When Public Utilities Like to Talk on Facebook

Martin, Sebastian

doi:10.1007/s12398-017-0212-0

Cited by 2 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 49 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The chosen case study design avoids varied company specifications (e.g. company size, ownership structure, geographical location and monetary and time resources spent on the Facebook page) that might additionally influence the utility's posting behavior and the stakeholders' responses (see Martin, 2017b). Communication on the company's Facebook page is analyzed with quantitative techniques (i.e.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Do you like me when the sun is shining? The influence of weather and point-in-time on the stakeholder-Dialogue in Facebook

Martin

Wetzelhütter

Grüb

2021

IJESM

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the influence of external factors on the Facebook dialogue. As both weather and point in time substantially. As both weather and point in time substantially influence people’s lives, it can be assumed that both factors may also affect communication on Facebook. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study focusing on the impact of the external factors “weather” and “point in time” on a public utility’s Facebook communication. Design/methodology/approach The potential influence is explored through the case study of an Austrian public utility. The study focuses on 321 postings, published via the company’s official Facebook account between August 2016 and February 2018. Findings The empirical results confirm the influence of “weather” and “point in time” indicators on the stakeholder dialogue. The findings highlight how the relevant items affect the posting behavior of a utility, as well as stakeholders’ reactions, comments and shares. Originality/value By introducing both external factors to the social media literature, this paper broadens the understanding of Facebook communications beyond the sender and receiver of digital information. In this way, the research contributes to a more holistic view of Facebook dialogue. It provides practical advice on how social media managers of public utilities may use weather forecasts and “point in time” considerations to more strategically foster stakeholder dialogue in social media.

show abstract

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As recent studies show, public utilities increasingly communicate with their stakeholders on Facebook (Martin, 2016(Martin, , 2017b. The majority of companies uses their social network accounts to address citizens, current or potential private customers, current employees and the public and media.…”

Section: Theoretical Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

Do you like me when the sun is shining? The influence of weather and point-in-time on the stakeholder-Dialogue in Facebook

Martin

Wetzelhütter

Grüb

2021

IJESM

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The companies were selected on the basis that they are at least 50 per cent in public ownership and are members of the German Association of Energy and Water Industries (BDEW) or the Austrian Energy Association (Österreichs Energie e.V.). Being able to compare the expectations of users and social media managers, only companies were asked that participated in the manager panel survey of Martin (2017a), Martin (2017b), Martin and Grueb (2016) and Martin (2016). These criteria were met by 52 utilities, of which eight German and six Austrian utilities shared the link to the online survey with their Facebook users in June and July 2017.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Expectations of Facebook users towards a virtual dialogue with their public utility

Martin

Greiling

Wetzelhütter

2018

IJESM

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Purpose A growing amount of German and Austrian utilities create own Facebook accounts to communicate with their stakeholders. Whereas existing studies describe how utility companies are currently using Facebook, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, there exists no study which focuses on the actual expectations of Facebook users. Nevertheless, as the occurrence of social media redefined stakeholders’ expectations, research on the expectations of Facebook users become crucial. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to contribute to the existing social media literature by investigating the expectations of Facebook users towards a virtual stakeholder dialogue with their public utility companies on Facebook. Design/methodology/approach Eight German and six Austrian public utilities supported the empirical study by posting a link to an online survey on their Facebook account. In total, 258 Facebook users followed that link and completed the survey. Findings The broad majority of participants expect public utility companies to use Facebook as a communication channel. They request to regularly receive a variety of information on different topics. In addition, participants want to have the opportunity to post general queries, complaints or criticism, suggestions for improvement, positive feedback or queries in a crisis situation. Moreover, the empirical data reveal that user-specific characteristics such as gender, age, country of residence, length of Facebook membership or number of Facebook friends impact the expectations towards a Facebook conversation. Originality/value The findings enable scholars and practitioners to gain in-depth insights into Facebook conversations from the actual user perspective.

show abstract

When Public Utilities Like to Talk on Facebook

Cited by 2 publications

References 49 publications

Do you like me when the sun is shining? The influence of weather and point-in-time on the stakeholder-Dialogue in Facebook

Do you like me when the sun is shining? The influence of weather and point-in-time on the stakeholder-Dialogue in Facebook

Expectations of Facebook users towards a virtual dialogue with their public utility

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About