if a social media campaign was effective. Companies
must do more in-depth analysis and analyze user-generated content to
determine if a marketing strategy is working or not. Gauging the success of a
social media marketing campaign is not an easy task and requires companies
to understand how digital marketing is classified.
Links to conceptual framework. Anandaa et al.’s (2016) N-Rel
framework provides business leaders with the tools to measure the success
of a social media campaign. The listening-in activities enable a passive way
of social media engagement that aims at market research and intelligence,
such as analytics of social media contents and conversation. Activities in the
framework can also be used to for marketing actions such as voice sharing,
sentiment, gaps, trends, opportunities, etc. – as well as the identification of
relevant actors and influencers (Anandaa et al., 2016). These activities are
important communications mechanisms between companies and consumers.
The theme of measuring social media marketing success is closely linked to
the listening-in marketing action of the N-Rel conceptual framework.
Theme 4: Key Challenges and Advantages Of Social Media Use
Social media allows consumers to express an opinion, which in turn
has led people to trust peers more than organizations (Nakano & Kondo,
2018). This change has created several challenges for marketers with
businesses now acknowledging the need to listen to their customers more,
engage them in conversation, be transparent, and communicate with them
openly (Alalwan et al., 2017). The major challenges faced by participants in
my study included creating engaging content and identifying target
audiences. There is a need for businesses leaders to focus on creating content
for a smaller audience that provides more depth, making it higher quality
content that customers can engage with. For example, participant 5 noted,” I
constantly face the challenge of how to get users to stop on my posts and
consider what I have to say, instead of just scrolling through. It is difficult to
find the perfect combination of copy length, creative type, video length,
image dimensions, color scheme, design, etc. that works the best for the
intended audience. Oftentimes, it takes weeks of testing and trial and error to
conclude. You must have a significant budget in place”. Table C3 in
Appendix C lists the various social media challenges faced by my study
participants.
My study participants used several techniques to overcome the
challenges listed in Table C3. For example, to overcome the challenges of
negative reviews, participant 2 recommended encouraging customers to
leave positive reviews by stating, “Whenever we get a negative review, we
ask for positive reviews from other Parents.”. To overcome the challenge of
reaching the right audience, participant 3 recommends being more creative
stating, “To overcome the challenges of reaching the right audience, you just
have to get creative with your advertising and try different campaign
variations. When something is not working, it is important to re-evaluate
why the audience is not engaging, and plan based off that. Sometimes, it is
the targeting of the demographic, and other times it may just be that the
photo we are advertising is not genuinely engaging. In each different case
scenario though, it is important to be flexible and ready to adapt”.
The ready access to and availability of social media has uncovered a
wealth of data that marketers are leveraging for strategic insight and digital
marketing (Jacobson et al., 2020). Social media marketing has various
advantages that include business growth, increased revenue, added customer
value, social impact, increased customer engagement, new customer
acquisition and brand awareness. Table 4 lists the advantages to the use of
social media by my study participants.
Table 4
References to Advantages of Social Media marketing
Participant Business Increased Added Social Increased Brand New
Growth Revenue Customer Impact Customer Awareness Customer
Value Engagement acquisition
Participant 1 X X X
Participant 2 X
Participant 3 X X X
Participant 4 X X Participant 5 X
Participant 6 X X X
*X indicates advantage.
Brand awareness is important because it enables customers recall or
recognize a brand. The research by Hirsch (2017) and Mohammad (2018)
provided measures for understanding the effect of social media marketing on
customer engagement and brand awareness. My study participants listed
brand awareness and increased customer engagement as one of the most
important benefits of social media marketing. This is emphasized by
participant 3 by noting, “Tell a story, and develop a voice. The voice of your
brand should match up with the values that your business practices and the
mission it aims for. Social media engagement is the best way to tell that
story with how connected you can be to your audience. Take time to
consider how you want to portray your brand online. The best brands and
most successful companies out there all follow their own formula when it
comes to voicing their announcements and happenings across social
networks. Even small businesses should do the same thing! Start developing
your voice on social early. You’ll be thankful you did”. The importance of
increased customer engagement is also emphasized by participant 5 who
stated, “Infuse your entire brand with a unified strategy, voice and look to
maximize your return on investment. Create smart, innovative
communication channels on all social platforms. Whether it is for daily
outreach or paid lead gen campaigns, try to generate engaging content and
ensure that pages are optimized to reach the best audience”.
