Research on Social Media Marketing Impact on Consumer Behavior

This report investigates the impact of social media marketing on consumer buying behavior within the UK fashion sector, specifically focusing on Next Plc. It examines how social media influences consumer decisions, the effectiveness of social media advertising, and the benefits Next Plc gains from its social media marketing strategies. The research delves into the role of social media in attracting customers, increasing engagement, and building brand image. It also highlights the importance of social media influencers and the use of promotions and discounts to drive customer behavior. Ultimately, the report concludes that social media platforms are crucial for marketing products and services, building customer relationships, and enhancing brand recognition for companies like Next Plc.

Research and Study
Skills
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Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................4
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................4
Literature Review.............................................................................................................................5
To determine the impact of social media on the buying decision of the consumers..............5
To analyse the effectiveness of social media advertising on influencing consumer behaviour
................................................................................................................................................5
To determine the benefits gained by Next Plc by using social media marketing in influencing
customer behaviour................................................................................................................6
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................7
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................8
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INTRODUCTION
Social media marketing refers to the social network and media’s used by the
organisation in order to promote their products and services in the market. The services and
products can be effectively promoted through social media platforms as there is high traffic on
these pages which lead to customer acquisition in the market. This helps the organisation in
terms of engaging with the existing customers and further promoting the services and products to
new customers. This research is based on ascertaining the impact that social media have on the
buying behaviour of the consumer in fashion sector of UK, particularly Next PLC.
MAIN BODY
Topic: To ascertain the impact of social media marketing on consumer buying behaviour in
UK fashion sector: A study on Next Plc.
Rationale- This research is being conducted in order to analyse the impact that social media
marketing have on the buying behaviour of customers in UK. This research is conducted to
analyse the level of impact that social media have on the buying behaviour of customers. Further
the effectiveness of social media advertising in influencing the consumer behaviour of fashion
sector in UK is another reason for conducting this research.
Background- This report is based on the impacts that social media marketing has on UK
retail companies such as Next PLC. The respective organisation has good image in the fashion
retail sector and they have a good range of products and services.
Aim: To determine the impact of social media marketing on the behaviour of consumers of
Next Plc
Objective:
• To determine the impact of social media on the buying decision of the consumers.
• To analyse the effectiveness of social media advertising on influencing consumer
behaviour.
• To determine the benefits gained by Next Plc by using social media marketing in
influencing customer behaviour.
Research Questions
• What is the level of impact that social media marketing has on customers' buying
behaviour?
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• How effective is social media marketing in influencing the behaviour of customers?
• What are the benefits gained by Next plc by using social media marketing in
influencing customer behaviour?
Literature Review
To determine the impact of social media on the buying decision of the consumers
According to Aleh Barysevich, 2020, the social media influence the decisions of customers
in terms of buying behaviour. Social media plays an important role in terms of bringing the
attention of customers. The power of influencers on consumer is high as many customers follow
these influencers very impactful due to which they buy the products accordingly. The
organisation should be able to come up with new and improvised techniques that attract more
and more customers on the social media channels of the company. Social media can effectively
increase the customer engagement as it directly builds a bond with customers in terms of
effective branding strategies. The strategies of social media must be designed in a way that it
attracts more and more customer to the website of the organisation and ultimately resulting in
higher convert rate on website. The social media content must be designed in a way that it
exhibits the properties of products and services offered by the organisation. The buying decision
is based on the way the company interacts with customers, the advertisement posted on the social
media pages must be attractive in terms of graphics and content so that more and more people go
to the official page of the organisation.
The customer decisions are based on several factors but the organisation should develop
an effective image of the brand through social media advertising so that they can develop a good
image. The customer will make a buying decision on the base of ways in which the customer
interact with the brand and their ethics.
To analyse the effectiveness of social media advertising on influencing consumer behaviour
According to Jonathan Durante (2021), Social media has occupied one of the most
important position in communication tool that is used by an organization. Many organizations
across the globe uses this tool in order to connect with the customer base. Organizations have
adopted usage of Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn and other such platforms to advertise their
products and services on the internet. Further, it has been also seen and analysed that the
customers are highly affected by the advertisement as it creates curiosity on the customers and
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There is positive impact of advertisement on consumer behavior but according to the respondents
most of the people also think about their needs before buying any goods and services. Along with
this, Social media platforms allow users to spend time with more relevant content than traditional
advertisements; Making social ads more valuable because they are more likely to be seen by the
people that matter most for a product or service thus, Social Media ads are being seen as one of
the most effective tools in advertising.
