College

Ramon V. Del Rosario College of Business

Document Type

Article

Source Title

DLSU Business Notes and Briefings

Volume

10

Issue

4

Publication Date

10-2022

Abstract

Social media enable firms to engage their consumers at a lower cost and at a higher level of efficiency than traditional communication tools. Using the typology for social media marketing of Coursaris et al (2013), we illustrate how two Philippine social enterprises, namely Human Nature and HOPE, utilize social media, specifically their Facebook brand pages, to promote their social and economic objectives.

Our exploratory study shows that social enterprises adopt different approaches in crafting the messages they release on social media. Their choice of highlighting either their products or their advocacies are influenced by the nature of their products and services and also by how the messaging in one platform such as Facebook fits into the overall communication strategy. Our findings also reveal that social enterprises can be either product-driven or advocacy-driven in their social media posts; that they can formulate single-layered or multi-layered messages; and that they have the option of occasionally highlighting their partners’ advocacies on top of their own. Given the skillful crafting of social media messages, it is possible for social enterprises to support both economic and social objectives, especially if they choose to utilize multi-layered communication that send both explicit and subtle messages.

We conclude that social media platforms offer social enterprises a level playing field in the competitive business landscape. By taking advantage of social media, social enterprises can build brand equity, gain a larger consumer base, and achieve social, economic, and environmental objectives.

Keywords

social media, social enterprise, brand equity

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