As demonstrated by my study participants, social media marketing has
its challenges and advantages. The next section links the challenges and
advantages of social media marketing theme to the existing literature and the
N-Rel conceptual framework.
Links to literature. All participants acknowledged that there are
benefits and challenges to social media marketing. The main benefits of
social media marketing for participants in my study were business growth,
increased revenue, added customer value, positive social impact, increased
customer engagement, brand awareness and new customer acquisition, They
key challenges identified in my study were handling negative reviews,
creating engaging content, identifying target audiences, difficulty getting
customer contact data, and setting an appropriate budget as challenges faced
in their social media marketing campaigns. Blerta and Burim (2016),
identified the main benefits of social media marketing as increased brand
exposure, and reputation management increased targeted traffic and search
engine optimization, word-of-mouth and leads generation, market insights,
related to the target audience and competition. Blerta and
Burim’s research findings indicate that social media is relatively cost-
effective depending on which type of social media channel is used as SME
can begin with free options like opening a Facebook page or creating a page
on Twitter or other sites. Their research was significant and provides a better
understanding of the social media marketing strategies that may increase
customer engage and improve a company’s bottom line.
Interpersonal relationships are a vital factor to understand social
media marketing strategies that directly affect customer engagement. Blerta
and Burim (2016) followed research carried out by other researchers who
have identified the role of play in supporting cognition and interpersonal
relationships. Blerta and Burim research study is significant because it can
be used by SMEs to find out what types of social network marketing
endeavors enhance a firms’ performance. It also aids companies in designing
their social media activities for different social media followers' clusters to
increase the effectiveness of reaching marketing. Researching the impact of
social network marketing efforts on the financial (i.e., ROI) and market (i.e.,
sales revenue) performances might be beneficial for SMEs to decide how
much they should invest and spend their time and management efforts.
Links to conceptual framework. The conceptual framework for this
study supported the information provided by participants. The N-Rel
framework focuses on how the 4 marketing actions networking,
representation, engagement, and listening-in increase customer engagement
(Anandaa et al., 2016). Elaydi’s (2018) research showed that social media
marketing firms use about six dimensions as an instrument for their
marketing activities: Online Communities, Interaction, Sharing of Content,
Accessibility, and credibility. Elaydi provided evidence of the relationship
between social media marketing activities on Facebook and brand awareness
of mobile service providers in Egypt. Elaydi demonstrated that companies
should engage with customers by encouraging individuals to like brand
posts, which drive content sharing and interaction. The challenges and
advantages of social media marketing theme links directly to the listening
action of the NRel framework. In the next section, I explore the application
of my study to professional practice.
Applications to Professional Practice
The increased social media marketing adoption by organizational leaders has
posed challenges due to a constantly changing marketing landscape (Ogbuji &
Papazafeiropoulou, 2016). As a cost-effective marketing tool, social media
may be used successfully to define a company’s goals and objectives
(Ogbuji & Papazafeiropoulou, 2016).
Business leaders can benefit from this study by increasing the
effectiveness of their social media marketing strategies and providing a deeper
understanding of the ways of measuring the success of their social media
marketing strategies. The participants’ responses in this study lead the
following recommendations for social media business leaders:
•The participant responses in my research study may give business
leaders a better understanding of which social media marketing
strategies are most effective in increasing customer engagement. The
study provided twelve subthemes of marketing strategies used to
increase customer engagement
•The study provided a better understanding of the social media
platforms used by business leaders for target audiences
•The study may provide business leaders with a better understanding of
the ways to measure social media marketing success
•The study may also provide a better understanding of the challenges
and advantages of the use of social media marketing strategies
The findings from this study may be of significance to businesses
practice not only because they could provide an in-depth understanding the
topic allowing for increased application, but also because business leaders
may use the results to apply social media marketing strategies to help improve
their businesses’ success rates. Also, the findings from this study may
contribute to effective business practice by indicating which social media
marketing tools are most effective for businesses. Business leaders could use
the results to set achievable goals for their social media marketing campaigns.
