Name:

Urooj Rehman

Sap Id:

8937

Semester:

BBA

7th

Final Project

Business Research Method

 Report
Measuring Customer Engagement in Social Media Marketing: A
Higher-Order Model

Introduction:

From a theoretical standpoint, the majority of studies explain this concept as a multidimensional
concept with three components: cognitive, emotional, and behavioral, generating conceptual
studies qualitative papers and quantitative research Third, this research aims to bridge the gap of
empirical studies related to customer engagement and offers new evidence of its role as a
consequence and effect on other concepts For instance, a study has found that more than 50% of
decision processes and acquisitions are impacted by brands’ social media presence. As a result,
marketers are investing more time and resources in interacting with consumers in digital and
electronic commerce settings, while scholars are examining the opportunities for utilizing social
media marketing as a strategy for generating engaged consumers especially related to electronic
commerce In this context of social media usage surge, customer engagement (CE) has been
proposed as a concept that can help develop mutually beneficial relationships between
consumers and brands. Defined as a collection of internet applications which enables
development and sharing of user generated content, social media has also provided the research
outlet for a myriad of studies: understanding on how social media brand pages can lead to brand
love analyzing consumers’ sentiments based on tweets and user-generated content generating
citizen participation and supporting the public relations efforts of companies. Customer
engagement has been the focus of marketing campaigns developed by practitioners, and the
research interest of many academic studies focused on theoretical perspectives and practical
insights, such as exploring engagement As a “channel of interaction between customers and
companies” social media has become a part of our lives, with multiple opportunities for
consumers and marketers. First, this study investigates customer engagement in social media
marketing, using Facebook as themain social platform that facilitates the development of CE for
long-lasting customer–brand relationships. This study aims to bridge this gap and proposes a
model that will show flexibility in measuring customer engagement as a multidimensional
construct, considering its cognitive, emotional, and behavioral components, based on certain
antecedents (involvement, commitment, customer participation) and a major outcome (loyalty).
By extension, social media marketing enables the development and sharing of content (created
by brands or consumers) in an interactive network that stimulates participation and ‘absorption’.
There are many social platforms with different marketing purposes, such as: TikTok for small
video snippets; Snapchat for multimedia messaging; Twitter for microblogging; WeChat for
payments, social media and messaging; LinkedIn for professional networking; and many more.
Despite numerous investigations on this concept, most studies have only focused on conceptual
perspectives and authors seem divided in their assessment of the predictors and effects of
customer engagement. As a result of its strategic potential, various authors encouraged empirical
research that would test different models that explore causal relationships between CE and other
constructs.

Objectives:

 The objective of customer engagement is to encourage loyalty and promote business
through word of mouth marketing.
 Gain sight knows that focusing solely on maximizing conversions would not bring
desired results.
 Increase brand loyalty.
 Increase customer retention.
 Improve revenue and sales.
 Ensure brand promotion.
 Improve brand reputation.
 it aims at long term customer engagement.

Literature Review:

N Data Author Topic Context Indust Key points Journal

o. Source ry
1. Market S Vinerean, Measurin Social Media social media Journal of
ing  A Opreana  g media industr marketing as Theoretic
science customer marketin y a strategy al and
engagem g for Applied
ent in generating Electronic
social engaged
media consumers
marketin especially
g: A related to
higher- electronic
order commerce
model

2. Market Jialin Revisitin e- Electri Using the Internatio

ing Snow Wu, Shun Y g commerc cal backdrop of nal
science e, Chen customer e industr an Journal of
Jerry Zheng, Rob  loyalty y (apparently) Contemp
Law  toward extended orary
mobile e- visit to the Hospitalit
commerc West Indies, y
e in the analogies Managem
hospitalit with key con ent
y cerns of
industry: internal
does audit are
brand drawn.
viscosity
matter?

3. Market Athanasios Sustainin Envirom Gernal a growing Strategy

ing Poulis,Kleopatra g brand ental number of and the
 science Konstantoulaki,A loyalty: issues all businesses environm
postolos Giovanis The over the try to affect ent.
moderati globe. positive
ng role of UK social
green change,
consumpt whereas
ion others
values strategically
approach
green
opportunitie
s
4. Market José Ramón Saura Identifyi Spain Social The startup Journal of
ing AnaReyes-
 
ng media business theoretica
science Menéndez Startups market ecosystem in l and
Nelson deMato
 
Business ing India has applied
Marisol B. Correia Opportun experienced electronic
ities from exponential commerc
UGC on growth.  e
Twitter research.
Chatting:
An
Explorat
ory
Analysis

