Enhancing Social Media Engagement for Logistics Services Branding
Abstract
This study investigates logistics service providers' social media engagement to understand better its effect on supply chain functions, mainly their branding purposes, since managers and academics consider branding strategies increasingly crucial in the current competitive business environment. Eleven semi-structured in-depth interviews with thirteen social media experts from the selected logistics service providers operating in Turkey were conducted to understand their social media use better and identify their decision-making mechanisms. The theoretical analysis is based on the technology acceptance model and media synchronicity theory. The findings suggest that business-to-business and business-to-customer settings are distinct, while logistics sector companies differentiate themselves through social media branding strategies. The most significant drivers of social media engagement are creating brand recognition and brand awareness, while the main perceived barriers are regulations and stakeholder permission.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.54663/2182-9306.2023.sn13.125-155
Keywords
Full Text:
PDFReferences
Adams, D. A., Nelson, R. R. & Todd, P. A. (1992). Perceived usefulness, ease of use, and usage of information technology: A replication. MIS Quarterly, 227-247.
Agnihotri, R., Dingus, R., Hu, M. Y. & Krush, M. T. (2016). Social media: Influencing customer satisfaction in B2B sales. Industrial Marketing Management, 53, 172-180.
Al-Qaysi, N., Mohamad-Nordin, N. & Al-Emran, M. (2020). A systematic review of social media acceptance from the perspective of educational and information systems theories and models. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 57(8), 2085-2109.
Alves, V., Campos, P., & Felício, M. (2017). Analysis of trust in B2B relationships: The case of automatic storage and retrieval systems. International Journal of Marketing, Communication and New Media, 5(8), 52-83.
Andersson, S. & Wikström, N. (2017). Why and how are social media used in a B2B context, and which stakeholders are involved? Journal of Business and Industrial Marketing, 32(8), 1098-1108.
Avlonitis, G. J., & Panagopoulos, N. G. (2005). Antecedents and consequences of CRM technology acceptance in the sales force. Industrial marketing management, 34(4), 355-368.
Barla, M.C., Sag, O.K. & Gray, R., (2017). Developments in maritime transport and logistics in Turkey. Routledge.
Bartl, M., Füller, J., Mühlbacher, H. & Ernst, H. (2012). A manager's perspective on virtual customer integration for new product development. Journal of Product Innovation Management. 29(6), 1031-1046.
Bell, J., & Loane, S. (2010). ‘New-wave global firms: Web 2.0 and SME internationalization. Journal of Marketing Management, 26(3-4), 213-229.
Bellaaj, M. (2021), “Why and how do individual entrepreneurs use digital channels in an emerging market? Determinants of use and channel coordination”, International Journal of Emerging Markets, ahead-of-print No. Ahead-of-print, doi: 10.1108/IJOEM-08-2020-0882.
Bhaduri, G. & Ha-Brookshire, J. E. (2011). Do transparent business practices pay? Exploration of transparency and consumer purchase intention. Clothing and Textiles Research Journal, 29(2), 135-149.
Bodnar, K. & Cohen, J. L. (2011). The B2B social media book: Become a marketing superstar by generating leads with Blogging, LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Email, and more. John Wiley and Sons.
Botha, M. (2017), “Which social media channels should your logistics company be using?” available at: https://www.fronetics.com/which-social-media-channels-should-your-b2b-business-use/
Brennan, R. & Croft, R. (2012). The use of social media in B2B marketing and branding: An exploratory study. Journal of Customer Behaviour, 11(2), 101-115.
Bryman, A. & Bell, E. (2011). Ethics in business research. Business Research Methods, 7(5), 23-56.
Buratti, N., Parola, F. & Satta, G. (2018). Insights on adopting social media marketing in B2B services, The TQM Journal. 30(5).
Buzeta, C., De Pelsmacker, P. & Dens, N. (2020). Motivations to use different social media types and their impact on consumers' online brand-related activities (COBRAs). Journal of Interactive Marketing, 52, 79-98.
