Don't Just “Like” Me, Promote Me: How Attachment and Attitude Influence Brand Related Behaviors on Social Media

As social media marketing becomes more pervasive, questions continue to emerge regarding utilizing the medium strategically to maximize positive brand-related outcomes. Marketers are increasingly seeking guidance for targeting consumers who will interact and behave in ways that are meaningful to the brand on social media. Understanding how individual differences among consumers can influence social media behaviors linked to valuable organizational outcomes is crucial for managers seeking to justify social media marketing expenditures. This research addresses that issue by applying Attachment Theory to social media. In Study 1, we examine the roles of two individual difference factors, attitude toward social media and attachment to social media (ASM), in predicting token and meaningful behaviors on social media. We find that while attitude toward social media and ASM are both related to token behaviors, only ASM predicts meaningful behaviors. In Study 2, we investigate attachment and attitude toward the brand and social media as predictors of offline and social media brand advocacy and demonstrate that individuals who are attached to or have a positive attitude toward the brand are more likely to engage in offline advocacy. Further, ASM adds incremental explanatory power, beyond attitude and attachment to the brand, in predicting advocacy via social media. In Study 3, we examine likelihood of advocating for a brand via social media as a moderator and find that even consumers who are not likely to be offline advocates are more likely to advocate for the brand on social media if they are strongly attached to social media. In sum, the results indicate that ASM is an important predictor of meaningful social media behaviors and is a new means by which marketers can identify consumers who are more likely to perform meaningful behaviors for brands via social media.