Examining the efficacy of brand social media communication: a consumer perspective

ABSTRACT

There is a need to examine the productivity of marketing investments in brand social media communication, specifically the implications for brand value enhancement. Adopting a consumer perspective, we examine how consumer evaluation of brand social media communication influences consumer willingness to pay a price premium for a brand. Building upon frameworks of marketing led brand value creation, we conceptualize two pathways to enhancing consumer WPP: one mediated through consumer brand attitude, the other through consumer brand trust. Structural equation modeling using US consumer survey data supports the research framework. We present brand attitude and brand trust as pre-conditions for enhancing consumer willingness to pay a price premium for a brand. Overall, the study clarifies the efficacy of brand social media communication as a brand-building tool.

Notes

¹ The literature uses varying expressions to refer to a brand’s social media communication. Terms such as “social media marketing activities” (Kim & Ko, 2012), “social media marketing efforts” (Godey et al., 2016), and “social network marketing” (Campbell et al., 2014) have been used. This study adopts the expression “social media communication” since social media represents one element of a brand’s marketing communication mix (Batra & Keller, 2016).