The new era has adopted the social media to a great extent and social media is one of the
most frequently used technology. Through social media next plc can influence the behavior of
the customer as they can interact with the customers with sharing posts and stories so that it
enhances the experience of the customer. The new products introduced by the company can be
advertised on the social media platform as it will help in circulating the new range of product’s.
This will enhance the profitability of the company as more and more customers will interact with
social media platform of the company and further go to their website to make a purchase. Next
plc has also used the method of hiring a social media influencer through which the fashion
product can easily be sold. Social media influencers have a good reach and they can influence the
behavior of the customers through there following. The major ways in which social media
influences customer behavior are building awareness about the product that the company has
recently launched or is going to launch in near future. If the customer has an idea about the
newly launched product, then they might consider that particular product as an option while
purchasing the same category of the product. social proof is it greater force of making buying
decisions and hence it changes the tendency of people. The organisation can also influence
behaviour through effective promotions, deals and discounts which will be offered exclusively
through social media platforms.
To determine the benefits gained by Next Plc by using social media marketing in influencing
customer behaviour.
According to Boris Dzhingarov (2019), Social media marketing has range of Benefits which
help the organization in sustaining in the business environment. Social media platforms are
currently used by all the major players of the market. They hire people for Social media
platforms and the job role for these people is to interact with the customers using different
techniques. Social media platform is highly beneficial for the company as they can directly
market their products and have one on feedback conversation with customers. The range of
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benefits are derived on the basis of the ways in which the organisation implements the social
media strategies and channels in the business model. The posts and content posted on social
media increases customer conversion rate as more and more people get attracted to the content
posted by the social media manager of the respective organisation. Next PLC should employ a
skilled and experienced social media manager who is able to manage the advertisements and
tasks that are related to social media marketing. The benefits that will be accomplished in Next
PLC can be increased customer base, increased conversion rate, better image in the market and
their products can trend in the market through social media channels. Apart from this, the key
benefit of the social media marketing for Next plc tend to comprises and includes of the Increase
trustworthiness and brand recognition as use of social media Increase levels of customer service
and satisfaction and Foster online community and tell authentic stories that ensures become part
of the zeitgeist. Apart from this, Increased Brand Awareness, More Inbound Traffics, Improved
Search Engine Rankings, Higher Conversion Rates, Better Customer Satisfaction, Improved
Brand Loyalty, More Brand Authority and Cost-Effective are the benefits gained by Next Plc by
using social media marketing in influencing customer behaviour.
CONCLUSION
From the above report it can be concluded that the social media platforms play a crucial role
in marketing the products and services of the company. The organisation should use the social
media marketing at their best as it helps in building a relation between the customers and the
respective organisation. This helps the organisation in terms of engaging with the existing
customers and further promoting the services and products to new customers. This research is
based on ascertaining the impact that social media have on the buying behaviour of the consumer
in fashion sector of UK, particularly Next PLC.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Abney, A.K., and et.al., 2019. Intercollegiate social media education ecosystem. Journal of
Marketing Education, 41(3), pp.254-269.
Besana, A., and et.al.,2018. It's a Matter of Attention: The Marketing of Theatres in the Age of
Social Media. International journal of arts management, pp.20-37.
Costa, K.A.S.R., Fernando, P.I.N. and Perera, K.J.T., 2019. Do Self-Congruity Impact on
Consumer Buying Behavior? Study Based on Condominium Market in Sri Lanka.
Social media influence. 2020. [Online] Available through:
https://www.searchenginewatch.com/2020/11/20/how-social-media-influence-71-
consumer-buying-decisions/./
7 Benefits of Social Media Marketing. 2019. [Online] Available through:
https://www.digitaldoughnut.com/articles/2019/october/benefits-of-social-media-
marketing./
How social media influence 71% consumer buying decisions. 2020. [Online] Available through:
https://www.searchenginewatch.com/2020/11/20/how-social-media-influence-71-consumer-
buying-decisions/./
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