Cao, X., Vogel, D. R., Guo, X., Liu, H. & Gu, J. (2012). Understanding the influence of social media in the workplace: An integration of media synchronicity and social capital theories. In 2012 45th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences, IEEE, 3938-3947.
Carson, D., Gilmore, A., Perry, C. & Gronhaug, K. (2001). Qualitative Marketing Research. Sage.
Cartwright, S., Liu, H., & Raddats, C. (2021). Strategic use of social media within business-to-business (B2B) marketing: A systematic literature review. Industrial Marketing Management, 97, 35-58.
Cawsey, T. & Rowley, J. (2016). Social media brand building strategies in B2B companies. Marketing Intelligence and Planning, 34(6), 754-776.
Chae, B. K., McHaney, R. & Sheu, C. (2020). Exploring social media use in B2B supply chain operations. Business Horizons, 63(1), 73-84.
Darwish, A. & Lakhtaria, K. I. (2011). The impact of the new Web 2.0 technologies in communication, development, and revolutions of societies. Journal of Advances in information technology, 2(4), 204-216.
Davis, F. D. (1989). Perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and user acceptance of information technology. MIS Quarterly, 319-340.
Davis, F. D., Bagozzi, R. P. & Warshaw, P. R. (1989). User acceptance of computer technology: A comparison of two theoretical models. Management Science, 35(8), 982-1003.
Davis, D. F., Golicic, S. L. & Marquardt, A. (2009). Measuring brand equity for logistics services. The International Journal of Logistics Management, 20(2), 201-212.
Denktaş-Şakar, G., & Sürücü, E. (2020). Stakeholder engagement via social media: an analysis of third-party logistics companies. The Service Industries Journal, 40(11-12), 866-889.
Dennis, A. R. & Valacich, J. S. (1999, January). Rethinking media richness: Towards a theory of media synchronicity. In Proceedings of the 32nd Annual Hawaii International Conference on Systems Sciences. 1999. HICSS-32. Abstracts and CD-ROM of Full Papers, IEEE, 10.
Dennis, A. R., Fuller, R. M. & Valacich, J. S. (2008). Media, tasks, and communication processes: A theory of media synchronicity. MIS Quarterly, 575-600.
Dwivedi, Y. K., Ismagilova, E., Rana, N. P., & Raman, R. (2021). Social media adoption, usage and impact in business-to-business (B2B) context: A state-of-the-art literature review. Information Systems Frontiers, 1-23.
Felix, R., Rauschnabel, P. A. & Hinsch, C. (2017). Elements of strategic social media marketing: A holistic framework. Journal of Business Research, 70, 118-126.
George, J. F., Carlson, J. R. & Valacich, J. S. (2013). Media selection as a strategic component of communication. MIS Quarterly, 1233-1251.
Glaser, B. G. & Strauss, A. L. (1967). The discovery of grounded theory: Strategies for qualitative research. Chicago: Aldine.
Guesalaga, R. (2016). The use of social media in sales: Individual and organizational antecedents, and the role of customer engagement in social media. Industrial Marketing Management, 54, 71-79.
Harrigan, P., Soutar, G., Choudhury, M. M. & Lowe, M. (2015). Modeling CRM in a social media age. Australasian Marketing Journal, 23(1), 27-37.
Hertz, S. & Alfredsson, M., (2003). Strategic development of third-party logistics providers. Industrial marketing management, 32(2), 139-149.
Hootsuite (2021), “Digital 2021” Available at https://wearesocial.com/digital-2021 (accessed May 2021).
Iankova, S., Davies, I., Archer-Brown, C., Marder, B. & Yau, A. (2019). A comparison of social media marketing between B2B, B2C, and mixed business models. Industrial Marketing Management, 81, 169-179.
Iyer, P., Davari, A., Zolfagharian, M. & Paswan, A. (2019). Market orientation, positioning strategy, and brand performance. Industrial Marketing Management, 81, 16-29.
