Investigating the Impact of Social Media Marketing Efforts on Brand Loyalty in South Africa: The Moderating Role of Gender

Marketers are focusing on interactive relationships by adopting social media marketing efforts (SMMEs) to sustain growth. The study examines how SMMEs influence brand loyalty of young energy drink consumers in South Africa. Gender has been identified as a moderator of this study. Cross-sectional data were collected from 300 (n=300) young adults (18-35 years) through a face-to-face survey. Partial least squares structural equation modelling was used to analyse the data. The results show that SMMEs influence brand awareness, brand association, perceived quality, and subsequently, brand loyalty. On testing gender as a moderator, the findings show that gender moderates the relationship between SMMEs and the identified brand-related factors. This study informs marketers that social media marketing efforts have an influence on brand awareness, brand association, perceived quality, and brand loyalty. Since gender plays a moderating role, marketers should consider the role of gender when customising strategies.