Learning from the success of business leaders who have used social media
marketing effectively to increase customer engagement, can provide
meaningful insights that could improve business practice and be beneficial to
the continued growth of local economies (Ezeife, 2017).
The findings of this study contribute to the academic body of knowledge
of social media marketing strategies used by business leaders. There is a strong
body of literature on social media marketing in general. In contrast this
research study focused on the experiences of social media marketing by
business leaders to increase customer engagement. By focusing on their
experiences, it allowed for a different perspective to be added to the body of
literature.
Implementing effective social media marketing strategies is essential
for business leaders and could be significant to business practice as
companies may review and adapt strategies identified in this study to
develop long-term survival plans to increase their viability. Business leaders
in a different organization may use the findings of the study to set business
goals and measurable objectives that may increase awareness and branding,
promote brand content, increase exposure to generate traffic, leads, and
sales, thereby reducing marketing costs and improving profitability. The
themes presented in this section indicate various social media marketing
strategies useful for increasing customer engagement.
Implications for Social Change
According to research study by Ezeife (2017), implications for social
change might include the creation of marketing strategies to improve
customer engagement which may lead to an increase in company
profitability and socioeconomic development. This study may contribute to
positive social change by helping to improve the relationships between
business leaders and communities. Knowing the right marketing strategies to
use to increase customer engagement, enables business leaders to provide
customer value and satisfaction which may lead to increased performance of
sales, word of mouth, brand loyalty, market share and profitability. The
findings of this study may provide companies the tools to develop and
implement a systematic process for acquiring the information needed to keep
managers informed of customers’ needs and perceptions. Communities can
support the sustainability of companies; accordingly, business leaders should
ensure positive social change by providing opportunities for individuals in
the community. The results of this study may contribute to social change
through the creation of marketing strategies that increase customer
engagement, which could result in job creation and improved economies in
local communities.
Zahra and Wright (2015) found that corporations contribute to the
larger society in terms of creating financial, environmental, and social
wealth. Increased viability of organizations through effective social media
marketing strategy incorporation, may lead to social change through
employment generation, reduction in local poverty, improved local
economy, and improved quality of life for citizens. Additionally, an increase
in customer engagement may lead to increased tax revenues for local
communities and may contribute to positive social change through
improvements in social institutions and programs such as schools, libraries,
public safety organizations, hospitals, and low-cost healthcare programs
(Zahra & Wright, 2015). The results of this study may provide business
leaders with the strategies to increase customer engagement which may lead
to increased profits may increase a company’s viability thus providing a
positive social change in their communities.
Recommendations for Action
Business leaders can apply various strategies to support increased
customer engagement. Specific recommendations that may be of use for
business leaders of corporations in the northeast region of the United States
include the following: (a) create smart, innovative communication channels
on all social platforms, (b) maintain open communication between business
leaders and customers, (c) implement content creation strategies for
achieving increased customer engagement, (d) infuse your company’s entire
brand with a unified strategy that will lead to brand awareness, (e) provide
added value for your customer base and (f) ensure that your social media
pages are optimized to
reach the best audience for your business. These recommendations provide
opportunities to increase customer engagement and possibly improve
profitability for the companies.
I will disseminate the findings of this study to business leaders and
organizational managers who have an interest in improving customer
engagement strategies. Means of dissemination include publishing and
sharing the results of this study with various business leaders of corporations
located in the northeast region of the United states who may benefit from the
findings. I will distribute findings to specific groups, such as social media
marketing groups or generalized organizations. I will also seek to present my
findings at marketing conferences.
