Start Date
12-16-2013
Description
A network of interested social network followers represents a valuable asset for any organization. Yet, despite the very practical value of social media followers, the factors that allow one company to gain attention online while others have failed remain unknown. This study investigates the impact of traditional media marketing activities and the "socially-earned media" response to these activities within what we dub "curation-based" networks (CBN). CBN are online networks in which communication via the sharing of digital content represents the primary form of user communication. Using a unique data set collected over 8 weeks and involving a mixed sample of 1820 CBN companies and individual users, we empirically investigate the factors that attract CBN followers. Our findings suggest that in this environment, traditional media advertising plays a diminished role, and that attracting followers relies on a mixture of socially-earned media and user engagement within the network.
Recommended Citation
Church, E.; Zhao, Xia; and Iyer, Lakshmi, "PIN IT TO WIN IT: A Study of Marketing Success in “Curation-Based” Online Social Networks" (2013). ICIS 2013 Proceedings. 14.
https://aisel.aisnet.org/icis2013/proceedings/EconomicsOfIS/14
PIN IT TO WIN IT: A Study of Marketing Success in “Curation-Based” Online Social Networks
A network of interested social network followers represents a valuable asset for any organization. Yet, despite the very practical value of social media followers, the factors that allow one company to gain attention online while others have failed remain unknown. This study investigates the impact of traditional media marketing activities and the "socially-earned media" response to these activities within what we dub "curation-based" networks (CBN). CBN are online networks in which communication via the sharing of digital content represents the primary form of user communication. Using a unique data set collected over 8 weeks and involving a mixed sample of 1820 CBN companies and individual users, we empirically investigate the factors that attract CBN followers. Our findings suggest that in this environment, traditional media advertising plays a diminished role, and that attracting followers relies on a mixture of socially-earned media and user engagement within the network.