Exploring Customer Engagement on Social Networking Sites: A Qualitative Research Enquiry

The growth in popularity of social media and its perfunctory use by individuals throughout the day has sprouted the need to study customer engagement (CE) on social networking sites (SNSs) from the consumer's lens. To understand user behaviour, it is thus imperative to explore CE from their perspective. This study examines customer engagement and its antecedents and consequences on social networking sites (SNSs) in an emerging economy. Data from 21 semi-structured focus group discussions (FGDs) and 42 in-depth interviews (IDIs) were analysed through a grounded theory approach using Nvivo coding. The results highlight the usage patterns and conditions faced by users on SNSs and establish the presence of information overload faced by users. The study also shows various parameters related to post and individual that lead to passive and active engagement on these platforms. The study has direct implications for marketing managers across industries as it unravels various levers necessary to succeed on SNSs.