This master thesis focuses on the influence of the social media platforms Instagram and Facebook on the consumer-brand engagement of polarising brands. Social media platforms are not only for private use but are important communication and advertising tool for brands to build strong customer relationships. To stand out from the crowd of competitors and attract the attention of potential consumers, brands are increasingly using humorous polarisation. Based on a quantitative content analysis of user comments (N = 1,500), the correlations between the social media platforms Instagram and Facebook and the consumer-brand engagement of the polarising brands true fruits, SIXT and BVG are examined. The Uses and Gratification Theory and the Communication Accommodation Theory serve as the theoretical basis.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
1.1 Research Gap
1.2 Research Question
1.3 Structure
2. State of Research
2.1 Advertising
2.1.1 Definition of Advertising
2.1.2 Polarisation in Advertising
2.2 Social Media
2.2.1 Definition of Social Media
2.2.2 Brands on Social Media
2.3 Consumer-Brand Engagement
2.3.1 Definition of Engagement
2.3.2 Driving Factors for Consumer-Brand Engagement
2.4 Status Quo
3. Theory
3.1 Uses and Gratification Theory
3.2 Communication Accommodation Theory
4. Empirical Research
4.1 Study Design
4.2 Operationalisation
4.3 Sampling
4.4 Data Collection
4.5 Data Analysis
5. Results
5.1 Descriptive
5.2 Social Media Platform
5.3 Brand
5.4 Content Classification
6. Discussion
6.1 Summary and Interpretation of Main Results
6.2 Limitations
6.3 Managerial Implications and Future Research
Research Objectives & Topics
This thesis investigates to what extent the same social media content influences consumer engagement differently across the platforms Instagram and Facebook. By applying a quantitative content analysis to 1,500 comments, the work examines how polarising marketing strategies, particularly humorous provocation, evoke reactions from consumers for selected brands.
- Comparison of Instagram and Facebook regarding user reactions.
- Impact of humorous and polarising content on consumer engagement.
- Analysis of user comment content using the Uses and Gratifications Theory and Communication Accommodation Theory.
- Evaluation of engagement metrics for the brands true fruits, SIXT, and BVG.
- Identification of patterns in consumer commenting behaviour.
Excerpt from the Book
2.1.2 Polarisation in Advertising
In 1970, Levitt described advertising as an artistic means of expression, which companies are increasingly using for self-promotion purposes (Pope et al., 2004). Due to the constantly changing media consumption, only a small proportion of all communication efforts reach the consumer. Added to this, the human attention span has decreased to 8 seconds, leading to consumers expecting immediate entertainment and information from advertisements (Appel et al., 2020). According to Tenderich (2014), brand communication must be interesting, inspiring, and entertaining to establish itself as a brand in the long term and to stand out from the competition. One way to achieve this is to use experience-oriented advertising, especially in saturated markets with functionally fully developed and interchangeable products. In such markets, it is almost impossible to raise the profile of products through fact-oriented advertising, and therefore it is necessary to build up product preferences under low-involvement conditions (Kroeber-Riel & Esch, 2015). In experience-oriented advertising, emotional appeals like humour, sex, sympathy, and compassion are used to get and hold the attention of the consumer (Ehrenberg et al., 2002). Emotional appeals can be either utilised positively, e.g., happiness, joy, and security, or negatively, e.g., fear and worry (Kusumasondjaja, 2018). These appeals can either create a positive perceptual climate that leads to better processing and evaluation of the information presented or convey specific experiences for brands and companies. Emotional advertising is part of experience-related marketing measures and takes on the task of anchoring the advertisement in the emotional experience of the consumer (Kroeber-Riel & Esch, 2015).
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: Outlines the rise of social media in brand-consumer relationships and states the research gap regarding the impact of platform-specific reactions to polarising ads.
2. State of Research: Defines fundamental concepts including advertising, social media paradigms, and consumer-brand engagement while reviewing current literature on brand polarisation.
3. Theory: Explains the theoretical framework by combining the Uses and Gratification Theory (UGT) and the Communication Accommodation Theory (CAT) to understand user motivations and interaction styles.
4. Empirical Research: Describes the methodology, including the comparative quantitative content analysis of 1,500 comments for three specific brands as a case study.
5. Results: Presents the statistical findings concerning user engagement, platform differences, and the impact of different content classifications on comment nature.
6. Discussion: Summarises main findings, addresses study limitations, and provides managerial implications for future social media strategies.
Keywords
Social Media, Instagram, Facebook, Consumer-Brand Engagement, Polarising Brands, Humorous Advertising, User-Generated Content, Quantitative Content Analysis, Uses and Gratifications Theory, Communication Accommodation Theory, Brand Communication, Humour, Digital Marketing, Comments, Consumer Behaviour.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core focus of this master thesis?
The research examines how specific social media platforms, namely Instagram and Facebook, influence the consumer-brand engagement of brands that actively use humour and polarisation in their marketing.
What are the primary themes covered in this study?
Key themes include advertising strategies, the development of social media as a brand communication channel, the definition and drivers of consumer-brand engagement, and the effects of humorous or provocative marketing.
What is the central research question?
The study aims to determine: "To what extent do the social media platforms Instagram and Facebook influence the engagement of consumers and their response to polarising posts?"
Which scientific research methods were applied?
The author conducted a comparative quantitative content analysis of 1,500 user comments across branded posts on Instagram and Facebook, supported by a systematic literature review.
What does the main part of the thesis address?
The main part covers the theoretical foundations (UGT and CAT), the design and operationalisation of the empirical study, detailed results derived from the comment analysis, and a discussion of the practical implications.
Which keywords classify this work best?
Relevant keywords include social media, consumer-brand engagement, polarising brands, quantitative content analysis, humorous advertising, and digital marketing strategies.
How do Instagram and Facebook differ in user engagement according to the study?
The findings suggest that Instagram users tend to engage more passively through likes, whereas Facebook users are more inclined to actively engage through comments, which often trend towards criticism.
What specific practical conclusions does the author derive for start-ups?
The author concludes that while humorous polarisation can generate attention, brands must balance it carefully with consistency and credibility to avoid PR risks, suggesting that entertaining content often boosts engagement better than purely informative content.
- Quote paper
- Eileen Werner (Author), 2022, The Influence of Social Media Platforms on the Consumer-Brand Engagement of Polarising Brands, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/1245460