5. Market Chen Feng Evolutio China Social Content Journals

ing Luoyi Fu n market transmission &
science Xudong Wu Matters: ing is becoming Magazine
Xiaoying Gan Content an s
Xinbing Wang Transmis increasingly IEEE
 Guihai Chen sion in prevalent Transacti
Jun Xu Evolving form of ons on
Wireless human Wireless
Social interaction
Networks and plays an
important
role in
sharing
information,
diffusing
social
influence
and
affecting
human
behavior
6. Market F Liu Listening USA Online Human Decision
ing  KH Lai to online China market interaction Support
science  J Wu reviews: ing and the Systems
W Duan a mixed- physical
methods environment
investigat are two
ion of crucial
customer aspects
experienc shaping
e in the customer
sharing experience
economy in the
sharing
economy.
7. Market Z Loh Consume Malaysia Gernal A cross- British
 ing  SH Hassan rs' sectional Food
science attitudes, online Journal
perceived survey was
risks and conducted
perceived through
benefits Facebook
towards Messenger
repurchas and
e WhatsApp
intention on
of food consumers
truck with prior
products experience
in buying
food truck
products.
8. Market C Wang Can China E- This Journal of
ing R Zhou loyalty comme phenomenon the
science  MKO Lee be rce has Associati
pursued intensified on 
and the
achieved competition
? An among
extended service
RFD providers for
model to user loyalty.
understan
d and
predict
user
loyalty to
 mobile
apps

9. Market STM Lakshmi Modellin India Gernal Brand Proceedin

ing M Suresh g of commitment gs
science factors Brand
influenci awareness
ng brand Brand
commitm involvement
ent of Brand
FMCG experience
products: FMCG
A TISM products
approach Total
interpretive
structural
modelling

10 Market MAghaei  The Iran Gernal The  Internatio

. ing  A Ghasemian effect of COVID-19 nal
science Sahebi COVID- crisis as a Journal 
19 on worldwide
marketin catastrophe
g has had a
innovatio profound
ns and impact on
corporate the
social development
responsib of the global
ility (case economy
study:
 active
companie
s in food
industry)

Research Method:

This study examines customer engagement in social media marketing, considering three
antecedents (involvement, customer participation, commitment) and a main consequence
(loyalty) in a quantitative study, based on a cross-sectional online survey and using an
international sample of respondents.

 Measure and data collection respondent:

Out of 391 observations, 22.5% selected brands from the ‘Electronics’ industry (Apple and
Samsung being the most popular brands); 21% opted for ‘Entertainment and Leisure’ brands;
17.4% nominated ‘Apparel and Accessories ‘brands 10.5% picked Automotive brands; 10.2%
chose ‘Food and Beverages’ brands; 10% preferred ‘Publications and Magazines’ brands; 8.4%
preferred retail brands. The constructs’ measurement items examined in the questionnaire are the
following: eleven items measured the three components of ‘customer engagement’ based on
Venereal and Opreana’s study five items operationalized ‘customer loyalty’ considering the scale
items proposed by Chen and Too et al. Regarding the premises of the research instrument, the
survey’s initial section included multiple screening questions, such as: date of joining Facebook,
hours spent on Facebook per week, brand they buy or engage with regularly, brand interactions
on Facebook, noticing Facebook posts from their preferred brand, frequency of brand purchases.
Giving the popularity of Facebook, we chose to base this research on a sample of respondents
from multiple continents or countries, as suggested in previous studies developed by Fernand’s
and Moreira and Islam and Rahman three items measured ‘involvement’ in accordance with
Chen’s study three items were used to assess ‘commitment’ based on measures previously used
by Jahn and Kunz and Chen To acquire data from respondents and analyze their connection with
their preferred brands on Facebook, we used a cross-sectional and self-administered survey.
Based on a ratio scale, the respondents’ average age is 31.07, with 6.646 standard deviations,
ranging from 18 to 47 years old. All the items include statements that requested respondents to
demonstrate their agreement level based on five-point Likert scales (1 = strongly disagree, 5 =
strongly agree). To characterize and evaluate the connections between proposed constructs, we
used a survey approach for a quantitative marketing research.

 H1: Involvement is positively associated with customer engagement, examined as higher-

order construct, considering its emotional, behavioral, and cognitive sub-dimensions.
 H2: Customer participation is positively related to customer engagement, examined as
higher-order construct, considering its emotional, behavioral, and cognitive sub-
dimensions.
 H3: Commitment has a positive impact on customer engagement, examined as higher-
order construct, considering its emotional, behavioral, and cognitive sub-dimensions.
 H4: As a higher-order construct with three sub-dimensions (emotional, behavioral, and
cognitive), customer engagement has a positive influence on customer loyalty.

Customer engagement
cognitive dimension

Involvement Emotional dimension

H1 Behavioral dimension
Customer
participation
H2
Customer
H3 Engagement
Commitment
H4 Loyalty
Methodology:

A customer engagement strategy organizes interactions and activities into a streamlined plan to

create the ultimate customer experience, including before and after the purchase. The process
involves various communication channels to build a relationship, improve satisfaction, and
proactively nurture your customer base.

 STEP 1: Add up a post's total likes, comments, and shares.

