Adoption of Facebook, Twitter and Instagram social media platforms by Maltese enterprises

Abstract

Purpose – The aim of this study is to gain a better understanding of the use of the three main social media platforms by local businesses. It does so by investigating and comparing attitudes of marketing officials towards these three platforms and understanding the approach they take in using them. Furthermore, this research contrasts the extent to which social media is used against traditional media marketing by local businesses, and provides an insight into the attitudes of marketing officials towards these social media platforms. Design/methodology/approach – An online survey is used to gather primary data from marketing professionals. This data is analysed and compared to existing secondary research to answer the research questions Findings – The findings of this study show that Facebook is the dominant platform locally, with Instagram and Twitter not reaching the success that they have internationally. It identifies that the latter two platforms are not locally as diffused as they are in other countries, giving them a bleak future unless major changes in local social media trends are achieved. The results also indicate that traditional media marketing is on the decline, according to the marketing officials who participated in this study. Research limitations/implications – These findings are limited by the number of local respondents who participated in the survey used to gather primary data. Further studies will require a bigger sample size in order to have a more accurate understanding of the local market. Practical implications – This study provides an insight into the current market situation regarding usage and trends of social media marketing. If utilized well, marketing managers can see gaps in the current trends and look to capitalize on other social media platforms. Originality/value – Understanding which platform is more popular can define future marketing trends, helping companies better position themselves with different social media platforms, not solely depending on one.