The effectiveness of social media as part of a branding strategy for iGaming companies based in Malta

Abstract

The use of social media marketing has seen an increase in popularity in recent years. In order to remain competitive and create a strong marketing strategy, iGaming operators have begun to integrate social media resources into their marketing mix more efficiently. Therefore, this dissertation focuses on analysing the effectiveness of social media marketing for iGaming operators based in Malta, who make use of social media as one of their primary branding platforms.

Data was collected through structured interviews with industry professionals as well as questionnaires aimed at users of iGaming services.

The results show that iGaming companies opt to have a sound social media strategy for various reasons, including the ability to provide companies with a competitive advantage as well as social media’s overall effectiveness in strengthening the brand image, increasing brand awareness, encouraging user engagement, acquiring new customers and improving loyalty towards the brand.

While most companies and consumers make use of more than one social media platform, Facebook proved to be by far the most popular. YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, and snapchat were also relatively popular.

Also, it resulted that businesses need to be innovative by constantly provide their consumers with relevant and interesting information and promotions. This will help companies to maintain strong relationships with their customers via social media.