Jalkala, A. M., & Keränen, J. (2014). Brand positioning strategies for industrial firms providing customer solutions. Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing, 29(3), 253-264.
Järvinen, J., Tollinen, A., Karjaluoto, H. & Jayawardhena, C. (2012). Digital and social media marketing usage in B2B industrial section. Marketing Management Journal, 22(2).
Juntunen, M., Ismagilova, E. & Oikarinen, E. L. (2020). B2B brands on Twitter: Engaging users with various social media content objectives, strategies, and tactics. Industrial Marketing Management, 89, 630-641.
Jussila, J., Kärkkäinen, H. & Leino, M., (2012). Social media's opportunities in business-to-business customer interaction in the innovation process. International Journal of Technology Marketing. 7 (2), 191-208
Kalafatis, S. P., Tsogas, M. H., & Blankson, C. (2000). Positioning strategies in business markets. Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing, 15(6), 416-437.
Kaplan, A. M. & Haenlein, M. (2010). Users of the world, unite! The challenges and opportunities of Social Media. Business Horizons, 53(1), 59-68.
Karampela, M., Lacka, E., & McLean, G. (2020). “Just be there”: Social media presence, interactivity, responsiveness, and their impact on B2B relationships. European Journal of Marketing. 54 (6) (2020), 1281-1303
Keinänen, H. & Kuivalainen, O. (2015). Antecedents of social media B2B use in an industrial marketing context: customers’ view. Journal of Business and Industrial Marketing, 30(6), 711-722.
Ketokivi, M. & Choi, T. (2014). Renaissance of case research as a scientific method. Journal of Operations Management, 32(5), 232-240.
Khan, M. N., Khan, M. J., & Kashif, S. (2021). The Role of User Generated Content in Shaping a Business’s Reputation on Social Media: Moderating role of trust propensity. International Journal of Marketing, Communication and New Media, 9(16), 94-110.
Kotler, P. & Pfoertsch, W. (2006). B2B brand management. Springer Science and Business Media.
Krings, W., Palmer, R. & Inversini, A. (2021). Industrial marketing management digital media optimization for B2B marketing. Industrial Marketing Management, 93, 174-186.
Kumar, V. & Pansari, A. (2016). Competitive advantage through engagement. Journal of marketing research, 53(4), 497-514.
Lacka, E. & Chong, A. (2016). Usability perspective on social media sites' adoption in the B2B context. Industrial Marketing Management, 54, 80-91.
Lam, S. Y., Chiang, J. & Parasuraman, A. (2008). The effects of the dimensions of technology readiness on technology acceptance: An empirical analysis. Journal of interactive marketing, 22(4), 19-39.
Lee, D. Y. & Lehto, M. R. (2013). User acceptance of YouTube for procedural learning: An extension of the Technology Acceptance Model. Computers and Education, 61, 193-208.
Leek, S. & Christodoulides, G. (2011). Brands: Just for consumers? Introduction to the special issue on B2B branding. Industrial Marketing Management, 40(7), 1060-1062.
Leek, S., Canning, L. & Houghton, D. (2016). Revisiting the Task Media Fit Model in the era of Web 2.0: Twitter use and interaction in the Healthcare sector. Industrial Marketing Management, 54, 25-32.
Lenartowicz, M., & Strzelecki, A. (2021). Moderate Effect of Satisfaction on Intention to Follow Business Profiles on Instagram. International Journal of Marketing, Communication and New Media, 9(16), 4-24.
Lincoln, Y. S. & Guba, E. G. (1985). Naturalistic inquiry. Sage.
Lipiäinen, H. S. M. & Karjaluoto, H. (2015). Industrial branding in the digital age. Journal of Business and Industrial Marketing. 30 (6), 733–741.
Mariampolski, H. (2001). Qualitative market research: A comprehensive guide. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications.
Marquardt, A. J., Golicic, S. L., & Davis, D. F. (2011). B2B services branding in the logistics services industry. Journal of Services Marketing, 25(1), 47-57.
