Facebook Followers of Ethical Companies: Community Conversations and Meaningful Marketing

• Main Authors: Busch, Cara Elizabeth, 丁莉安
• Other Authors: Wang, Sumei
• Format: Others
• Language: en_US
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/g62ehb

碩士 === 國立政治大學 === 國際傳播英語碩士學位學程(IMICS) === 103 === Fair Trade is for more than just coffee: Oliberté and prAna sell clothing, shoes, and accessories. Corporate social responsibility now takes the shape of business models. For each item sold, TOMS and Warby Parker give an item to someone in need. The present study takes a closer look at what is happening on these four brands’ Facebook pages with the focus on user-generated contributions. Observation of those pages during the 2014 American holiday shopping season identifies what people are posting. Depth interviews with active Facebook followers provide insight as to why people are posting about these companies and how they came to be brand advocates. The results indicate that though there are plenty of discussions about products, Facebook brand pages are not merely advertising channels. They are tools that the greater ethical consumption community uses to strengthen and expand its values-based groups of followers. People also choose Facebook over face-to-face conversation to start tough conversations about consumer and political issues within their own networks because it is easier to present controversial ideas. The informants, regardless of voting frequency, reported being skeptical of government and large organizations. Yet, they have faith in capitalism’s ability to carry out good around the world, and they are an active audience for meaningful marketing. Finally, informants reported hating shopping. Yet, they invested time checking corporate websites, reading literature written by a brand’s founder, and sharing information about companies on Facebook. Websites and social media are essential to the shopping process today because they are spaces where consumers learn about and share brand stories.