مقاله سال ۲۰۱۶

With Internet applications like instant messaging and social networking sites, people can easily establish friendships without the constraints of geographic borders or time zones (Zhou, 2011). Nowadays, people have more channels through which to link up (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, Line). Past research confirms that the Internet does not only help people to maintain social relationships with distant relatives or friends but also to create extensive relationships online (e.g., Lewis, Kaufman, Gonzalez, Wimmer, & Christakis, 2008). Online social network communities bring people together; thus, companies can more effectively communicate to target consumer groups in social network communities than in other types of media. Online communities with larger member bases are good channels through which companies can advertise their products.

More companies increasingly adopt Facebook as a communication channel so that they can forward their messages broadly. Viral marketing refers to pass-along messages such as videos, stories, and pictures through e-mail that aim to increase product awareness or brand equity (e.g., Ho & Dempsey, 2010). Facebook brings about a new revolution of viral marketing by using social networking sites to share peer-topeer ads in a number of ways.

Online social networking service providers and companies need to generate profit through effective advertising on social network media. Because firms can execute advertising by using the Internet in a variety of ways, the appropriateness of Internet ads determine the benefits that firms can gain from the Internet. For example, peer-to-peer ads on social networking sites have the advantage of gaining the receiver’s trust same as the power of word-of-mouth in interpersonal communication, knowledge of how to manage personal communication channels, and message design will affect the outcome of Internet marketing.