McShane, L., Pancer, E. & Poole, M. (2019). The influence of B to B social media message features on brand engagement: A fluency perspective. Journal of Business-to-Business Marketing, 26(1), 1-18.
Medjani, F., Rutter, R. & Nadeau, J. (2019). Social media management, objectification and measurement in an emerging market. International Journal of Business and Emerging Markets, 11(3), 288-311.
Michaelidou, N., Siamagka, N. T. & Christodoulides, G. (2011). Usage, barriers, and measurement of social media marketing: An exploratory investigation of small and medium B2B brands. Industrial marketing management, 40(7), 1153-1159.
Miles, M.B., Huberman, A.M. & Saldana, J. (2014), Qualitative Data Analysis: A Method Sourcebook, 3rd ed., Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA.
Moon, J. W. & Kim, Y. G. (2001). Extending the TAM for a World-Wide-Web context. Information and management, 38(4), 217-230.
Moore, J. N., Hopkins, C. D. & Raymond, M. A. (2013). Utilization of relationship-oriented social media in the selling process: A comparison of consumer (B2C) and industrial (B2B) salespeople. Journal of Internet Commerce, 12(1), 48-75.
Muñoz, C.L. & Towner, T.L., (2017). The image is the message: Instagram marketing and the 2016 presidential primary season. Journal of political marketing, 16(3-4), 290-318.
Naqvi, M., Li, S., Jiang, Y., & Naqvi, M. H. A. (2020). The rise of social networking sites: an empirical investigation applying demographic differences and the technology acceptance model. Asia Pacific Journal of Marketing and Logistics, 32(1), 232-252.
Neher, K. (2013). Visual social media marketing: Harnessing images, Instagram, Infographics, and Pinterest to grow your business online. Boot Camp Pub.
Ohnemus, L. (2009). B2B branding: a financial burden for shareholders?. Business Horizons, 52(2), 159-166.
Pandey, N., Nayal, P. & Rathore, A. S. (2020). Digital marketing for B2B organizations: structured literature review and future research directions. Journal of Business and Industrial Marketing. 35 (7), 1191-1204
Rapp, A., Beitelspacher, L. S., Grewal, D. & Hughes, D. E. (2013). Understanding social media effects across seller, retailer, and consumer interactions. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 41(5), 547-566.
Rauniar, R., Rawski, G., Yang, J. & Johnson, B. (2014). Technology acceptance model (TAM) and social media usage: an empirical study on Facebook. Journal of Enterprise Information Management. 27(1), 6-30.
Sarkum, S., Pramuka, B. A. & Suroso, A. (2017). Dynamic Marketing through Engagement: Answering the role of marketing functions. International Journal of Marketing, Communication and New Media, 5(9), 5-23.
Shahbaznezhad, H., Dolan, R. & Rashidirad, M. (2021). The role of social media content format and platform in users' engagement behavior. Journal of Interactive Marketing, 53, 47-65.
Shih, C. (2009). The Facebook era. Pearson Education India.
Shin, J., Chae, H. & Ko, E. (2018). The power of e-WOM using the hashtag: focusing on SNS advertising of SPA brands. International Journal of Advertising, 37(1), 71-85.
Siamagka, N. T., Christodoulides, G., Michaelidou, N. & Valvi, A. (2015). Determinants of social media adoption by B2B organizations. Industrial Marketing Management, 51, 89-99.
Sivertzen, A. M., Nilsen, E. R. & Olafsen, A. H. (2013). Employer branding: employer attractiveness and the use of social media. Journal of Product and Brand Management. 22, 473– 483.
Singh, S. & Sonnenburg, S. (2012). Brand performances in social media. Journal of interactive marketing, 26(4), 189-197.
Smith, A. N., Fischer, E. & Yongjian, C. (2012). How does brand-related user-generated content differ across YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter? Journal of interactive marketing, 26(2), 102-113.
