Social media usage in container shipping companies: Analysis of Facebook messages

Abstract

The importance of social media is increasing rapidly in the business world as in the lives of individuals. However, business-to-business (B2B) markets have difficulties in adapting to the newest 21st-century forms of communication. This study evaluates the current social media behaviors of container shipping companies to help practitioners increase their engagement in relation to the algorithms of these platforms. After identifying container shipping companies that use social media most actively, this study analyzed their Facebook messages in terms of branding, message appeals, direct-sales, and information cues, drawing on WOM psychological motivation theory and dual process theory. The study reveals that most companies do not use social media technology, and lack clear, generally accepted social media strategies. The analysis indicates that the inclusion of emotional appeals increases the engagement level of the messages but direct-calls-to-purchase decreases. Video and photo contents produce better engagement while video content increases virality. Finally, the number of fans of these companies no longer directly affects the engagement rate of posts with Facebook's changing News Feed algorithm. This means that the current engagement rate calculation methods in the literature have become obsolete. It is recommended that practitioners closely follow the ever-changing algorithms of social media channels and should not hesitate to use social media advertising.