Social Media Advertising and Brand Image: Unraveling the Mystery Box

Abstract

The emergence of social media applications has opened up new avenues for firms to establish digital connections with their consumers, with a particular emphasis on creating personalized advertising on social media platforms. It is crucial to ensure proper synchronization of content used for advertising on these platforms. The current study focuses on the theoretical model that elucidates how social media advertising contributes to the development of robust brand-related images on social media platforms. Prior research shows that advertising has a significant impact on brand image. Hence, it is essential to discover how this relationship works in terms of social media advertising and how the attitude toward advertising mediates the relationship. This study employed a quantitative research approach. Data were obtained using the convenience sampling method from a sample of 325 respondents. Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 22.0 and Smart PLS 4.0 were used for the data analysis. The study concluded that social media advertising has a direct effect on brand image and attitude towards advertising acts as a mediating role between advertising and brand image. Also, brand image has a direct effect on brand equity. The results provided several practical implications in understanding the underlying process of creating an effective social media advertising campaign that will impact the formation of consumers’ attitudes toward advertising and brand image, eventually leading to brand equity.