 STEP 2: Divide by your total number of followers and multiply by 100 to get your
average engagement rate percentage.

Note: The benchmark for this metric is different on every platform.

Social media engagement is a measure of how people are interacting with your social media
accounts and content. The term can cover a broad range of actions across all social platforms.
For example, engagement might include: Likes and Favorites.

 Here are eight ways you can increase your engagement on your social
media:
1. Always be posting.
2. Stay relevant by being timely.
3. Be bold.
4. Get to know your audience.
5. Run campaigns and promotions.
6. Have a personality.
7. Post when your audience is watching.
8. Make your posts (and your page) visually appealing.
Having better social media engagement means your customers have a stronger relationship with
your brand. This in turn provides you with more opportunities to build brand loyalty, increase
word-of-mouth referrals and increase sales.

 7 Online customer engagement strategies

1. Build a community or group. There are several great ways to build an online community
to more effectively interact and engage with your customers. ...
2. Host a webinar. ...
3. Co-create. ...
4. Celebrate together. ...
5. Offer exclusive content. ...
6. Respond to feedback. ...
7. Engage across multiple channels.

Data Analysis and Result:

In contrast to a regression analysis or other dependency analyses that seek to explain

relationships in a single equation, the statistical objective of a structural equation model is to
examine a set of relationships representing multiple equations.

To assess the proposed model, the analysis is based on exploratory factor analysis (EFA),
confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), and structural equation modelling (SEM). The EFA’s results
showcase adequacy according to the 0.940 score for Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin measure of sampling
and the significant Barlett’s test (χ2 (300) = 5731.972, p < 0.001). All seven resulted factors have
an Eigenvalue greater than 1 and total variance explained is 73.611% which exceeds the
accepted threshold. The EFA procedure generated seven factors that help understand the
underlying variables of the model. A supplementary analysis based on the mean scores registered
for all scale items, showed that the respondents rated the overall mean of the emotional
dimension of customer engagement as the highest one (mean = 3.77), followed by the behavioral
dimension of customer engagement (mean = 3.62), the cognitive dimension of customer
engagement (mean = 3.56), loyalty (mean = 3.54), involvement (mean = 3.53), commitment
(mean = 3.44), and customer participation recorded the lowest score (mean = 3.42). The second-
order measurement model’s results (Tables 4 and 5, Appendix B) adhere to recommended
thresholds

χ 2(258) = 341.634, p < 0.001, χ2 df = 1.324, GFI = 0.939, CFI = 0.985, TLI = 0.983, RMSEA =
0.029, SRMR = 0.031.

After conducting and validating the first-order CFA, we proceeded to determine theadequate fit
of the second-order model. Further, discriminant validity presents how each construct in the
model is different from other factors. Second, the standardized loadings are statistically
significant (p < 0.001) and have achieved the minimum standard of 0.5 or 0.7. First, for
convergent validity, the AVE and CR values exceed the recommended thresholds. Both AVE
and CR values exceed the acceptable thresholds of 0.5 or 0.7. shows that the values calculated as
the square root of AVE exceed the correlations between the other latent constructs. Moreover,
the pairwise correlation coefficients between factors did not exceed the 0.85 threshold.

Relationship Standardized: H1: INV → CE 0.386 5.810 *** Supported

Regression Estimates (β) : H2 : CP → CE 0.358 5.244 *** Supported 0.829

T-Value Sig: H3 : CM → CE 0.298 4.821 *** Supported

Result: H4: CE → LOY 0.735 11.206 *** Supported 0.540

R2: 0.829

0.540

Discussion:

The present study reveals that customer engagement, as a higher-order construct, is driven by
customer participation, involvement, and commitment, and, moreover, CE is an essential
predictor of customer loyalty. Out of the three dimensions that explain the higher-order
construct of customer engagement, the cognitive dimension emerged as the strongest one,
suggesting that customers are fully focused on their social media brand interactions and are
stimulated in learning more about their favorite brand. This result is compatible with previous
findings showing that engaged customers may exhibit more consistent buying behavior and
positive perspectives towards a preferred brand. This study discovered customer engagement as
an influencing factor in customer loyalty, offering valuable perspectives on the relationships that
lead to loyalty. The primary objective of this study was to explore antecedents and a main
consequence of customer engagement in social media marketing, while considering CE as a tri-
dimensional construct (cognitive, emotional, and behavioral). Finally, the emotional component
was the third strongest dimension, affirming the emotional attachment, interest, pleasure, and fun
that the customers are experiencing in their brand-related social media interactions. Emerging
work on customer engagement shows its key role in developing long-lasting relationships
especially as it relates to electronic commerce and digital marketing opportunities. In our study,
the finding that commitment is an important predictor of customer engagement corroborates
previous work.

Reference:

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https://investor.fb.com/investornews/press-release-details/2021/Facebook-Reports-Fourth-
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https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S244488342100036X

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0278431921000116
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https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0001879121000488

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0001879119301472