Recommendations for Further Research
The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore
social media marketing strategies used by business leaders to increase
customer engagement. Four themes emerged from the use of thematic
analysis: (a) social media marketing strategies used, (b) social media
platforms used, (c) measuring social media marketing success, and (d) key
challenges and advantages of social media marketing use. The study had 3
limitations. The first limitation is that one method of research (qualitative)
was used. Additional research using a quantitative or mixed method of
research could perhaps result in providing a broader understanding of the
phenomenon. The second limitation is transferability will be limited due to
sample size and location. Six social media marketing managers participated
in the study, a small sample size that may have limited the findings and
interpretations. The third limitation is although in the background I introduce
the importance of understanding how social media might increase customer
engagement and profitability, my study only seeks answers to the use of
social media to increase customer engagement. The study should be
expanded to understanding how social media marketing strategies can
increase profitability.
Four specific recommendations merit discussion as potentially useful
for future research. First, in this study, there was no comparison and analysis
of the profitability of companies and the impact of customer engagement.
This gap may be an opportunity for future researchers to explore reduced
customer engagement and impacts on company profitability. Second, further
studies should involve a broader selection of participants from varying
organizations and geographical locations. There may be an opportunity to
explore whether increased customer engagement is needed outside the
United States. Third, later scholars may use a quantitative approach to
examine the relationship between low customer engagement compared to the
loss of profit. Statistical findings may enable further understanding of the
variables with the greatest impact on company profit and viability.
Reflections
The Doctor of Business Administration program was an important
milestone in my life and made me learn more about social media marketing,
academic writing, data collection and data analysis. I now have a greater
appreciation about the amount of time and hard work it takes to complete a
doctoral research program. The literature review helped me to increase my
critical thinking, reviewing and retention skills. The DBA program gave me
the skills to identify a business problem and provide a solution. This will
prepare me for the next stage in my life and enable me to view issues from
many different perspectives both as an individual and as a businessperson. I
now have the right skills to be a problem solver instead of seeking problems.
The program has also helped my time management and prioritization skills.
This will enable me to balance my life as a father and entrepreneur. The
weekly discussions in the discussion forum helped me to sharpen my writing
and debating skills.
I had huge support from my friends and family throughout the
doctoral study process. My doctoral study chair demonstrated support and
respect, making me feel that I am not alone during in this journey. He was
always available to answer all my questions and for that I am profoundly
grateful. I am also very appreciative to my family who stood with me at
every step of the process. The program has changed me as an individual. I
now have more confidence in my writing and analytical abilities becoming
more of a goal-oriented person. The most difficult and challenging aspect of
the doctoral study was finding social media marketing managers to
voluntarily participate in the research. It took almost 3 months to find
willing participants. Ultimately, though, my research findings may be an
asset to the business community, providing strategies to improve customer
engagement.
Conclusion
Social media provides business leaders the opportunity to reach
millions of customers. Applying the N-Rel conceptual framework, the data
gathered in this study was a result of semistructured, qualitative interviews
of six business leaders of three corporations located in the northeast region
of the United States. The data were gathered to understand social media
marketing strategies that were used by business leaders to increase customer
engagement. The data resulted in emerging themes that allowed for
recommendations for business leaders to best capitalize on social media
efforts targeted to increase customer engagement. With the use of thematic
analysis, four themes emerged to include (a) social media marketing
strategies used, (b) social media platforms used, (c) measurement of social
media marketing success, and (d) key challenges and advantages of social
media marketing.
Furthermore, the study revealed twelve social media marketing
strategies subthemes namely (a) providing personalized customer
experience, (b) efficient content marketing, (c) community group creations,
(d) measuring campaign success, (e) use of brand advocates, (f) creation of
profiles on relevant channels, (g) paid advertising, (h) setting social media
marketing budgets, (i) content creation, (j) live streaming, and (k) defining
target customers. and (l) face to face marketing.
I thoroughly explored these themes and subthemes, and I discussed
recommendations and implications. In conclusion, the findings of this study
indicated the need for business leaders to implement social media marketing
strategies such as powerful content creation and marketing, using brand
advocates, providing personalized customer experiences, creating
communities, measuring marketing success, cross channel campaigns, paid
advertising, having a significant marketing budget, live streaming and
defining a target customer.
