Social Media Links on Magazine Advertisements: When Do We Need Them?

Abstract

In recent years, social media has become one of the most popular mediums with widespread linkages from traditional media formats to social media. The expected advertising spend in this area is $14 billion by 2018 (Hoelzel,The social media advertising report: Growth forecasts, market trends and the rise of the mobile. Retrieved January 1, 2015 from http://www.businessinsider.com/social-media-advertising-spending-growth-2014-9, 2014). In fact, the marketers are using more than one advertising channel to reach a target audience (Romaniuk, Beal, & Uncles, Journal of Advertising Research, 53:221–230, 2014). A common example of cross-channel advertising is the usage of social media links on magazine advertising. This descriptive study explores the determinants of the usage of social media links on print magazine advertisements, with a focus on reference group theory, demographics, and product-related dimensions. We believe that advertisers must consider using social media links in their advertising campaigns if they target female consumers, younger consumers, and ethnic consumers. Moreover, we propose that for nonnecessity, visible products, social marketing campaigns, and social events, these links are essential.