Despite the dramatic increase in the use social media marketing and huge business investments allocated to online marketing, little is known about consumers' perceived value of social media marketing. The perceived value concept is key factor in traditional consumer behavior.However investigations into online channels have not been done intensively. The present work has succeeded in demonstrating the role of perceived value on online consumer behavior and its influences on online word of mouth (OWOM) and behavioral loyalty. Based on a sample of 525 respondents who were social media users, the study used Partial Least Squares (PLS) technique to analyze the data. The study has succeeded in filling various gaps of knowledge and literature. The gaps addressed by the present work includes aspects pertaining to perceived value of social media marketing, online word of mouth, behavioral loyalty on online channels, etc.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine how the perception of CSR influences different aspects of consumer behaviour, specifically focussing on the antecedents of perceived value, customer support and loyalty. Design/methodology/approach A total of 418 completed responses were obtained and provided the data to analyse and test the hypothesised research model. To test the hypotheses, structural equation modelling using PLS was employed. Findings Findings reveal that customer awareness of the current CSR initiatives to different stakeholder groups significantly influences their perceptions of what social initiatives are actually undertaken by firms for their economic, legal, ethical and philanthropic responsibility. In addition, customer views of what firms actually do in respect to social initiatives are significantly related to their level of CSR expectations. This indicates that the customers will always expect more from banks compared to what they actually do. Surprisingly, CSR perception is not directly related to customers’ loyalty, which contradicts the majority of previous studies indicating that CSR perception influences consumer behaviour. Originality/value This study provides an original contribution to the CSR body of knowledge, especially for developing countries where the awareness level is low. It also provides a deep understanding of the influence of CSR into consumer behaviour, as it investigates the influence of the full construct of CSR into customer loyalty. Finally, the study investigated the relationship between the perception and the expectation of CSR; this relationship has been neglected in previous studies, where either CSR perceptions or CSR expectations have been examined separately.

Purpose This study aims to investigate employees’ perceptions of socially responsible financial services brands in Saudi Arabia. The study also identifies the motives and challenges for Islamic banks for higher involvement in social responsibility initiatives to enhance their brand values. Design/methodology/approach An inductive approach was used in this study to identify the motives and challenges related to corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities. The research design uses a qualitative approach where in-depth interviews were carried out among the employees in the financial services sector in Saudi Arabia. Findings Findings provide insights about how CSR initiatives for financial services brands in a developing and Islamic country are perceived. Results show that the focus of CSR activities is on the attribute of CSR, the magnitude of CSR and attitude towards CSR. Results show two main motives to engage in CSR activities, which are instrumental and ethical motives. The main challenges are related to the government, business, charitable organisations and customers and society. Practical implications Implications exist for how CSR is perceived in a new context and in the financial services industry. Understanding the current perception of CSR from a financial service brand perspective helps policymakers to develop appropriate platforms for financial service providers to become more socially involved. Originality/value The major contribution of this study lies in investigating the CSR perception among the key stakeholder (i.e. the employees) from a brand management perspective in the Saudi Arabian financial services sector. Further, this study shows the main motives and challenges, which local financial service brands face to become socially responsible. The categories of attributes, magnitude and attitudes can be used to enhance brand value in one of the economically advanced countries in the Arabic world, Saudi Arabia. In the first category “attribute”, the perception of socially responsible banks are highlighted, while the elements of CSR, including its dimensions, are emphasised in the second category “magnitude”. The third category “attitude” shows two themes, including stakeholders’ issues and business-related issues.

Social media has gained significant popularity in the modern era, as people are spending an increasing amount of time over platforms like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. This has instigated the organizations to amend their marketing communication techniques and to invest in the development of activities which may engage the customers. The aim of this research paper is to determine the role of social media engagement in influencing the customer loyalty from the perspective of the banking sector of Saudi Arabia. In order to ascertain this role, a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods has been employed in order to obtain relevant data and to come up with the conclusions. The regression analysis and the in-depth analysis of the qualitative data have established that the use of social media engagement has influenced the customers' loyalty in the banking sector. Therefore, banks should further focus on the social media in enhancing the customers' loyalty. Moreover, qualitative analysis suggests that customer loyalty gives strength to the financial position of the banks.

Word of mouth (WOM) is the oldest, yet still a very common form of marketing. Over the years, it has undergone under significant transformation as a result of the changing business strategies and rapid improvement in technology. Today, WOM has gained traction as a very effective and economic form of advertisement. With the increase in the use of internet technology and use of social media for marketing, online word of mouth (OWoM) is significantly changing the sphere. Today, many marketers prefer to use OWoM through platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for marketing their products. However, consumer's behaviors and attitudes are found to strongly influence OWoM. Using the Theory of Planned Behavior, the study explored the factors that predict the use of the OWoM marketing among youths in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Data were collected from 440 samples using structured questionnaires and analyzed using PLS-SEM. The results have succeeded in showing the complex relationship between attitude, behavioral control and subjective norms; the underlying beliefs, and the intention towards the OWoM.