Social Networking Sites as Means to Create Customer Loyalty

In the last few years, Social Networking Sites (SNS) have become very useful for firms, allowing them to attract new customers and to manage the customer-brand relationships. In this context, we consider SNS as a new relationship marketing tool that can potentially improve engagement by helping the user to make his/her personal decision in an increasing range of domains. Then, as other relationship marketing tools accomplish (e.g. loyalty programs), brand pages at SNS provide relational benefits to its customers with the aim to create customer loyalty. In this study we analyze how relational benefits (utilitarian, symbolic and hedonic) perceived by customers engaged in brand pages, affect brand knowledge, brand equity and, ultimately, customer loyalty. The results of the study help managers to design their marketing strategies at SNS.