Spiggle, S. (1994). Analysis and interpretation of qualitative data in consumer research. Journal of Consumer Research, 21(3), 491-503.
Strauss, A. & Corbin, J. (1998). Basics of qualitative research techniques (pp. 1-312). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Sundström, M., Alm, K. H., Larsson, N., & Dahlin, O. (2021). B2B social media content: engagement on LinkedIn. Journal of Business & industrial marketing, 36(3), 454-468.
Surucu-Balci, E., Balci, G. & Yuen, K. F. (2020). Social media engagement of stakeholders: A decision tree approach in container shipping. Computers in Industry, 115.
Swani, K., Brown, B.P. & Milne, G.R., (2014). Should tweets differ for B2B and B2C? An analysis of Fortune 500 companies' Twitter communications. Industrial marketing management, 43(5), 873-881.
Swani, K., Milne, G.R., Brown, B.P., Assaf, A.G. & Donthu, N. (2017). What messages to post? Evaluating the popularity of social media communications in business versus consumer markets. Industrial Marketing Management, 62, 77-87.
Tiwary, N. K., Kumar, R. K., Sarraf, S., Kumar, P., & Rana, N. P. (2021). Impact assessment of social media usage in B2B marketing: A review of the literature and a way forward. Journal of Business Research, 131, 121-139.
Varadarajan, R. & Yadav, M. S. (2009). Marketing strategy in an internet-enabled environment: a retrospective on the first ten years of JIM and a prospective on the next ten years. Journal of Interactive Marketing, 23(1), 11-22.
Venkatesh, V. & Davis, F. (2000), A theoretical extension of the technology acceptance model: four longitudinal field studies, Management Science, 46(2), 186‐204.
Venkatesh, V. & Bala, H. (2008). Technology acceptance model 3 and a research agenda on interventions. Decision sciences, 39(2), 273-315.
Venkatesh, R. & Jayasingh, S. (2017). Transformation of business through social media. In Social media listening and monitoring for business applications, 1-17. IGI Global.
Venkatesh, V., Morris, M. G., Davis, G. B. & Davis, F. D. (2003). User acceptance of information technology: Toward a unified view. MIS Quarterly, 425-478.
Walters, P. G. P. (2008). Adding value in global B2B supply chains: Strategic directions and the role of the internet as a driver of competitive advantage. Industrial Marketing Management, 37(1), 59-68
Wang, W. Y., Pauleen, D. J. & Zhang, T. (2016). How social media applications affect B2B communication and improve business performance in SMEs. Industrial Marketing Management, 54, 4-14.
Weber, L. (2009). Marketing to the social web: How digital customer communities build your business. John Wiley and Sons.
Wirtz, B. W., & Göttel, V. (2016). Technology acceptance in social media: Review, synthesis, and directions for future empirical research. Journal of Electronic Commerce Research, 17(2), 97.
Witek-Hajduk, M. K. & Grudecka, A. (2018). Positioning strategies of retailers’ brands in the emerging market–a cluster analysis. International Journal of Emerging Markets. 18 (3), 685-704
Yücenur, G. N., Bozyel, K. & Ahmetoglu, A. (2022). Investigation the Effects of Different Social Media Platforms to Companies’ Sales Marketing Processes by Multi-Criteria Decision-Making Method. International Journal of Marketing, Communication and New Media, 10(18), 133-150.
Refbacks
- There are currently no refbacks.
Copyright (c) 2023 AYSU GOCER
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
International Journal of Marketing, Communication and New Media
ISSN: 2182-9306
DOI: 10.54663/2182-9306
Qualis Periódicos - CAPES: B2
REBIB: Q2
Indexing:
Web of Science - Emerging Sources Citation Index - Clarivate Analytics
Journal Citation Reports (JCR) 2021, 2022, 2023
QUALIS CAPES - GOOGLE SCHOLAR - LATINDEX - REDIB - RCAAP - OAJI - DRJI - MIAR - LIVRE - ERIH PLUS - INDEX COPERNICUS -
