Agility in marketing teams: An analysis of factors influencing the entry decision into a trendy social network

Abstract

Given the rise of new social networks, companies must decide whether to incorporate each new network into their social media marketing strategy. This research analyses the factors that influence a brand’s entry into a trendy social network, integrating two traditional paradigms of innovation adoption –the TOE and the UTAUT– with the concept of marketing agility, to incorporate the strategic perspective of marketing departments. We conduct a mixed methods approach, through a focus group with managers and a quantitative analysis based on a questionnaire with a sample of 161 managers, complemented with a fsQCA to identify specific configurations of factors that determine that entry. The study validates marketing agility’s relevance, emphasising the importance of market monitoring beyond speed. Three company characterizations are proposed, including differences in expectations, effort perceptions, and competitors influence. We offer an explanatory model of the adoption conditions of technological innovations undertaken by marketing departments, applicable to future innovations in communication tools.