Customer Engagement in Facebook Brand Communities: Measurement and Best Practices from the Airline Industry

Abstract

This paper explores customer engagement in online brand communities and identifies best practices to enhance customer engagement in social media marketing contexts. Drawing on a case study of 30 full service network carrier Facebook communities, the findings demonstrate that customer engagement levels of a majority of these airlines are low, i.e. customers are only marginally or passively engaged. The findings also highlight distinct patterns of customer engagement behaviour among the top three airlines, whose customers are highly engaged. Through proposing a customer engagement measurement framework, this paper contributes to methods of measuring the effectiveness of social media marketing efforts. It suggests that one of the best ways to motivate customers to engage with brands is to create a good mix of marketing content that includes: relevant brand-focus information, entertainment, awards, and tips.