A study on the effects of social media marketing activities on brand equity and customer response in the airline industry

Abstract

This study analyzes the effects of social media marketing activities (SMMAs) on brand equity and customer response in the airline industry. A survey was conducted with a total of 302 passengers who used social media managed by airlines, and the collected data were analyzed via structural equation modeling. The results showed that trendiness was the most important SMMA component, and airline SMMAs had significant effects on brand awareness and brand image. In addition, the results demonstrated that brand awareness significantly affected commitment and that brand image significantly affected online word-of-mouth and commitment. It is expected that the results of this study may be used as fundamental data in the development of airline SMMA strategies, particularly by investigating the relative importance of each SMMA component and analyzing the effects of SMMAs.