Let's Give Them Something to Talk About: Which Social Media Engagements Predict Purchase Frequency?

Abstract

Although marketers spend billions of dollars on social media platforms in an effort to make a connection with their customers, few know if their social media activation in the form of Social Network Advertising (SNA) is positively affecting their business. For example, little research exists as to which types of Digital Consumer Engagement (DCE) (if any) are associated with purchase frequency. Advancing a theoretical framework of social media engagement, the authors test the association between various forms of DCE and customer behavior using archived field data. By matching store visit data from 1,066 loyalty program members of a leading national fast casual restaurant with their engagements on the brand's Facebook page, the authors are able to compare the strength of the relationships between various forms of engagement and store visit frequency. Results reveal that some Facebook engagements are significantly associated with increased or decreased store visits while others exhibit no discernible effects. Empirical support is provided for a proposed hierarchy of DCE, with engagements perceived as reflecting strong DCE being more strongly associated with purchase frequency than those with moderate or weak DCE.