Impact of Social Media Marketing on Consumer-Based Brand Equity

Abstract

This research paper explains the impact of social media marketing on the dimensions of Consumer-Based Brand Equity (CBBE) in fast-food restaurants. This relationship is tested between dimensions of social media marketing and brand loyalty, moreover, the relationship is also tested through the mediating effects of brand awareness and brand image. The study consisted of 312 social media users as survey respondents. Most of the respondents were from the age bracket of 21-30 since people of this age are most active on social media platforms. The study provides empirical evidence and proof regarding the impact of social media marketing on brand loyalty with brand awareness and brand image as mediating variables. It has been identified that investing efficiently in these variables would help the firms to increase customer loyalty. Each variable was found to have a positive impact on brand loyalty; however, the User-Generated Content (UGC) and Firm-Generated Content (FGC) were found to have an insignificant impact on brand loyalty directly. The findings of this research indicated that exploiting these variables effectively might provide fruitful and productive marketing results for the firms. A brand needs to be active on social media or should hire an agency on its behalf to manage its social media network in order to create awareness among the customers about its presence. Firms should take into account the social media communication of the brand as part of their marketing plan as it has become essential in today's era.