The role of social media marketing activities in promoting brand equity and patronage of restaurants: A parallel mediation model

• Main Author: Aballa, Kenneth C.
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2023
• Subjects: Internet marketing—Philippines; Brand choice—Philippines; Marketing
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etdm_dsi/10; https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/context/etdm_dsi/article/1011/viewcontent/The_role_of_social_media_marketing2_activities_in_promoting_brand_Redacted.pdf
• Institution: De La Salle University

Micro, small, and medium enterprises, or MSMEs, are vital elements that shape the Philippine economy. The COVID-19 pandemic hastened the adoption of social media marketing activities as indispensable tools for the survival of businesses. Despite this, many establishments still need to effectively utilize SMMA as a tool to facilitate customer engagement and intention to purchase. Aside from SMMA, brand equity or the value created by businesses to give them a competitive advantage, is another marketing concept often overlooked by businesses. This study aims to discover the effects of SMMA on purchase intention as mediated by brand equity dimensions. The SMMA tackled in this study are Entertainment, Interaction, Trendiness, Customization, and Word-of-mouth. The brand equity dimensions discussed in this study are Brand Awareness, Brand Loyalty, Perceived Quality, and Brand Association. Surveys were distributed around the vicinity of restaurant cafes in Pasig, Mandaluyong, Paranaque, Las Pinas, and Quezon City. Using systematic sampling, the respondents gathered were 18-41 years old or those from the millennial and Generation-Z age groups. A total of 403 eligible responses were collected. The data was processed using JASP and R. It was revealed that SMMA directly impacts all brand equity dimensions and purchase intention. Regarding the mediating effects of brand equity, it was found that only Brand Awareness and Brand Loyalty partially mediate the relationship. In terms of business implications, this study may serve as a guide for business owners, managers, and marketers in constructing their social media marketing plans to generate purchase intention. As this research focused on cafe restaurants, future studies may explore other types of restaurants. Future researchers may also consider other social media channels besides Facebook and Instagram, which were the two main platforms that this study focused on. Lastly, a follow-up research may also be conducted post-COVID-19 to validate the current findings.